EDUL6015

EDUL6015 - Total Quality Management

Based on the information provided in Chapter 7, develop a comprehensive TQM implementation plan for your school. Make sure you
· list those schools you chose to benchmark (and tell why you selected those schools);.
· tell what committees you would form (why you formed them and who will serve on them);.
· tell what kind of data you would collect (be specific on the questions asked and the people you survey); and
· tell how you would evaluate the progress of the implementation plan.

Schools
My selection for schools that I would use to look at benchmarks and look for new methods and ideas came from a search on the Georgia Department of Education website looking at the School Report Cards for the 2005-2006 year since this past year’s results are not yet available. After looking at the surrounding area, I found three middle schools that have a lot in common with our school. ICMS’s report card showed an enrollment of 1030 student with 42% of those being “Economically Disadvantaged”. We also have a 14% “Students With Disability” enrollment. Our school made AYP with an Adequate Improvement rate for 2006. The first school I would choose would be Memorial Middle School in Rockdale County. They had an enrollment of 1275 last year with a 42% ED population. They also had a 9% SWD population. They not only made AYP, but they had a “Distinguished” improvement rate. The next school I would look at would be Morgan County Middle School. Their enrollment was only 811, but it is located in a very similar setting as our school. They have a 43% ED population with a 14% SWD population. They also had a “Distinguished” improvement rate. Oconee County Middle School is also a smaller school with a population of 868 students. Only 15% of their students fall into the ED rating with only a 9% SWD population, but they also had a “Distinguished” improvement rating. There were two other schools that I looked at that were very similar to our school in demographics and “setting”, small town/rural, but they both had only “Adequate” improvement ratings like we did, so I settled on the other three.

TQM Committees
Since we are looking at the school level, some of the teams would have to be changed to reflect the school rather than the whole school system. The central office staff and school board would not necessarily be involved in the school process. Following are my interpretation of the committees based on a school’s implementation of TQM. If possible, there should be a consultant hired to guide the school through the process. The consultant would be a member of each committee/team for as long as the consultant feels they are need in the process.

Executive Steering Committee – This committee consists of the administrators of the school and the School Council (2 community members and 2 teachers). This committee is needed to guide the whole process. They would need to be trained in the TQM process and commit to spending the time and energy required to move the school into TQM.

Local Steering Committee – This committee would be equal to our current BLT which consists of all department chairs and team leaders as well as the administration, media specialist and counselors. This committee would, in turn, need to learn about TQM and train all the employees of the school about the TQM process. Many of the members are the same as the ESC; they will also need to be totally committed to the process and guide the local teams.

Local Quality Team – This committee will work to identify and solve the problems, as well as help to carry out the improvements that are needed. It will consist of at least one representative from each grade level and department (different members than those on the BLT or LSC). These teachers will also need to have a strong commitment to the changes and be literate in the process of TQM.

Process Review Team – A checks and balances process will be carried out by the Process Review Team. They will help to communicate the suggested improvements and help evaluated the ongoing process. This team consists of administrators, department leaders, and at least one central office administrator to ensure that the suggested improvements meet within the realm of the system’s requirements. Most of the members of this team are on other committees, but if they are not, they should receive full training in TQM.

Quality Teams – There will be a number of Quality Teams that are created to work on the different areas. These teams should be similar to those that were utilized in the SACS review that our school completed last year. A team on facilities, curriculum, communication, and a variety of others would provide a strong, realistic picture of the school and how it operates. Each of the teams should consist of at least 3 teachers and 1 parent. If possible, it would be good to put a student on each team, as well, to provide yet another viewpoint from a stakeholder. These teams should identify their leader and should look at not only what improvements need to be made, but how those improvements would affect the entire school. They should also make sure that the improvements align with the system needs.

TQM Data Collection
            The next step, after creating the ESC and the LSC is to begin the process of data collection. Again, after having just gone through SACS, we are fairly familiar with the process of surveying the teachers, parents, and students. This data was collected and presented within the SACS report. Data should be collected on a rigorous academic curriculum, as well as the organization of the school, the processes utilized by the school, the practices in managing the school, and the final product, or the outcomes. It should include data collection from both internal and external customers and should be analyzed in each area and as a whole.
            I would create a survey for the teachers to cover all of the above items. In fact, I like the survey we were given within the readings. I think the wording of most of them, since we are looking at an individual school and not a school system, would need to be changed to reflect that, such as “The school calls groups of teachers together to define the mission of the school” rather than “The system…..” Another question I would rephrase is “The principal of this school assists teachers in promoting high expectations of learning to students’ parents.” Each teacher would have the opportunity to complete the survey.
            The survey for parents would be very similar. I would look at the school’s demographics to see if there was a way to determine the educational level of the majority of the parents. I wouldn’t want the survey to be inaccurate due to the parents not understanding the wording of the questions. If there is a low educational level, I might rephrase the above statements to read “The school asks teachers to help define the job of the school” and “The principal of the school helps teachers relay the need of parent support in their child’s education”. Each parent should be sent a survey and encouraged to complete it and return it to the school anonymously. This would give every parent an opportunity for input. This survey could also be used among local community members to determine the community view of the school. After all, we are educating the future workers for many of these businesses.
            My last set of surveys would be for the students. Again, I would use the same ideas for the questions, but put them in terms that the students would understand, rather than at the level of the educators (which, I hope, is higher than our students!). For example, the questions might read, “This school has teachers and staff that care about the students” and “The school provides workshops to help teachers in learning how to teach better”. Each student should have an opportunity to complete a survey, perhaps during their homeroom, and should be done anonymously so that they feel free to answer honestly.
            Another form of data collection would be to look at the schools that were benchmarked. The data found from these schools would be a starting point to look at for changes that are needed. Some practices may be adopted and some may not fit into our school. Looking at the practices, even if they aren’t incorporated, may bring about other ideas and/or changes, even though they may not be on paper.

Evaluation - Continuous Improvement
One of the first things I would like to do is create a timeline in which the changes should take place. I am the type of person who doesn’t adjust well to change, so making the changes one at a time would allow the stakeholders to adjust to each change as it comes about and would give time for evaluation about whether the change was effective. I would have the LQT prioritize the changes and then implement them using the prioritized list. Some changes may only take a few weeks to implement while others might take the whole school year.
These changes would then need to be evaluated. I think a quarterly survey would be appropriate, possibly surveying a different group each quarter (teachers, parents/community members, and students) and then a complete survey of all stakeholders at the end of the year. Another option for evaluation would be to do a mini-survey (instead of quarterly) before implementing each new change. This would evaluate each change and it’s effectiveness. The complete survey for all stakeholders at the end of the year would be a guide for the following year in the process of continuous improvement. Changes that weren’t implemented correctly or that didn’t result in the desired effect could be reevaluated and altered to meet the current needs. The Process Review Team would be an integral part of this process, being sure to keep all the changes aligned with the county needs.