Leadership and the development of quality culture in schools

Abstract

There is emerging evidence that leadership is an indispensable element in the process of initiating and sustaining the development of a quality culture in organizations. Such leadership is of particular importance to schools, where cultural, political and organizational factors make the management of quality problematic. For leaders to make decisions about the development of quality culture within their schools they require a thorough understanding of the theoretical basis of current approaches to quality management in education. In an effort to contribute to this theoretical understanding, considers the paradigm of total quality management (TQM) as a broad philosophy for the development of quality culture in schools. Describes how TQM is being identified increasingly as a viable paradigm for the development of a quality culture in school education and has been the focus for improvement efforts in individual schools internationally and in school districts, particularly in the USA.