Some years ago, I met with
some Japanese executives and they mentioned quality improvement techniques
taught in their school system. I asked them when they start teaching these
techniques in their schools and one of them responded, “Oh, I would have to ask
my son who is in the third grade when he started.” He went on to say, “I myself
started when I was in the fourth grade.” These students have grown up to help
change the quality of Japanese products and services to the highest standards
of the world.
Other Asian countries have
taken note of Japan’s success and have followed suit. Starting in primary
school and extending throughout high school, students are introduced to the
teachings of W. Edwards Deming, Joseph Juran, Kaoru Ishikawa, and many other
great figures of quality. They learn quality problem-solving tools, basic
kaizen, statistical methods, and a host of East/West theories about human
development and behavior.
The city of Lucknow in
northern India is home to the City Montessori School, the worlds largest school
according to the Guinness Book of World
Records with 40,000 students.1 Dr. Jagdish Gandhi and his wife,
Mrs. Bharti Ghandi founded it in 1959 and began including quality concepts in
their curriculum during the 1990s as they saw what Japan had accomplished.
Jagdish Gandhi’s teachings
have spread throughout India and various parts of Asia and Africa. The
teachings are shared primarily via an annual convention called the
“International Convention on Students’ Quality Control Circles at cities around
the world.
For the students from
India, given the backdrop of India’s economic rise, one can only wonder what
fantastic career paths there will be for these future leaders when they infuse
the vigor of their childhood training in quality into their country’s
bloodstream.
Meanwhile, what is
happening in this country? We are focused on leaving no child behind and
certainly would not want to introduce statistical methods in primary school.
Even if we were properly motivated to teach improvement techniques to our
students so they could compete in the world market on a level playing field
basis, you might ask who would teach the teachers?
It turns out that is not a
problem. Most institutions of
higher learning have a section or department, with a staff that is
knowledgeable in quality improvement. The major problem is that they are
focused outward and not inwardly on their own system. They provide training for
industry on the improvement philosophy and techniques but rarely does the
institution practice it internally. If they did, the professors and staff would
see the benefits firsthand and quickly work it into their curriculum, including
the Department of Education where they train future teachers.
As Dewar and Bammert said
in their article, what we are seeing in Asia is a refreshing young class of
future leaders. There is little doubt that their early grounding in quality
philosophy and tools will strongly influence how they will one day lead, and
live. Deming and Juran were Americans who taught the Japanese. It is time now
for us to learn from the Asians the importance of teaching quality improvement
to our students.
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