QUALITY in Education Program at Rayne Catholic   (GRADES K through 4)Performance Excellence Criteria of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Program for Education

Malcolm Baldrige is . . .

• A “no excuses” approach to teaching ALL students
• A focus on continuous improvement
• A framework for performance excellence
• A combining of management techniques proven successful in the business world with best practices from education
• A design model effectively linked to both increased student performance and increased student, parent, faculty and staff satisfaction.

Quality theory is based on the simple, self-evident premise that every system is perfectly designed to deliver the results it produces.  School leaders and teachers must learn to recognize the impact the design of a system has on the results it achieves. 

Quality Education is defined in terms of a Mission Statement, Strategic Objectives, Exit Outcomes, and Character Education Goals.  If people are not clear about what is important, they have no context for making the minute decisions they make every day. No context means no consistency, and no consistency means diffused energy.

Student Data Folders / Binders

The purpose of a data folder / binder is to provide a way for students to manage important information about their learning as a foundation for continuous improvement.

Includes:

• Personal goals and measures
• Drivers / Distracters
• Bar chart or run chart for monitoring personal progress toward goals
• Personal action plan for improvement
  • What am I going to do?
  • Why am I doing it?
  • Who’s going to help me?
  • How will I know if I am successful?
• Student/teacher/parent conference log
• Classroom mission statement
• Classroom goals and measures
• Class performance levels in key areas
• School mission statement
• School goals

Quality Classrooms look like. . .

?  The classroom mission statement

?  Classroom goals and measures

?  Data indicating class progress towards classroom goals

?  Plus/Delta charts

?  Action plans for the day

?  Chairs/desks/tables arranged to support collaborative work in achieving classroom goals

?  The school mission and the school goals

?  Grade-level/course standards in kid-friendly language

?  Flow chart(s) of key classroom process(es) such as morning routine, homework, lab

?  The teacher talking to students about what’s important

?  The students talking to the teacher about how we can work together to achieve what’s important

?  Students talking to the teacher about their personal goals and action plans

?  Students asking their teacher for assistance in achieving their personal goals

?  Students talking to students about class and personal goals and strategies for achieving them

?  Students talking about the classroom learning system, the class mission, goals and measures

?  Student-led conferences with parents to share progress toward learning goals

?  Synergy

?  A sense of learning community

?  Shared accountability toward achieving class and personal goals

?  Excitement about learning

?  Respect for different talents, competencies, and perspectives

?  A willingness to collect and analyze data to improve the learning system

?  A commitment to continual improvement