Site-based or
school-based management shifts decision making authority from the
central office to the schools. It reverses a trend, evident at
least
since the mid - 1960's, to try to improve school performance through
general-purpose instructures of public policy - regulation, mandate,
enforcement, and legal action. According to the theory of site-based
management, all decisions of educational consequence are to be made at
the school and none may be compelled by regulation in the district. In
practice however, it may be understood as a relative term, i.e., as an
increase in the number or importance of decisions made at the school
level.
1. Under the concept
of
the principal as a site manager,
the
principal
controls
school
resources
and
is
held
accountable
for
the
success
of
the
school.
This
view
of
the principal as the site manager was reinforced by the school
effectiveness
literature's focus on site leadership.
2. Under the philosophy of
lay control, parents control site policy because they are the
consumers
and care most deeply about policies at schools their children attend.
Parent school-site councils deliberate and decide on school level
policy.
3. Under school-site
policymaking by teachers, teachers form a school-site senate and
allocate funds and personnel as well as decide instructional issues.
School-site policymaking by teachers also enhances the professional
image and self-concept of teachers.
4. Under a philosophy of parity,
no one party should control the school entirely. Teachers,
administration, and parents should have parity on a school-site council
that reaches agreement through bargaining and coalitions. At the high
school level, students may be included. All factors deserve a place at
the table, and the best arguments should prevail.
Those engaged in
school restructuring can find direction in the philosophy of W. Edwards
Deming, which has guided the operations of many American corporations.
This paper provides an overview of Deming's Fourteen Points of Total
Quality Management (TQM) and discusses their applications to education.
To develop a successful TQM system, the school needs a clear plan of
action for reaching long- and short-term goals, staff training, quality
improvement teams, management involvement, and continual assessment.
Schools using TQM have reported improved test scores, reduced dropout
rates, and curricular innovations. The principles of TQM have broad
applications in education and have the potential to produce positive
results. School improvement becomes a continual process that created an
environment characterized by unity, change, and trust.
