Quality and Education in the 21st Century

In this book, quality education is presented as a holistic and futuristic process. It upholds and conveys the ideals of a sustainable world. It takes into consideration the social, economic and environmental context. Therefore, quality education is presented as a locally relevant and culturally appropriate. It is informed by the past and relevant to the present, and prepares individuals for the future. In other words, the education of the future at all levels must not focus purely on the theoretical, but rather blend several theories and practice to respond to the real needs of real people. The question asked in evaluating every possible change is simple: Is it in the best interest of the students? To be sure, education teaches people to be better individuals, family members, community members and citizens. However, in order for that success to occur, education must offer a balance of relevancy and results. With this in mind, this book goes beyond the theoretical aspects of improvement (although very limited). In fact, it focuses on approaches to optimize the educational processes for better results. It addresses several old time tested methods to improvement and it introduces some of the newest methodologies of Six Sigma and Lean. Finally, it introduces reform ideas to education from K-12 curricula as well as post secondary education.