TQM IN HIGHER EDUCATION

Abstract

F one leaves aside the philosophical aspect of life, one can safely say that the purpose of life is constantly to improve the quality of one’s life. Quality has been a virtue which has remained important during all the ages of human history, be it the quality of a product, the quality of the time spent on any job, the quality of education/training received or the quality of management. The lives of human beings are, to a large extent, affected by the quality of anything and everything around. Quality failures can and do result in serious human inconveniences, economic waste and even loss of life. A big change, however, in the attitude of mankind towards quality has recently taken place. Quality, in the more liberalised and competitive world of today, is no longer an option for which something has to be paid extra, it is a positive requirement for the very survival of all systems. Quality is and rightly so on the top of the agenda in all progressive organisations. TQM Concept Quality is easy to visualise and yet difficult to define. Quality is used both in absolute and in relative terms. Quality may be defined as something which passes a standard or something which is consistently good with no defects. Quality may also be defined with reference to a purpose, i.e., something which fulfills the purpose for which it exists. Some define quality as equitable value for money. Quality may be defined as excellence with reference to both the price and the cost. Quality is neither mind nor matter, but a third entity independent of the two. It is ‘best’ with reference to the requirements of the purpose in mind. Therefore, the quality function includes all activities, no matter where performed or by whom performed, through which we achieve quality. Quality of education is a multi-dimensional concept, with varying conceptualizations. It includes, within its ambit, the quality of inputs in the form of students, faculty, support staff and the infrastructure: the quality of processes in the form of learning and teaching activity: and the quality of outputs in the form of the enlightened students who move out of the system (Sahney, Karunes and Banwet, 2001). Quality control is an effective system of ensuring quality, ensuring continuing excellence. Total Quality Management (TQM) is a modern term wider in scope than the total quality control (TQC). TQC considers the role of employees in improving the productivity. But it remains silent about the quality of work life, employee satisfaction and organisational development. TQM, however, is a holistic view and takes into its fold not only ensuring productivity and efficiency but also ensuring individual satisfaction and institutional building and human well being. TQM is not merely preventive, it is pro-active. This new approach to quality control, which has come to be known as TQM, is not merely applicable to commercial organisations, it is equally relevant for classroom learning and, more so, for management of educational institutions. TQM is a philosophy and a methodology which assists institutions and which introduces and manages change- a change of cultures: change of attitudes and working methods. Custodians of education must, therefore, realise that any educational institution is a system comprising many subsystems which interact with each other and with the total system as well, one affecting the other and in turn getting affected by the other. Thus, the systems must work collaboratively together to develop an effective and efficient total system. This will, in turn, ensure the effective and efficient goal fulfillment. I