Improvement Is Better Than Delayed Perfection

Improvement Is Better Than Delayed Perfection Question-Continuous improvement is better than delayed perfection  Mark Twain (1835-1910). Analyse this statement critically and rigorously with reference to appropriate literature sources. Introduction This essay will be looking at the importance of quality and continuous improvement at a glance within an educational context. The writers interest in the topic is merely to explore and understand the essence to which every establishment for whatever purpose it was built upon should strive in continuous improvement to services rendered to its customers and the community at large while maintaining quality services. The focus is to highlight any flaws within the organisational practice with which quality could still be improved upon for the good of the whole community. The structure of the essay will take an explicit interpretation and description of quality and continuous improvement while portraying an interventionist stance at the conclusive statements made at the end of the essay. Literature review The concept of Quality Quality management is a systematic way of guaranteeing that organized activities happen the way they are planned. It is a management discipline concerned with preventing problems from occurring by creating the attitudes and controls that make prevention possibleà ¢ By Philip Crosby Writings in 2008, Winch and Gingell state that during the 1990s it became fashionable to talk about ËÅ"quality in education. Part of the reason for this is a renewed interest in accountability. Why should the concern for accountability be expressed in terms of quality? One major reason is that concerns about whether or not a particular form of education is worthwhile have been expressed in terms of a paradigm derived from manufacturing industry. ËÅ"Quality in a commercial context strongly connotes product usefulness and reliability. ËÅ"Quality assurance refers to systems that are robust enough to ensure that products that are defective or unreliable simply do not get made. The idea, as one quality guru has said, is to ËÅ"get it right first time. Of course, an artefact can be scrapped or reworked if it is defective, but a service cannot. If it is not ËÅ"right first time then it is not right. Some effective quality assurance systems ought to be particularly relevant to service are as of economic activity. Whether or not it is in the private or the public sector of the economy, it is sometimes maintained that education has the characteristics of a service industry. In particular, if education is poorly provided then there is no second chance for the recipient. A diner at a restaurant who has a badly cooked meal will feel disgruntled but will suffer no permanent damage. On the other hand, the pupil who receives a poor education may not even feel disgruntled but may suffer permanent damage in terms of future life prospects. It is, then, not surprising to hear that a key feature of educational accountability is the provision of quality assurance systems. Every aspect of leadership and management across all sectors of most organisations require a sustainable approach towards ensuring quality and sustainable measures are being utilised and developed within a global context. This includes measures which most leaders would adopt towards maintaining and sustaining the strategic aims of any organisation with due considerations of internal and external forces which influences the decisions made each day. An example of what entails leadership that is sustainable through quality measures can be found in a school management system. Where the Head teacher aspires to have very committed students who have good grades, a good school structure and a qualitative staff that would help the school achieve its strategic objectives successfully. But during the process of strategising for an academic year other factors comes into play i.e. customer service, effective acquisition and deployment of resources, school budget for the academic year etc. There may be a number of key factors that would help achieve such success Firstly, a well-devised system of service evaluation process of Search-Feedback-Act that could be put in place involving all employees, not just management or teachers, in developing plans for improvement. Secondly, all employees could be given considerable education and training to help them improve service quality and would actively and systematically encourage creativity and innovation. Thirdly, the organisation that may move away from measuring quality purely by the number of complaints it gets from customers and the impressions of the head of personnel department. Instead, organisations implement a multi-factor index which includes quantitative points such as the length of time customers have to spend being tested into the school, and qualitative points such as the friendliness/politeness experienced at reception. The concept of Continuous improvement Continuous improvement has been successfully used by the Japanese for a number of years, and the Japanese word kaizen is used to describe it. The idea of kaizen is not to sit back once improvements have been made to a product, but to be almost like bees working away at a hive. Each does a little at a time, but by adding on an incremental basis they can eventually produce something that is much larger and better. The issue of quality can be approached in the same way, so that very minor changes over time can result in a considerable improvement in performance. For example, the levels of fuel efficiency in the average saloon car have improved dramatically over recent years. This has been made possible due to the cumulative effects of continual minor changes in car body shape, fuel delivery systems and engine design (.Porter, K., Smith, P., Fagg, F. 2006). Foskett, N., Lumby, J. 2003 states that the third way of defining quality (in regards to continuous improvement) is to match the current state with an imagined future improved state. In other words, individuals or groups not necessarily take as their comparator an existing standard or expectation but, rather, work creatively to suggest ways to which a current aspect of education could be improved. This definition is realistically based on working form what exist to what could be achieved. It is a universally applicable in theory in that ideas for improvement will take into account resources and political realities. However, the emphasis on continuous improvement is predicated on a degree of autonomy and power that may not exist in all institutions or cultures. If governments impose a structure or curriculum on schools/colleges, or if the internal management structures are hierarchical and controlling, then the freedom of staff, parents and students to suggest ways forward is clearly constrained. This idea of continuous improvement can be linked to Demings(1986) idea of Plan, Do, Study and Act, where a problem is examined, information is gathered and a plan to improve it is suggested. The ËÅ"Do part is when the plan is tested on a small scale, followed by the ËÅ"Study stage, where evaluation of the trial takes place to see if any other issues have arisen. The ËÅ"Act stage is where the plan becomes standard and is carried out continuously. This leads back into the ËÅ"Plan stage for further analysis. The question then arises of how one assures the quality of education. There are two answers which are not necessarily incompatible with each other. The first focuses on processes, the second on outcomes. Process-based quality assurance relies on observation of teaching and learning and the activities that support it, as the key determinant of whether the education being offered is worthwhile. Inspection is the most common form of process quality assurance. Outcome-based quality assurance relies on the assessment of the outcomes against certain pre-agreed standards. Examination and testing are the most common forms. Leadership Approaches Qualitative leadership skills in educational management revolve around factors described below: Identifying the key issues Improving Customer satisfaction and ways of measuring it Customer care training employees and setting standards Employee involvement in overall goals of the organisation. Improving quality observation and benchmarking Reflection and conclusion Quality and organisational culture- Foskett, N., Lumby, J. (2003) stated that Quality can also be relative to cultural norms. What appears to be quality provision for pre-school children in China will look very different to western eyes and vice versa. They further noted that measures of Quality by definition are dependent on numeric values in relation to, e.g., examination passed or examinations met, but such values do not necessarily capture the variety of outcomes expected of education or the dynamic changes in expectations in the experiences of even the learner, let alone the all those of an institution. Quality will therefore remain a fluid and nebulous concept, interpreted variously in practice, an orthodox to which many feel indebted to follow. No single prescription will secure improvement in quality in a context as complex and animated as a school or college. The most that an educationist can do is to remain aware of the imprecision of the concept and be sensitive to both th e educational and micro-political forces which affect its achievements, choosing with care from the plethora of taxonomies, philosophies, good practice and recommended process they can offer. Methodology Qualitative researched literature review was adopted which typically includes positivist, interpretive, constructionist, critical, and participatory paradigms. The researchers perspective stems from the long documented history of naturalistic observation in real-world situations. Views of positivism range from conservative to progressive-activist, but all involve the belief that reality is external to self and can be observed using tools that produce information that can be understood and interpreted by others. The essay is linked historically to social activism through the idea that social situations can be studied, critiqued, and subsequently changed. The essay may have collected data through observations or various forms of instruments and often derive explanations for their results from pre-existing theory without concern for whether the study population understands or agrees with their views. a literature review is very much a plural rather than a singular one as there are many literatures a researcher must examine to produce a coherent literature review. For example, by doing qualitative research, the researcher is joining an ongoing debate in some shape or form. The originality of an idea, an approach, or a theoretical reinterpretation adds to existing literature. The objective of this entry is to describe the plurality of literature, to underline the difference between general and specific literatures, to highlight how to use theoretical literature as a tool to increase understanding of a subject area and test a research question or hypothesis, and to examine the methodology and data literatures that form important parts of the research process.( GIVEN, M. L. 2008) Data findings on quality and continuous improvement in educational context. Wherever an educational operation is based, whether it is public or private, it needs customers, and consumer choice has increased dramatically over the past twenty years because of three factors: globalisation, technology and competition. Technology Technology provides opportunities and threats. The development of computer technology in the form of online and blended learning, podcasts, webcasts and blogs can and increasingly will provide consumers with the option of new self-study methods and the choice to learn with an organisation in a foreign country while living at home or working in the office. At some point translation software may even negate the need for some people to learn a foreign language. These technologies, however, also provide organisations with opportunities to provide new methods of learning and new means of communication with customers. The rise of online learning and blended learning programmes, plus the expansion in state education of new technology [such as interactive whiteboards] means that students are increasingly more techno-literate. It also means that as technology develops and becomes more part of our everyday lives, students generally expect language classes, which in some cases take up a large p art of their disposable income, to be technologically well-equipped. The exponential growth of technology cannot be ignored as the speed of technological advancement is unlikely to slow down. Competition Competition may come from new organisations entering the market, as mentioned above, but it may also appear in other forms. As other countries gain economic power, their languages become more important and people begin to study them to enable them to enter that economy. This phenomenon has already been observed (Graddol, 1997) with Spanish, Arabic and Mandarin expected to gain importance over the next decades, eventually becoming a serious threat to English as a foreign language. As economies develop, education is becoming increasingly important as skill becomes essential to finding work. An increasing number of courses are becoming available, especially in the field of computers and information technology, which compete with ELT for customers, particularly within the training budget of major companies. Gaining an Edge over Competitors If an organisation has an element of its service which is different or more attractive than its competitors it is said to have achieved competitive advantage. Gaining competitive advantage requires a cross functional approach between an aspect of marketing which gathers data about customer needs and expectations and the day-to-day operational functions that translate those market needs into operational capabilities. The roles of marketing and managing the day to day operation are often taken by one person in small organisations, which can make it easier to translate customer needs into operational reality. In a small private language school of ten teachers, for example, the director may be the focal point for information about the local market, the local economy, the type of customers the school serves and how they feel about the service. In a school of this size the director may also be the person who decides what courses are offered and whether the market is best served by, for example, offering expensive one-to-one ESP tuition for business professionals or cheap general English courses for classes of 20 students. A not-for-profit organisation may also consider pursuing a particular strategy based on the kind of customers it serves. For example, a charitable or state ELT organisation may decide to provide cheap walk-in English classes for disadvantaged mothers to attend as and when they have time. In this case, flexibility is the key to satisfying the customer and gaining competitive advantage. The three factors of globalisation, technology and competition mean that educational organisations have to pay increased attention to the needs and expectations of existing and potential customers to retain them and to attract new ones. By gathering information on customers needs and through market analysis organisations can develop a service which is different or more attractive than that of competitors. (Walter. 2001) Conclusion If stakeholders allow ourselves to get caught by the short-term disease of modern management, non-thinking, market-driven practices then the idea of sustainable organization is out of the question. Also the chance of ever reaching the levels desired will be eliminated in all but the shortest of measures. It is necessary for every leader of the future to know enough about the moral side of business and how it could be approached with sacrificial aims through which sharing and upholding several values together among competitors would improve upon global problems. Or how the socio-economic profit of the organization could be able to express or aid the concerns required to reflect a longer-term view of the community at large. I would recommend that every leader in every spectrum or field of study to bring about ways through which the underlining influences bordering the choices we make in life (in regards to quality and continuous improvement) should reflect upon the healing societal issues rather than competing. Just as we know in the history of human relations over time that competition brings about a chaotic state while the harmony of shared values and sacrifices brings about societal cohesion and benefits all. References Crosby, P. (1980) Quality is Free. McGraw-Hill. Deming, W. (1986) Out of the Crisis. MIT. Foskett, N., Lumby, J.(2003) Leading and managing education-International dimensions.London. Paul Chapman Publishing Given, M. L. (2008)The SAGE Encyclopaedia of Qualitative research methods. California. Sage Publication series Graddol, D.(1997) The future of English. London. The British council Porter, K., Smith, P., Fagg, F. (2006) Leadership and Management for HR Professionals Oxford.Butterworth-Heinemann Walker, J. (2001). Clients Views of TESOL Expectations and Perceptions The International Journal of Educational Management 15/4. MCB University Press http://www.emeraldinsight.com/Insight/viewPDF.jsp?Filename=html/Output/Published/EmeraldFullTextArticle/Pdf/0600150404.pdf Walker, J. (2007)Service Climate in New Zealand Language Centres Journal of EducationalAdministration 2007 Volume: 45 Issue: 3 http://www.emeraldinsight.com/Insight/viewPDF.jsp?Filename=html/Output/Published/EmeraldFullTextArticle/Pdf/0740450305.pdf Winch, C., Gingell, J.(2008) Philosophy of education. Oxon. Routledge publishers

Develop Positive Relationships with Children Essay

1.1 Explain why positive relationships with children and young people are important and how these are built and maintained Why positive relationships with children and young people are important (Ref 1.1): * When children feel comfortable with us they can separate more easily from their parents. * Children are more likely to participate in play and learning activities if they are secure emotionally * when children have strong relationships, they are less likely to show unwanted behaviour as we can recognise and meet their needs * children’s language develops more quickly because they feel confident talking to us * practitioners can plan more accurately as they understand children’s developmental needs and know their interests * practitioners are able to respond to children more effectively because they can recognise their expressions and emotions. Good relationships are really important for our wellbeing. Humans have evolved as social animals, so we have a deep, natural need to connect with other people and to belong to a social group. This sense of connection and belonging comes from good relationships with the people around us – in our families, at work or school and with our friends. There is strong evidence that when we feel we belong, we will flourish. A child’s ability to develop good relationships is an extremely important step on the path to getting the best out of his or her life. How positive relationships are built and maintained (Ref 1.1): * Communicating effectively Often, we focus on trying to get our point across or saying how we feel about something. However, communication is a two-way process – it involves listening as well as speaking. How we listen to others is just as important as what we say to them. But good listening is much more than staying silent when another speaks. The most effective form of listening for building good relationships is empathic listening. Empathy is about seeing things from the other person’s point of view. So, empathic listening means listening with the intention of really understanding what the other person means and how the other person feels. We are much more likely to build good relationships with children and young people if we really make an effort to see things from their point of view. If we do this, they will feel supported and understood, and are much more likely to open up and tell us about what’s happening in their lives and how they feel. Seeing things from a child’s point of view is not easy. It means really trying to step into their shoes and imagine how a situation looks through their eyes and how it feels to them. This quote helps us understand how children (and adults!) really want to be listened to: | When I ask you to listen and you start giving advice, you have not done what I have asked. When I ask you to listen to me and you begin to tell me why I shouldn’t feel that way, you are trampling on my feelings. When I ask you to listen and you feel you have to do something to solve my problem, you have failed me, strange as it may seem. Listen! All I ask is that you listen: not talk or d o – just hear me. We also need to consider the child’s perspective if they ask us for our opinion or advice. Children are much more likely to listen to our opinion or advice if we can put it in a way that means something to them. For example, if they ask us for advice on what subjects they should study at high school, it may be best to explain why we think certain subjects would be better than others. Or it may be that they don’t want specific advice on what subjects they should do, but they want us to help them think about it so they can then make the decision more effectively themselves. So, asking probing questions like: â€Å"what do you enjoy doing most?† or â€Å"what would you like to find out more about?† or â€Å"what would you be most happy doing as a job on a daily basis?† may help them make the decision for themselves. Effective communication is not just about speaking and listening. It is also about watching and feeling. Our body language and tone of voice actually communicate more strongly than the words we use. So, listening effectively involves tuning in closely to the other person’s body language and tone of voice as well as their words. How positive relationships are built and maintained(Ref 1.1): * Identifying and sorting out conflicts and disagreements Children, like adults will have their disagreements. As children get older their arguments can become more serious and are not  simple squabbles. In order for children and young people to trust us, it is important that we can identify difficulties and help them wherever possible to find ways through them. It is essential that children and young people perceive our way of doing this as fair. When you have a conflict with a child, there is an opportunity for learning about how to solve problems. Conflicts help children to understand that other people have different thoughts and feelings to their own. Listen to the child and try to understand their point of view, and help them to understand yours. Then together, try to think of ways to solve the problem that you are both happy with. It might take a while but it will be worth it, and will help to build your relationship. How positive relationships are built and maintained (Ref 1.1): * Being consistent and fair Consistency means not just keeping behavioural boundaries in place, but also making sure that we do not have significant mood swings, e.g. one day being excitable and funny and the next being quiet and withdrawn. Children and young people rely upon us, this means that it is essential that day to day, we are consistent. Children also need to know that we will be fair with them, we will listen to what they have to say before jumping to conclusions and we will try to make sure that their needs are taken into consideration.Fairness is something that adults need as well. Parents will want to see that the way that their family is being treated is comparable with others, while staff members need to feel that their workplace is a fair one where everyone is expected to pull their weight. * Showing respect and courtesy Mutual respect is essential for good relationships. This means that everyone in the relationship respects each other. Respecting others means being considerate towards them, thinking about their feelings and accepting that they may have different views and opinions to you. A good relationship with a child would mean that you would respect them and they would respect you. Good long-term relationships also involve giving to others (for example: time, kindness, praise, etc.). However, just because you give, it doesn’t mean that you lose out – everyone in the relationship should give, so  everyone should expect to benefit (mutual benefit). A good relationship with a child would mean that they benefit from their relationship with you and you would benefit from your relationship with them. Children don’t have to compete with each other to gain recognition or opportunities. We all have different abilities and strengths, and if we teach children to respect each other and to see each others’ strengths, we will be helping them to see that everyone can achieve in their own way. Their own success does not have to be diminished by another child’s success. And, if you can help them to help each other to be successful, you will be helping them to build better relationships with each other. From the earliest age, we should be using markers of respect in English such as saying please and thank you. We should also speak to children and young people using voice tones that are warm and courteous. * Valuing and respecting individuality Good relationships can lead to great ideas, creativity and achievement. We are all different, and in good relationships, people celebrate their differences, they don’t just tolerate their differences. They may have different religious or political beliefs, different kinds of lifestyles, different personalities or different abilities. But they use this diversity and richness of experience to create better ideas and new solutions or create a great team achievement. Children, young people and other adults will all have different strengths, talents and attitudes. They will also respond in different ways. Valuing and respecting their individuality means showing that we are comfortable with their differences. Children, especially teenagers, often want to ‘fit in’ with their peer group. Feeling comfortable with the people around us is important. But to fit in and feel comfortable with others, we don’t have to be the same as others, we just have to accept and value others. If we can make others feel accepted and valued, then they are more likely to accept and value us. Recognising others individuality is the basis of anti-bias practice. How positive relationships are built and maintained (Ref 1.1): * Keeping promises or honouring commitments Trusting someone else is the foundation of a good relationship. We can  strengthen or weaken someone’s trust in us by what we say and do. To strengthen a relationship, it is important to think about the little things we can say or do to keep the other person’s trust – for example, we can be open and honest with them, keep our promises and try to understand their point of view. As adults who work with or care for children, you can help develop your relationships with children by doing things that build their trust in you. This will show them how to trust others and behave in a way which helps others trust them. Not keeping promises or honouring commitments mean that a child or young person will tend not to trust us again or may keep some distance from us. Build trust in your relationships with children – keep your promises, be honest and clear about what you expect from them, apologise when you make a mistake and forgive them for their mistakes. Help them understand that you expect them to do the same with you. * Monitoring the impact of your own behaviour on others Part of working professionally with children, young people and their families is to monitor and then, if necessary, adapt our own behaviour. You may notice that a child moves slightly back when you talk to them. Noticing this is important as it might be a sign that the child finds you too overpowering and so you will need to alter your style slightly to be gentler. * Keeping confidentiality as appropriate Confidential information is information which should be shared only with people who have a right to have it, for example, your lead practitioner, supervisor or manager. Confidentiality is essentially about trust and respect. Parents and other professionals will often give you confidential information on the basis that it will be helpful to you when you work. They do so trusting that this information will not be passed on to others, to become the source of gossip or interest. If you breach confidentiality, you will break that trust. When trust between you and others breaks down, so too does the relationship. While we can never promise to maintain confidentiality if children reveal that they have been abused, or that there is a danger that they may be harmed, keeping confidentiality is an important part of working with children, young people and others. 1.3 Evaluate own effectiveness in building relationships with children or young people The wonderful thing about children and young people is that they are all different. We need to adapt the way in which we approach and communicate with them according to their age/stage of development, needs and personality. For each child or young person that I work with, I consider the strength of the relationship, they have with me. I use the following pointers to identify how well the relationship is being built: * Greeting Does the child or young person seek me out soon after coming into my setting? Does the child or young person like to tell me when they are leaving the setting? * Seeking help Does the child or young person look for me if he/she needs help or if they have had an accident? * Smiling and eye contact Does the child or young person often make eye contact with me or smile while I am with them? * Looking for company Does the child or young person look for me to get involved in his/her playtime, in chat or in an activity? * Absence Does the child or young person miss me when I am not in the room (babies and toddlers) or if I am off for a few days? Ref 2.1 Explain why positive relationships with people involved in the care of children and young people are important The professional and positive relationships we develop with people involved in the care of children and young people will ensure that good communication is possible in order to support the needs of children and their families. It is important to have these positive relationships as if we don’t there is a danger that information may be withheld or passed on incorrectly. This has to be taken seriously as, over the past few years, some child deaths have occurred because people caring for children have not worked properly together. An example of this is: In 2000 in London, an eight-year-old Ivorian Victoria Adjo Climbià © (2 November 1991 – 25 February 2000) was  tortured and murdered by her guardians. Her death led to a public inquiry and produced major changes in child protection policies in England. After Climbià ©Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s death, the parties involved in her case were widely criticised. A public inquiry, headed by Lord Laming was ordered. It discovered numerous instances where Climbià © could have been saved and noted that many of the organisations involved in her care were badly run and did not communicate with one another. Where parents are concerned it is essential that we build positive relationships so that we can work closely together with them to benefit the child in a variety of ways. This should include settling the child in, sharing developmental information and also learning about children’s interest. Benefits of positive relationships: Information can be shared quickly between adults Children are given consistent care Skills and ideas can be shared Children’s welfare can be properly monitored Children’s needs and interests are identified Plans for children’s care and education are more effective People involved in the care of children and young people are : Colleagues Organisational managers and supervisors Carers/parents Official visitors e.g. inspectorate for the UK home nation (Ofsted) Other Visitors, Colleagues from other agencies and services (Early years) External partners

Biomedical Informatics Is It The Smooth Communication...

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