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Beginning Concept |
The greatest change in the workplace is the constant change that must be met for a business or service to succeed. Product development has moved from ten years to ten months. Today's success story is no guarantee that it will survive tomorrow.
To meet the ever changing marketplace demands requires an empowered team environment to succeed. Continuous improvement is a necessity. Ideas must be exchanged and developed. Problems must be solved by finding the cause, then develop potential answers that best meet the need. This requires workers that can share information, organize their operating procedures, and deal with co-workers with diverse backgrounds, knowledge, and skills.
Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky, Inc. (TMMK) evaluates applicants for work for a variety of job related knowledge and skills. An applicant is expected to be able to demonstrate the ability to work as a team member, solve problems, provide leadership initiative and communicate ideas. These same characteristics have been stated as key needs by industry and business regardless of the product or service provided. During the past ten years, a steady decline in the percent of applicants able to demonstrate these abilities has been acknowledged. This raises the question, "Where and how can applicants develop these behavioral competences?"
A review of employee development within TMMK has shown a high level of personal growth and satisfaction among team members participating in the Quality Circle program. Using the tools of meeting facilitation and problem solving techniques, team members improved their own work environment. These skills were transferable to their daily life choices. Be it working together as a family around the kitchen table, in their church or community activities or how to deal with a personal concern, these skills helped team members resolve issues. Can these techniques be shared with others? Would schools be able to use them in fulfilling their mission?
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Looking at Schools |
Schools and businesses have had long standing relationships in many school districts. The School-To-Work initiative has expanded and enhanced these relationships. Many outstanding programs are being conducted to introduce students to the workplace and real life situations. These programs tend to be either industry or task specific.
Educational writings indicate an expectation of student development in higher order thinking and the practical application of theory. Many references are made to team work, problem solving and community involvement. To implement these concepts requires standard processing tools that can be used within any curriculum on an ongoing basis. Tools that will ensure total involvement and shared responsibilities in learning the curriculum being taught. Tools that help develop students' skills to handle real-life choices. Tools that can be a part of a teacher's classroom techniques not another program.
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Becoming Involved |
After learning more about the School-To-Work program from the Kentucky State Department of Education, TMMK decided to discuss the possibility of bringing Quality Circle techniques into the classroom as teaching tools with our local Scott County School System. Dr. Dallas Blankenship, Superintendent, Scott County Schools System, encouraged us to pursue the idea. We met with the Scott County District Curriculum Committee for their input and support. This resulted in our making a proposal to the School Board of a three-year joint pilot program between Scott County School System and Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Kentucky, Inc.
The proposal was approved with the basic outline as follows:
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Year One - Develop the concept
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Year Two - Implement in the classroom Grades 1 through 12
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Year Three - Integrate the process into the curriculum
An Organizational Committee was created with equal membership from Scott County School System and TMMK. The Committee planned, developed and implemented all phases of the proposal. Although the concept is to develop learning skills through techniques used in the classroom and not create a new "Program" to be taught, the name QUEST (Quest for Useful Employment Skills for Tomorrow) was adopted for the purpose of sharing the process being recommended.
The concept was implemented by first training all administrators and principals within the system. Since the concept is readily applicable to faculty, Board and staff meeting dealing with issues, it was important to have the leadership of the system to understand and model the concept.
Two high school teachers in one of their classes for one semester conducted first classroom activity. Both the teachers and students response were extremely positive. We then trained twenty-five teachers representing every school within the system the techniques to be used. Every level was able to comprehend and use the techniques. We then added an additional one hundred teachers and two schools outside of Scott County System.
As we continue the development of the process, we are finding new ways to empower the teachers and students to improve their own learning environment. Our history has just begun.