Editor’s note: This is the second article of a multipart series about the role of quality in education and its effect on workforce development. In part one of the series, the role of accountability was detailed and profiled.

The well-established quality control mechanisms and processes used in business for more than two decades are now infiltrating academia. Rather than quality control professionals, accountability directors are assuming the functions of ensuring best practices in schools. Where business refers to continuous process improvement, the education model refers to monitoring.

Based on the voluminous mandates and initiatives from local school districts and state and federal governments as required by No Child Left Behind, schools are attempting to quickly respond with strategies that will improve students’ achievement test scores as well as skill sets in reading and math. Just as industry selects a process strategy, such as lean Six Sigma, education models use similar methods to select and assess the efficacy of their solutions.

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