I disagree. While teachers are absolutely key the support has to come from the home. If the parents don't support what the teachers are trying to accomplish it's a huge uphill battle. No matter how perfect the teacher.

The teacher is a key player in delivering quality-as-process and quality-as-result within the education system. The zero defects classroom is a part of a larger system in which the classroom is one of the key components. Enhancing outcomes for learners must be a priority in the USA. Issues ranging from national standards or state standards, professionalization of the teacher’s role back to what it used to be, assessment of processes as well as outcomes, and required performance of parents are all critical issues. My biased opinion is we are slipping behind in our K-12 education system. There is work to do and the corporate community can contribute ideas, insights, and clearly stated expectations.

This does not look like a good defect analysis.

I would expect that all factors involved would be examined and weighted in contribution to the problem at hand.

In this case you seem to be placing undue influence on the teacher part of the equation and are not looking into other contributing factors. Off the top of my head I can name facilities, textbooks, management (school board and office staff), government influence(NCLB and other dictates), parental involvement and home environment, cultural expectations, peer pressure, A student's native abilities, language skills and motivation, prior learning history.

I used to teach and I can say that any of these could be a show-stopper for a single student. Some of these can be a showstopper for the entire class.

One key difference between the educational process and most other areas where quality principles are applied is that in manufacturing we usually are allowed to control the quality of our raw materials. In education we are expected to teach whoever walks in the door, with whatever textbook that is dictated, and whatever agenda that is imposed. A lot of very good teachers leave public education because so many roadblocks are imposed on the teaching process.

Mark B.

When it comes to education, especially at the high school level, it isn't the content so much as the technique - students that learn HOW to learn have always tended to do better than students who excel at memorization. This is the real problem with the education system as I have seen it: the focus is still on creating parrots that end up having a hard time trying to apply the knowledge they have "learned" in the real world, and subsequently have to unlearn trivial, inaccurate or outdated information, or struggle through their adult lives trying to reconcile their knowledge with their experiences. However, if the goal of education is to create people unable to perform critical thinking, then I suppose it is actually doing a superlative job.

When parents deliver children with zero defects, we can have zero defects in education. Schools could require parents to be ISO 9000 certified. They could be trained in Six Sigma Parenting and 5S. Single parents could learn Lean Parenting.
PS Read "Cheaper by the Dozen" to see the possibilities.