Three aspects of quality control are discussed: development of the technology of quality assurance, accessibility of dental care as a quality assurance issue, and the role of the professional association in quality control. Pressures to both assure quality of services, and control costs are acknowledged. (MSE)

Suggests an approach that organizations can take to provide centralized support services for quality assurance in end-user information systems, based on the experiences of a support group at Citicorp Mortgage, Inc. The functions of the support group include user education, software selection, and assistance in testing, implementation, and support…

Interprets the standards used in 74 curriculum audits undertaken by school districts between 1988 and 1995. School systems are judged on their control of resources, programs, and personnel; establishment of clear educational objectives; connectivity and equity in program development and implementation; use of feedback from system-designed…

Educators' efforts to employ quality management (QM) and strategic planning (SP) processes often fail because they plan incompletely; view QM and SP as distinct, parallel efforts; or fail to establish systemic responsibility for desired changes. This article introduces a four-phase framework that integrates strategic planning and quality…

Examines extent schools using site-based management approach were engaged in decision making associated with curriculum and instruction, roles teachers were playing, and strategies used to ensure instructional program quality. Analyzes data gathered in extensive interviews with staff, board members, and parents from six school districts.…

Christopher Brumfit and Hywel Coleman discuss professional and political issues arising from attempts to establish a national body for the accreditation of teacher education courses, issues that are fundamental to the successful establishment and maintenance of standards in English language teaching. (VWL)

This article introduces a series of papers describing different approaches to quality assurance and evaluation in higher education, focusing on the Finnish approach to governance and evaluation which has moved from detailed control to outcome targeting accompanied by a strong reliance on the capacity of institutions to evaluate themselves. (JDD)

The President of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) proposes that all members of the AACTE be given six years to achieve National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education accreditation. The article explains the demographics of the current situation in accreditation and discusses the importance of national…

Clinical applications of statistical process control (SPC) in human service organizations are considered. SPC is seen as providing a standard set of criteria that serves as a common interface for data-based decision making, which may bring decision making under the control of established contingencies rather than the immediate contingencies of…

Examines the conceptual basis for the cost of quality and its application to libraries. The framework for analysis of this conceptual basis includes definitions of the cost of quality; a brief historical review of the cost of quality; and the application of quality cost to libraries, including an explanation of how quality costs respond to quality…

Presents a guide to multimedia production staffing. Discussion includes understanding the market (profit and loss), the management and production teams, costs, salaries and budgets, the preproduction phase, the production and design phase, staff cooperation, work assignments, media-specific professionals, and quality control. Sample staffing costs…

Reviews issues related to systemic reform, indicating their manifestation in the National Research Council's proposed National Science Education Standards. The paper suggests that the unifying vision is vague and does not provide a foundation for revised educational decision making, and it discusses the viability of the notion of systemic reform.…

Increasingly, higher education institutions are using Total Quality Management (TQM) as a vehicle for delivering cost-effective programs and services. The TQM philosophy is that quality can be improved by ceaselessly improving the processes that support the institution's mission. TQM is applicable to institutional research and planning as well as…

Discusses four approaches to assessing the quality of early childhood program: top-down, which focuses on the adult's view of setting, equipment, and the program; bottom-up, focusing on children's experience; outside-inside, emphasizing the family's view; and societal, in which agencies and communities assess programs. (LB)

Discussion of computer-aided indexing activity focuses on examples from projects at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Standardization and quality in providing subject access to databases are considered; and computer-aided lexicography, including thesaurus construction, access vocabulary, definitions preparation,…