TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVING TEACHER TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT: A QUALITATIVE RESEARCH STUDY

Abstract

Teachers training and professional development play an essential role to enhance classroom practices and quality of education. From past few years, it is observed that educational institutes focus more on quality of educational strategies and strengthen teaching practices to improve students’ learning. Total Quality Management was originally formed by industry, but now it is widely used in educational field for its idea of continuous improvement in systematic evaluation, collaboration and teamwork. This study examines the role of TQM strategies in enhancing teachers training and professional development in private schools of Sialkot, Pakistan. This qualitative research study aims to explore existing teachers training practices, investigating teachers’ experiences about professional development, highlight challenges in training programs, and recommend strategies to improve them by using TQM principles. This study employed qualitative research approach with a descriptive case study design. Purposive sampling were used and 8 teachers were selected from primary school, who were part of training programs. Data were collected by using semi-structured interviews in order to get thick description of teachers’ views and practical experiences. Collected data were analyzed through IPA analysis to identify common themes and patterns about teacher training quality and TQM implementation. This study is likely to highlight problems in existing professional development systems, including lack of follow-up, low participation of teachers, insufficient practical trainings, and weak feedback systems. Furthermore, this study tends to emphasize that by integrating TQM in teachers’ training improved professional development effectively, continuously and sustainably in schools.