Quality schools, best described in Dr. William Glasser's The Quality School, The Quality School Teacher, Choice Theory, and Robert Sullo's Inspiring Quality in Your School, are schools that intentionally apply the ideas of Choice Theory, the practices of Lead Management and the process of Reality Therapy throughout the school. While no two Quality Schools or Quality classrooms would look alike, Dr. Glasser has enumerated certain characteristics that they would share. A Quality School would meet six criteria: - All discipline problems, not incidents, will be eliminated in two years. A significant drop should occur in year one.
- At the time the school becomes a quality school, achievement scores on state assessment tests should be improved over what was achieved in the past.
- TLC means that all grades below competence, or what is now a B, will be eliminated. Students will have to demonstrate competence to their teachers or to designated teacher's assistants to get credit for the grades or courses. All schooling** will be eliminated and replaced by useful education.
- All students will do some quality work each year - that is, work that is significantly beyond competence. All such work will receive an A or higher grade. This criterion will give hardworking students a chance to show that they can excel.
- All staff and students will be taught to use choice theory in their lives and in their work in school. Parents will be encouraged to participate in study groups to become familiar with choice theory. A few of these groups will be led by teachers to start, but parent volunteers will be asked to take the groups over once they get started.
- It will be obvious by the end of the first year that this is a joyful school.
** schooling is defined by two practices: 1) making students acquire knowledge that has no value for anyone in the real world and 2) forcing students to acquire knowledge that may have value in the real world, but nowhere near enough value to force every student to learn it. To The Quality Classroom
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