Quality Education

Education must fully assume its central role in helping people to forge more just, peaceful and tolerant societies. -Ban Ki-moon, Former Secretary-General of the United Nations(UN)

After 3 years of tough negotiation in 2015, 193 countries agreed to a common set of universal goals that each UN member will use to frame their agendas and political policies over the next 15 years called the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Goal 4 of the SDGs was a unique goal focused purely on education. This is the first time such a standalone education goal has been set and ratified. And it is a big deal for many reasons.

Understanding Education Quality

Quality can be regarded from different perspectives. For many students quality is a fair system where their skills are awarded and where their achievements are acknowledged. For example, a Scottish student in 2nd standard thought that a good teacher “is very clever, doesn’t shout, helps you every day, is not bossy, has faith in you, is funny, is patient, is good at work, tells you clearly what to do, helps you with mistakes, marks your work, helps you to read, helps you with spelling and has got courage.” For parents, quality means a school where the students are safe and where they can learn in a stimulating environment. For many teachers, quality is a school where the students want to learn and where the working conditions are good.

There are various approaches to understanding ‘quality’ in education.

Quality education enables people to develop all of their attributes and skills to achieve their potential as human beings and members of society. In the words of the Delors Commission (UNESCO, 1996):

For the purpose of this article, we have focused on 3 complementary definitions.

ASCD and Education International (EI)

Two leading education organizations that represent over 30 million educators globally — ASCD, based in the Washington, DC, USA and Education International (EI), based in Brussels, Belgium have defined quality education as follows:

“A quality education is one that focuses on the whole child — the social, emotional, mental, physical, and cognitive development of each student regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, or geographic location. It prepares the child for life, not just for testing.

A quality education provides resources and directs policy to ensure that each child enters school healthy and learns about and practices a healthy lifestyle; learns in an environment that is physically and emotionally safe for students and adults; is actively engaged in learning and is connected to the school and broader community; has access to personalized learning and is supported by qualified, caring adults; and is challenged academically and prepared for success in college or further study and for employment and participation in a global environment.

A quality education provides the outcomes needed for individuals, communities, and societies to prosper. It allows schools to align and integrate fully with their communities and access a range of services across sectors designed to support the educational development of their students.

A quality education is supported by three key pillars: ensuring access to quality teachers; providing use of quality learning tools and professional development; and the establishment of safe and supportive quality learning environments.

The statement also describes the current state of education in the world and calls on educators to promote a whole child approach to education:

The SDGs reflect a global consensus in our young century that education is a human right and a public good that is critical to the health and future of the world. But ours is a world of severe challenges, with millions of students under fire, unsettled and unschooled due to conflict and governments globally failing to meet their funding commitments to education, especially with regard to their poorest citizens. Education advocates have a responsibility to promote policies that integrate schools, communities, and nations into a system that supports development of the whole child, ensuring that each student is healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged.”

This fact that this interpretation of education quality is emanating from the teachers themselves gives it more weight.