I was listening to This American Life last night. It was the show from two weeks ago. The episode focuses on a collaboration between GM and Toyota that began in 1984.
Decades leading up to the collaboration, a GM plant in Fremont, CA had been overrun by labor unions. Quantity took precedence over quality and there was no incentive for good work. Employees at the plant did not like their job nor did they work hard.
The show focused on how NUMMI, the new collaborative plant in Fremont, CA, implemented a new culture and how its new employees struggled to spread the ideas started at the plant throughout the rest of GM.
The Start of NUMMI
To begin with, all employees were fired when the plant changed. Employees who wanted to be apart of the new plant, were sent to Japan and introduced to the Toyota Production System. That system was based upon teamwork and quality over quantity.
While it took some time, the unions bought into the system and in turn NUMMI became the most successful plant in GM.
Despite the fact that NUMMI had been successful, the production model that Toyota had introduced had not been embraced by the rest of GM. This problem plagued GM up until early this decade but by then it was too late. GM was on the road to bankruptcy.
NUMMI and Education
I tell this story because I believe our schools are very similar to this story. There are great school models out there. Many of them are moving away from that "industrial" model of teaching and implementing approaches that put the students at the center of the learning. Using models like the ones I refer to in my previous post, these schools have changed the culture and have created their own NUMMI. The problem we face is very similar to that of GM.
The models are out there. There are "commandos" on the ground, ready to see schools change. Our challenge is to ensure these model are implemented more widely.
What can we do to ensure we do not become GM? I sure hope so.
Listen to the podcast, which is linked below and let me know what you think.
The Podcast
Posted via email from Dave Bill's Posterous
I guess the question you are asking is this: why hasn't the shift to 21st century teaching and learning become more systemic? My answer is a lack of accountability. It is beyond the point where educators are unaware of the need--there have been thousands of books on the subject, announcements by think-tanks, business groups, and other educational organizations. Teachers nation-wide know that there students see the world and learn about it very differently than they do. Why so slow to change? They don't need to. Like workers in the former Soviet Union, many get paid the same no matter the results (AP teachers and those preparing students for state exams are the exception, although there are very few merit pay systems that are pegged to student performance numbers, as far as I know). I'd recommend Jim Collin's book Good to Great on this subject--on accountability and systemic change. Thanks for sharing your thoughts Dave. Keep up the good work.
ReplyDeleteJohn. Good points. There is a lot to be said about the "need to change". Hence, my frustration with the traditional classroom and school system. There IS a need to change, while higher ed still bases college acceptance off of AP and SAT scores that does not mean that things should stay the same. Can we not still prepare our students for those particular exams by taking different approaches to learning? Can we not reconsider the methods of teaching and learning yet still have students learn the "core" skills and content that will prepare them for said exams?
ReplyDeleteThanks for reminding me to read "Good to Great". It's been on my to read list for a while.