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TRANSPARENCY – Why, for whom, how? Sabine Prem TU Graz Office of International Relations

TRANSPARENCY – Why, for whom, how? Sabine Prem TU Graz Office of International Relations. Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZ ie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005. What do we understand by transparency? Do we want transparency? Why do we want transparency? ↓

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TRANSPARENCY – Why, for whom, how? Sabine Prem TU Graz Office of International Relations

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  1. TRANSPARENCY – Why, for whom, how? Sabine Prem TU Graz Office of International Relations Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005

  2. What do we understand by transparency? Do we want transparency? Why do we want transparency? ↓ How do we achieve transparency? Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005

  3. What do we understand by transparency? Measures: • to make studies readable, understandable and comparable • inside and outside the university • in Austria and from abroad Do we want transparency? • certain unwillingness to change habits, to give up traditional methods of teaching, to update course contents Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005

  4. Why do we want transparency? Because we (different persona) want to: • participate in EU programmes? • apply for the ECTS / DS Label? • implement Bologna goals? • attract more students? • enable our graduates to continue their studies abroad? • be competitive? • internationalise our campus? • get accredited by a foreign accreditation board? Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005

  5. How do we achieve transparency? • ECTS • Diploma Supplement • other instruments: e.g. accreditation by non-European boards, individual explanations (course contents, hours), „Studienverlaufsanalyse“, handbook on quality assurance Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005

  6. ECTS What are the transparency instruments? • ECTS Information Package • General information on the university • Description of study programmes and courses • Information about academic and administrative matters • ECTS forms • Transcript of Records • Learning Agreement, Application Form • ECTS Coordinators • ECTS Grading Scale • ECTS Credits Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005

  7. ECTS Information Package Problem areas: • not enough information, information is not structured, it cannot be found, is not updated, cannot be understood as outsider • not considered important, too time-consuming • fear of giving too much away when describing courses in detail What is necessary? • information has to be structured according to needs of (possible future) students, it no longer concerns only students in mobility programmes • course descriptions are requirement for teaching • printed and electronic information, German & English • easy to read for outsiders (outside of the institution) What has proved to be useful? • course information: simple semester plans, good quality course descriptions, description of learning outcomes, competences, levels • model for course descriptions • general information: keep in mind who the information is for Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005

  8. ECTS forms: Transcript of Records, Learning Agreement, Application form Problem areas: • often adaptions of the forms are used → cause unnecessary work • credit allocation • learning agreement: not binding, does not guarantee recognition as such, course information is often not available / incomplete when needed What is necessary? • use of standardised forms • credit allocation has to work within the institution in all cases What has proved to be useful? • curricula only in ECTS credits (instead of semester hours), model semester plans (course structure diagrams) as part of the curriculum • acceptance of ECTS- and similar forms for incoming students Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005

  9. ECTS Coordinators Problem areas: • responsibilities not clear • ECTS departmental coordinators not involved in curriculum development What is necessary? • shift responsibility from international office to faculty level / study programmes → appoint one or two ECTS departmental coordinators (students, ECTS) with specific responsibilities • departmental coordinators have to be included in curriculum development ECTS Grading Scale Problem areas: • Austria has an absolute grading system • no statistical data • failure rates are not compared • small groups, better grades in higher semesters Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005

  10. ECTS Credits Problem areas: • official length of programme vs. average length • credit allocation (30 / 60) • amount of workload in hours resembling 60 ECTS credits (Austria: 1500 hours per year) • 1 ECTS credit at TU Graz ≠ 1 ECTS credit at xxx • different amount of ECTS credits for the same course in different study programmes • amount of workload outside of Europe is often restricted to contact hours What is necessary? • be flexible, take small steps • find one study programme in which credit allocation is correct → use it as model • investigate why average length of studies is longer than official length → take necessary measures to reduce length Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005

  11. Diploma Supplement • additional information on the degree • extremely important outside of Europe, but does it then provide sufficient information? • negotiations between Europe and Third Countries necessary • workload outside of Europe is often restricted to contact hours Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005

  12. Recognition Recognition of ECTS Credits • ECTS credits do not have an absolute value • recognition should be based on • content and • learning outcomes and competences • in reality recognition also depends on • type of institution, reputation of institution • person responsible for recognition Recognition of Degrees • within Europe: 2 cycle system favours recognition • outside of Europe: problematic because of different lenghts and requirements of the programmes • necessary to provide information on entrance requirements to the university and on the programme structure Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005

  13. Conclusions • ECTS and Diploma Supplement are valuable and indispensable tools for transparency • theory has to be put into a practice that works for the institutions • ECTS often evokes unpleasant connotations but it is time for a change • flexibility is needed in some cases whereas fixed structures are needed in others • honesty is transparency • ??? Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005

  14. http://www.international.TUGraz.at http://www.international.tugraz.at/en/ECTSeng.htm http://www.international.tugraz.at/en/Bologna_TUGrazeng.htm Transparency instruments and recognition (ECTS & DS), GRAZie BOLOGNA, April 29-30, 2005

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