INTERNATIONAL EXPERT SEMINAR QUALITY ASSURANCE AND ACCREDITATION IN LIFE LONG LEARNING

1. INTERNATIONALEXPERT SEMINAR QUALITY ASSURANCE ANDACCREDITATION IN LIFE LONG LEARNING BERLIN, 24 AND 25 FEBRUARY 2011 Conclusions and Proposals for Follow up

2. Challenges for a Common Syntax for QA/Accreditation in LLL Towards Quality Enhancement:Relationship between Accreditation and Internal QA Follow-up Berlin, 24./25 February 2011 INTERNATIONAL EXPERT SEMINAR

3. Challenges for a Common Syntax for QA/Accreditation in LLL Develop, define and work with Quality Standards and combine standards with (flexible) Guidelines for their implementation Make use of the EQF as a common reference framewok Urgently needed: Assessment Standards focusing on Learning Outcomes Urgently needed: Standards and Guidelines for Transparency for both educational sub-sectors (use ESG as a blueprint for cross-fertilization) Communicate QA results user-friendly and consider their benefits to the users Make use of a Chain of Key Performance Indicators along the educational process (from input, via process and output, to outcome): EQARF Indicators to be used as a reference Employment rates as a common reference and a link to society Work with contextualized Data (e.g. graduation rates); be careful with aggregation Combination of quantitative & qualitative analysis needed for evaluation and organisation of change Benchmarking: Be aware and make reference to individual profiles and differences of educational institutions Work on Recognition of prior learning Increase Permeability of the systems, improve Transferability of Credits/Certificates Be aware of Differences between HE/VET concerning the parties involved in the QA process Ensure Students’ Empowerment Work on Common Quality Language with focus on shared definitions Take into account different the starting points in HE and VET concerning the development of standards, indicators, tools and instruments for QA Berlin, 24./25 February 2011 INTERNATIONAL EXPERT SEMINAR

4. Towards Quality Enhancement:Relationship between Accreditation & Internal QA Accreditation should focus on the effectiveness of continuous internal QA-mechanisms Provide guidance and support for internal QA with the accreditation process Encourage the establishment of an appropriate Quality Agenda / Calendar Support the development of a Quality Culture Strengthen the “Plasticity” of approaches -> create ownership by allowing individualisation of QA-approaches Internal QA-System as service provider for organisational departments Consider individual needs / biographies of students Combine individual approaches with Meta-Evaluation and feedback Build voluntarily working QA-networks ENQA Standards for QA Agencies to be reconsidered / adapted for VET Be aware of differences in accreditation in VET/HE Berlin, 24./25 February 2011 INTERNATIONAL EXPERT SEMINAR

5. Follow-up Develop practical tools and guidelines etc. to trigger further collaboration/convergence Let‘s have a publication on the presentations / results of the workshop Let‘s have a research study on similarities and differences in QA/Accreditation in HE and VET Make links to ENQA/EQAVET Let‘s have a Follow-up Workshop (in Lisbon?) Berlin, 24./25 February 2011 INTERNATIONAL EXPERT SEMINAR

6. Criteria and indicators for accreditation - Universal criteria for HE and VET applicable, but specific context and purpose to be accounted for - Graduation/pass rates as criteria? Maybe together with sector benchmarks/comparisons - Competencies as output criteria can serve as common syntax - Quantitative indicators not sufficient to capture quality of a system Role of participative approaches in accreditation - Stakeholders involvement necessary - Learner orientation to be complemented with community/stakeholder views Accountability vs. improvement function / linking acccreditation to internal QA - Example of TVET in Ethiopia: accreditation as driver of motivation - Another experience: linking role of quality value system Conclusions Prof. Tomenendal