How to discover and to assure my quality????

1. How to discover and to assure my quality???? Workshop in the framework of the 2nd KNUST Summerschool August 20 -24, 2012 Ton Vroeijenstijn Quality Consultants The Netherlands

2. Expected learning outcomesAfter the training session, it is expected that you will be able: to describe the concepts of “quality” and “quality assurance” in Higher Education to participate in the on-going discussion about quality Contribute to the implementation of a quality assurance system in your university/faculty to discover the quality of your university/faculty by means of a self assessment to prepare your programmes for an external assessment / accreditation.

3. Program Tuesday, 21 August 2012 Introduction into quality and quality assurance (09.30 -12.00 a.m) Without QA, no university will survive (Why quality assurance is needed) Are we speaking the same language? Quality assurance instruments (13.00-16.30) How to assure our quality? An X-ray of your university Wednesday 22 August 2012 How to discover the quality of our programmes? The instrument of Self assessment (09.00-10.00) A Road map to Quality’ Is the IUCEA handbook a valuable instrument for KNUST? Open questions and discussion (11.30-12.00)

4. 1Without quality assurance, no university will survive 4

5. Why Quality assurance is needed More students, less money Rise of private institutions Growing competition Changing expectations labour market Globalisation Tax payer want value for money “ Consumer” protection

6. QA in Industry • TQM-Deming cycle • ISO • EFQM

7. The EFQM model

8. Quality Assurance in HE • Assurance of quality in higher education is a process of establishing stakeholder confidence that provision (input, process and outcomes) fulfils expectations or measures up to threshold minimum requirements. (Harvey, 2004, Analytic Quality Glossary) • Systematic, structured and continuous attention to quality in terms of maintaining and improving quality. ( IUCEA handbook A Roadmap to quality)

9. Quality assurance system in HE

10. Important elements of the QA system HE Self assessment External peer review (Public) report Formal decision (accreditation) Follow up

11. Individual assignment(10 minutes) You are a member of the QA-committee. It is your first meeting and the basic aim of the meeting is to come to a mutual understanding of the concept “quality” • Describe how you define quality • Give the 5 most important criteria for the quality of an Institutions for HE • Give the 5 most important criteria for the quality of a curriculum

12. 2 “Do we speak the same language?” 12

13. Basic questions concerning quality What is quality? Who are the players in the quality game? Can quality be measured? (Criteria and standards) Who set the standards? how do we know the quality? 13

14. HIGHER EDUCATIONPlayers in the quality field students staff Government / parliament employers/professional bodies society at large international forum 14

15. DIFFERENT VIEWS ON QUALITY • Quality is the satisfaction of the client • Quality as excellence • Quality as additional value • Quality as value for money • Quality as fitness for purpose • Quality as meeting threshold standards

16. Quality Absolute Quality does not exist There is no fixed definition of Quality View on Quality is changing in time But we must find a workable concept, shared by all 16

17. Stakeholders andQuality 17

18. 18

19. Quality Is context based But there is always a threshold quality Berkeley International standards University Rio de Janeiro National standards University of the Amazonas 19

20. Criteria & standards Criterion: the specification of elements against which a judgment is made a specific aspect, essential for the quality Standard: the level that a criterion must reach. Normally: adequate or satisfactory. Sometimes quantifiable 20

21. Criteria & standards Who is setting standards? Who is checking the standards? Because there is no absolute quality, there are no absolute standards; standards are a matter of negotiation. Criteria: valid in all circumstances Standards: context bound: Mc Donald and 3 stars restaurant 21

22. Can Quality be measured? Tendency of governments to quantify quality aspects Use of performance indicators? But….performance indicators does not tell us all about the quality “Performance indicators may harm the quality” 22

23. Performance indicators and quality assessment Acidity % alcohol tannin sediment performance indicators smell taste expert team 23

24. Part 3How to discover our quality?? 24

25. Key-questions Do we do the right things? Do we do the right things in the right way? Do we have a thorough command of the process to realize actually what we want? Do we really achieve what we want to achieve? 25

26. Instruments to discover the quality Analysis of our QA system Analysis at institutional level Analysis at program level

27. Towards an IQA system • Internal Quality Assurance is: Systematic, structured and continuous attention to quality in terms of maintaining and improving quality. IUCEA handbook A Roadmap to quality)

28. Implementation IQA-system there is no one fit for all IQA system is tailor made, but …. Requirements set by out side agencies Code of good practice ENQA, INQAAHE, UNESCO 28

29. CRITERIA FOR IQA(enqa) 1 Policy and procedures for QA 2 Monitoring system 3 Periodic review of the core activities 4 Quality assurance of the student assessment 5 Quality assurance of staff 6 Quality assurance of facilities 7 Quality assurance of the student support 8 Self assessment 9 Internal audit 10 Information systems 11 Public information 12 A Quality handbook 29

30. Basic conditions for IQA As simple as possible and not bureaucratic Balance between centralized and decentralized approach Supported by management Effective instruments Tuned to national and international developments 30

31. Problems with the introduction of IQA Lack of quality awareness Resistance against innovations Resistance of staff because they feel threatened Lack of knowledge about QA. Training is needed. resistance because it is time consuming and money consuming (“We have other things to do”). It is difficult to define what quality is; the QA indicators are not always clear; The purpose and the added value are not always clear Lack of clear communication between the staff and the institutions management 31

32. To overcome the problems it is important to: Understand clearly what Quality Assurance means; Know the available instruments; Know about the requirements set for an IQA system Design the system very clearly and formulate the strategy to introduce it Tune the system to external developments. 32

34. Individual assignment 2 (10 minutes) You are still a member of the QA-committee. It is your 2nd meeting and the basic aim of the meeting is to analyse what is already done for Quality Assurance and to discuss the possibility foir introducing the IQA model. Questions: • What elements are already in place in the university? • Is the model useful in your situation to analyse your activities concerning quality assurance? • Which activities belongs to the responsibility of the central management? Which one to the responsibilities of the faculty? What are joint activities?

35. An institutional self assessment Provide us information about the performance of the institution Offer the possibility to define clearly our profile Input for strategic planning

37. How to discover the quality of our programs?? A program is defined as a coherent set of courses leading to a certain degree (bachelor or master). We may call the program also a curriculum It is not only about the content, but also about the process and the boundary conditions

39. CONDITIONS FOR SELF ANALYSIS A self assessment: should never be felt as threatening aims at improvement and enhancement need a broad support; Everybody has to be involved. Need support of the management demands a good organisation. is an analysis supported by the whole faculty Not everyone has to agree with all the points in the self-assessment report. 39

40. Look at the given criteria and explanation Describe the situation Give a critical analysis Are you satisfied with the situation If not what you are you planning to do? Look for evidence that you are meeting the criteria Give the weak and strong points The guide for analysis 40

41. Strengths and weaknesses analysis 41

42. The 7-point scale read as follows 1= absolutely inadequate; immediate improvements must be made 2= inadequate, improvements necessary 3= inadequate, but minor improvements will make it adequate 4= adequate as expected 5= better than adequate 6= example of good practice 7= excellent 42

43. The follow-up of the self-assessment In many cases followed by accreditation If not: organize an inter-collegial assessment Outcomes of the SWOT-analysis is used for a quality plan Each year check of the quality plan 43

44. The IUCEA handbook

45. The quality project East Africa June 2006 workshop “Supporting a regional QA initiative” organised by IUCEA an DAAD Developing handbook Training QA officers 2008 -2009: 23 universities SA+External 2009-2010: second cohort 2011: external evaluation of the project 2012-2013 3rd cohort

46. Participants in the quality project East Africa

47. Why an IUCEA quality handbook was seen as needed Development in the region of a shared idea of quality harmonized internal quality assurance systems a shared idea about criteria and standards shared ideas about the accreditation framework 47

48. A Road Map to quality Initiative of the IUCEA 2006, supported by DAAD and HRK of Germany Based on documents and experiences of the national regulatory bodies in East Africa Based on similar developments in South-East Asia, Central America and Europe Editorial board with members of the standing committee of the IUCEA Discussion of drafts at the different workshops 5th draft used by the 1st cohort of universities Revised draft (4 volumes ) by 2nd cohort Endorsed by IUCEA and official publication June 2009 (www.iucea.org) 48

49. Contents of the handbook • Volume 1 Guidelines for Self- assessment at program level aims at the faculty/department offering an instrument to learn more about the quality of the programs at offer by means of an effective self assessment at program level • Volume 2: Guidelines for external assessmentexplainsthe procedures and processes for an external assessment at program level. The specific target group is the external expert team, but also the faculty/department to be assessed. • Volume 3: Guidelines for Self-assessment at institutional level aims especially at the central management of an institution and offers an instrument to discover more about the quality of the institution • Volume 4: The implementation of a Quality Assurance system aims at all level of an institution, but is especially useful for the Quality Assurance coordinators for the development and installation of an Internal Quality Assurance system 49

50. How to use the handbook • The handbook is not forcing an institution to apply fixed standards and ideas • It is voluntary, but…….. members of IUCA should play the rules of the game • For private institutions: it will help to be in line with international developments • The handbook offers a toolkit for quality assurance and quality improvement.