Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area: Current

Quality Assurance in the European
Higher Education Area: Current state
and future perspectives“
NCPA conference, Moscow, November 9, 2012
Dr Achim Hopbach
President of ENQA
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ENQA at a glance
Umbrella NGO for European QA agencies in HE, founded
in 2000
Purpose:
as a membership organisation, to represent its
members at the European level in political decision
making processes;
to function as a think tank for developing further
quality assurance in the EHEA;
to function as a communication platform for sharing
and disseminating information and expertise in quality
assurance
Membership:
45 members, 36 affiliates (like NCPA)
Membership criteria: ESG
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Basics:
The
Standards and Guidelines
for Quality Assurance
in the European Higher Education Area
(ESG)
Bergen Communiqué 2005
Ministers “adopt standards and guidelines for quality
assurance in the European Higher Education
Area...”,
which are
“designed to be applicable to all higher education
institutions and quality assurance agencies in Europe,
irrespective of their structure, function and size, and the
national system in which they are located.”
(drafted by ENQA EUA, EURASHE, ESU”)
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ESG part I: Internal quality assurance
Cyclical reviews, stakeholder involvement, Quality of
programmes, staff, assessment procedures…
ESG part II: External quality assurance
Cyclical review, predefined standards, stake-holder
involvement, robustness, enhancement orientation, publicity
ESG part III: Quality assurance agencies
Independence, recognition by public body, stakeholder
involvement, predefined standards, internal qa, cyclical
external review
The ESG combine two aspects in particular:
 Common standards for professionalism in terms of
procedures and agencies which nowadays are not only
shared within Europe and the EHEA but more and more
worldwide
The ESG combine two aspects in particular:
 The European notion of quality assurance which is in
the first instance laid down in the following principles:
 The primary responsibility for quality lies with the
institutions.
 Internal quality assurance forms the basis of the whole
quality assurance system. External quality assurance
has to take into account the results of the internal part.
 Quality assurance processes, irrespective of the very
nature and design of the chosen approach, have to
serve the developmental function of quality assurance.
 Involvement of all relevant stakeholders, including
students, in quality assurance
 Independence of quality assurance agencies.
What the ESG were meant to be:
• Generic, not specific, standards and guidelines
• A view of what should be done, not how it should be done
• A source of assistance and guidance, not prescriptive
ESG provide a “common understanding” of quality assurance
in higher education
Quality Assurance in the EHEA in 2012
„National external quality assurance regimes and the
agencies as main actors are in compliance with ESG.“
(Lower level of compliance is in most cases due to national
legislation)
The most common external quality assurance procedures
are accreditation and evaluation of programmes, followed at
a significant distance by evaluation and accreditation of
institutions and by audits.
(Stocktaking report 2009; External evaluation of the Bologna
process 2010, QPP II; ENQA survey of agency reviews)
Variety and steady change are key features of
external QA in the EHEA
90% of agencies apply more than one approach
75% of agencies changed or change their approach
Maybe trend towards audits is visible
„The emergence of a unified European quality assurance
system is unlikely.“
Design and purpose of external quality assurance
procedures are highly dependent on national context,
irrespective of ESG. This is a typical feature of the Bologna
process as a process of open coordination.
Quality Assurance after the
Bucharest ministerial conference
2012: perspectives
Revision of the ESG
Bucharest Communiqué 2012:
“We acknowledge the ENQA, ESU, EUA, EURASHE (the E4
group)report on the implementation and application of the
‘European Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance’
(ESG). We will revise the ESG to improve their clarity,
applicability and usefulness including their scope.”
Principles of ESG are acknowledged
Revision will be based on the project by E4: „Mapping the
implementation and application of ESG in internal and
external quality assurance“
Holistic approach to interdependent
Bologna tools
Bucharest Communiqué 2012:
“The development, understanding and practical use of
learning outcomes is crucial to the success of ECTS, the
Diploma Supplement, recognition, qualifications frameworks
and quality assurance – all of which are interdependent.”
Crucial role of quality assurance for successful
implementation of Bologna infrastructure is recognized.
Implications for design of quality assurance procedures
Taking student centred learning serious
Bucharest Communiqué 2012:
“We reiterate our commitment to promote student-centred
learning in higher education, characterised by innovative
methods of teaching that involve students as active
participants in their own learning.”
The student centered learning approach has necessarily a
significant impact on quality assurance.
What does the actual achievement of intended learning
outcomes tell about the quality of an institution or a
programm? What quality are we interested in?
HEIs/Programms or Students?
Joint programmes and degrees
Bucharest Communiqué 2012:
“We will examine national rules and practices relating to joint
programmes and degrees as a way to dismantle obstacles to
cooperation and mobility embedded in national contexts.”
ENQA initiative will demonstrate the different speeds of
development in the fields of regulation and quality assurance
The register and the market
Bucharest Communiqué 2012:
“Allow EQAR-registered quality assurance agencies to
perform their activities across the EHEA, while complying
with national requirements.”
Problems of market driven quality assurance will have to be
taken into account
Conclusions
Convergence of approaches, international participation,
international co-operation, rising level of mutual trust
and mutual acceptance don‘t form a unified ‚system‘.
Note: There are no binding legal structurs!
Note: National agendas matter!
The biggest challenges:
 to be responsive to diverse demands
 to clarify the purpose of quality assurance
 to ensure that the processes are fit for purpose.
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Thank you for your attention!
www.enqa.eu
[email protected]