An accreditation dilemma: The tension between program accountability and program improvement in programmatic accreditation

Murray, Frank B.

doi:10.1002/he.335

Cited by 9 publications

(2 citation statements)

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“…Accreditation is used to ensure quality and meet industry standards set by professional bodies and quality councils as well as to facilitate and increase international student mobility (Haakstad 2001). Murray (2009) argues that accreditation assures the public of graduates' competence. Martin (2010a) notes that where equity is a national concern, countries have developed quality assurance policies that address this issue as well as quality concerns.…”

Section: Equity and Quality Assurancementioning

confidence: 99%

Alternation25,2(2018) 44–7744Electronic ISSN: 2519-5476; DOIhttps://doi.org/10.29086/2519-5476/2018/v25n2a3An Analysis of the Higher Education Qualifications Sub-Framework: Towards Decoloniality in South African Higher Education

Moosa¹

2018

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As a national policy imperative, transformation has dominated efforts towards change in higher education in South Africa in the post-1997 period. Twenty years later, students are echoing continuous calls for transformation by the government and scholars, with renewed attention to student fees and decolonisation of the curriculum. Recent violent national protests necessitate interventions at the national higher education policy level as well as at an institutional level. However, the relationship between quality assurance policies and decolonisation priorities has not been considered. The Higher Education Qualifications Sub-Framework (HEQSF) is proposed as a guide to inform curriculum development and programme accreditation. This qualitative study explored how the HEQSF could contribute to calls to decolonise the curriculum. As a national government directive, transformation was interpreted and implemented differently in the various higher education institutions. Due to a lack of adequate debate on how decoloniality should be implemented nationally, transformation and decoloniality will continue to co-exist as discourses in higher education until this is resolved. The analysis of the HEQSF indicates the possibilities and limitations of both the HEQSF and decoloniality to contribute to calls to decolonise the curriculum. The HEQSF was designed in line with a neo-liberal world view which militates against shifts towards embracing different ways of thinking and 'de-linking' from traditional perspectives. Reexamining the very notion of a qualifications framework and proposing relevant alternatives to facilitate the decolonisation of the An Analysis of the Higher Education Qualifications Sub-Framework 45 curriculum, is required. Since no alternative exists to replace the HEQSF, the possibility for change based on prescriptions in a decolonial context are questionable. The article concludes with possibilities and challenges for moving towards decoloniality in the South African higher education system.

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Section: Equity and Quality Assurancementioning

confidence: 99%

Alternation25,2(2018) 44–7744Electronic ISSN: 2519-5476; DOIhttps://doi.org/10.29086/2519-5476/2018/v25n2a3An Analysis of the Higher Education Qualifications Sub-Framework: Towards Decoloniality in South African Higher Education

Moosa¹

2018

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“…The paradoxical meanings of high-stakes accountability policies are by no means restricted to teacher education. They have been well documented in the broader arenas of higher education (Ewell, 2009;Murray, 2009), K-12 education (Hargreaves & Braun, 2013;Rowan, 1990;J. Weiss, 2012), and other fields of human-service policy (e.g., Christensen & Laegreid, 2007).…”

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confidence: 99%

Using Data for Program Improvement in Teacher Education: A Study of Promising Practices

Davis

Peck

2020

Teachers College Record: The Voice of Scholarship in Education

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Background/Context Contemporary accountability policies in teacher education often require that programs systematically use data for program improvement. However, social science research from multiple fields of human service suggests that the challenges of using data involve much more than creating policies and related information technologies to support collection, archival, and analysis of information about program outcomes. In this study we investigated organizational policies and practices implemented within ten high data-use teacher education programs to support faculty and staff engagement with opportunities to use a variety of data for the purposes of program improvement. Purpose/Objective/Research Question What organizational tools, policies, and practices are associated with systematic use of data for program improvement in high data-use teacher education programs? Research Design We used qualitative field research methods to study a set of teacher preparation programs situated in institutions that varied considerably in size, mission, and organizational structure. Using a comparative case-study approach, we hoped to identify a set of practices that were robust across variations in institutional setting and that therefore might be useful to other teacher educators as they attempt to navigate the pressures of current accountability mandates in ways that are consonant with their aspirations for program improvement. Conclusions/Recommendations Organizational practices associated with high levels of data use in the programs we studied included the allocation of specific times and places to allow thoughtful engagement with opportunities to use data in deliberation of program actions, as well as the integration of these activities into regular organizational routines. Consistent with earlier studies, we found that faculty in these programs more readily and vigorously engaged data-use work organized around local inquiry goals, rather than compliance with external policy mandates or grant expectations. Leadership actions related to establishing local inquiry and program improvement as the primary goal of data-use work appeared to be crucial to motivating faculty and staff to take up opportunities to use data as a resource for learning and program decision-making.

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An international research on the influence of accreditation on academic quality

Ülker

Bakioğlu

2018

Studies in Higher Education

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An accreditation dilemma: The tension between program accountability and program improvement in programmatic accreditation

Abstract: An examination of the experiences of the Teacher Education Accreditation Council highlights the conflicting and sometimes incompatible expectations for accreditation.

Cited by 9 publications

References 1 publication

Alternation25,2(2018) 44–7744Electronic ISSN: 2519-5476; DOIhttps://doi.org/10.29086/2519-5476/2018/v25n2a3An Analysis of the Higher Education Qualifications Sub-Framework: Towards Decoloniality in South African Higher Education

Alternation25,2(2018) 44–7744Electronic ISSN: 2519-5476; DOIhttps://doi.org/10.29086/2519-5476/2018/v25n2a3An Analysis of the Higher Education Qualifications Sub-Framework: Towards Decoloniality in South African Higher Education

Using Data for Program Improvement in Teacher Education: A Study of Promising Practices

An international research on the influence of accreditation on academic quality

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