Radriografía de los modelos de acreditación: organización, procesos y prácticas. El caso de las universidades Austral de Chile, De la Frontera y De los Lagos

Abstract

RESUMENLa instauración de políticas de aseguramiento de la calidad en Chile ha traído aparejada el desarrollo, por parte de cada institución, de sistemas y mecanismos propios para abordarlas. No obstante, existe una carencia de reflexión sistémica al respecto, que permita utilizar estas experiencias como instancias de aprendizaje para el sistema en su conjunto, más allá de las fronteras de cada institución. Utilizando un enfoque sociológico, este artículo intenta comprender, exponer y analizar a través de una investigación comparada, los distintos "modos de organización" de los procesos de acreditación institucional desarrollados por las universidades Austral de Chile, de La Frontera y de Los Lagos, dando cuenta de la multiplicidad de "modos de organización" existentes y poniendo énfasis en que esta diversidad se explica al comprender la internalización de la Ley N° 20.129 por parte de las IES como un proceso de "traducción" y "significación". Como resultado, se relevan particularidades de cada caso y experiencias compartidas, al mismo tiempo que se identifican buenas prácticas y desafíos, tanto para estas universidades en particular, como para las IES en su conjunto.

Perceptions about accreditation and quality management in Higher Education. Development of a Spanish-language questionnaire with a sample of academics from a private university

“…Regarding the Internal Quality Unit relevance for accreditation, the quality assurance unit and its functions performed within the university fulfill a central role in the perception of accreditation and quality inside the institution (Campo Herrera, 2018;Scharager, 2017;Scharager & Rodríguez Anaiz, 2019;Venables & Van Gastel, 2014). This is due to, on one hand, to the role it plays leading accreditation processes of programs and the institution, and, on the other hand, to the fact that the quality processes are still a way of responding to external standards, rather than a full incorporation of quality culture in each HEI level (CIPER-CHILE, 2012;De Vincenzi, 2013;González-Bravo et al, 2019;Pedraja-Rejas & Rodríguez-Ponce, 2015;Proyecto Alpha, 2011).…”

“…The departments in charge of quality processes in Chilean universities have a diversity of organizational forms and characteristics. For example, Venables and Van Gastel (2014) performed an analysis of three Chilean universities and pointed out that this diversity is due to the fact that these units carry out a work of "translation" and "generation of meaning" of the environmental regulations; these units are positively evaluated by academics and higher authorities, and are seen more as a unit of support rather than control (Venables & Van Gastel, 2014). The units that have emphasized accountability, rather than the internal management of a culture of quality, tend to focus more on control, generating reactive systems to demands and compliance with external requirements (Scharager, 2017).…”

“…In universities with less consolidated collegiate bodies, these units centralize more power, although in general they are well evaluated (Scharager, 2017). In fact, they have significant experience in different areas of higher education (Dooner, Armanet, Busco, d'Alencon, & Salomone, 2016;Lemaitre et al, 2012;Scharager, 2017;Scharager & Rodríguez Anaiz, 2019), and have become highly relevant for the accreditation and accountability of HEIs, being experts in different areas and transferring good practices, triggering reflection and institutional learning (Scharager, 2017;Venables & Van Gastel, 2014). In the words of Campo Herrera (2018), they go slightly beyond their official role, providing "support and technical advice to Schools and Programs in areas related to self-assessment and curricular assessment processes, as well as teacher updating, skill assessment, virtual support for learning and its methodology, accreditation, among others" (p. 143).…”

Elementos de boas práticas a partir da dimensão da docência e dos resultados do processo formativo do subsistema universitário no Chile

“…Una buena práctica recoge elementos del contexto organizacional, de su coherencia y del correlato armónico de la institución. Incorpora aspectos técnicos y políticos estratégicos, pero de fácil acceso donde la comunidad entienda para qué sirven (Venables y Van Gastel, 2014).…”