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UNESCO/OECD Guidelines on Quality Provision in Cross-Border Higher Education
IAU Global Meeting and International ConferenceSharing Quality Higher Education Across Borders
14-16 November 2005Alexandria, Egypt
Stamenka Uvalic-TrumbicDivision of Higher Education, UNESCO
Guidelines: Status & Next steps
• 33rd session of the UNESCO General Conference, 16 October 2005 supported the Guidelines as a secretariat document
• The OECD Council – Prague, 2 December 2005
• Implementation: UNESCO & OECD with stakeholders and partners
Why UNESCO?
Existing frameworks• 1998 WCHE and 2003+5 FU: access, equity, relevance; HE
element of SD in the Knowledge Society
• The 6 regional conventions on the recognition of qualifications as the only legal instrument in HE ratified by over 100 Member States;
• Recommendations on the Recognition of Qualifications 1993 and the Status of HE teaching Personnel 1997;
• The Global Forum on International Quality Assurance, Accreditation and the Recognition of Qualifications: new dimensions in quality assurance and qualifications recognition (2002;2004)
Guidelines/Codes of Good Practice on TNE/ CBHE
• 1978 Guidelines for Developing Countries on Correspondence Education (UNESCO)
• 1999 Recommendation on International Access Qualifications (UNESCO/CoE)
• 2001 Code of Good Practice on TNE (UNESCO/CoE)
• 2004 Statement on Quality HE Across Borders (IAU/AUCC/ACE/CHEA)
• 2005 Guidelines on Quality in Cross-Border HE (UNESCO/OECD)
WHY THE GUIDELINES?
Context
• Growth of cross-border higher education: distance education, franchises, branch campuses;
• GATS and Higher Education
• Need to provide an EDUCATIONAL response to maximize opportunities, minimize risks
External quality assurance and accreditation systems have been adopted in more than 60 countries
• The scope and status of agencies vary, depending on countries.• The map is not exhaustive and changes rapidly, as governments face
pressing needs to establish a quality assurance agency
But their scope is often domestic
• National quality assurance and accreditation systems are very diverse and uneven
• They do not often cover cross-border (or for-profit) higher education
• Higher education systems are often opaque viewed from abroad
• Need for more transparency and for quality assurance to take into account the growth in cross-border education
Objectives of the Guidelines
• support and encourage international cooperation and understanding of the importance of quality provision in cross-border higher education
• protect students and other stakeholders from low-quality provision and disreputable providers
• encourage the development of quality cross-border higher education that meets human, social, economic and cultural needs
Principles of the Guidelines• Voluntary and non-binding
• Responsibility for partnerships, sharing, dialogue, mutual trust and respect between sending and receiving countries
• Recognition of national authority and of the diversity of systems
• Recognition of importance of international collaboration and exchange, internally, externally
• Access to transparent and reliable information
The scope of the Guidelines
• Voluntary and non-binding BUT
• Stamp of two IGOs: UNESCO and the OECD
• Addressing Governments but recognizing the role of NGOs and Student Organizations
• Stakeholders: Governments; Higher Education Institutions/academic staff; Students bodies; Quality Assurance and accreditation bodies; Academic Recognition Bodies; Professional Bodies;
Definition of CBHE
The Guidelines define cross-border provision as
“ cross-border higher education (that) includes higher education that takes place in situations where the teacher, student, programme, institution/provider or course materials cross national jurisdictional borders. Cross border higher education may include higher education by public/private and not-for profit/for profit providers. It encompasses a wide range of modalities, in a continuum from face-to face (taking various forms such as students traveling abroad and campuses abroad) to distance learning (using a range of technologies and including e-learning).”
Guidelines to HEI/Academic Staff
• Ensure that the programmes they deliver across borders and in their home country are of comparable quality and take into account the cultural and linguistic sensitivities of the receiving country.
• Recognise that quality teaching and research is made possible by the quality of faculty and the quality of their working conditions
• Maintain Internal quality management systems: full use of the competencies of stakeholders responsibility to ensure that the information and guidance provided by their agents are accurate, reliable and easily accessible;
Guidelines to HEI/Academic Staff
• Consult competent quality assurance and accreditation bodies and respect the quality assurance and accreditation systems of the receiving country when delivering higher education across borders, including distance education;
• Develop and maintain networks and partnerships to facilitate the process of recognition by acknowledging each other’s qualifications as equivalent or comparable;
• Provide accurate, reliable and easily accessible information on the quality assurance and the academic and professional recognition of qualifications
• Ensure the transparency of the financial status of the institution /programme
Main (underlying) message
• The quality of cross-border higher education is a shared responsibility between importing and exporting countries
– Quality assurance should cover cross-border education in all its forms
– Stakeholders should collaborate internationally to enhance the transparency about the quality of HE and about HE systems
– Cross-border delivery should have the same quality as home delivery
Main action mechanisms
• Quality assurance have a quality assurance system, internal or externalhave fair mechanisms for recognition of qualifications
• Transparency and accessibility of informationbe transparent about what you do and make the
relevant information accessible internationally
• CollaborationStrengthen your collaboration with other stakeholders
in your country, regionally and internationally
Regional Capacity Building:
• The Mediterranean – Tempus-MEDA – MERIC Network
• RIACES (Latin America + Spain)/revival of LAC Convention/Bogota Ministerial Meeting/Nov.05
• The Caribbean: CANQATE
• Asia Pacific Convention + APQN
Regional Capacity Building
• Africa: Launch of AQUAnet (partnership with AAU and the World Bank)
• Pilot project for Francophone countries
• Arab States: New Initiatives for Regional Accreditation
Capacity Building – Some Existing Tools
• Tool-kit for QA in CBHE (Asia and the Pacific)• DE course for QA in CBHE, using the
Guidelines, to be launched in Africa (UNESCO-IIEP)
• Knowledge Base for QA in ODL – Africa, Asia and the Pacific, CIS (to be extended to LAC and Arab States)
• On-Line Course for Credential Evaluation – Mediterranean Convention
NEXT STEPS
• Info-Tool: Create a portal of accredited HEIs and programmes to be hosted by UNESCO: pilot project 2006
• 3rd Global Forum on QA focusing on Learners (October 2006)
• UNESCO/OECD Conference 2007?
A WAY FORWARD?
UNESCO 2005 GC Decision: how have the Guidelines been used
• Do HEIs and Associations find them relevant?
• How can they be applied and used?• Should they be improved and adapted?• Are there regional specificities that should
be reflected?
Thank you!
http://www.unesco.org/education/amq/guidelines