Analytic Quality Glossary
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Citation reference: Harvey, L., 2004–9, Analytic Quality Glossary, Quality Research International, http://www.qualityresearchinternational.com/glossary/
This is a dynamic glossary and the author would welcome any e-mail suggestions for amendments or additions.
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Code of practice
core definition
A code of practice is a documented set of
recommended or preferred processes, actions or organisational structures to be
applied in a given setting.
explanatory context
Codes of practice may external and linked to
external quality monitoring processes or they
may be internal to institutions. Codes may be country-specific or transnational.
Codes of practice (unlike regulatory codes) are not supported by legal mandate.
However, they may be linked to other processes that confer status, funding
or prestige and, therefore, have considerable imperative force.
For example, in the UK, the QAA expects each
institution to be able to demonstrate that it is effectively addressing each
aspect of the Code of practice through its own quality assurance mechanisms,
which QAA audits.
analytical review
The UNESCO
definition links closely to quality audit and compliance with coded requirements.
A Code of Practice is a document, with no mandatory requirements, that
describes the minimum audit requirements and those that are considered to
reveal a practice worthy of consideration. A Code identifies a comprehensive
series of system-wide expectations covering matters relating to the management
of academic quality and standards in higher education. It provides an
authoritative reference point for institutions as they consciously, actively,
and systematically assure the academic quality and standards of their
programmes, awards, and qualifications. A Code assumes that, taking into
account nationally agreed upon principles and practices, each institution has
its own systems for independent verification both of its quality and standards
and of the effectiveness of its quality assurance systems. In developing a
Code, extensive advice is sought from a range of knowledgeable practitioners.
(Vl‹sceanu, et al., 2004)
An institutional Code of Practice may set
out expectations for internal compliance. For example, UMISTÕs Code of Practice on Teaching and Learning for
Taught Programmes gave details of the universityÕs procedures for the management of
quality and academic standards, that departments should adhere to, and a
compendium of
UMIST's Codes of Practice
on various academic issues, for example, Code of Practice
for Personal Tutoring,
Code of Practice for Examinations (UMIST, 2004).
The
UK, QAA has a Code of Practice for the Assurance of Academic Quality and
Standards in Higher Education: Career Education, Information, and Guidance. The QAA Code
is split into sections (new ones are added periodically) relating to the
management of academic quality and standards in higher education, such as
external examining and programme approval, monitoring and review. Each section
is structured into a series of precepts and accompanying guidance. QAA expects
institutions to address the precepts and the guidance offers a framework for
quality assurance that
institutions
may wish to adapt and use according to their needs. (QAA, 2004)
UNESCO
and CEPES along with the Council of Europe have a Code of Good Practice in
the Provision of Transnational Education (UNESCO-CEPES and
Council of Europe, 2001).
Accreditation
agencies in the US also have codes, such as the Middle States (MSACHE, 2001) Code
of Good Practice in Accrediting in Higher Education
HEFCE
(2002) in the UK also have Audit Code of Practice.
The European Association for International Education (EAIE), have
a code of practice for students studying abroad: International
Student Ð Trainee, for use by any
institution of post-secondary education intending to send students abroad for a
work placement in conjunction with studies at the home institution. The Code
was developed by SWING (Stage, Work Placement and Internship Group), which is a
Professional Section of EAIE
related terms
sources
Australian
Vice-ChancellorsÕ Committee (AV-CC), 2002, Code of Practice on the Provision
of Education to International Students (Canberra, ACV-CC) http://www.usyd.edu.au/io/studying/CodeOfPractice.pdf
European Association for International Education
(EAIE), 2004, International Student Ð Trainee, Higher Education
Institutions, Code of Practice http://www.eaie.nl/SWING/form3.html;
undated accessed October 2004.
Higher Education Funding Council for
England, 2002, HEFCE Audit Code of Practice.
Bristol: HEFCE.
Middle States Commission on Higher
Education (MSACHE), 2001, Code of Good Practice in Accrediting in Higher
Education. Philadelphia: Middle States Commission of Higher
Education.
Quality Assurance Agency for Higher
Education (QAA), 2004, Code of Practice for the Assurance of Academic
Quality and Standards in Higher Education: Career Education, Information, and
Guidance, http://www.qaa.ac.uk/public/COP/codesofpractice.htm
University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology
(UMIST), 2001, UMIST Code of Practice on Teaching and Learning for Taught
Programmes http://www2.umist.ac.uk/staff/talsc/ TaLSC/quality/cop_introduction.pdf,
undated, accessed November, 2004.
UNESCO-CEPES and Council of Europe,
2001,Code of Good Practice in the Provision of Transnational Education. Riga:
UNESCO-CEPES and Council of Europe.
Vl‹sceanu,
L., GrŸnberg, L., and P‰rlea, D., 2004, Quality Assurance
and Accreditation: A Glossary of Basic Terms and Definitions (Bucharest, UNESCO-CEPES) Papers on Higher Education, ISBN
92-9069-178-6. http://www.cepes.ro/publications/Default.htm