INQAAHE (undated) CLARIFICATION AND GLOSSARY www.inqaahe.nl/public/docs/definities.doc

 

ANNEX

 

CLARIFICATION AND GLOSSARY

 

1. CLARIFICATION OF SOME TERMS

 

Introduction

 

Collecting information about Quality assurance agencies in a standardised way makes it necessary to clarify some of the terms used in the questionnaire. Definition of terms and  description of concepts is not an easy task. This is caused by several reasons:

á       Many countries have to cope with the need to translate the terms in English. There are problems with the translation, because the term in ones own language often has a slightly different meaning than the English word;

á       The meaning is often fixed by the cultural context. Even in the English speaking parts of the world the same words may have a different meaning.

á       Each agency has often its own jargon, originating from its national context.

 

The glossary so far is not based on a general agreement between experts in the field. Based on the discussion of the first drafts of the questionnaire and based on the comments on the description of terms, a decision for a certain description or definition has been made. You are asked to complete the questionnaire, using the meaning of the terms as defined as far as possible.

 

The terms, used in the questionnaire and defined in this glossary are marked  in italic. You can use the boxes in the questionnaire to include your own comments if you are using the terminology in  a total different way. 

 

Section I, page 1

 

External Quality Assurance Agency (EQA-agency)

 

The object of this survey is the External Quality Assurance agency, also referred to as EQA-agency. An EQA-agency meets the following criteria:

á       It concerns external quality assurance. This means that the agency is acting outside the institutions of Higher Education HEI. Evaluation by an organisation or entity inside an HEI and aiming at quality assurance inside the institution,  is not to be seen as an external quality assurance activity.

á       It concerns activities like evaluation, review, audit, assessment or accreditation

á       Those activities belong to the main tasks of the agency

á       Are done on a regular basis

á       The agency is recognised at national or regional level as being in charge with the above mentioned activities.

 

The definition excludes:

á       QA-organisations inside an HEI

á       Agencies, supervising EQA-agencies and not actively or on a regular base involved in the above mentioned activities

á       Ad hoc validation or assessment like done by a university validating programmes in an other country.

 

 

Evaluation or Review

 

Evaluation (also called review) is used as the general description of the activity of an EQA-agency for collecting data, information and evidence about the quality of an institution, the quality of parts of an institution or the quality of its core activities: education and/or research.

 

Audit

 

Audit is the evaluation or review of procedures, processes and mechanism in an HEI or a part of an HEI (e.g. school of Medicine, school of Business & Management). Not quality itself is subject of review, but  procedures and mechanism to assure the quality and the processes to achieve the mission and goals. A distinction is made between a quality audit and a management audit.

 

 A quality audit evaluates especially the procedures and processes for the assurance of the quality. The main assumption is that if QA-procedures are in place, one may expect that HEI will deliver quality.

 

A management audit looks also at general management, general policy and policy making. 

 

As soon as the quality of the core activities (educational activities and research outcomes) are judged  too, it is called  institutional assessment.

 

Assessment

 

Assessment is the evaluation of the quality itself. Assessment  tries to collect data, information and evidence of the quality of the HEI as a whole (institutional assessment)  or its core activities (education, research and community service) separately (program assessment). It goes beyond quality procedures (although it will be included) and tries to judge the quality of input, process and output.

 

Assessment does not necessarily lead to a formal accreditation decision. However, formal accreditation needs to be based on assessment.

 

Accreditation

 

Accreditation is applicable both for an  institution as a whole and for a programme. It is very difficult to define accreditation, because the concept is changing by the day. Although the terminology nowadays is imported into Europe too, the meaning there differs from the meaning of the term in the US, just as the role accreditation plays differs. In stead of a definition,  some characteristics of accreditation are given:

á       Accreditation is a formal decision

á       Accreditation is based on an overall assessment of the HEI or its core activities

á       Accreditation is based on the assessment of at least minimum requirements (threshold quality)

á       Accreditation concerns a yes/no/conditional decision

á       Accreditation will have consequences, for example

-      In the professional field

-      Concerning recognition

-      Concerning funding

-      Concerning student aid

 

Accreditation might be seen as providing a formal quality certificate to an HEI or a program showing that the HEI or the program meets at least expected minimum requirements. 

 

 

 

Institution for Higher Education (HEI)

 

Talking about institution it concerns an institution for Higher Education, also shortened as HEI. In some cases it might not concern an HEI as a whole, but a part of it (for example a School or Department)

 

Section I, page 3, question 1.4

 

Oversight and control

 

Oversight, also called control or meta-evaluation concerns the question who is controlling the agency? Who is evaluating the activities of the agency? Is there an authority who evaluate the evaluations (meta-evaluation)?

 

Section I, page 4, question 1.5

 

Program, subject area, discipline

 

Many agencies are assessing one of the core-activities of an HEI: the educational activities. The object of the assessment often is a program leading to a certain degree. Such program assessment also might be called the assessment of a subject area or a discipline. The main future is that the assessment is subject specific: e.g. assessment of history, biology, economy.

 

Section II, page 5, question II.1

 

Quality audit, management audit, assessment  see above under Audit

 

 

Section II, page 6, question II.5 and Section III, page13, question III.4 and III.5

 

Standards and criteria

 

Standards and criteria belong to the most confusing terms. In the US there is often no difference made between standards and criteria, while in Europe standards are becoming more and more distinct from criteria. For the questionnaire a clear distinction has been made between those two words.

á       Standards are seen as the expected outcomes of the educational training. It concerns the knowledge, skills, attitudes (= competencies) that are expected from the graduates. This concerns both general standards (qualifications for a Bachelor and Master) and specific subject standards.

á       Criteria are seen as the checkpoints, the benchmark for assessing the quality of the input and process.  Auditing or assessing the HEI as a whole it concerns the benchmark to check the quality procedures and the performance of the HEI as a whole.

 

 

Section II, page 8, question II.9 and Section III, page 17, question III.8

 

External evaluation team

 

The external evaluation team ( also called expert committee, visiting team, peer review team, academic peer review team) is  the group of experts, invited by the agency to do the audit or assessment. They are independent experts fromacademia and/or the professional world, judging the quality. Sometimes it includes other members (e.g. student) too.

 

2. GLOASSARY

 

 

Accreditation (Accreditation is applicable both for an  institution as a whole and for a programme)

It is very difficult to define accreditation, because the concept is changing by the day. Although the terminology nowadays is imported into Europe too, the meaning there differs from the meaning of the term in the US, just as the role accreditation is playing differs. In stead of a definition,  some characteristics of accreditation are given:

á       Accreditation is a formal decision

á       Accreditation is based on an overall assessment of the HEI or its core activities

á       Accreditation is based on the assessment of at least minimum requirements (threshold quality)

á       Accreditation concerns a yes/no/conditional decision

á       Accreditation will have consequences, for example

-     In the professional field

-     Concerning recognition

-     Concerning funding

-     Concerning student aid

 

Accreditation might be seen as providing a formal quality certificate to an HEI or a program showing that the HEI or the program meets at least expected minimum requirements.

 

Assessment

Assessment is the evaluation of the quality itself. Assessment  tries to collect data, information and evidence of the quality of the HEI as a whole (institutional assessment)  or its core activities (education, research and community service) separately (program assessment). It goes beyond quality procedures (although it will be included) and tries to judge the quality of input, process and output.

 

Assessment does not necessary lead to a formal accreditation decision. However, formal accreditation need to be based on assessment

 

Audit

Audit is the evaluation or review of procedures, processes and mechanism in an HEI or a part of an HEI (e.g. school of Medicine, school of Business & Management). Not quality itself is subject of review, but  procedures and mechanism to assure the quality and the processes to achieve the mission and goals. A distinction is made between a quality audit and a management audit.

 

 A quality audit evaluates especially the procedures and processes for the assurance of the quality. The main assumption is that if QA-procedures are in place, one may expect that HEI will deliver quality.

 

A management audit looks also at general management, general policy and policy making. 

 

As soon as the quality of the core activities (educational activities and research outcomes) are judged  too, it is called  institutional assessment.

 

 

 

Control see Oversight

 

 

Criteria

Criteria are seen as the checkpoints, the benchmark for assessing the quality of the input and process.  Auditing or assessing the HEI as a whole it concerns the benchmark to check the quality procedures and the performance of the HEI as a whole. See also Standards

 

 

Discipline see Program assessment

 

 

External Quality Assurance Agency (EQA-agency)

 

The object of this survey is the External Quality Assurance agency, also referred to as EQA-agency. An EQA-agency meets the following criteria:

á       It concerns external quality assurance. This means that the agency is acting outside the institutions of Higher Education HEI. Evaluation by an organisation or entity inside an HEI and aiming at quality assurance inside the institution,  is not to be seen as an external quality assurance activity.

á       It concerns activities like evaluation, review, audit, assessment or accreditation

á       Those activities belong to the main tasks of the agency

á       Are done on a regular base

á       The agency is recognised at national or regional level as being charged with the above mentioned activities.

 

The definition excludes:

á       QA-organisations inside an HEI

á       Agencies, supervising EQA-agencies and not actively or on a regular base involved in the above mentioned activities

á       Ad hoc validation or assessment like e.g. done by a university validating programmes in an other country.

 

Evaluation

Evaluation (also called review) is used as the general description of the activity of an EQA-agency for collecting data, information and evidence about the quality of an institution, the quality of parts of an institution or the quality of its core activities: education and/or research.

 

External evaluation team

 

The external evaluation team ( also called expert committee, visiting team, peer review team, academic peer review team) is  the group of experts, invited by the agency to do the audit or assessment. They are independent experts from academia and/or the professional world, judging the quality. Sometimes it includes other members (e.g. student) too.

 

 

 

Institution for Higher Education (HEI)

 

Talking about institution, it concerns an institution for Higher Education, shortened as HEI. In some cases it might not concern an HEI as a whole, but a part of it (for example a School or Department)

 

Management audit  see  Audit

 
Oversight

Oversight, also called control or meta-evaluation concerns the question who is controlling the agency? Who is evaluating the activities of the agency? Is there an authority who evaluate the evaluations (meta-evaluation)?

 

 

Program assessment

Many agencies are assessing one of the core-activities of an HEI, the educational activities. The object of the assessment often is a program leading to a certain degree. Such program assessment also might be called the assessment of a subject area or a discipline. The main future is that the assessment is subject specific: e.g. assessment of history, biology, economy.

 

 

Quality audit  see  Audit

 

 

Review  see Evaluation

 

 

Review committee  see external evaluation team

 

 

Standards

Standards are seen as the expected outcomes of the educational training. It concerns the knowledge, skills, attitudes (= competencies) that are expected from the graduates. This concerns both general standards (qualifications for a Bachelor and Master) and specific subject standards. (see also under Criteria)

 

 

 

Subject area see Program assessment

 

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