QUALITY IN EDUCATION

Quality in Education
Tuning International Master`s Programmes
13 December 2007
Pirjo Halonen
Head of Quality Assurance
Contents
Quality concepts
Background to Quality Assurance in Education
Quality - for whom?
University of Jyväskylä
Summary

Quality
Degree to which a set of inherent characteristics fulfils requirements
Characteristics: distinguishing feature
Requirements: need or expectation that is stated, generally implied or obligatory
(ISO 9000)

Quality
excellence
value
fitness for use
conformity to requirement
defect avoidance
meeting customer’s expectations
…
Quality Management
Directing an organisation with regard to quality to establish policy and objectives and to achieve those objectives.
Quality Assurance
Part of quality management focused on providing confidence that quality requirements will be fulfilled.
Quality Work
means
planning
doing
checking (evaluating)
acting (developing, improving)


Background to Quality Assurance in Education
The Bologna process in 1999:
The European Ministers of Education set a target to realise a coherent and cohesive European Higher Education Area (EHEA):
Undergraduate and postgraduate levels in all European countries
European Credit Transfer System (ECTS)
Common framework of comparable degrees (Diploma Supplement)
Recognition of studies abroad
Elimination of obstacles to the free mobility of students and teachers
European dimension in quality assurance

What is quality in education?
Education quality is a multi-dimensional concept and cannot be easily assessed by only one indicator.

Quality in Education – for whom?
Students
Graduates
Employers
Stakeholders
Teachers
Administrative personnel
Quality personnel
For students
Quality of the lecturer
Expertise
Teaching skills
Teaching methods
Communication skills
Approachability
Enthusiasm
Humour
Friendliness
Flexibility
For students, cont.
Quality of the curriculum
Flexibility
Lifelong learning – varying student pathways
Appropriate contents of courses
Allowing to challenge practice when linking theory to the real world
Use of up-to-date evidence
For students cont.
Quality of social support systems
Student support units - health care, student unions
Part time accepted
Network of other students on the course - learning from each other, motivation
For students, cont.
The consequences are
learning
passing the examinations <-- motivation <-- enthusiasm of the lecturer
Word-of-mouth communication follows from satisfaction with teaching.
For graduates
More working life relevance than academic relevance.
Theoretical background.
More guidance for studies. More time from professors to students.
For employers
Employers do not place emphasis on information about the quality of a university.
Most of them apply the reputation in their decision making:
“grapevine” knowledge, or word-of-mouth communication
personal, regional, professional networks
performance of past graduates
prejudice against new universities
For stakeholders
In Finland, mostly The Ministry of Education.
Young graduates.
Moderate studying time.
Given quantitative objectives to be fulfilled.
For administrative personnel
Existing strategy for education improvement.
Development and improvement of the quality of academic programmes.
Efficiency and effectiveness of organisational structures within which the programmes can be provided and supported.
Responsibilities well-defined.
For administrative personnel, cont.
Retaining students after a bachelor`s degree.
Excellent learning results.
Excellent research results.

Careful examination of opportunity costs.
In quality audits
Instructions are extensive.
The studying process from the student’s point of view is clearly defined.
Curricula and teaching are well-timed.
The university utilise feedback from graduates in their curriculum work.
Definition, what kind of learning is expected – “in-depth learning”.
In quality audits, cont.
The learning path must be a process without breaks between departments.
Shared practices in departments:
personal curriculum (HOPS)
systematic feedback systems
curriculum process
course assessments
post-graduate studies
In quality audits, cont.
Processes are well defined, assessed and developed.
Guidelines to assure quality of education.
The responsibilities well defined.
A department of students services have been established and it has enough resources.
A variety of teaching and testing methods are used.
In quality audits, cont.
Research of teaching  produces good practices.
Pedagogic strategy.
Two-way Quality!
In a service process there are always two parties.
In education also the students have duties.
At the University of Jyväskylä
Present practices are described in the quality manuals.
A new education strategy is needed.
Evaluation policies of the education have to be implemented.
The education will be evaluated yearly.
On the basis of the evaluation education will be developed.
Summary
The concept quality is defined in various ways depending on the speaker.
Several approaches are needed.
All the parties have rights and duties.
A firm strategy is necessary to improve the quality.
All the topics must be open for evaluation.
References
Alves H, Raposo M. Conceptual model of student satisfaction in higher education. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence. 2007; 18(5):571-588.
Hill Y, Lomas L, MacGregor J. Students` perceptions of quality in higher education. Quality Assurance in Education. 2003; 11(1):15-20.
Morley L, Aynsley S. Employers, quality and standards in higher education: Shared values and vocabularies or elitism and inequalities? Higher Education Quarterly. 2007; 61(3):229-249.
Ross R, Gruber V, Szmigin I. Service quality in higher education: The role of student expectations. Journal of Business Research. 2007; 60(9):949–959
Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area. European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education. EU Education and Culture. 2005.
Yin Cheong Cheng, Wai Ming Tam. Multimodels of quality in education. Quality Assurance in Education 1997; 5(1):22–31.

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