QUALITY ASSURANCE IN ESTONIA

QUALITY ASSURANCE IN QUALITY ASSURANCE IN ESTONIAESTONIA

ACCREDITATION OF ACADEMIC PROGRAMMESAND INSTITUTIONS

TIIT LAASBERGTIIT LAASBERG

Population 1.4 millionArea 45,216 kmPopulation 1.4 millionArea 45,216 km 22

QA IN ESTONIA

Estonia - a maritime countryLength of the marine border 3,794 kms

Forests - 44% of area

Accreditation – more than 100 years old

Accreditation is the process by which a (non-) governmental or private body evaluates the quality of a higher education institution as a whole or of a specific educational programme in order to formally recognize it as having met certain predetermined minimal criteria or standards.

USA as homeland of accreditation•Accreditation in HE started in USA around the turn of the 20th Century (set up ca. 100 years ago). It became the most systematic assurance of quality in the HE system.

•There are six main regional accrediting organizations for the institutional accreditation of universities in the USA. They are private and independent from HE institutions and the Government.

•There are additionally organizations that accredit study programmes in certain areas of knowledge such medicine, law, teaching, engineering, business. Professional accreditation bodies, however, do not exist for all types of HE programmes, only for those with organised professional communities.

•The Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) is a private organization that coordinates the regional accrediting organizations, as well as the accrediting organizations in specific academic subjects - http://www.chea.org/.

EVALUATION IN WESTERN EUROPE – 25 YEARS OLD

15 YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT OF THE HIGHER EDUCATION QUALITY ASSURANCE SYSTEM

IN CEE COUNTRIES

Developments in Central and Eastern Europe

Background

• The beginning of 1990’s, "Perestroika" and changes in HE system

• Autonomous institutions versus strictly state controlled institutions or public universities instead of the state universities

• Credit point system versus strictly course system

• Establishment of many new private HE institutions

• Increasing mobility of students (or need to increase the mobility of students)

• Recognizion of diplomas and study periods

Most of CEE countries took the idea of accreditation

Outcomes

• Nearly all the CEE countries have introduced systems of higher education evaluation, usually as part of an accreditation process - accreditation of study programmes or institutions or both.

• At the national system level, the same system of QA has not been applied across the CEE countries. However, there are similarities which has been driven by EU accession requirements and experiences and practise in Western Europe and elsewhere:

1) A national body in charge of QA

2) Self-evaluation of HE

3) External peer review usually site visit

4) Public reporting

Founded in 1632Founded in 1632

NEED FOR ACCREDITATION:NEED FOR ACCREDITATION:

•Rapid changes in Estonian HE at the beginning of 1990’s (first curricula reform – 4 +2 system; CP)

•Universities, strictly regulated by the state before, started to operate relatively autonomously

• Increasing number of private institutions

•Reformed Academy of Sciences

LAWS AND REGULATIONSLAWS AND REGULATIONS::

• Main principles were laid out 1994 to 1995

• University Act was adopted 1995 and amended 1996

• State-recognized diplomas were introduced

• Universities and curricula have to be assessed every seven years

• Procedures for accreditation were drawn up

MAIN AIMS OF ACCREDITATION IN ESTONIA

•Quality improvement

•Quality control

• International comparision

•Program and institutional accreditation

HE HE QUALITY QUALITY ASSESSMENTASSESSMENT COUNCIL COUNCIL::

• Established on June 13, 1995, by the decree of the Government of the Republic of Estonia

• Operates in accordance with Estonia’s University Act

• Includes 12 representatives of research and development institutions, state foundations, and professional associations

• May not include university rectors, pro-rectors, or Quality Assessment Center staff

• Makes accreditation decisions based on expert evaluation reports

• NEW! Accreditation decisions must be approved by the Minister of Education – from 2002

• Discloses accreditation decisions

• Makes recommendations for bringing higher education standards into accordance with internationally approved educational standards

• Develops methods for assessing academic programmes at higher education institutions

• Makes recommendations based on accreditation decisions

HE HE QUALITY ASSESSMENT CENTERQUALITY ASSESSMENT CENTER(HE ACCREDITATION CENTER):(HE ACCREDITATION CENTER):

• Founded on September 1, 1997, by the Estonian Ministry of Education

• Legally a part of the Archimedes Foundation

• Funded by the state

• Arranges accreditation of universities and their curricula in the country

• Prepares documentation required by the Assessment Council: self-analysis reports, expert commission reports

• Arranges experts’ evaluation visits to schools

• Cooperates internationally with other assessment centers

• Advises and holds seminars on writing of self-analysis reports

Higher Education Quality Assurance Higher Education Quality Assurance System in EstoniaSystem in Estonia

Quality Assurance at a Level of an Institution

Act Plan

DoCheckInternal controlSelf-EvaluationExternal Evaluation

The quality assurance system is following the DEMING’s circle of quality: PLAN-DO-CHECK-ACT

“As long as the circle is rolling,

the quality is providing.

Once the circle is interupted

The quality fails.” (Deming)

Quality Control

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Every next circle must be of better quality

Quality improvement

Quality Assurance at a Level of an Institution

EXPLANATION OF ACCREDITATION

Accreditation must be understood as a continuous evaluation process with the purpose of defining and improving the quality and effectiveness of the educational process.

ACCREDITATION DECISIONS

Full accreditation (valid for 7 years)

Conditional accreditation

(valid for 3 years)

No accreditation

Program willbe closed

Right to offer state recognized diplomas

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Accreditations of study programmes Accreditations of study programmes (203) in 2006 by 25 expert groups, (203) in 2006 by 25 expert groups,

visited 21 HEIvisited 21 HEI

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fully accreditedconditionallynon-accredited

Accreditations of study programmes Accreditations of study programmes (1065) 1997 – 2006 (1065) 1997 – 2006

Cost of accreditation

•One expert per one week - salary 1150 EUR - travel 600 EUR - accomodation 400 EUR - other 100 EUR

2250 EUR

•Four experts per one week 9000 EUR

Evaluation Expert Team MusicNovember 25 – December 2, 2007

Dr. Timothy TaylorCardiff School of MusicCardiff UniversityUK

Prof. Einar SolbuExecutive Vice PresidentInternational Music CouncilNorway

Prof. Timo LeisiöHead of the Department of Music AnthropologyUniversity of TampereFinland

Mr. Wouter TurkenburgHead of Jazz studiesRoyal Conservatoire in TheHagueThe Netherlands

AFTER THE ACCREDITATION:AFTER THE ACCREDITATION:

•Teaching methods have been changed

•Universities have updated their libraries, equipped computer classes, etc

•A process for regular self-assessment has been developed (SWOT analyzes)

•Expert reports have been used in writing universities´ development plan

BENEFITS OF HE:BENEFITS OF HE:

•Accreditation process was carried out only by international experts – in improvement of Estonian HE the international know-how is used

• 4(3)+2 system together with accreditation “woke up” Estonian HEI

• International relations have helped to improve the quality of Estonian higher education (students’ and teaching staff exchanges), implementing one the main aims of Bologna declaration

• Accreditation results have been helpful for students to decide where to continue their studies. Accreditation results can be easily found from the internet

BENEFITS OF HE:BENEFITS OF HE:

NEGATIVE

Estonian accreditation process is process oriented and less outcome oriented

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS AND SOME FACTS ABOUT HIGHER EDUCATION IN

ESTONIA

Quality AgreementAgreement was initiated by Estonian Rector Conference.

Agreement:

The Parties shall harmonise the quality requirements for curricula, academic degrees being awarded and academic positions in universities.

The Parties shall bring the rules regulating their curricula, the awarding of academic degrees and the filling of academic positions into conformity with the provisions of this Agreement.

Practice:

• Quality commission of the RC

• Self analysis of the awarded doctoral degrees, elected professors, study programs

• All parties have some problems!

Internal QA handbook of HEI

•Worked out by public universities

•Should be improved

• Implementation of internal QA still on the way

Main poblem in the Estonian HE

•Estonian HE is overheated – too many HEI

•The number of secondary school graduates will rapidly drop down

•There will be further a strong pressure to the quality of HE

•There exists a pointless overlap of many study programmes in HEI

Expected decrease of student intake

Secondary school's graduates (blue line) and intake of first year students (white line) into HEI in 1990 - 2012

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keskk. lõpetajad

kõrgk. vastuvõtt

Intake, students and graduates by HE stages

Educational stages Intake Students Graduates

2005 2006 2005 2006 2005 2006

Applied and vocational HE studies 6 530 6 503 23 416 23 659 4 326 4 263

Bachelor’s studies 7 619 7 336 29 773 28 628 5 549 5 290

Integrated bachelor’s and master’s studies 834 815 3 463 3 684 252 315

Master’s studies 4 197 3 499 9 663 10 654 1 535 1 535

Doctoral studies* 440 444 1 972 2 142 131 143

TOTAL 19 620 18 597 68 287 68 767 11 793 11 546

*Together with resident students (intake before 2001/2002

45% state supported students, others are paying tuition fee

Higher education institutions1995–2006 (in 2012 – 20 HEI?)

Tallinn – first mentioned in 1154

THE END