The recently held workshop on “External E v a l u a t i o n / P e e r

Review” training at Grand Barbados Beach Resort was enlightening and provided a forum for networking among the local and regional professionals who have an interest in Quality Assurance and Quality Enhancement in post-secondary/tertiary education in Barbados.

Th e Remarks were delivered by Ms. Yvonne Walkes, Chairman of the Barbados Accreditation Council (BAC). Ms. Walkes acknowledged “that the use of external expertise in the quality assurance process signals to tertiary education providers that the quality assurance agency is taking an independent route for the assessment of the institution

“Your Gateway to Global Recognition”JUNE 2010, Vol.4 No. 1

THE FIRST OF THE POOL OF EVALUATORS IN

BARBADOS TRAINED BY THE

BARBADOS ACCREDITATION

COUNCIL (BAC)

Standing: Trained EvaluatorsSeated from left to right: Ms. Valda Alleyne, Executive Director, BAC; Dr. Ruby Alleyne, facilitator;

Ms. Yvonne Walkes, Chairman, BAC; and Mr. Jason Staff ord, co-facilitator.

Continued on page 4

What’s Inside:

Chairman’s Word 2

From the Desk of the Executive Director 3

Off-shore Medical Schools in B’dos 4

BAC News 5

CBET Curriculum Workshop 9

Around the World 11

Crystal Clear 12

CHAIRMAN’S WORD

strategies identifi ed for the way forward included the need for improved innovation and creativity amongst institutions; and the implementation of eff ective management systems for evaluating quality within institutions.

Th e Quality Indicators workshop was seen as critical in light of a survey of over ninety (90) tertiary educational providers which was conducted in May, 2009 by the Caribbean Development Research Services (CADRES) on behalf of the Council. Th e survey was primarily aimed at ascertaining whether quality indicators were established within these institutions.

Overall, it was found that there may not have been a clear understanding of the concept “quality indicator”. Further, amongst other fi ndings, it was revealed that:

58% had a governing/• advisory body structure in place;

46% perceived that the • fi nancing allocated for educational resources was adequate;

37% perceived that their • fi nancial resources were adequate to meet long term requirements;

35% had suffi cient resources • (computers) to meet students’ needs;

45% had stakeholder • interaction in the programme approval process; and

39% reviewed their assessment • policies annually.

Given the Council’s thrust within the next few months to encourage accreditation of institutions and programmes of study in Barbados, it is crucial that the tertiary educational providers have a clear understanding of the concepts “quality” and “quality indicators”. Further, that they be equipped with the necessary techniques and tools to successfully meet the Council’s accreditation standards.

As you may be aware, the concept of “quality” continues to be debated worldwide, particularly as it relates to tertiary education and training in light of varying perspectives from students, employers, institutions, governments and other stakeholders. Indeed, the term “quality indicator” suggests that quality in tertiary education and training can be measured or assessed for a particular purpose; and in the context of this workshop, for institutional or programme accreditation. It is interesting to note that at this workshop that the participants will seek to reach a consensus on the two concepts.

Ms. Yvonne Walkes, Chairman

Continued on page 8

On behalf of the Board of Directors and staff of the Barbados Accreditation

Council, it was a great honour to host the fi rst workshop for the calendar year which focused on the theme: “Establishing Quality Indicators for Institutional and Programme Accreditation”. Only last year, the Council hosted the 6th Annual Conference of the Caribbean Area Network for Quality Assurance in Tertiary Education (CANQATE) which examined the challenges of balancing quality and quantity in this dynamic global environment in which the Caribbean tertiary education sector operates today. Some of the

2

FROM THE DESK OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

QUALITY MATTERS!

How often have you heard that “your perception of quality is not my perception of

quality”? Th is may be considered true as the concept “quality” may diff er according to one’s beliefs, values and experiences. Certainly, my view of “quality” hotel accommodation is one where there is a welcoming approach on arrival, any apologies if there is a prolonged delay at reception, clean surroundings and most important, as a frequent tea drinker, there should be at least complimentary facilities for making tea.

Quality, therefore, connotes that there is some yardstick by which something is being assessed or evaluated. In fact, the Concise Oxford English Dictionary, defi nes “quality” as the “the standard of

something as measured against other things of a similar kind, general excellence” and comes from the Latin “qualis” which means “what kind”. So if we are talking about quality in tertiary education, then there should be some acceptable standards or

criteria by which this

level of

education should be measured against; and this can be done internally by the institution/provider or by an external body, such as a government ministry responsible for education or an quality assurance agency such as the Barbados Accreditation Council.

Th e concern about the quality of tertiary education is not new. Since the 1950s, and more visibly from the 1960s, the notion of quality in education has been debated as various stakeholders have had diff erent views about issues such as its relevance to the sector given its origin in the industrial sector and the implications for academic freedom and institutional eff ectiveness. Today, questions are still being asked in relation to:

What is meant by the concept of • “quality” in tertiary education;Whose yardstick should quality • be measured by – the institution, or the responsible authority for education/sector?How should “quality” be • measured?What needs to happen to assure • continuous quality provision of tertiary education?

Th e Council expects that the notion of quality may vary amongst tertiary providers in Barbados due to the mission/purpose, philosophy, characteristics and complexity of the institution. Nevertheless, the Council will be working with tertiary providers to ensure that eff ective internal quality management systems are implemented within institutions to assure quality educational provision. As such, the BAC perceives quality

in institutions to be represented through/by:

eff ective governance clearly stated and appropriate missioneffi cient and eff ective administrationqualifi ed, competent and engaged faculty and staff timely and customer-friendly servicesrelevant, current, well- documented and appropriately assessed programmesestablished, documented, functional and well-managed quality assurance systemresponsiveness to change system for formative and summative evaluation and reforma culture which embraces integrity and ethical conductprudent fi nancial management eff ective and diversifi ed learning and teaching experiencesadequate and appropriate student services and supportcommitted and motivated students

As the body with responsibility for assuring quality tertiary education in this country, the Barbados Accreditation Council has developed the following underlying principles aimed at assuring quality service delivery by the BAC.

Quality for the BAC is perceived as the provision of eff ective and effi cient services that are:

geared towards the enhancement of post-secondary/tertiary education and training;

Continued on page 93

g gevaluated. In fact, the Concise Oxford English Dictionary, defi nes“quality” as the “the standard of

something as measured against other things of a similar kind, general excellence” and comesfrom the Latin “qualis” which means “what kind”. So if we are talking aboutquality in tertiary education,then there should be some acceptable standards or

criteria by which this

level of

eff ectiveness. Tstill being asked

What is m• “quality” iWhose yar• be measureor the respeducation/How sh•measured?What need•continuoutertiary ed

Th e Council notion of qualitertiary providto the missioncharacteristics the institutionCouncil will beproviders to internal qusystems are institutions educationathe BAC

or programme of study. Further, that there is professional judgment through national, regional and international subject matter experts and professionals.” Ms. Walkes spoke to the evaluators’ ability to confi rm evidence submitted by providers for registration and accreditation. Th e workshop was aimed at equipping the evaluators, selected by the BAC, with the requisite skills and knowledge to be eff ective external evaluators/peer reviewers for the registration and accreditation processes. Th e workshop, facilitated by Dr. Ruby Alleyne, Vice-President, Quality Assurance and Institutional Advancement and Mr. Jason Staff ord, Manager, Institutional Advancement of the University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT), provided practical exposure through a mock site visit where the participants had the opportunity to not only make preparations for the site visit, but also to undertake the visit, interview key administrative, faculty members and a student representative. One of the participants, Mrs. Lynn Beckles, found the workshop to be an excellent exercise and stated, “It was a good opportunity to really understand the organizational structure (of the BAC) and it reinforced the integrity of the accreditation process.” Mrs. Jacequline Moe-Cox, an evaluator who delivered the Vote of Th anks commended the BAC and facilitators for a highly interactive workshop. In her closing remarks, Dr. Alleyne also commended the evaluators for their active participation and contribution to the workshop, which was critical for its success. Prior to the workshop, the evaluators attended an orientation meeting with the BAC to familiarize themselves with the registration and accreditation processes.

Continued from Front page (cont’d)

PROCEDURES

FOR REGISTRATION OF

OFF-SHORE

MEDICAL SCHOOLS

IN

BARBADOS

Any overseas provider, seeking to establish a medical school in Barbados, is expected

to have accreditation/recognition status in its home country/country of origin. Alternatively, in order to seek registration with the Barbados Accreditation Council, the institution should seek accreditation for its programme(s) from the Caribbean Accreditation Authority for Education in Medicine and other Health Professions (CAAM-HP).

a proposal which provides a description of • the organization; its operations as an educational entity; • the nature of the proposed programme • offering(s); method(s) for delivering the programme • offering(s); accreditation status of the institution and/• or programme(s) offered; and any additional information which may assist • the Council with responding effectively to the request; and completed application for registration form.

All other requirements for registration established by the BAC also apply.

For additional information regarding the registration process of the BAC, please go to the BAC’s website at the link http://bac.gov.bb/Registration.htm

4

L-R: Ms. Shelly Carrington, Deputy Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Immigration and Labour; Dr. Louis Whittington, Senior Programme Offi cer (Ag) & Offi cer-in-Charge), University of the West Indies Open Campus, Offi ce of External Relations, Inter and Intra-Institutional Collaboration (UWIOC-ERIIC); Ms. Valda Alleyne, Executive Director, BAC; Ms. Wendy McClean, Manager of Technical Services, TVET Council; Ms. Joy Gittens, Deputy Chief Education Offi cer (Ag), Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development and Board Member, BAC; and Dr. Gladstone Best, First Vice President of Association of Caribbean Tertiary Institutions (ACTI), Local Chapter

BACNews

The Accreditation and Programme Approval Committee (APAC) was formed in February, 2010 to assist the Barbados Accreditation Council (BAC) with the effective functioning of its Accreditation and Programme Approval services.

The mandate of APAC includes:

• Reviewing the recommendations of the evaluation team in respect of accreditation, programme approval and related activities;

• Establishing common standards for evaluating reports;

• Ensuring that decisions are reliable and can stand up to scrutiny;

• Periodically reviewing accreditation and programme approval policies, procedures and processes in order to make recommendations as necessary; and

• Generally ensuring that the Accreditation and Programme Approval processes and procedures are cohesive and meet internationally accepted requirements.

An orientation session was held on March 28 at which the members were apprised of their roles and responsibilities, the Programme Approval processes and procedures and the Programme and Institutional Accreditation Standards of the BAC.

5

BACNews

PERSONNEL FROM THE

TVET COUNCIL ENLIGHTEN

BAC STAFF

The Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Council delivered a presentation on Competence-Based Education and Training

(CBET) to staff of the BAC which highlighted the use of occupational standards in the development and design of training, and in other human resource practices.

Th e presentation acted as a precursor to the collaborative hosting of the workshop Curriculum Design and Development for Competence-Based Education and Training held this month by the two Councils.

L-R: Ms. Dawn Gill, Technical Offi cer, TVET Council; Mrs. Sharon Thomas-Alleyne, Accreditation Offi cer; Mr. Mark Alleyne, Assistant Accountant (BAC); Ms. Valda Alleyne, Executive Director (BAC); Capt. James Maloney, Accreditation Offi cer (BAC); Ms. Katrina Ifi ll, Information Offi cer (BAC); and Ms. Wendy McClean, Manager of Technical Services, TVET Council

Ms. Carol Booth, Senior Manager, Scotland Colleges International (SCI) met with the BAC and indicated that her organization

was seeking collaborative arrangements with local institutions with a view to delivering relevant programmes in Barbados.

SCOTLAND COLLEGES

L-R: Ms. Valda Alleyne, Executive Director, BAC; Ms. Yvonne Walkes, Chairman, BAC; Ms. Carol Booth, Senior Manager, Scotland Colleges International; Capt. James Maloney and Mrs. Sharon Alleyne-Thomas, Accreditation Offi cers, BAC

SUCCESSFUL

COMPLETION

OF TRAINING

Congratulations to Ms. Esther Moore, Maid (BAC) who successfully completed the “Parenting of

Tomorrow’s Adults” 2009 & Beyond Programmes off ered by the Probation Department. Ms. Moore was awarded a Certifi cate of Achievement.6

ve arrangements with localew to delivering relevant

re,llyof

ndon

a

Dr. Barbara Drexler, Programme Director of Frankfurt School of Finance & Management, Germany met with the BAC to discuss its

requirements for delivering a programme of study locally.

BAC MEETS WITH THE

FRANKFURT SCHOOL OF

FINANCE & MANAGEMENT

L-R: Capt. James Maloney, Accreditation Offi cer, BAC; Dr. Barbara Drexler, Frankfurt School of Finance & Management; Mrs. Sharon Thomas-Alleyne, Accreditation Offi cer, BAC; Ms Valda Alleyne, Executive Director, BAC; and a student representative of Frankfurt School of Finance & Management.

Dr. Willie Clarke-Okah, Higher Education Spe-cialist, Commonwealth

of Learning (COL) met with the BAC in March. Th e purpose of the meeting was to introduce the BAC to the COL Review and Improve-ment Model (COL RIM) frame-work for institutional audit within the higher education sector. Th e

model was developed in response to two key drivers, namely:

Increased global emphasis on a. the quality of higher educa-tion, and

Rising concern about the high b. cost and uncertain benefi ts of conventional approaches to external quality assurance.

Th e framework can assist with encouraging and/or enhancing a quality culture in the tertiary sector globally. According to Dr. Clarke-Okah, the COL RIM framework was being piloted initially within Africa and Jamaica. COL was also promoting the framework through a series of visits to other Caribbean countries.

Willie Clarke-Okah, model was developed in response The framework can assist with

TOOL FOR INSTITUTIONAL AUDITING

EDUCATIONUSA

L-R: Ms Valda Alleyne, Executive Director, BAC; Ms. Ichiyo Iwata, Outreach Advisor, EducationUSA; Capt. James Maloney and Mrs. Sharon Thomas-Alleyne, Accreditation Offi cers, BAC and Ms. Katrina Ifi ll, Information Offi cer, BAC

Ms. Ichiyo Iwata, Outreach Advisor of EducationUSA met with the BAC to learn of its role and responsibilities. Th e

discussions focused on areas of mutual interests, namely the recognition services (of local and USA institutions, programmes, and qualifi cations). BAC and EducationUSA have placed their e links on their respective websites to assist interested users. In addition, there will be the opportunity for collaborative arrangements for the hosting of Information Sessions for prospective students to the USA.

7

g external qual

L-R: Ms VAdvisor, EdAccreditat

dniBoufIU

Th e Barbados Accreditation Council takes a partnership approach to the quality assurance of tertiary providers through on-going monitoring, institutional self-evaluation and peer evaluation conducted by an external team of competent individuals.

Th rough consultation with tertiary providers, professional bodies and other stakeholders, the Council has established standards for Institutional and Programme Accreditation which take into account the local peculiarities of the tertiary educational system, whilst incorporating international best practices for global competitiveness.

We anticipate that local and foreign providers off ering tertiary

data acquired should allow tertiary providers to refl ect on factors such as:

How are we doing?• – which measures where the institution is now;

How do we know how we • are doing? – which identifi es the evidence which support this; and

What are we going to do now?• - which shows the next steps necessary for improvement.

Th e data gathered could also be used for benchmarking purposes as an institution may seek to compare itself and/or programme against its competitor(s) with a view to even adopting best practices for improvement.

It was therefore intended that through the workshop that participants would be able to identify vital data that should be collected, analysed and evaluated to assess the quality of the institution and its programmes/courses of study.

Th e Council will continue to provide technical support and assistance to ensure that tertiary providers meet its Institutional and Programme Accreditation Standards. In addition, we are planning to produce a toolkit which will enable tertiary providers to eff ectively establish and implement indicators for quality assurance and quality enhancement.

Th e BAC will continue to host highly productive workshops and looks forward to working with providers as we, together, seek to enhance tertiary educational provisions in Barbados.

Continued from page 2CHAIRMAN’S WORDCHAIRMAN’S WORD

Mission Statement

“To be a high quality

provider of registration,

accreditation and related

services in post-secondary

and tertiary education and

training in Barbados and

beyond.”

education and training in Barbados will demonstrate their commitment towards quality assurance and quality enhancement through voluntary adherence to the Council’s Institutional and Programme Standards.

We recognize that there is considerable variation amongst tertiary providers in Barbados, as revealed by the May 2009 research study which showed that 65% of the providers were small (that is, with less than 100 students). Further, in terms of age of establishment, approximately 36.1% were shown to be “young” (that is, 0 to 5 years); the same percentage was recorded for “maturing” providers (that is, between 6 to 20 years).

Th e Institutional and Programme Accreditation standards are therefore intentionally broad enough to allow for diversity in the institutional processes and systems, creativity and innovation.

Worldwide, students, parents, governments, employers and other stakeholders are demanding accountability, value for money and questioning the relevance of tertiary education and training to employment needs. Barbados is no exception.

Th e Quality Indicators workshop provided the opportunity for principals/owners/managers to evaluate the strengths of their institutions and discern where there are areas for improvement. Self-evaluation is critical to improving the eff ectiveness of institutions and though the idea of assessing institutional or programme success may even seem daunting, threatening, or intruding on academic autonomy or limited time available for teaching and administrative responsibilities, the

8

fi t for purpose, add value and exceed stakeholders’ expectations;benchmarked against regional and international standards.

Quality for the BAC is guided by:a developmental approach; accountability to stakeholders;

Continued from page 3

integrity of practise; excellence in service; and a commitment to national and regional development.

Quality for the BAC is demonstrated by:

demand for non-mandatory services by its clients; respect of peers through mutual recognition;positive feedback from internal

and external stakeholders;effi ciency, eff ectiveness and responsiveness.

At the Council, we are committed to achieving these quality principles through working with tertiary educational providers, the general public, professional bodies, external evaluators engaged by the Council, government and other stakeholders.

Tertiary educational providers are now better equipped to develop their curricula for

competence-based education and training (CBET).

Th anks to the collaboration of the Barbados Accreditation Council (BAC) and the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Council who hosted a workshop entitled, “Curriculum Design and Development for Competence-Based Education and Training” recently held at the Savannah Hotel. Th e three-day workshop attracted twenty-fi ve (25) local educational providers. Ms Kay Skeete, the facilitator has worked in the tertiary education and training sector since 1985 and her aptitude for curriculum development and vocational education has been nurtured locally and internationally.

Ms Yvonne Walkes, Chairman of the BAC, in her Feature Address to the participants stated that the BAC recognizes that a globally competitive post-secondary or tertiary educational system in Barbados demands that educational providers be equipped with the necessary tools and techniques for developing “high quality educational programmes of study and courses that can eff ectively compete with others, based on international standards.” Ms Walkes also remarked that there is an increase in competition between local and foreign providers for the same student groups as a result of the liberalization of education and training globally and the free movement of labour and skills through mechanisms such as the CARICOM Single Market and Economy. Because of this increased competition, the BAC has observed a growing demand for quality education and training and recognized qualifi cations.

Th e Chairman emphasized that, “as economic, social and technological changes gather momentum, people everywhere need to continuously develop their knowledge and skills, so that they can live and work meaningfully in today’s society.”

Given its commitment to the continuous improvement of the quality of teaching and learning at the tertiary level, the BAC decided to collaborate with the TVET Council to host the workshop.

In her Remarks, Ms Wendy McClean, Manager, Technical Services, TVET Council endorsed the Chairman’s comments. Ms. McClean stated that the collaboration between the TVET Council and the BAC was “a natural undertaking given the complementary mandates of both organizations”. Notably, the TVET Council’s focus is “on the standards of competence that individuals are expected to demonstrate while performing work activities,” and further “the TVET Council subscribes to the view that quality and eff ectiveness in education and training must be driven by standards.” Ms McClean anticipated that there would be similar collaborations with other agencies to advance the cause of workforce development in Barbados and the Caribbean.

In highlighting the vital link between occupational standards of competence and training, Ms. McClean presented a scenario where the standards could

COMPETENCE-BASED EDUCATION AND TRAINING

(CBET) CURRICULUM WORKSHOP

Continued on page 12

ontinued from page 3

inex

QUALITY MATTERS!

9

“Quality Indicators”BACASSISTS EDUCATIONAL PROVIDERS

WITH IDENTIFYING

A workshop entitled “Establishing Quality Indicators for Institutional and Programme Accreditation” was held in March at

PomMarine Hotel, Christ Church.

Th e workshop, facilitated by Ms. Valda Alleyne, the Executive Director of BAC, encouraged heads and administrative representatives from various providers to identify the quality indicators (institutional data) which would support their requests for programme and institutional accreditation.

Th e need for the workshop emerged as a result of a survey conducted by the BAC, through the Caribbean Development Research Services (CADRES), which revealed that the majority of tertiary educational providers questioned did not have a clear understanding of the concept “quality indicator”.

Participants at the workshop

In her Remarks, Ms Walkes indicated that the workshop provided the opportunity for the representatives to evaluate the strengths

of their respective institutions and discern where there were areas for improvement. Th e Chairman stated that the BAC would continue to provide technical support and assistance to the educational providers to ensure that they meet the Institutional and Programme Accreditation Standards of the BAC.

Th e forum provided the opportunity for the over 25 educational providers to share their views on “quality” and “quality indicators”.

Ms. Yvonne Walkes, Chairman of BAC

10

The Executive Director represented the Barbados Accreditation Council

at the 11th biennial International Network for Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education (INQAAHE) Members’ Forum in Namibia from May 4 to 6, 2010. Th e Forum, which was hosted by the Namibia Qualifi cations Authority, had as its theme “Responsiveness of External Quality Assurance Agencies”. Th e subthemes focused on the following:

Quality Assurance (QA) • methodologies and Higher Education (HE) economic responsiveness;QA agencies between the • global and the localQA and HE Social • ResponsivenessPolitical Constraints on • External Quality Assurance;

INQAAHE MEMBERS’ FORUM MAY 4 TO 6, NAMIBIA

andQA and the Transnational•

Th e opportunity was also presented for participants to attend three (3) Pre Forum Workshops under the following subject areas:

Open Educational Resources • QA Mechanisms for • QA Agencies• Training of Reviewers•

Over 100 participants primarily from the Asia and African regions attended the 11th INQAAHE Forum. Apart from Barbados, the Caribbean region was represented by Dr. Ethley London, Executive Directors of the University Council of Jamaica and Mr. Michael Bradshaw, acting Executive Director of the Accreditation Council of Trinidad and Tobago and the University Council of Jamaica.

Th rough plenary followed by break-out sessions, participants identifi ed economic, social and political crises facing the tertiary sector and QAAs in particular; and shared their countries’ experiences and strategies. Apart from the learning and networking opportunities provided at the workshops, participants were also able to explore the social and cultural side of Namibia.

Included in the picture from left to right are Dr Ethley London, Executive Director, University Council of Jamaica and Ms Valda Alleyne, Executive Director, Barbados Accreditation Council.At back right is Dr. David Woodhouse, President, INQAAHE.

EMBERS’ FORUM MAY 4 TO 6, NAMIBIAINQAAHE ME

AROUND THE WORLD

L-R: Dr David Woodhouse, President, INQAAHE; Ms Valda Alleyne, Executive Director, BAC; Dr Ethley London, Executive Director University Council of Jamaica (UCJ); and Mr Michael Bradshaw, Executive Director (ag), Accreditation Council of Trinidad and Tobago (ACTT).

11

CreditsA credit is an agreed upon quantifi ed means of expressing the level of learning based on the achievements of learning outcomes and their associated workloads. Generally, once gained, credit cannot be lost. Credit may have a relative value (as the case when they were fi rst introduced) or absolute value(when they made the shift to an accumulative system – no longer calculated on an ad hocproportional basis but on the bases of offi cially recognized criteria – that is the offi cial length of a degree programme or unit).

IndicatorsOperational variables referring to specifi c empirically measurable characteristics of higher education intuitions or programmes on which

evidence can be collected that allows for a determination of whether or not standards are being met. Indicators identify performance trends and signal areas in need of action and enable comparison of actual performance with established objectives. Th ey are used to translate theoretical aspects of quality into procedures, a process known as operationalization. An indicator must be distinguished from a measure, which is data used to demined the level of performance of an attribute of interest, and from a standard, which is the level of acceptable performance in terms of a specifi c numeric criterion.

Peer Review/External ReviewAssessment procedure regarding the quality and eff ectiveness of the academic programmes of an

institution, its staffi ng, and/or its structure, carried out by external experts (peers). (Strictly speaking, peers are academics of the same discipline, but in practice, diff erent types of external evaluators exist, even though all are meant to be specialists in the fi eld reviewed and knowledgeable about higher education in general.) For a review, the source of authority of peers, types of peers, their selection and training, their site visits, and the standards to be met may vary. A review is usually based on a self-evaluation report provided by the institution and can be used as a basis for indicators or as a method of judgment for (external) evaluation of higher education.

Source: UNESCO (2007) Quality Assurance and Accreditation: A Glossary of Basic Terms and Defi nitions Bucharest, Romania.

be used as learning outcomes in the development of a training programme for a supervisor who must be able knowledge and skills to: provide leadership for his or her team; develop productive working relationships with colleagues; allocate and check work in his or her team; and provide learning opportunities for colleagues. Th e Manager, Technical Services emphasized that competence-based education and training allows the training provider to assess trainees against the occupational standards. Further, that learners on entering the programme, know what they are expected to achieve and what will be assessed and at the end of the training, they can provide employers with proof of their ability to perform competently in the workplace.

Th e participants noted that curriculum designers and those who deliver occupational training programmes have to be passionate about people development, thorough and attentive to detail, driven by a commitment to maintaining quality standards, and dedicated professionals who understand the far reaching impact of their work.

Th e rigorous three-day training workshop involved lively exchanges, discussions and group work on curriculum development, design and planning.

Based on the feedback from the participants, the BAC and TVET Council have been assured that the workshop has:

contributed to the overall • improvement of the quality of educational provisions in the curriculum development of

the educational providers that attended; helped the participants improve • their ability to compete in a liberalised marketplace through the acquisition of skills and expertise in this area; andserved as a platform for • dialogue, exchange and sharing of experience, expertise and innovative practices in the design and development of curricula suited to the competence-based education and training (CBET) environment.

Overall, the participants found that the workshop was informative, benefi cial and well executed.CRYSTAL CLEAR

Continued from page 9

COMPETENCE-BASED EDUCATION

AND TRAINING (CBET)

CURRICULUM WORKSHOP

12