Transcript Slide 1

HEQC’S QUALITY SYSTEMS
RESTRUCTURING PROJECT:
QUALITY PROGRAMMES,
QUALITY MATERIAL
• Prof Louie Swanepoel
• Directorate Quality Assurance and
Promotion
• (012) 429-2674
• [email protected]
Towards the African university in
the service of humanity
Recognition of Unisa and its
qualifications
• On 1 January 2004 the Technikon of Southern
Africa merged with Unisa incorporating the
distance education leg of Vista University to
form the new Unisa
Diversity of Learners
• The UNISA student population
comprises students from South
Africa, the African continent and the
rest of the world.
• The average age of a UNISA student
is 30 years of age.
• At present, UNISA students
represent a total of 23 languages.
Location
• Two main campuses
– Pretoria Campus
– Florida Campus
• Five Hubs
– Coastal Hub
– Gauteng Hub
– KwaZulu-Natal Hub
– Midlands Hub
– North Eastern Hub
Formal Headcounts, 2004-8 to
date (Prov.)
Absolute Formal Headcount Distribution by College,
2004 - 2008 to date
• Formal registrations by regional
office 2007
• Unisa students in Africa 2007
Registrations by continent 2007
• Formal headcount registrations by
degree level 2007
5 570 students
20 053 students
7.5%
128 students
88.9%
236 320 students
• Demographic profile 2007
• Registrations by age group 2007
Qualifications
• Both career-focused and university type.
• From certificate programmes up to doctoral
studies.
• Housed in the 5 colleges
– College of Agriculture and Environmental
Sciences (CAES)
– College of Economic and Management
Sciences (CEMS)
– College of Human Sciences (CHS)
– College of Law (CLAW)
– College of Science, Engineering and
Technology (CSET)
Registration
Absolute Formal Headcount Distribution by College, 2004 - 2008
to date
Purpose of Finnish Project
• To establish and embed a QA
framework of continuous
improvement within academic
programmes through a wellconceptualised, integrated course
design and development and delivery
process, taking cognizance of the
critical principles of ODL.
– Contribute to the transformation of Unisa by establishing
effectively contextualized ODL best practices through:
developing an appropriately contextualized ODL model for
Unisa through:
• Interrogation of current ODL best practice
internationally and
• Assessment of the current approach and practice at
Unisa.
• Introducing change initiatives to establish a relevant
ODL culture and practice throughout the university
– Impacting directly on the effective access, retention and
success of students through establishing an appropriate
service and learning environment
FINNISH RESEARCH PROJECT:
• FINNISH RESEARCH PROJECT:
to develop QA management system
for integrated course design and
development process within ODL
• Trial process for the development of
a QA framework in other areas of the
value chain of service delivery within
a ODL context.
• Registrations by employment type
2007
ODL
• Focuses on removing barriers to
access learning, flexibility of learning
provision, student-centeredness,
supporting students and constructing
learning programmes with the
expectation that students can
succeed
DEFINITION OF ODL
• Open distance learning is a multidimensional system aimed at
bridging the time, geographical and
transactional (communication and
educational) distance between:
• student and institution,
• student and lecturers/tutors,
• students and courseware, and
• student and peer.
UNISA’S ODL MODEL
Unisa’s ODL model
Input
Process
Institutional:
Identity
PQM/curriculum
T+L approach
Institution
Student
enquiry
Student
Facilitate
access and
prepare for
student
Student choice
and preparation
for registration
Facilitate
admin
process for
registrations
Student
registration
Support students
to enter learning
process
Output
Facilitate learning
and Formative
assessment
Facilitate
summative
assessment
Preparation
for learning
Learning
Summative
assessment
and credit
Addressing
skills/needs of
students for
success
Life long learning
Alumni
HR recruitment and provisioning
ICT platform and capacity
Infrastructure
certification
Remedial
options for
students
failing
accum.
Budget and financial resourcing
Facilitate
recognition /
Monitor
progress of
students and
their impact
Graduations
UNISA STUDENTS
• Are at the centre of the learning
process
STUDENT WALK
Choices guided by self
assessment and
appropriate support
staff
Continuous support
including peer group
Flexible learning
arrangements within
fixed parameters
Institutional plans and
preparedness/to facilitate
learning
Integrated formative
and summative
assessment
Se
am
les
s
e
rg
a
l
ff/
ta e
s
l
s
ra a
nt or b
e
c nt
an -me s
e
L tor
ill
sk
tu
L
OD
Key Principles
Access to quality
integrated
courseware
T
General ICT
enabling
Accessible JIT
registration and
admin services
nt
ere
h
o
c
in ime
(te tegr fo
am at r p
e
ap d s repa
pr tud ra
oa y tio
ch m n
In
an ate of
t
d ria
sy eg
bl l
pr ste rate
en
oc m d
de
es s a
d
se nd
s
al
e
tiv ion
fec ct s
Ef nsa sse
tra oce
pr
E
lea nab
en rn ling
vir ing
on
m
en
t
User friendly
calendar and info
booklets
User friendly calendar
etc.
FINNISH PROJECT
• Focus in on one of the core
distinguishing characteristics of an
ODL institution:
• DEVELOPMENT OF
APPROPRIATE LEARNING
RESOURCES -
Research Process: Phase 1:
• Situational analysis
• Interviews
• For a understanding of current
practices, procedures and
processes and future
expectations of key
stakeholders
• Gap analysis
Quality improvement project
• Key steps in design and development
process were identified and agree
upon
• Each key step needs to be informed
by policy and/or procedure as well as
quality standards
KEY STEPS
•
•
•
–An overview of the key steps
in the materials design and
development process :
Design
Development
Delivery
Three key isseus:
• Lack of an integrated system for
planning and monitoring of the entire
programme and materials
development process from design to
review
• No mechanisms to enforce policies
and procedures
– Staff might need training to fully
understand and implement policies
• Need to articulate more fully in
guidelines for programme
development
Power course
• Prototype – part of the new ODL
model will ensure team approach and
that systems are integrated
• ICLD – worked on 10% of study
guides
• Team approach – time-consuming
• Lecturers – staff-student ratios
1:4000.
Key question
• What do we need to know &
understand about the nature of
– Students
– Courses
in order to design and implement
high-quality, highly relevant &
successful ODL-oriented power
courses?
Power courses
• Developing courseware for modules
or programmes to integrate student
profile, stakeholder needs, orientation
and counseling needs, tutoring, multimedia, formative assessment etc.
• Large enrolments or used in many
different programmes
• Tied to a new tutor-marker-system
and integrated IT, HR and Finance
infrastructure.
TUITION POLICY
• An agreed-upon and planned
process of course design,
development, production and delivery
with a view to integrating and coordinating Unisa’s system.
• Team approach to course
programme design will be mandatory
with flexibly composed course teams
whose specific roles and
responsibilities are clearly delineated.
• No such system is consistently
applied.
• Focus should be on programme
design and the ways in which
individual courses and study guides
contribute to the achievement of
programme outcomes.
• Planning teaching and learning
support activities and an assessment
strategy – important element of
design
• Improve internal and external liaison
in the design process – working with
stakeholders
• Need for greater focus on issues of
articulation, progression and NQF
levels
• Piloting and/or external critical peer
review of programmes, modules and
materials
• Programme review processes should
be built into planning cycles
STEP 2: Protocol for programme
design and materials development
• Draft guidelines for instructural Design and
Learning Development agreed upon by early
February 2008.
• Unisa systems – to be aligned with ODL principles
underpinning power courses
Monitor and review
• Surveys to measure the efficacy,
understanding and development
process for the first series of piloted
power courses
• Inform the power course project and
ensure some degree of triangulation
and closure to process.
– 4 surveys
Results
• Entire process of quality programmes
and materials development, which
involves design, development and
delivery (with feedback loop) – not
captured in any single document in
any single locations
• Process not supported by a common
digital system
• However, staff know the key steps
Course Design and Development
• UNISA courses are primarily developed by
teams consisting of a number of specialists.
• These teams are flexible and are constituted
according to specific course design needs.
• UNISA offers innovative delivery systems
(e.g. interactive videoconferencing and
online delivery) and student support in the
form of
– Learning centres
– Tutors
– Contact
– Counseling
Course Design and Development
(cont)
• Delivery systems
–
–
–
–
–
–
Technology support
Online learning
Print-based materials
Teleconferencing
Videoconferencing
Tutors
Course delivery
• Innovative delivery systems (e.g.
interactive videoconferencing and
Online delivery)
• Student support
– Learning centers
– Tutors
– Contact
– Counseling
Distance Learning Delivery
Systems
• Print based materials
• Tutors
– Technology support
– Teleconferencing
– Videoconferencing
– On-Line Learning
Tutoring
• Ideally, students need to be linked to a tutor at
registration; a new relationship has to develop
between lecturers and tutors; tutors have to
mark students’ assignments giving detailed
feedback and support and mark the work of the
same student each time (and there have to be
at least two formative assessment
opportunities as part of the learning
mediation); and tutor-markers have to keep
contact with students through tutorials (or other
media if students do not attend tutorials). In
this way the transactional distance between
the student, the institution and teachers will be
bridged.
Challenges
• Is policy realistic?
• Does the development of study
material receive appropriate
recognition and is adequate time
provided?
• Many still to give through to overall
programme design issues.
• Give thought to the development of
appropriate language and learning
skills as part of the programme and
module design process.
• Assessment policy – assignments for
assessment can be improved.
Close the quality loop
• Directorate QAP – responsible for
promotion of QA to effect
improvement
• Monitor of quality outcomes of
designed, developed and delivered
courses.
UNISA 2015: AN AGENDA FOR TRANSFORMATION
QUALITY ASSURANCE POLICY
POLICIES
STRATEGIES
PLANNING
Refinement
and
continuous
improvement
INPUT
SELFEVALUATION
PROCESS
RESOURCE
ALLOCATION
Refinement
and
continuous
improvement
OUTPUT
SERVICE
PEER
REVIEW
LEVEL
AGREEMENTS
CAPACITY
BUILDING
PROCEDURES
QUALITY
MANAGEMENT
SYSTEM
PROCESSES
GOVERNANCE
BENCHMARKING
IMPACT
SATISFACTION
SURVEYS
FRAMEWORK FOR QUALITY
AT UNISA
Bits and pieces
INTEGRATED APPROACH
48
All improvement involves change, not
all change is an improvement.