presentation de muzio gola - polito, italie_vers 7

8/3/2019 Presentation de Muzio Gola - POLITO, Italie_vers 7

1/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 1

Instance Nationale dvaluation du systme dducation et de Formation

Colloque International : Lvaluation de la qualit et de lquit des systmes dducation et deformation : quels enjeux pour la recherche et laction ?

Les 20 et 21 Avril 2010Au Centre National de Formation et des Confrences

_____________________________________Hay Nahda - Rabat___________________________

Quality Assurance of education atQuality Assurance of education atQuality Assurance of education atQuality Assurance of education at POLITO: why, for whom, howPOLITO: why, for whom, howPOLITO: why, for whom, howPOLITO: why, for whom, how

Muzio M. Gola, vice-rector for Quality Accreditation and Evaluation, Politecnico di Torino_________

ABSTRACT

At first, the guiding ideas and principles are declared: how Quality Assurance was meant to serve the

interests of society concretely by protecting the interests of students, who invest in higher education

the most precious resource their time, and those of labour and profession market where knowledge

finds its application. Certain design features are included in order to make the operations of QA more

efficient, effective and sustainable. Then boundary conditions are examined, mainly those coming from

trends in Europe, in particular those set by ENQA in 2005, and those stemming from Italian traditions,

practices and ministerial regulations. The practical implementation of such Framework in a limited time

(less than two years) has required a strategy to not only develop the tool, but which is more

important to obtain the contribution of the many who were gradually involved. This includes both

professors i.e. those in charge of Programme design and in charge of their own course and staff, in

charge of providing all the necessary administrative supports, student services, monitoring data. The

resulting deliverable consists in a Quality Assurance Framework, a on-line tool which is

comprehensive i.e. integrates all requirements for Quality Assurance while keeping sustainable andmaking use of a modern communication approach. Finally, it is necessary to examine what to do next,

in order to progress from the QA Framework into an effectively working QA System which can give

access to the external certifications and accreditations._________

1111 ---- The ideas, the principles, the featuresThe ideas, the principles, the featuresThe ideas, the principles, the featuresThe ideas, the principles, the features

TheQUALITY ASSURANCE FRQUALITY ASSURANCE FRQUALITY ASSURANCE FRQUALITY ASSURANCE FRAMEWORKAMEWORKAMEWORKAMEWORKdeveloped at Politecnico di Torino (POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO) is a tool for Quality

Assurance of Programmes in Higher Education Institutions. It was developed around four core

principles 1) due consideration of external educational demands, 2) appropriate response to the

educational demands, 3) learning environment appropriate to the envisaged Learning Outcomes, 4)

proven capability of meeting the expected Learning Outcomes. The tool satisfies multiple

requirements, it marshals the essential information that provides the basis for regarding a Programme

as assessable for accreditation purposes, it makes the best use of ICT and requires a sustainable

workload on the part of faculty and staff.

TheQUALITY ASSURANCE FRQUALITY ASSURANCE FRQUALITY ASSURANCE FRQUALITY ASSURANCE FRAMEWORKAMEWORKAMEWORKAMEWORKdeveloped at Politecnico di Torino (POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO) is a tool

for internal Quality Assurance (according to the term employed in ENQA S&Gs [1],

or, tout court, Quality Assurance - QA) of Programmes in Higher Education

Institutions (HEIs). QA should always be installed well before any move towardsexternal accreditation or certification.


2/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 2

The tool was conceived and designed aiming at a full compatibility with ENQA

S&Gs [1] requirements and, in general, the European trends toward QA for

enhancement of Programmes.

One of the reference best practice in Europe is certainly supplied by the Dutch

NVAO, whose new developments for the accreditation of Programmes (however, in

line with NVAO criteria already applied in the Accreditation Framework started in

2003 [2]) focus on six main questions:

1. What is the inteinteinteintention of the Programmention of the Programmention of the Programmention of the Programme?

2. With what curriculumcurriculumcurriculumcurriculum?

3. With what staff?

4. With what facilities?

5. How does the programme intend to guarantee quality?

6. Are the objectives being achieved?

The intention of the Programmeintention of the Programmeintention of the Programmeintention of the Programme and curriculumcurriculumcurriculumcurriculum are explored by NVAO along the

following lines, which I consider to be the core:

Level and orientation are in line with the current requirementscurrent requirementscurrent requirementscurrent requirements set by theset by theset by theset by the

occupational fieldoccupational fieldoccupational fieldoccupational field and the discipline from an international perspective in terms of

the programme content

The curriculum has demonstdemonstdemonstdemonstrable links with current developments in therable links with current developments in therable links with current developments in therable links with current developments in the

occupational field and the disciplineoccupational field and the disciplineoccupational field and the disciplineoccupational field and the discipline

The learning outcomes are adequately translated into the learning objectiveslearning outcomes are adequately translated into the learning objectiveslearning outcomes are adequately translated into the learning objectiveslearning outcomes are adequately translated into the learning objectives of

the curriculum. Students follow a course programme that is cohesive in terms of

content.

Interim and final examsexamsexamsexams, final projects and the way in which graduates function

in practice or in subsequent education demonstrate what level has been realiseddemonstrate what level has been realiseddemonstrate what level has been realiseddemonstrate what level has been realised.

Exams and assessments are valid, reliable and clear to the students

The POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO----QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK was therefore designed to satisfy four core principlescore principlescore principlescore principles:

due consideration of external educational demands: the Programme must be

clearly designed around functions to be covered by the degree holder in aworking context and around the related competencies (stressed by Tables A2,

A3, as discussed later)

appropriate response to the educational demands (in old language, educational

offer): the Programme must be clearly deployed with appropriate Learning

Outcomes, which are in agreement (content, amount, level) with the target

functions / competencies (stressed by Table B2, as discussed later)

learning environment appropriate to the envisaged Learning Outcomes: the

Programme must expose the students to an appropriate learning environment,


3/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 3

with appropriate and state of the art equipment (& laboratories, rooms, but also

teachers, methods )

proven capability of meeting the expected Learning Outcomes: the Programme

appropriately certifies that Learning Outcomes have been reached by the

students, which implies that the exams must be documented to have a proven

public certifying value (a caveat: this requirement is met substantially in the

majority of cases, but meeting formally with adequate documentation is a

challenge that will require further work in the future).

The POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO----QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK is built around the core principles while, at the same

time, possessing certain design featuresdesign featuresdesign featuresdesign features which comply with the concrete university

context, integrate multiple requirements, innovate the operations of QA through a

clever use of ICT :

be a design tool posing the right questions to be answered when a Programme is

designed

be a communication protocol, which should allow efficient exposure of the

Requirements around which the Programme is designed and of the means

through which it is delivered

be at the same time a checklist for programme evaluation, a guideline for the

implementation of internal QA, a tool for any internal review (audit)

include all monitoring data of a statistical nature which allow to keep under

control student intake, progression, exit and follow-up; most of them alreadyrequired at

link QA with the institutional strategies

integrate in QA the already existing modes of operation (from Faculty level to

student services) and help re-shape these modes, when necessary, according to

the requirements of QA

be structured in a modular manner, making it possible to be effectively used in a

web medium, therefore allowing access by the public at large (clear student and

family information) while providing hypertext links to supporting documents,making it a real instrument for transparency and control on the specialists side

use a format of the Tables that facilitates comparability between Programmes

and is effective in allowing an appropriate evaluation of the Programme by third

parties or in supplying stakeholders with specific information

be integrated with an annual REVIEW REPORTREVIEW REPORTREVIEW REPORTREVIEW REPORT; the regular collection of annual QQQQ....AAAA....

FRAMEWORKSFRAMEWORKSFRAMEWORKSFRAMEWORKS and related REVIEW REPORTSREVIEW REPORTSREVIEW REPORTSREVIEW REPORTS suppresses the need of the self evaluation

report i.e., allows Programme monitoring and maintenance on an ongoing basis

rather than as a periodic or as a on-demand reporting activity


4/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 4

In short, marshal, the essential information that provides the basis for regarding a

Programme as assessable for accreditation purposes. But, at the same time, duly

consider that Quality Assurance, external evaluation and accreditation are time

consuming processes, and may easily generate fatigue and rejection. Therefore all

efforts were made to capture the critical information which is required by

stakeholders such as employers, the labour market, students, educational policy

makers, educational establishments but, at the same time, collect only those details

which are strictly essential to the core principles (sustainable workload for faculty

and staff).

2222 ---- The boundary conditionsThe boundary conditionsThe boundary conditionsThe boundary conditions

Design of thePOLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO----QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKhad to comply with boundary conditions set by requirements of the

Ministry of Education and by the National University Committee. It however turned out that such

regulations could be easily incorporated in the framework and organised logically: hence, they turned

out to be an opportunity rather than a constraint. The increasing presence of QA in the European scene

and the expected approval of the new Italian agency ANVUR finally suggested that implantation of a QA

system was opportune as a preliminary step toward prospective national and international

accreditations.

In Italy, the national university system has been reformed in 1999 to be compliant

with the Bologna process. A further reform was issued in 2004, and the last one is

currently on the way, setting new modifications of the academic regulations with

some impact on Programme organization. Each university has to re-organize its

academic offer according to the new rules defined by the shortly called Ministerial

Decree 270 [3].

The implementation of this Decree was accompanied through 2008 by a complex

set of measures aimed at reducing the number of Programmes on offer in the Italian

University system - effectively overgrown during the last decade and at forcing

individual universities to obey stricter requirements in four areas [4]:

a) the transparency requirementstransparency requirementstransparency requirementstransparency requirements i.e. rules for correct and complete

communication of features of Programmes to students and all interested

parties later specified [5]b) the requirements for quality assurancerequirements for quality assurancerequirements for quality assurancerequirements for quality assurance of educational processes

c) the requirements for faculty qualifications and for infrastructural facilitiesrequirements for faculty qualifications and for infrastructural facilitiesrequirements for faculty qualifications and for infrastructural facilitiesrequirements for faculty qualifications and for infrastructural facilities,

which must be available to the Programme, in relation to the scientific /

learning areas involved

d) the dimensional requirementsdimensional requirementsdimensional requirementsdimensional requirements, i.e. the maximum and minimum number of

students that each Programme can effectively sustain.

At the same time, the Ministry of University and Scientific Research (MIUR) issued a

new online form named RADRADRADRAD which each Programme should fill and submit, at

national level, to the approval of CUN (National University Committee; an elective


5/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 5

regulatory body reporting to the Ministry) and, locally, to the University Evaluation

Board. CUN issued in 2007 Guidelines for the application and evaluation of the

ministerial requirements.

It was apparent that this RADRADRADRAD form, although not yet fully in line with the complete

set of Quality Assurance and ENQA requirements, was fairly well in that line by

incorporating several of the necessary features. All Programmes of Italian

Universities were to adapt to the new ministerial requirements at the latest by the

Academic Year 2010/11.

The design of the POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO----QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK took into account all this. However, they

were considered opportunities more than constraints. Requirements by MIUR and

Guidelines by CUN would give strength to a QA design that took into account all

factors while organising them in a rational and comprehensive scheme.

At Politecnico di Torino, this was considered an opportunity to reorganize curricula

following internal QAQAQAQA principles before starting work to fill the new forms. In fact it

was recognised that if Politecnico had in place a well organised and systematic

documentation of Programmes as dictated by QAQAQAQA requirements, this would

automatically allow fulfilment of new Ministerial rules while at the same time putting

Politecnico on the European scene.

The approval of the new Italian agency for the evaluation of the university system

(ANVUR - now established) was pending; there were also talks about gaining

partial accreditation from across-the-border agencies. Therefore the Rector and the

Senate considered that the establishment of a QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK could be a useful steptoward prospective national or international accreditations.

3333 ---- With the contribution of manyWith the contribution of manyWith the contribution of manyWith the contribution of many

Unlike previous sparse experiences in pilot evaluations or accreditations, in this case it was possible to

take QA to a system level, involving in a co-operative effort all Faculties and all interested offices,

each contributing according to its institutional role. In spite of the very short time available, it was

possible to successfully populate theQQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK forms for all 67 first and second cycle

Programmes. A winning factor was the idea to train all faculty involved in populating the forms by

providing through the concrete example of eight Programmes who started about a semester ahead,testing the system and evolving good practices. A second winning factor was the support timely

offered to all faculty involved by a technical support and advice group comprising faculty and staff

who had gained a better expertise during the pilot phase. A third winning factor was the choice of

providing one ICT on-line form both for theQQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK and for the ministerialRADRADRADRAD; this made clear

that the two operations were integrated, thus gaining the confidence and acceptance of faculty and

staff in the newly introducedQQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK. A fourth winning factor was the close co-operation of

faculty and staff. All this has proved crucial to the success of the operations. Facts show that now the

QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK is considered matter of fact atPOLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO. Full completion is due by may 2010.


6/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 6

The following schedule was adopted in preparation for the December 15 2009

deadline, when the 2010/11 RADRADRADRAD forms for all Programmes should be ready on the

Ministerial site:

March 2008: Senate decree towards Quality Assurance management of all

Programmes at POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO

June 2008: preparation of the QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORFRAMEWORFRAMEWORFRAMEWORKKKK at the care of the Vice-Rector for

Quality Evaluation and Accreditation (this author)

September 2008: selection of the 7 representative test Programmes (nicknamed

hares) at the care of the five Deans, appointment of two reference faculty each

October 2008: start of periodic discussions and development meetings; gradual

implementation of the QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK on a website purposely developed by

POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO staff,

At this stage the working group included, besides the appointed faculty, key actors

from the University administration and technical bodies, mainly IPSI (process and

information system integration) GESD (the student services management office) and

CPD (a peer faculty-student committee).

This allowed to coordinate all the necessary services around the common project

involving the whole institution; at the same time several problems were solved

concerning interfacing of data and information with the Ministerial forms. The final

outcome was a unique set of input windows where the appointed individuals were

to introduce the required piece of information; these were designed so that data and

descriptive texts would migrate (almost) automatically at the care of technical

services and edited in the necessary formats;

in this way, for instance, the rad forms were to become from the point of view of

faculty - an automatic by-product of the q.a. framework tables.

June 2009: end of the implementation of the QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK tables for the 8 test

hare Programmes1, availability of format and contents on the POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO website

(now under password until full deployment); the 8 test Programmes are to be

used as exemplary case histories to illustrate a variety of possible

implementations of the QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK

1 Aerospace Engineering, Automotive Engineering, Building Engineering, Business

Organization Engineering, Electronics Engineering, Industrial Design, Territorial Urban

Environmental and Landscape Planning


7/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 7

July 2009: start of training all Programmes, meeting with Programme

representatives of the largest Faculty (1st Engineering Faculty)

September 2009 (start): programmed handover to all other POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO Programmes; a

permanent technical support and advice group is established as a service to all

Programmes

31 first cycle (bachelor) Programmes and 36 second cycle (master) Programmes

populate that part of the QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK necessary to fill RADRADRADRAD ministerial on-line

forms by January 31st; the technical support and advice group revises

intermediate results and helps to fine-tune the RADRADRADRAD forms

full completion of the QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK is due by June 2010; at present the website

is restricted to password holders, after June 2010 it will be public

A so tight schedule was made possible by a number of factors:

1. the QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEFRAMEFRAMEFRAMEWORKWORKWORKWORK comes from the gradual development of ideas first set in

Ministerial pilot document dating back to 2003/04 [6], later expanded and shared

by a working group of the CRUI (Standing Conference of Italian Rectors) in

2006/07 [7]

2. the expertise of the Vice-Rector for Quality ofPOLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO,,,,who is active in Italy and

abroad as expert in Quality Assurance of education and as evaluator, was readily

available; ideas pertaining to the QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK presented in this paper were

tested first on seven bachelor engineering Programmes (3 in Italy, 1 in Austria,

Ireland, Romania, Turkey) in the frame of the 2005/07 Project TREE [8] and oneighteen in Europe and South America (3 in Chile Mexico and Brasil, 2 in

Argentina, 1 in Colombia, Costa Rica, Germany, Italy, Peru, Portugal, Spain) in the

frame of the 2007/09 ALFA-Mirror Project [9].

3. POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO has a long expertise in pilot projects on QAQAQAQA: participation to two CRUI

Standing Rectors Conference of Italy - national projects: Campus (1995-2000)

and CampusOne (2002-2004), and participation to Programme Accreditations by

the Regional Government (2004-2009); moreover the pilot document [6] had

already been tested in a small number but of otherwise significant universities

(Bologna, Ferrara, Roma la Sapienza, POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO) from 2005 on, totalling about 250

Programmes, providing useful experience.

4. all the necessary monitoring data were already available: for student input and

progression data at local and Ministry level, for the survey of student opinion at

local level, for the follow up of degree holder careers at local / national level

thanks to the fact that POLITO is a member of the ALMA LAUREA Consortium,

http://www.almalaurea.it/ (see the pilot application to some Universities of

Morocco, project GrInsa [10]); this was crucial, as it was sufficient to rearrange

existing tools and experience around the new task.


8/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 8

4444 The structure of theThe structure of theThe structure of theThe structure of the POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO----QUALITY ASSURANCE FRQUALITY ASSURANCE FRQUALITY ASSURANCE FRQUALITY ASSURANCE FRAMEWORKAMEWORKAMEWORKAMEWORK

The general structure of the POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO----QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK is illustrated, and some examples of Tables (each

corresponding to on-screen frame) are shown in detail.

In its final and present form, the POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO----QQQQ.

..

.AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK is presented as a

communication prospectus which fairly describes an engineering or architectural

Programme to all those interested. However, it is easily applicable to any

Programme of any other Faculty. Fig. 1a and 1b show the front page on-line.

Further screen frames at present are available only in Italian, therefore this paper

will present tables not yet converted in screen format.

A design attribute for this QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK is that the information must be easily

accessible, requiring no expert knowledge, and modular design. The information is

not presented in a sequential manner, rather information is contained in individual

blocks where stakeholders can obtain specific information; it is organised in Tables

each corresponding to a on-screen frame:

Area Table or on-screen frame Ref. ENQA [8] standards

Area A -Requirements andobjectives

A1 - Educational objectives of the ministerialClass (general objectives of this class ofProgrammes)

A2 - Consultation with the organizations ofentrepreneurial world, services,professions

A3 Target professional roles and

competencies (Programme specificeducational objectives)

1.2 Approval, monitoring &periodic review ofProgrammes andAwards

Area B Degree CourseProgramme

B1 - Entry qualifications

B2 - Expected learning outcomes

B3 Further details of educationalactivities

B4 - Academic calendar, classroomschedule and examination dates

1.2 Approval, monitoring &periodic review ofProgrammes andAwards

1.3 Assessment of students

Area C Human resources,Premises andEquipment

C1 - Teaching staff

C2 - Premises and equipment

C3 - Student services

C4 - Special initiatives

1.4 Quality assurance ofteaching staff

1.5 Learning resources &

student supportArea D Student CareerMonitoring

D1 - Student intake, progression and exitdata

D2 - Effectiveness of educational activitiesaccording to the students

D3 - Time to job and job satisfaction

1.6 Information systems

1.7 Public information

Area E -Organisation andManagement

E1 - Policy for Quality AssuranceE2 - Organizational structureE3 - Review

1.1 Policy & proceduresfor quality assurance

1.7 Public information

Structure of the POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO----QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK

Experience gained during implementation was essential to fine tuning the design tothe real needs of such a complex object as the university. Many important


9/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 9

adjustments were incorporated in the QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK as a consequence of giving ear

to all contributions, coming faculty and technical staff. However, size limitation

compel this paper to dwell in detail just on Tables A2, A3, B2.

Experience proves that the most challenging part of the work for faculty regards

these Tables. This is where the internal academic practice (Learning Outcomes and

their assessment, Table B2) is matched with the final qualifications (roles /

competencies, Table A3) of the graduates as required by the professional field

(consulted as described in Table A2).

Table A2 shows the relationships between the university and the external

organizations interested into the results of the educational program. All types of

interaction must be described and properly documented: formal meetings with

official organizations, reports from internships, informal exchange of opinions, data

coming from common activities or projects. The information may include also

Studies and Reports from international or national bodies and professional

associations.

The screen format of Table A2 goes as in the example of Fig. 2.

Note that the last column documents on record shows hypertext links to all

documents proving the scope and extent of consultations.

Table A3 is meant to prove that Programme is clearly designed around external

Requirements (professional roles / functions) and related Competencies which are

in agreement with the needs of the employers and the labour market; moreover,

that such relations should be present already at the design phase, and not only (as

it often happens) at the moment of the Stage or of the final project.

The screen format of Table A3 goes as in the example of Fig. 3, truncated at two

roles (the standard is three to six roles):

Table B2 is meant to force the Programme to precisely define those Learning

Outcomes which on one side match the envisaged Roles / Competences, on the

other specify the type of knowledge and skills that will be fostered and assessed by

(appropriate) course-by-course examinations and final project.

The screen format of Table B2 goes as in the examples of Fig. 4a,b,c, truncated to

the one or two of the many Learning Areas/Subject Areas.

Learning Outcomes are described using the Dublin Descriptors, which divided in two

subsets, respectively:

hard skills (knowledge and understanding; applying knowledge and

understanding i.e. skills and know-how)

soft skills (making judgments; communications skills; learning skills).


10/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 10

Hard skills Descriptors are used inside each Area of Learning, as in the Tables

shown, while soft skills Descriptors are considered transversal to the whole

Programme and described separately and once only for the whole Programme.

During the development work it was found that an introductory section was

absolutely fundamental as a guide to readers. Therefore, a Presentation Section

was introduced, in the form of a commented index with introductory information

which should be accessed before reading the detail Tables and attached

documentation. A truncated version of this Presentation is shown in Fig. 5.

5555 ---- What to do next, what to expectWhat to do next, what to expectWhat to do next, what to expectWhat to do next, what to expect

The implementation of aQQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK,,,, i.e., of documentation system in accord with the ideas, core

principles and design features discussed in section 1, does not mean by itself that QA will be

effectively working in the academic institution. Organisation and investments in human resources are

needed.The establishment of a Quality Assurance system is not the panacea to all evils. QA is not static, is a

mediation of potentially conflicting interests, it controls an unstable equilibrium and requires an

uncompromising ethos.

The implementation of aThe implementation of aThe implementation of aThe implementation of a QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK,,,,i.e., ofi.e., ofi.e., ofi.e., of documentation system in accorddocumentation system in accorddocumentation system in accorddocumentation system in accord

with the ideas, core principles and design features discussed in section 1, doeswith the ideas, core principles and design features discussed in section 1, doeswith the ideas, core principles and design features discussed in section 1, doeswith the ideas, core principles and design features discussed in section 1, does

not mean by itself that QA will be effectively working in the academic institution.not mean by itself that QA will be effectively working in the academic institution.not mean by itself that QA will be effectively working in the academic institution.not mean by itself that QA will be effectively working in the academic institution.

The QQQQ....AAAA.... FRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORKFRAMEWORK is just a tool which takes the form of a document composed of

on-screen frames containing text/data/graphics which, together with furtherdocuments retrievable by means of hypertext links, build up the evidence which is

necessary to help design and implement the Programme, give confidence that the

overall management is appropriate, support expert judgement in case of external

evaluations.

It is quite clear that such a documentation, and the effort spent behind, are a

powerful driver toward awareness of the advantages of QA. But in order to make the

tool work, an essential organisation is, anyway, necessary. It was already discussed

how the project was managed during the pilot phase which regarded the first

implementation of the framework. In regularly working conditions QA requires that

all those taking part (ranging from Faculty or School Deans, Heads of Departments,

lecturers, counsellors to secretaries, laboratory technicians, etc.)

have clear job descriptions, know their responsibilities, carry out their tasks

competently and on time

are properly trained or retrained

keep appropriate records

participate in the procedures for ensuring the all measures necessary for

achieving good quality are being carried out


11/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 11

are aware of results and compare them with design expectations i.e. assess

Quality.

Universities, Deans and Heads of Departments should ensure that all these

procedures are taking place in their own place, and QA Manual should state the

institutional policy on all them.

All this requires some training of both staff and faculty. Moreover, QA is not for

free: it implies new functions, new professional figures that must support regular

operations of Programmes (data collection and elaboration, monitoring of

processes, programmed reviews,). A quality assurance manager to be

responsible for the organisation and the monitoring of a set of quality assurance

procedures.

The establishment of a QA system is not the panacea to all evils.The establishment of a QA system is not the panacea to all evils.The establishment of a QA system is not the panacea to all evils.The establishment of a QA system is not the panacea to all evils.

If the ethos is not correct, documents and procedures may reduce to pure

appearance, effective behaviours may not change.

It is pure illusion that a perfect organization system will guarantee to achieve the

rationality of the philosopher.

Quality has the purpose of making the requirements explicit and producing more

symmetry between the service provider and the user (stakeholder / student /

participant / customer ). Note that there are many customers or stakeholders

and there are many service providers with requirements that may be very differentor even conflicting.

To the personal vision of the author of this paper, the clarity introduced by QA

should help an HEI in being uncompromising and rigorous both in assessing student

competences before awarding a title and in evaluating its own performance. Only

weak institutions may have an interest in clumsy statements, vague promises,

doubtful assessments.

In conclusion, Quality procedures are there to help set a desirable model for the

educational system, to spot its weak points and to correct them. With a metaphor,QA in the real world is like riding a bicycle: you have to pedal all the time to keep in

equilibrium.


12/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 12

ReferencesReferencesReferencesReferences

1. ENQA, Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European

Higher Education Area, Helsinki, 2005

2. NVAO, Accreditation Framework, The Netherlands ,14 February 2003,http://www.nvao.net/accreditation

3. MIUR - Italy, Decreto Ministeriale (ministerial decree) 22.10.2004 n.270

4. MIUR Italy, Decreto Ministeriale (ministerial decree) 31.10.2007 n. 544

5. MIUR Italy, Decreto Direttoriale (director decree) 10.06.2008 n. 61

6. MIUR-CNVSU, Modello informativo per laccreditamento dei Corsi di Studio,

Rapporto finale del gruppo di ricerca Valutazione della didattica e

accreditamento, RdR 1-04, febbraio 2004,

http://www.cnvsu.it/_library/downloadfile.asp?id=11141

english translation as Information Model for Degree Program

Accreditation at http://www.swas.polito.it/services/quafor/documentazione.asp

7. Fondazione CRUI, Requisiti per lAssicurazione della Qualit dei Corsi di

Studio universitari, Dec. 2006, in http://www.fondazionecrui.it/link/?ID=3708

8. TREE Teaching and Research in Engineering in Europe, SOCRATES ERASMUS

Thematic Network, Vol. Re-engineering engineering education in Europe,

Chapter 5, Special Interest Group A4 " Tools for Quality Assurance and

Assessment of EE ". (SIG Leader: Muzio M. Gola), Firenze University Press,

2007, in http://www.unifi.it/tree/

9. ALFA-Mirror Project , Development of a reference model for comparison and

recognition of engineering programmes (2007-2009)

http://columbus-

web.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=83&Itemid=139

http://www.fing.ucr.ac.cr/redmirror/index.shtml

10.GrInsA Tempus IV project Graduate's Insertion and Assessment as tools for

Moroccan Higher Education Governance and management (2010-2013)

http://www.grinsa.net/


13/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 13

FiguresFiguresFiguresFigures

Fig. 1a On-screen appearance of the index page: case of Architecture Programme, English version.

Fig. 1b Detail of the index after expanding Area A

Buttons A1, A2, A3 open the corresponding

Table / frame


14/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 14

Fig. 2 Table A2, sample from Electronic Engineering, POLITPOLITPOLITPOLITOOOO July 09


15/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 15

(continues)

Fig. 3 Table A3, reduced sample from Electronic Engineering, POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO July 09


16/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 16

LearningArea

Learning Outcomesfor Knowledge and Understanding

Level Modules

Semiconductor physics and technology Advanced

Analysis of circuits with MOS and BJT transistors Advanced

Technology and structure of semiconductor memories Intermediate

Difference between analog and digital circuit Advanced

Electronic devices and systems interface AdvancedOperational amplifiers and negative feedback Intermediate

basic HW/SW interconnection strategies Intermediate

Signal generators, oscillators Intermediate

Power supply systems and energy conversion Basic

use of the electronic instrumentation (both analog and digital) Intermediate

Design of measurement experiments Intermediate

Programmable measurement systems (IEEE-488 interface)and PC-based instrumentation

Basic

Non linear circuits Intermediate

Study of distributed parameter circuits Advanced

Maxwell equations: electromagnetic parameters of materials Basic

VHDL Language Intermediate

Commercial Standards for System Communication Buses Basic

ElectronicEngineering

Microprocessors, Microcontrollers, DSP Intermediate

Electronic Devices,

Electronic Circuits

Measurements

Applied Electronics

Digital ElectronicSystems

Radio-frequencytechniques

Internal organization of a computer Architecture (CPU,memory, Input/Output)

Advanced

C programming language Advanced

Classical computer algorithms Intermediate

ComputerEngineering

Abstract data types Intermediate

Computer Programming

Computer Architectureand algorithms

(continues)

LearningArea

Learning Outcomesfor applying Knowledge and Understanding

Level Modules

Basic elements for a correct approach to the experimentalactivities in an electronic laboratory

Intermediate

Design an electronic system Intermediate

Design of data acquisition systems Intermediate

Know how to use an oscilloscope and know how to usevoltmeters and signal generators

Advanced

Design an electronic system with operational amplifiers Intermediate

Use a software tool to develop printed boards Intermediate

Measurement of an antenna radiation pattern Intermediate

Measurement of scattering parameters of microstripcomponents by a network analyzer

Intermediate

Slotted line impedance measurement. Intermediate

Programmable systems and data acquisition boardsSoftware for managing instrumentation and DAQ boards

Intermediate

Design of electronic circuits with hardware descriptionlanguages

Intermediate

Design of in interconnections between electronic subsystems Intermediate

ElectronicEngineering

Design, simulation and FPGA implementation of simple digitalcircuits

Basic

Electronic Devices,

Electronic Circuits

Measurements

Applied Electronics

Digital ElectronicSystems

Radio-frequencytechniques

To be able to use a Personal Computer Advanced

Write a program in C language to solve scientific problems Advanced

Problem solving to real problem trough software programs Intermediate

ComputerEngineering

Develop a software program design Basic

Computer Programming

Computer Architectureand algorithms

(continues)

Fig. 4a Table B2, reduced sample from Electronic Engineering, POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO July 09; first (upper) and second

(lower) Dublin descriptor


17/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 17

(continues)

Fig. 4b Table B2, reduced sample from Mech. Eng., Univ. Talca (Chile), June 09 [9]

(continues)

Fig. 4c Table B2, reduced sample from Mech. Eng., Univ. Campinas (Brasil), June 09 [9]


18/18

version 7 of 18.04.2010 18

Bachelor Programme ELECTRONIC ENGINEERING 2010/11 - Presentation

A1 - Educational objectives of the Ministerial Class

This Degree Course is in accordance with the Decree of the Classes of Degree Courses that, according to article 4 of theMinisterial Decree 22 October 2004, n. 270, defines Classes of Degree Courses and respective educational objectives.The Electronic engineering degree programme is designed to provide students with a solid foundation in applied physics andmathematics together with the knowledge and skills in information and communication technologies engineering, and inparticular in the electronic field, that will prepare graduates for professional practice in designing and maintaining typical

electronic systems.This course has just one program of study that gives students knowledge of the main features of components, devices andsystems. Moreover it gives students the tools that enable them to: # Identify and formulate engineering problems by using up-to-date methods, techniques and tools;# Apply analysis and project methodologies to concrete situations;# Understand business environments and their economic, managing and organizing aspects;# Work in a group and be able to communicate with both written and oral skills, even in an international context;# Constant self-update by individual study, thanks to the basic scientific knowledge and to the methodologies acquired.During the 1st year basic topics, such as mathematics, physics, chemistry, and computer science are studied. During the 2ndyear computer science, telecommunication, electronics and automation fields are studied in depth. During the 3rd year morespecific topics are studied.

see A1 - Educational objectives of the ministerial Class

A2 - Consultation with the organizations of entrepreneurial world, services, professions

The stakeholders who provide professional outlets for programme graduates chiefly consist of the major Information andCommunication Technologies (ICT) industries.The universitys representatives who interact with these stakeholders or who apply input from these interactions to educationalprograms are detailed in Table A2: Interactions with external stakeholders together with the documentary evidence for theirpast and current work.

see A2 - Consultation with the organizations of entrepreneurial world, services, professions

A3 - Educational objectives, target roles and competencies

Course content ensures a solid mathematical and methodological grounding, combined with an understanding of the classicconcepts in the information and communication technology fields (electronics, telecommunications, control, computer science).In the more innovative curriculum tracks, courses also focus on advanced concepts in design and measurements of electronicsystems.

Electronic engineering graduates deal with all facets of electronic systems design and development (both analog and digitalsystems). A graduate in electronic engineering can be employed both in companies that produce objects and electronic systems

(i.e. computers and mobile phones), and in companies that use electronics in their products: for example automation ofsystems, terrestrial and satellite telecommunication, automotive sector, etc.

see A3 - Educational objectives, target roles and competencies

B1 - Entry qualifications

For admission to the Electronic Engineering degree programme, students must take an entrance examination, which is designedto assist student orientation and is identical for all undergraduate degree courses offered by the School of Engineering. Theentrance examination is divided into sections with questions covering prospective students basic qualifications for the programthey wish to enter.

see B1 - Entry qualifications

B2 - Expected learning outcomes

The educational programme has just one program of study that gives students knowledge of the main features of components,devices and systems. The educational programme thus includes subjects common to both curriculum tracks and subjects

specific to each. The first year consists chiefly of subjects in basic science (mathematics, physics and chemistry), computerscience and English.

During the 2nd year computer science, telecommunication, electronics and automation fields are studied in depth. During the3rd year more specific topics are studied. Apart from training some lectures oriented towards employment will also be arranged.

see B2 - Expected learning outcomes

continues with B3, B4, and with C, D, E sections ; refer to Tab. 1 in the text

Fig. 5 Presentation Section, reduced sample from Electronic Engineering, POLITOPOLITOPOLITOPOLITO July 09

presentation de muzio gola - polito, italie_vers 7

Documents