Recognition of Credits - Achievements and Problems / Challenges

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Recognition of Credits -Achievements and
Problems /Challenges

• A Stocktaking Exercise
• Bologna Conference
• Riga Dec.3-5 / 2004

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Achievements

• How can achievements be measured?
• One proposal
• Critical Success Factors
• Suitability fit for purpose
• Acceptability fit for stakeholders
• Feasibility fit to live
• Sustainability fit for life

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CSF 1

• Suitability fit for purpose?

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Suitability fit for purpose

• 11 Credits document the achievement of learning
  objectives - expressed as learning outcomes by
  the learner
• 12 Allocated credits to a learning module
  highlight the expected notional workload
  necessary to be invested by the learner
• Common denominators
• Workload and Outcome
• Achieved?

5
Suitability fit for purpose

• The development of ECTS from a transfer to a
  transfer and accumulation system and the linkage
  of learning outcomes with credits have made it
  possible
• 11/12 ECTS fit for purpose

6
Suitability fit for purpose

• 13 A credit system has to support the Bologna
  objective of Employability
• Achieved?

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Learning Chain
Labour Market
Change of paradigm
Learnig outcomes Subject related -Knowledge
broadening -Knowledge deepening Generic -Knowledge
accessing
Learners Selection (accumulates credits)
Learning space (Teaching and learning,
Research Learning material, Learning methods...)

Total Quality Management
Labour Market
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Indicators
Information process
Employability
Learning Space -wherever- Information Pack.
Trainability/ Learning Agreement
Modularisation
Descriptors
Individual Selection
Profile
Learning Outcomes

• Performance
• Credits
• Grade

Level
Workload
Award / Diploma Supplement
Credit Transfer / Accumulation
Transcript of Records
Information process
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Indicators
Information process
Employability
Information Package
Trainability/ Learning Agreement
Tuning
Structure of a Module
6x4

• Learning Outcomes
• Subj. rel. /non subj. rel.
• Knowledge widening
• Knowledge deepening
• Knowledge accessing
• Instrumental
• Interpersonal
• systemic

• Individual
• Selection
• Interview
• Portfolio u.a.

Dublin Descriptors
Qualifications-framework

• Performance
• Credits
• 5
• Grade
• Local
• Ranking

LLL
Workload -Effectiveness - Efficiency
Award / Diploma Supplement
Transfer / Accumulation
Transcript of Records
Information process
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Suitability fit for purpose

• With its instruments to communicate transparency,
  i.e.
• Information Package / Course Catalogue
• Learning Agreement
• Transcript of Records
• Diploma Supplement,
• its linkage with learning outcomes
• 13 ECTS definitely supports employability

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Suitability fit for purpose

• 14 A credit system is not only for university
  learning but has to cover all areas of learning
• Formal
• Non-formal
• Informal
• That is for all forms of education and training
• Achieved?

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Suitability fit for purpose

• ECTS ECVET
• APL
• APEL
• Joint Action Projects,
• TELL
• ELITELLL
• University Lyon
• Work in progress

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Suitability fit for purpose

• One credit system for all forms of learning
• 14 A challenge for ECTS

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CSF 2

• Acceptability fit for stakeholders?

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Acceptability fit for stakeholdersWhom does
ECTS serve?

• A credit system has to respect the perspectives
  of
• customers
• Learners
• Teaching and training staff
• Employers
• And also stakeholders in a wider sense, such as
• Parents
• Governments (education, training,
  financeministries issue of governance Whom
  should ECTS serve / How should purposes be
  determined)
• Social partners
• Society

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Acceptability fit for stakeholdersWhom does
ECTS serve?

• Criteria are the expected performance outcome and
  may be expressed as return, risk,
  stakeholder reaction
• Achieved?

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Acceptability fit for stakeholders

• 21 Return
• The learner receives a number of credits
• Credits reflect a value expressed as learning
  outcomes, i.e. competences the learner has
  acquired
• Credits identify the notional time necessary to
  invest (workload)
• The return
• Qualified Learning Outcomes quantified by
  credits
• 21 ECTS is working

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Acceptability fit for stakeholders

• 22 Risk
• Recognition of credits achieved
• Identical number of credits
• Different number of credits
• Explanation
• Responsibility of the institution which allocates
  credits for an incoming learner
• Difference between absolute and relative credits
  (compare with purchasing power of the Euro in
  Euroland)
• The risk
• Expectations of applying learners may not be met
• 22 ECTS is working

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Acceptability fit for stakeholdersWhom does
ECTS serve?

• 23 Stakeholder reaction (mapping)
• To identify stakeholder expectations and power

Interest Power Low High
Low Minimal effort Parents Keep informed Employers / Learners Teachers / Trainers
High Keep satisfied Finance ministries Social partners Administration Key players Accreditation Agencies Quality Assurance Bologna Process (QFW)
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Acceptability fit for stakeholders

• Since the development from a transfer to an
  accumulation system
• Increase of interest in the return
• Increase of understanding the philosophy,
  accepting the risk
• Interest in getting involved stakeholder
  mapping
• 2 ECTS is acceptable
• fit for stakeholders

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CSF 3

• Feasibility - fit to live

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Feasibility fit to live

• Is the only credit system which has been tested
  European-wide
• Feasibility Study revealed the possibility to
  develop the ECTS Transfer System, tested since
  1989, into an accumulation system
• CSF 3 Feasibiltiy fit to live Achieved
• Guarantors
• European Quality Assurance System (Evaluation /
  Accreditation)
• European Qualification Framework based on
  learning outcomes and credits

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CSF 4

• Sustainability fit for life

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Sustainability fit for life

• Bologna-Euro (currency) for education and
  training
• Essential basic elements
• Based on trust
• Generally accepted
• Works as unit of account
• Respects convertibility
• Enables recognition
• Represents value
• Is Convertible
• Is compatible (common reference)

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Sustainability fit for life

• Challenges
• Merge ECTS and ECVET
• Design a European Qualification Framework
• in which the levels are described by learning
  outcomes
• which can be achieved with an identified notional
  workload expressed in credits
• Understand the concept of purchasing power of
  credits

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Purchasing Chain
Perspective Shift of Paradigm

• Where?/How?
• Work
• Learning
• -formal
• -non-formal
• -informal

• Outcome/
• Can do
• Purchasing
• Power
• Buy
• Transfer of credits

• Who?/What?
• Individuum
• accumulates
• Income
• Saves credits

Transformation Process-TQM Currency
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Sustainability fit for life

• The Credit Chameleon
• You achieved level B2 of the Language Competence
  Framework
• Lets assume for this achievement 900 hours were
  deemed to be the notional workload
• According to the Key Features this would be
  translated into 30 credits

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Sustainability fit for life

• Do 30 credits count towards the 180 (lets assume
  a 3-year BA-programme)?
• May they count less?
• May they count more?
• May they count exactly 30 at all?
• Lesson learned
• Credits can have an absolute and a relative value
• They always become relative when they are being
  put into a programme
• Learning outcomes have to be identified precisely
  and concisely
• Credits have a purchasing power

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Sustainability fit for life

• Challenge
• Can all subject and generic skills be measured in
  absolute terms?
• Tuning
• Experts
• Groups of all stakeholders
• Does this lead to standardised study-programmes
  in certain subject areas?
• Possible, but better not
• Better standardisation of learning outcomes in a
  given subject area - if the stakeholders think so

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Sustainability fit for life

• What can you do with the credits received?
• Basically Spend or Save
• Spending
• To cover immediate needs
• Swapping for a paper qualification (to be able to
  apply for a specific job e.g.)
• Saving
• To accumulate with
• A specific intention to barter the credits
  later for something huge, e.g. a degree
• No specific intention yet
• For the fun of it
• Actions taken
• Transfer to your learning account

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Sustainability fit for life

• A currency/credit system therefore is
• the key requirement of life-long-learning
  concepts
• Geared towards
• Learners
• Values
• Competences
• Employability

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Conclusion

• ECTS as a transfer and accumulation system is
  unintentionally basically designed as a currency
  system
• All aspects related to a currency system are
  therefore valid for ECTS as well
• This relates e.g. to issues such as
• purchasing power of the outcomes
• Conversion of achievements at institutional,
  national and international level
• Fluctuations of values
• Formal, non-formal and informal achievements

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Indicators / Transparency
Information process
Information Package
Employability
Trainability/ Learning Agreement
Bologna Priorities 2005

Academic Recognition
Qualifications framework
Quality Assurance
Bachelor Master Doctorate
Credit Transfer Credit Accumulation
Product Processes Structure
Qualified Learning Outcomes quantified by credits
as currency
Award / Diploma Supplement
Transfer / Accumulation
Transcript of Records
Information process
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Conclusion

• As with any currency the basic element today is
• Trust
• How to achieve this for ECTS?
• Like in the monetary union stability criteria
• Which means for education and training
• Transparency
• Quality (Structure / Process / Product)
• Supported by tuned educational structures (see
  Tuning Project, Joint Quality Initiative, etc.)

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Conclusion

• The challenges for Bologna 2007
• Design one currency EC(T)S or ECET (European
  credit in education and training)