159311-tempus-1-2009-it-tempus-jpcr tempus project “netwater” may 2010 the bologna process aims,...

May 2010 159311-TEMPUS-1-2009-IT-TEMPUS-JPCR

Tempus project “NETWATER”

The Bologna Process

Aims, Objectives and Challenges

Elli Georgiadou



Some useful references• Bologna (2008). Retrieved September 1, 2008

http://ec.europa.eu/education/policies/educ/bologna/bologna_en.html• Crosier, D., Purser, L., Smidt, H. (2007). Trends V: Universities Shaping the European Higher

Education Area, European University Association, Retrieved September 1, 2008, http://www.eua.be/fileadmin/user_upload/files/Publications/EUA_Trends_V_for_web.pdf

• Reichert, S., Tauch, C., 2005. Trends IV: European Universities Implementing Bologna, Executive Summary, European University Association, Retrieved September 1, 2008, http://www.eua.be/eua/jsp/en/upload/TrendsIV_FINAL.1117012084971.pdf

• Siakas, K., Georgiadou, E. (2008). Knowledge Sharing in Virtual and Networked Organisations in Different Organisational and National Cultures, (eds.), Ettore Bolisani, Building the Knowledge Society on the Internet, Idea Publishing, ISBN: 978-1-59904-816-1, Part 1, Chapter 3

• ENQA (the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education) http://www.enqa.eu/ • Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, UK http://www.qaa.ac.uk• Middlesex University (2008/09). Learning and Quality Enhancement Handbook • Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA). Subject Benchmarks (QAA), Gloucester, UK:

www.qaa.ac.uk, 2000). • http://tuning.unideusto.org/tuningeu/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=172&Itemid=205• http://www.polifonia-tn.org/Content.aspx?id=111



OutlineOutline• Background

• An on-going process

• Towards an Open European Higher Education Area

• Meeting the challenges / changing the culture

• Conclusion



BackgroundThe quality of studies are requirements of

– Recognition of studies and qualifications– Common recognition systems of study programs

After 1953 different international organisations put emphasis on quality and common recognition system

Lately the European Union is trying to create a European Higher Education Area (EHEA)



An on-going process

• Sorbone (1998)• Lisbon Treaty (2000)• Prague (2001) • Berlin (2003)• Bergen (2005) • London (2007)• Leuven (2009)



47 Countries Signatories to the Bologna Process

• Albania Germany Norway • Andorra Greece Poland • Armenia Holy See Portugal • Austria Hungary Romania • Azerbaijan Iceland Russian Federation • Belgium Ireland Serbia • Bosnia-Herzegovina Italy Slovak Republic • Bulgaria Kazakhstan Slovenia • Croatia Latvia Spain • Cyprus Liechtenstein Sweden • Czech Republic Lithuania Switzerland • Denmark Luxembourg "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" • Estonia Malta Turkey • FinlandMoldova Ukraine • France Montenegro United Kingdom

• Georgia Netherlands



Additional member• European Commission

Consultative members• Council of Europe

UNESCO European Centre for Higher Education European University Association

• European Association of Institutions in Higher Education • European Students' Union • European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher E

ducation

• Education International Pan-European Structure • BUSINESSEUROPE



The Bologna Process Objectives

• to move Higher Education in Europe towards a more transparent and mutually recognised system

• to place the diversified national systems into a common frame

• to achieve harmonisation and integration of HE in member states

• to establish a coherent and cohesive European Higher Education Area by 2010

• to promote the European system of Higher Education worldwide

To increase competitiveness of Europeans in the international labour

market and the attractiveness of European Higher Education in the world

Towards an Open European Higher Education Area



Framework of Qualifications • National qualifications frameworks are

developed to be compatible with the overarching framework of qualifications of the European Higher Education Area, which was adopted in 2005 and consists of three cycles (e.g. bachelor, master, doctorate). The overarching framework makes recognition of qualifications easier since specific qualifications can be related to a common framework.



Sorbonne Declaration, 1998 A first attempt for creation of a European Higher Education Area (France, Germany, Italy, UK)

• Convergence of study programmes

• Two cycles of studies

– Graduates: Bachelor

– Postgraduates: Masters and PhD

• Mobility – recognition of degrees

Harmonisation of the architecture of the European Higher Education System



The Sorbonne declaration of 25th of May 1998

• Stressed the Universities' central role in developing European cultural dimensions

• Emphasised the creation of the EUROPEAN HIGHER EDUCATION AREA (EHEA) as a key way to promote – citizens' mobility – employability – the continent's overall development

The importance of education and educational co-operation in the

development and strengthening of stable, peaceful and democratic

societies is universally acknowledged as paramount



The Bologna Process• Named after the Bologna Declaration, which was

signed in the Italian city of Bologna on 19 June 1999 by ministers in charge of higher education from 29 European countries

Today, 46 countries

• involves European Commission, Council of Europe and UNESCO-CEPES, as well as representatives of higher education institutions, students, staff and employers



The European Commission• the executive branch of the European Union

responsible for – proposing legislation – implementing decisions – upholding the Union's treaties– the general day-to-day running of the Union

• There is one Commissioner per member state• Commissioners are bound to represent the interests of

the EU as a whole rather than their home state

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Commission



United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

• United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations established on 16 November 1945

• Its stated purpose is to contribute to peace and security by promoting international collaboration through education, science, and culture in order to further universal respect for justice, the rule of law, and the human rights and fundamental freedoms proclaimed in the UN Charter

• UNESCO has 193 Member States and 6 Associate Members

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UNESCO



UNESCO-CEPES

• UNESCO-CEPES was established 1972 at Bucharest, Romania, as a de-centralized office for the European Centre for Higher Education

• The centre promotes international cooperation in the sphere of higher education and also serves Canada, the USA and Israel

• Higher Education in Europe is the official journal of UNESCO-CEPES

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UNESCO-CEPES



The Council of Europe

• Founded in 1949

• seeks to develop throughout Europe common and democratic principles based on the European Convention on Human Rights and other reference texts on the protection of individuals

• 47 member countries

http://www.coe.int/T/e/Com/about_coe/



What is the Bologna Process?

• The Bologna Process is the process of creating the European Higher Education Area (EHEA)

• The Bologna Process is based on cooperation between ministries, higher education institutions, students and staff from 46 countries, with the participation of international organisations



Basic aims of the Bologna Declaration

• Mobility

• Employability

• Competitiveness



Bologna Process – Main points

• Increase attractiveness• Increase transparency• Increase mobility• Facilitate recognition• Adapt Higher Education

to labour market• Reform degree system

• Higher Education as a public good and public responsibility

• Student participation• Life Long Learning• Quality Assurance



Bologna Objectives

• Adoption of a system with easy readable and comparable degrees

• Adoption of a system based on two main cycles– Undergraduate (Bachelor - BSc)– Graduate (Master – MSc)

• Establishment of system of credits - ECTS

• Promotion of co-operation in Quality Assurance with a view of developing comparable criteria and methods

• Promotion of mobility by overcoming obstacles

• Promotion of European Dimension in Higher education



An on-going process

• Sorbone (1998)• Lisbon Treaty (2000)• Prague (2001) • Berlin (2003)• Bergen (2005) • London (2007)• Leuven (2009)



Prague Communiqué, 2001 • Assurance of commitment to the objectives of the Bologna Process• Active involvement of the

– European University Association: EUA – National Union of Students in Europe: ESIB

• The help provided by the European Commission was emphasised• Analysis of the Progress towards the Bologna Objective• Important issues were stated

– Life-long learning– Student commitment – Support of attractiveness and competitiveness of the European

Higher Education Area



Berlin (2003)

• Ministers encourage the member States to elaborate a framework of comparable and compatible qualifications for their higher education systems, which should seek to describe qualifications in terms of workload, level, learning outcomes, competences and profile

• They also undertake to elaborate an overarching framework of qualifications for the European Higher Education Area

First cycle degrees

Second cycle degrees

Doctoral studies



Berlin 2003 Quality assurance

National quality assurance systems by 2005 with mutually shared criteria and methodologies

• A definition of the responsibilities of the bodies and institutions involved

• Evaluation of programmes or institutions, including internal assessment, external review, participation of students and the publication of results

• A system of accreditation, certification or comparable procedures, international participation, co-operation and networking



Berlin 2003 Quality Assurance

The two-cycle system

development of an overarching framework of qualifications;

degrees should have • Different defined outcomes• Different orientations and• Various profiles

for the diversity of• individual• academic and • labour market needs

Recognition of degrees and periods of studies



The third cycle

include the doctoral level as the third cycle in the Bologna Process and to promote closer links between EHEA and the European Research Area (ERA)

10th action line: Doctoral studies and the synergy between EHEA and ERA

Berlin 2003 Quality Assurance



Bergen (2005) National Qualifications frameworks

• Instruments for

– achieving comparability and transparency within the EHEA

– facilitating the movement of learners within, as well as between, higher education systems

– help HEIs to develop modules and study programmes based on learning outcomes and credits

– improve the recognition of qualifications as well as all forms of prior learning



Berlin 2003 - Bergen 2005 Communiqués

A culture of evidence

Learning Organisations

Universities are required to

create policies and procedures for quality assurance

Creation of



London (2007)• Some initial progress has been made towards

the implementation of national qualifications frameworks, but that much more effort is required

• The ministers commit themselves to fully implementing such national qualifications frameworks, certified against the overarching Framework for Qualifications of the EHEA, by 2010



Qualifications frameworksIn the European Higher Education Area, qualifications frameworks are found at two levels:

1. An overarching framework adopted in 2005 developed for the EHEA

2. National qualifications frameworks compatible with the overarching frameworks will be developed by 2010 by all member countries



Qualifications frameworks • Encompasses all the qualifications in a higher education

system

– shows what a learner knows, understands and is able to do on the basis of a given qualification

shows the expected learning outcomes for a given qualification

– shows how the various qualifications in the education or higher education system interact

how learners can move between qualifications



Qualifications frameworksFocus on

• outcomes and • how several learning paths (including lifelong learning) may lead

to a given qualification

– play an important role in developing• degree systems

• study programmes

at higher education institutions

– facilitate the recognition of qualifications

– are important for those who make use of qualifications (learners and employers)



Creating the European Higher Education Area

• Building on our rich and diverse European cultural heritage, we are developing an EHEA based on – institutional autonomy– academic freedom– equal opportunities and – democratic principles

that will facilitate mobility, increase employability and strengthen Europe’s attractiveness and competitiveness

Ministers responsible for Higher Education in the countries participating in the Bologna Process, London Communiqué, May 2007



The European Higher Education Area aims to

• facilitate mobility of students, graduates and higher education staff

• prepare students for their future careers and for life as active citizens in democratic societies, and support their personal development

• offer broad access to high-quality higher education, based on democratic principles and academic freedom



Fundamental principles of the Bologna Process

Universities' independence and autonomy ensure that higher education and research systems continuously – adapt to changing needs – society's demands and – advances in scientific knowledge



Bologna process• Supranational characteristic• Discussions on acceptability and usefulness of

evaluation• Power is moving from academia towards market,

government and intergovernmental actors• Two alternatives:

– Loyalty to official policy – production of information to support and legitimate status quo

– Emphasis can be developmental and aim at change



The Bologna process – Quality Assurance

• Emphasis external quality assurance in HE

• Pressure on signatory countries to establish national quality assurance systems

• The whole Bologna process is about conformity and diversity

• The evaluation report is often considered to be a key tool leading to utilisation of recommendations and the impacts which might follow



Challenges• Achieving the 2010 objectives• In principle everybody can appreciate the

expected benefits of an eventual integration but the ‘dream’ of 2010 is proving difficult to be realised. However, achieving harmonisation may be hindred by all those diverse contents, symbols and systems that have been developed throughout history. Progress has been slower than anticipated particularly with the accession of several new member states with diverse quality awareness, culture and practices.



Trends IV• The Trends IV Report (Reichert and Tauch, 2005) turns focus

from the fact that in Quality Assurance (QA) ”the differences among individual European countries are enormous” to “a clear trend towards more institutional approaches to exploit synergies, economies of scale and spread models of good practice particularly within institutions which enjoy a high degree of autonomy. ”

• The essential aim of the Bologna reforms, namely to create a European Higher Education Area, which is predicated on quality and, therefore, it is attractive to its members as well as the outside world, can only be achieved if the concern for quality is not reduced to the establishment or optimisation of external quality assurance processes alone, but considers all processes of institutional development” (Reichert and Tauch, 2005).



Trends V • In Trend V (Crosier et. al, 2007) it was reported that various national

QA systems, which are “costly and offer no evidence of overall quality improvement” are holding back the Bologna implementation and the demands of the European Knowledge Society.

• In addition, feedback and monitoring mechanisms are weak and inconsistent across institutions, and the institutional and governmental resources to provide incentives for implementing change are often missing. T

• These problems are exacerbated by the shortage or lack of experts that can carry out evaluations and monitoring. Also, the lack of effective central management and administrative systems make it difficult or impossible to collect and analyse University-wide data.



The Bologna process advocates the convergence between European universities regarding technologies and the related pedagogical and organisational approaches themselves, it is important to note that this convergence does not aim to change the mission and strategies of the institutions, but to support them

(Siakas, 2007, Siakas & Georgiadou, 2008)



Challenges of the Bologna ProcessQA agencies:

– Create academic standards in the Academic Infrastructure

– Advise government on applications for degree awarding powers

– Disseminate information and experiences

– Share best practices in the field of quality assurance (QA) in HE

HE Challenges:

– Self-assessment

– Internal quality reviews

– External reviews (including audit)

Increased diversity and complexity

need to be addressed both at European and local levels



Leuven/Louvain-la-Neuve, April 2009• Took stock of achievements

– Greater integration, harmonisation and mobility– Bologna achieved greater compatibility and comparability of the

systems of higher education and has made it easier for learners to move between them and for - institutions to attract students and scholars from other continents.

• Established the priorities for the European Higher Education Area for the next decade.– Knowledge, innovation, creativity– Aging population– Globalisation– Technological developments (& new providers) – Need to develop competencies – Financial crisis /long term investment in HE



Conclusion

• Detailed theoretical principles have been provided by the architects of the Bologna process and by subsequent reports of the attempts to implement it, the progress achieved and the many obstacles in this complex and diverse process.

• As the target year of 2010 has been reached practical guidelines arising from experience seem necessary in order to avoid pitfalls and facilitate further the implementation process.

• For successful development of a Quality Assurance framework and subsequent implementation of any harmonisation (e.g. Bologna process) it is necessary to gain thorough understanding of the European mission and strategic vision and the ways in which education must be re-shaped at local, national and European levels

159311-tempus-1-2009-it-tempus-jpcr tempus project “netwater” may 2010 the bologna process aims,...

Documents

higher education http

european association

uk http

european universities

higher education qaa

european union

quality of studies

culture conclusion slide