Impact of the Quality Evaluation and Accreditation Policy on Argentine Universities* Ángela Corengia Juan Carlos Del Bello Julio Durand María Pita Carranza * This paper is the result of a Research Project conducted at the Universidad de Palermo (PICT UP Nº 35196) and Universidad Austral (Internal Contest for Research Projects 2006). It is also part of the Doctoral Thesis of Angela Corengia.

INTRODUCTION - QAS* Increase More than 150 countries - Argentina 1995 CONEAU - Institutional Evaluation - Undergraduate Courses Accreditation - Postgraduate Courses Accreditation - Efforts and costs incurred by both Higher Education Institutions and States ¿Is Higher Education Quality Improving? ¿Are Knowledge Invention and Transmission Improving? *Quality Assurance Systems

PURPOSE Detect signs of changes towards improvement Main FunctionsManagement Teaching Research Extension and 1) Intended – Declaratory 2) Factual As a consequence of the Argentine university quality evaluation and accreditation policy

BACKGROUND International (20) and Argentine (10) Studies - Evaluation and Accreditation Policy: ONE of the change triggers - QAS Maturation Phases - Quanti-Qualitative Approach, Study of Cases - Difficult to quantify the effect separately from other variables

METHOD - Study of Cases : 4 universities (type of management, size and year of creation) Case 1: private, small, created during the 1990’s Case 2: state, medium, created during the 1990’s Case 3: state, large, old Case 4: private, medium, old - Descriptive – Evaluative - Documentary Analysis : External evaluation reports (4), and undergraduate (7) and postgraduate (42) accreditation resolutions First part of a broader research that includes visits to the institutions and interviews.

Table 1: Analysis Areas and Dimensions Analysis Areas (functions) Dimensions 1. Teaching 1.1 Teacher Training: Academic Qualification, full-time status, Categorisation, Pedagogic Training. 1.2 Teaching-Learning Process-Methodology. 1.3 Curriculum. Plans and Programmes. 1.4 Students and Graduates. 1.5 Student-Teacher Relationship. 1.6 Infrastructure, financial and material resources. Library 2. Research 2.1 Research Professors. Human Resources Training. 2.2 Research Projects. 2.3 Research Funding Research Products. 2.5 Infrastructure and Library 3. Extension 3.1 Extension Scope. 3.2 Extension Programmes. 4. Management 4.1 Quality Management of Evaluation and Accreditation Processes Source: Authors’s elaboration

RESULTS Policy Effects Institutional Evaluation References: Signs of intended / declaratory changes Signs of factual changes

Change signs (X)= intended; (X)= factual Case 1Case 2Case 3Case 4 1. Teaching - Pedagogic training and raise Full-time professorsXXX - Academic qualification (postgraduate training)XXX - Distance educationXX - Curricular flexibilisationXXXX - Undergradaute and postgraduate articulationXXX - Academic yield and retentionXXX X - Teacher / Student relationshipX X - Articulation with High SchoolX 2. Research - Design of lines, policies. Funding.XX - Incorporation of young researchers and studentsXXXX - Publications (encourage more)XX - Unify production (one and only catalogue, data base)XX - Project evaluationX - Library, newspaper library, equipment and fittingsXXX 3. Extension - Extension definitionXX - Association with other institutionsXX 4. Management - Generate conditions for continuous sellf assessmentX XXX - Preparation of strategic plansXXX

RESULTS Policy Effects Undergraduate Courses Accreditation -Medicine- References: Signs of intended / declaratory changes Signs of factual changes Note: All three courses (Cases 1, 3 and 4) went through two accreditation phases

Change Signs (X)= intended; (X)= factual Case 1Case 3Case 4 1. Teaching - Teachers selectionX - Raise Full-Time professorsXX - Improve professor qualification (postgraduate training)XX - Teachers performance evaluation (by peers and students)XX - Incorporation of teachers related to Health CentresX - Methodology. Teaching-Learning processXX X - Study Plan changes: changes in subjects, creation of commissionsXX X - Definition of the educative capacity, entry quotaX X 2. Research - Mechanisms to encourage clinic reasearch projectsX - Plan: projects, amonts, reserachers. Incorporation of studentes and graduates.X - Survey of scientific production of professorsX - Increase in the number of publications and doctoral defense thesisX - Creation of the research system regulations, of the Higher Reserach Centre First Health Research Seminar X - Signature of agreements to ensure the continuity of the projectsX 3. Extension - Implement community internships and extension deeds based on standardsX - Identify real needs of the population (social area). SystematizeX 4. Management - Preparation and realisation of improvement plans with objectives, amounts, responsible ones X

RESULTS Policy Effects Undergraduate Courses Accreditation -Engineering- References: Signs of intended / declaratory changes Signs of factual changes Note: All three courses went through only one accreditation phase (Cases 1, 2 and 3). Case 4 went through two accreditation phases.

Change Signs (X)= intended; (X)= factual Case 1Case 2Case 3Case 4 1. Teaching - Raise Full-Time professors XXXX - Improve teacher qualification (postgraduate degree holder) XXXX - Improve pedagogic training of teachers XXX - Creation of the Commission for the Evaluation and Distribution of Teachers X - Curriculum: strengthen experimental training X - Implement Program of Internal Auditors Training X - Standardisation of mechanism of student evaluation X - Revisions and modificatios in the Study Plan XXXX 2. Research - Plan of development of research lines in Engineering XXXX - Incorporation of teachers and students to these lines XXXX - Allocate more funds to research development XXXX - Creation of an instance to the promotion and evaluation of researchers, projects and innovative developments X - Laboratories and libraries XXX 3. Extension - Development of institutional linking activities XX 4. Management Preparation and realisation of improvement plans with objectives, amounts, responsible onesXXXX

RESULTS Policy Effects Postgraduate Courses Accreditation -Health Sciences, Applied Sciences, Social Sciences-

Postgraduate courses studied Discipline Cases Health Sciences Applied Sciences Social Sciences Total Case Case Case Case Total Signs of change “recommendations for quality improvement” FunctionDimensions Recommendation Frequency Teaching - Curriculum. Study plan and programs.65% of the cases - Students and Graduates. 30% of the cases Research- Projects. - Human Resources Training. 40% of the cases

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION Institutional Evaluation Policy institutional change trigger leads to internal reflection in universities about matters to improve No significant differences of change size were observed in terms of year of creation Exception: the only large university included in the case panel There was a shift in the Medicine course from a mass direct admission system to an indirect system which ruled the entry of students based on the educative capacity of the Medicine School.

Type of Management of the Institutions Type of Implemented Policy In the research function For undergraduate courses accreditation policy, private universities had to face structural change actions in terms of research organisation aimed at the quality improvement of teaching programs. The undergraduate courses accreditation policy showed the most significant intended and factual signs of change, mainly those that have passed through two phases of accreditation. From a documentary analysis, it was methodologically insufficient to track significant signs of change produced as consequence of the postgraduate courses accreditation. Impact Differences were observed according to DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

Measure the impact in terms of change towards improvement from documentary sources is methodologically appropriate but insufficient. The second stage of this research -which is being carried out- includes interviews and in situ questionnaires in all 4 universities. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

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