1. STEPHEN ADAM stephenadam@orange.fr SEEC CONFERENCE: CREDIT CHANGES AND CHALLENGES LONDON, 10 TH DECEMBER 2010 CURRENT ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH THE THE TWO CREDIT-LINKED META- FRAMEWORKS - THE OVERARCHING FRAMEWORK OF QUALIFICATIONS FOR THE EUROPEAN HIGHER EDUCATION AREA (FQ-EHEA) AND THE EUROPEAN QUALIFICATIONS FRAMEWORK FOR LIFELONG LEARNING (EQF) Do we have a European surfeit of meta-frameworks = framework chaos? Is the creation of a single integrated European meta- credit and qualifications framework a possibility or a dream? Would it be of any benefit and if so to whom? Do we have a European surfeit of meta-frameworks = framework chaos? Is the creation of a single integrated European meta- credit and qualifications framework a possibility or a dream? Would it be of any benefit and if so to whom?

2. FOCUS: 1. Multiple challenges currently facing European higher education reform 2. Some issues and questions 3. Boundaries and tools – overlap and potential domain confusions 4. Overarching Framework for Qualifications of the European Higher Education Area (FQ-EHEA) 5. European Qualifications Framework for Lifelong Learning (EQF) 6. European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) 7. The European Credit System for Vocational Education and Training (ECVET) 8. Summary of problems 9. Is there any hope for some sensible rationalisation? Possible steps towards a solution

3. C URRENT E UROPEAN H IGHER E DUCATION R EFORM I SSUES S U R V I V A L ? Qualification Frameworks (FQ-EHEA-2012 deadline+ EQFLLL + binary divide issues) Bologna process EHEA established but objectives not achieved (Budapest- Vienna 2010) Mobility Targets (By 2020 20% study/training abroad) Curriculum reform/develo pment Markets Borderless education (TNE) Internationalisation Credit Systems + confusions ECTS v ECVET Recognition issues (Diploma Supplement + Lisbon Recognition Convention + RPL) Quality Assurance (Internal + External) + accreditation issues (for profit HEI) Mission statement/diversity in university roles Revenue sources – Finance + Mergers New technology Student- centred learning Employability Learning outcomes – delivery assessment STPEHEN ADAM: stephenadam@orange.fr RANKINGS ? CONTEXT: Growth in demand Constrained funding Demographic change Increased competition Globalisation 1.Multiple challenges!

4. 2. Some issues and questions: See BeTWIN project

5. 2. Some issues and questions: 1.Can ECVET be made compatible with ECTS? 2.What is the difference between VET and HE (nationally and internationally)? 3.What is the evidence to support the assertion by Bologna ministers that new NQF compatible with the FQ-EHEA are also going to be compatible with the EQF? 4.Are European tools supporting recognition and mobility clear, unambiguous and fit for purpose? 5.Are we suffering from framework proliferation, overlap and confusions that could be dysfunctional? 1.Can ECVET be made compatible with ECTS? 2.What is the difference between VET and HE (nationally and internationally)? 3.What is the evidence to support the assertion by Bologna ministers that new NQF compatible with the FQ-EHEA are also going to be compatible with the EQF? 4.Are European tools supporting recognition and mobility clear, unambiguous and fit for purpose? 5.Are we suffering from framework proliferation, overlap and confusions that could be dysfunctional?

6. 3. Boundaries and tools - overlap and domain confusions International qualification meta- frameworks +associated credit meta tools National qualification and/or credit frameworks Regional credit frameworks and descriptors HEI institutional credit systems INTERNATIONAL FRAMEWORKS OF FRAMEWORKS (general + broad – for framework creators) DIFFERENT PURPOSES LOCAL (Complex and detailed specific regulations - for institutional staff) INTERNATIONAL FRAMEWORKS OF FRAMEWORKS (general + broad – for framework creators) DIFFERENT PURPOSES LOCAL (Complex and detailed specific regulations - for institutional staff)

7. 4. Overarching Framework for Qualifications of the European Higher Education Area (FQ-EHEA)

8. 5. European Qualifications Framework for Lifelong Learning (EQF)

9. 6. European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS )

10. 60 ECTS credits are attached to the workload of a full-time year of formal learning (academic year) and the associated learning outcomes. In most cases, learner workload ranges from 1,500 to 1,800 hours for an academic year, whereby one credit corresponds to 25 to 30 hours of work. ECTS credit is a quantified means of expressing the volume of learning based on the workload learners need in order to achieve the expected outcomes of a learning process at a specified level. ECTS credits are based on the workload students need in order to achieve expected learning outcomes. Learning outcomes describe what a learner is expected to know, understand and be able to do after successful completion of a process of learning. They relate to level descriptors in national and European qualifications frameworks.

11. 7. The European Credit System for Vocational Education and Training (ECVET)

12. According to the technical specifications of ECVET, qualifications are described in terms of units of learning outcomes. The Recommendation on ECVET (2009) defines a unit of learning outcomes as “a component of a qualification, consisting in a coherent set of knowledge, skills and competences that can be assessed and validated”. A credit for learning outcomes on the other hand means “a set of learning outcomes of an individual which have been assessed and which can be accumulated towards a qualification or transferred to other learning programmes or qualifications”. This means that an assessed unit of learning outcomes leads to obtaining a credit of learning outcomes. ECVET points are allocated to a qualification as a whole and to its units. Allocation of ECVET points to a qualification is based on using an agreement according to which 60 points are allocated to the learning outcomes expected to be achieved in a year of formal full time VET. ECVET points are a ‘numerical representation of the overall weight of learning outcomes in a qualification and of the relative weight of units in relation to the qualification’. The credit and ECVET points are thus different entities. While a credit is a set of knowledge, skills and competences the learner has achieved, ECVET points provide information about the weight of units within the qualification.

13. 8. Summary of problems There are obvious terminological problems and confusions Differences in key definitions used Credit is understood differently The relationship between the meta- frameworks is unclear and potentially baffling An artificial meta-disjunction/barrier between VET and HE is being created There are obvious terminological problems and confusions Differences in key definitions used Credit is understood differently The relationship between the meta- frameworks is unclear and potentially baffling An artificial meta-disjunction/barrier between VET and HE is being created

14. 9. Is there any hope for some sensible rationalisation? Steps towards a solution

15. References: BE-TWIN Project ‘ECVET-ECTS’ http://www.ecvet-projects.eu/Documents/Be-TWIN_Methodological_Guide_2010.pdfhttp://www.ecvet-projects.eu/Documents/Be-TWIN_Methodological_Guide_2010.pdf Bologna Process http://www.ond.vlaanderen.be/hogeronderwijs/bologna/http://www.ond.vlaanderen.be/hogeronderwijs/bologna/ CEDEFOP ‘Linking credit systems and QF’ http://www.cedefop.europa.eu/EN/publications/15974.aspxhttp://www.cedefop.europa.eu/EN/publications/15974.aspx ECVET http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc50_en.htmhttp://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc50_en.htm ECVET EC Newsletter http://www.ecvet-projects.eu/News/NewsItem.aspx?id=19http://www.ecvet-projects.eu/News/NewsItem.aspx?id=19 ECTS Users’ Guide (2009) http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc/ects/guide_en.pdfhttp://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc/ects/guide_en.pdf European Higher Education Area (EHEA) http://www.ehea.info/http://www.ehea.info/ European Universities Association (EUA) http://www.eua.be/Home.aspxhttp://www.eua.be/Home.aspx European Qualifications Framework (EQF) http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc44_en.htmhttp://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc44_en.htm Qualification frameworks (FQ-EHEA) http://www.ond.vlaanderen.be/hogeronderwijs/bologna/qf/qf.asphttp://www.ond.vlaanderen.be/hogeronderwijs/bologna/qf/qf.asp