“the universities as key partners of good governance in...
TRANSCRIPT
“The Universities as key partners of good governance
in the Euro-Mediterranean region”
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Bahrain is an archipelago of around 33 islands
Total Area 728.32 Km2.
Most inhabitance occupy 5 main islands
Population (Total): 1,046,814 *
Bahraini: around 50%
Age Distribution (%)15-24 20.5%
25-44 28.0%
* Source: Sh. Ahmed presentation to the Parliament (2008)
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State of Bahrain 1971
Political reform started at 2000
Kingdom of Bahrain 14 February 2002
It’s a constitutional Monarchy
•The King has the supreme power•National Council consists of two chambers
“Shura” CouncilHouse of Representatives
Parliament Election October 2002
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Before formal schooling “Kuttabs” were main source of education
1899 American Mission School for girls
1902 American Mission School for boys
1919 First public formal school for boys
1928 First public formal school for girls
1930 Schools came under the direct control
of the government
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1936 First vocational school
1927 First group of Bahrainis scholars were
sent abroad for university degree
1968 The Gulf Technical College
(Gulf Polytechnic)
1979 University College of Art, Science, and Education
1986 University of Bahrain
2001 Government licensing Private Universities
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2005 National Education Reform
2005 Higher Education Law
2006 Higher Education Council (HEC)
2007 Rules and Regulations Governing Licensing of HEI
2007 Piloting Quality Review Process for
Universities (an education reform project)
2008 Establishment of the Quality Assurance
Authority for Education & Training (QAAET)
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Economic reform
Education reform
Labour market reform
Reforming the labour market as a first step towards successful education and economic reforms
Increasing the number of employment opportunities in the private sector, particularly in middle and high-income jobs
Aspiration• Strengthening Bahrain’s human capital
• Making the private sector the engine of growth
Increasing the skill level of Bahrainis by developing education and training to strengthen their effectiveness in the labour market
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Board of Directors(QAAET)
National Examinations
Unit
Schools Review Unit
Vocational Review Unit
HERU is the unit within the QAAET that will manage the processes for Higher
Education Quality Reviews
Higher Education
Review UnitHERU
Chief
Executive
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University of Bahrain
College of Health Sciences
Bahrain Polytechnic
Arabian Gulf University (Regional)
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Delmon University for Science and Technology
Birla Institute of Technology International Centre
Ahlia University
RCSI Medical University of Bahrain
AMA International University Bahrain
Gulf University
Arab Open University, Bahrain Branch
Royal University for Women
The Kingdom University
University of Applied Science
University College of Bahrain
New York Institute of Technology
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Higher Education Bodies
Higher Education Council (HEC)
• Under the Ministry of Education• Chaired by the Minister of Education • Give initial license for private institutions to operate• Give initial license for programs offered by private institutions• Conducts continuous follow-up• Have the authority to stop HEI/program on temporarily basis• Accreditation decision
Quality Assurance Authorityfor Education & Training/
Higher Education Review UnitQAAET/HERU
• Review Institutes as a whole• Conducts Program Reviews• Reviews cover all HE institutes operating in Bahrain (Private & Public)• Accountability: All Reports are public• Conducts follow up after reviews• Conduct capacity building activities for the higher education sector
The 2 bodies outcomes complement each other’s work
Higher Education Reviews
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Seven Institutions were reviewed in the last academic years of which four reports are published.
The reports contain findings about the quality assurance arrangements for each institution in terms of 9 themes which together contained 25 indicators.
The findings are in the form of Commendations, Affirmations and Recommendations, which means that areas in need of strength and areas of improvement are identified.
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(5 indicators)
(6 indicators)
(1 indicator)
(3 indicators)
(1 indicator)
(3 indicators)
(3 indicators)
(2 indicators)
(1 indicator)
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All Institutions reviewed until now are private.
Ownership:
Wholly owned by Parent Institution
Shared ownership between Bahraini investors and Parent Institution
Owned by a group of investors
Owned by a single investor.
Two Institutions are registered as not for profit institutions
The rest are registered for profit with limited liabilities.
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Three institutions received no Commendation.
Four institutions received a total of 18 Commendations.
Most of commendations are around issues related to student
support, well-qualified and committed academics.
Two institutions received Commendations on support for
academic staff.
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Three received Commendations on commitments of the
governing body towards their institutions.
Of the seven institutional reviews there are similar areas which
are in urgent need of improvement, especially the deficiencies
in physical infrastructure.
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Vision and mission statements were typically developed by the
owners or Presidents and have not been the result of a consultative
process by stakeholders.
In some of the institutions reviewed there are inappropriate
governance structures (blurring between the governance and
management structures of the universities).
Findings related to vision, mission, and governance
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In some cases the owner is also the President of the University.
While there may be Boards of Trustees, these are often not
active or do not meet regularly to set strategy and monitor the
core functions in the institution.
Findings related to vision, mission, and governance
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Budgeting and resource allocation are not linked to strategic
planning.
In many cases the budget is developed and managed by the
President with no input by the main members of staff or the Board.
Institutions generally operate without having a management
information system (MIS).
Findings related to vision, mission, and governance
