The international scene

1) Fifty years ago, professors had the full responsibility for a small number of students. Their work was evaluated on research results.

2) The number of students entering higher education has always increased and 1968 has seen a major speed-up of the process.

3) At the end of the 20th century, higher education has become a topic of interest for the World Trade Organisation (Uruguay round).

The recent evolution

1) Students are easily moving from one university to the other.

2) Universities are using marketing techniques to attract the best students.

3) European Universities are adapting to the Bachelor-Master-PhD system.

4) Curricula tend to become compatible from one university to the other.

The student’s requirements for quality

in educationQuality should answer the following

aspirations:

1. Access to jobs after education;

2. Social positioning after education;

3. Travel from one university to the other;

4. Appropriate facilities (housing, sport, cultural life on the campus, etc.).

The institution's requirements for quality

in educationQuality should answer the following aspirations:

1. Attract the best students;

2. Attract the best professors;

3. Provide compatibility of curricula;

4. Use of standards (ECTS, LOM, etc.) in order to reduce development costs of curricula.

5. Ensure reproducibility of processes from year to year.

What is quality of distance education ?

Quality should measure the following aspects of distance education:

1. Management;2. Curricula and materials;3. Pedagogical methods;4. Educational services and professors;5. Students services;6. Recruitment and admission of students.

What is accreditation of distance education ?

Accreditation defines a minimum level of quality.

The definition does not introduce uniformity into distance education.

Accreditation is performed by responsible humans, with the help of computers.

Accreditation is a marketing tool for institutions.

Accreditation is a guaranty for students.

Expected resultsof our project

The main output from the project will be a proposal for a European accreditation system in e-learning and blended learning.

As compared to an American accreditation system, we anticipate that the European criteria will put more emphasis on pedagogical methods and less on management.

Our work

1) Compare the European experiences on distance learning with an existing accreditation referential (criteria, methodology, policy, etc.). In a first instance, the DETC (Distance Education and Training Council, US) will be considered.

2) Improve and enlarge these criteria from the exchange of information on the practical experiences done by partners of our project and more generally in higher educational institutions in Europe.

3) Adapt these criteria for the definition of an emerging European accreditation process in e-learning and blended learning.

Partners

Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées

MMB Institute for Media and

Competence Research

Altran SDB

Kungl Tekniska Högskolan

POLIEDRA Politecnico di Milano

Dates

Starting date : 1st of January 2004

Ending date : 30th of June 2005