Prof. Dr. Ali GUNES Karabuk University, Turkey

1. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices within the Common Educational Programs,International Conference on University Collaboration in the Black Sea Area:CommonEducational Values, 9-11 October 2014, Istanbul, Turkey Prof. Dr. Ali GUNES Karabuk University, Turkey

2. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • DearRectors, Vice rectors, Deans, Members of the project, participants, guests, ladies and gentlemen. • I would like to welcome you all to International Conference on University Collaboration in the Black Sea Area:CommonEducational Values.

3. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • I wish you all a very successful conference, and I believe that this conference will give youan insight into new trends not only in the European higher education system but also in the higher education systems of the countries in the Black Sea region as succinctly debated in the book of White Paper of Good Practices.

4. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • In my presentation today, I would like to address the report on the common European higher education values which have been in the process of constant re-structuring since the very beginning of the 21st century, as well as on White Paper of Good Practices, which has come out of the project - UNIVERSITY COLLABORATION NETWORK AT THE BLACK SEA – UNIVER-SEA.NET

5. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • The book of White Paper of Good Practices discusses the higher education systems at the universities of partner countries – Romania, Turkey, Moldova and Georgia - in the Black Sea basin and seeks the ways of how these universities could create the higher education values compatible with the Bologna Process, of how they could achieve quality assurance in education and administration and how they could envision and implement new trends and approaches in the higher education in line with the demands and values of the changing world in future.

6. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • The book of White Paper of Good Practices, which I am going to introduce right now, is based on the papers presented to the first workshop titled “Capitalizing the educational development in the Black Sea Area”, which was organized by the “Andrei Șaguna” University of Constanța in Romania between September 12-14, 2013. • The book of White Paper of Good Practices covers the issues such as the Higher Education system, quality assurance, framework of qualifications and examples of good practices from each participating university.

7. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • The book also reflects the main objectives of the University collaboration network at the Black Sea – UNIVER-SEA.NET" project which aims at promoting “the exchange of educational values and experiences, to identify the common components of our educational systems and strengthen our regional identities by creating a common virtual community.”

8. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • What is in the book? • The book of “White Paper of Good Practices”consists of four chapters. • The chapter I first discusses the perception of contemporary education systems in the global world, which aim closely at covering not only the characteristics of life in a single country but ccontemporary aspects of life such as “the amplification and the unpredictability of economical and socio-political changes, the intensification of changes in the professional sector, the amplification of interdependencies between the macro-social system and its components, the increase of the democratic character of organizing and managing society (at least in European states).”

9. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • Secondly, the chapter summarizes “the new European Framework of the Educational Strategies and Policies”, whose ultimate goal was to reorganize the European higher education system in a way that “education should be the basis for the European social model and that the educational systems from Europe must become ‘quality references for the entire world’ by the year 2010.

10. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • In order to reach this goal, a number of priority actions have been undertaken: • integration of information and communication technologies, • mobility • an emphasis on the educational standards by increasing the quality of all types of learning (primary, secondary, higher education • continuous education, formal and informal education etc.),

11. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • the increase in the quality of formation programmes for teachers and educators, • an open access to learning • a more attractive education • a simpler and more flexible access to education (transition from one speciality to another); • the redefinition of the necessary competencies for a new society • an opening of education to the contemporary world.

12. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • With this reorganization of the European higher education, the underlying values of education are founded on two fundamental concepts: “performance and competition. Competition is a reality which implies a dynamic and responsible attitude, while performance is the result of competition. By quantifying performance, competition is validated.”

13. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • Finally, the chapter I debates various types of the higher education systems in Romania, Turkey and Georgia, focusing upon entrance examinations, admission requirements, curriculum, grading system, graduation requirement, quality assurance system and employability, and internationalization of the higher education, as well as the historical development of the higher education systems in each country. • Through this way, the partner universities have found chance to revise their own higher education system by comparing and contrasting their systems and also sought the ways to harmonize their education system with each other.

14. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • As those papers which discuss the issues above indicate, this project enables partner countries not only to share knowledge and experience and exchange ideas with each other about various systems of the higher education in their local country but also to suggest new views on how to improve their higher education systems in line with the newly developed trends in Europe and contemporary world.

15. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • The papers in Chapter II examine “National Qualifications Framework” in the higher education systems in Romania, Turkey, Moldova and Georgia, concentrating specifically upon the development of the idea of “National Qualifications Framework”, its types, structures, planning, criteria and applications, etc.

16. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • National Qualifications Framework “provides a way to compare qualifications, and to ensure that they are quality assured and recognized at home and abroad.”

17. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • Quality assurance (QA) enables a to: • bring internal benefits to the university/faculty/department/school/program and the staff; • bring external benefits to the students and the reputation of the institution; • continuously improve themselves, the students and the work of the university. Continuous improvement is both the medium and outcome of quality assurance; • serve accountability and accreditation requirements; • enhance the reputation of the faculty/department/school/university, and meet external demands for demonstrating quality, quality assurance and quality enhancement.

18. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • Chapter III of the book of White Paper of Good Practices is about the quality assurance in European Higher education, which is actually assessed through the applications of the quality assurance in the higher education systems of Romania, Turkey, Moldova and Georgia. • In so doing, the papers examine various aspects and criteria of quality assurance practices by focusing upon individual universities in each country to ensure the quality of management and education.

19. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • The papers aimed at showing the partner universities the ways of how to achieve the mission of European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education in their own system: “To contribute significantly to the maintenance and enhancement of the quality of European higher education at a high level, and to act as a major driving force for the development of quality assurance across all the Bologna signatory countries.”

20. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • What may be derived from this mission are as follows: • An all-encompassing leadership system. • A clearly defined set of key learning outcomes which student successfully achieve when they graduate • A careful participatory planning process to meet the expectation of all stakeholders. • An objective and accessible system to measure the institutional performance.

21. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • In the final Chapter, the book of “White Paper of Good Practices” gives good practices from the “Andrei Șaguna” University of Constanta (Constanța-Romania), Istanbul Aydin University (Istanbul, Turkey), Karabuk University (Karabuk, Turkey), International Black Sea University, (Tbilisi, Georgia) and the Academy of Studies in the Field of Public Administration under the Presidency of Moldova, Chișinău (Moldova).

22. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • Good Practices: • The “Andrei Șaguna” University of Constanta - “Innovative Curriculum through Creativity” and “New Competence for Development of Emotional Intelligence” • İstanbul Aydin University - University Industry Collaboration • Karabuk University - A University where English is a Priority • International Black Sea University - Charity Club • Good Practices in the Higher Education System of the Republic of Moldova

23. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • What can we do with this book of White Paper of Good Practices? • How can we put into practice the ideas about the higher education systems at the universities of partner countries in the Black Sea basin and create a sustainable and renewable higher education system? • Or what are the benefits we can obtain from the book of White Paper of Good Practices?

24. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • There may be many views on the issues presented in the book of White Paper of Good Practices, as well as on the implementation strategies of these views, concerning the higher education systems particularly at the universities of partner countries, yet I will try to give some noteworthy views which could be drawn from the book for future trends and approaches.

25. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • Therefore, the foremost contributions of the book of White Paper of Good Practices could be outlined as follows: • The book promotes the exchange of educational values, experiences and ideas among the universities in partner countries, by which the universities could organize further joint educational programmes and networks to get involved into a continuous improvement and assessment of the higher education systems in future. By this means, there could be achieved a non-stop flow of information and exchange of opinion…

26. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • The book has also shown that online and offline instruments and facilities could be virtually implemented to support and strengthen regional and multicultural identities among the partner universities. In this way, no one is exposed to any cultural and ethic prejudices and discouragement; they keep their traditions and cultural values but learn to combine them with the aspects of modern living in the contemporary.

27. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • There could also be chance to compare and contrast the higher education systems at the universities of partner countries, which may help them to evaluate their systems continuously in future. • The process of evaluation could also enable the universities to harmonize and integrate further their systems and curriculum not only with each other but also with the principles of the European higher education systems – quality assurance, competition, equity, accessibility, accountability and measurability.

28. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • The harmonization and integration of the higher education system also cause each university to reshuffle the levels of their higher education system – the first cycle, the second cycle and third cycle compatible not only with the European standard but also with the demands of the contemporary world , yet this process never makes away with national concern and culture. • The prior learning will be recognized by each university of partner countries. • Quality Assurance will be given priority in education and management.

29. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • Having achieved these purposes, the volume of exchange of students and academic staff may increase; joint programmes and projects could be launched, which will definitely contribute not only to the standard of the higher education but also to the positive improvement of relations among partner countries. • What is also expected is the expansion of knowledge, experience and information among the universities.

30. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices • Cultures and identities of countries in the Black Sea Basin will positively be influenced by this ongoing process, and thus the ideas of co-existence and multicultural formations will gain strength, which is, in fact, what is most demanded in the global world. • The idea of the ideas of co-existence and multicultural formations will contribute to peace not only in the region but also in the contemporary world.

31. Book Release: White Paper of Good Practices THANK YOU