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Defining excellence in higher education

Defining excellence in higher education. Cristina Bojan and Sonia Pavlenko Babe ș-Bolyai University. Agenda. Definitions Standards Framework / Matrix ERA LERU Critical aspects. Definitions. c ore definition

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Defining excellence in higher education

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  1. Defining excellencein higher education Cristina Bojan and Sonia Pavlenko Babeș-Bolyai University

  2. Agenda • Definitions • Standards • Framework / Matrix • ERA • LERU • Critical aspects

  3. Definitions • core definition • Excellence means exhibiting characteristics that are very good and, implicitly, not achievable by all. • explanatory context • Excellence enshrines one meaning of quality: a traditional view that associates quality with the exceptional. • The exceptional view sees quality as something special. Traditionally, quality refers to something distinctive and élitist, and, in educational terms is linked to notions of excellence, of ‘high quality’ beyond that to which most institutions or scholars can aspire. • Harvey and Green, 1993, seeing excellence as one of the five definitions of quality

  4. Definitions • The Scottish Higher Education Funding Council (2000) • Excellence is generally taken to mean outstanding, or of a quality that surpasses a defined threshold in a particular field. [Excellence in research is measured] by assessing research against assumed measures of international excellence. It does not however seek to benchmark quality against international comparators since there are no internationally agreed measures of quality. • Excellence is defined as exceptionally good performance in all areas of management. • the Deutsche GesellschaftfürQualitäte.V., The Power of Quality, 2005

  5. Harvey and Green (1993) further develop the notion of quality as excellence as follows: • Quality as exceptional • The exceptional notion of quality sees it as something special. There are three variations on this. • the traditional notion of quality as distinctive; • a view of quality as  exceeding very high standards (or ‘excellence’); • a weaker notion of exceptional quality, as passing a set of required (minimum) standards.

  6. Standards The US operate with the following set of standards, organized according to the type of context these belong to: • Institutional context • Mission and Goals • Planning, Resource Allocation, and Institutional Renewal • Institutional Resources • Leadership and Governance • Administration • Integrity • Institutional Assessment • Educational Effectiveness • Student Admission and Retention • Student Support Services • Faculty • Educational Offerings • General Education • Related Educational Activities • Assessment of Student Learning

  7. Brent Ruben’s Framework

  8. Achieving excellence

  9. Indicators of Excellence

  10. Excellence Matrix • Willard R Daggett suggests defining excellence through a matrix that would measure rigor and relevance, in order to identify the excellence • His Matrix • may be applied to standards, curriculum, instruction and evaluation • allows for any institution to set up their own standards of excellence, as well as aims and goals

  11. Excellence Matrix

  12. GREEN PAPERThe European Research Area: New Perspectives {SEC(2007) 412} • An adequate flow of competent researchers • World-class research infrastructures, • Excellent research institutions • Effective knowledge-sharing • Well-coordinated research programmes • A wide opening of the European Research Area to the world

  13. LERU – excellence in research training • www.leru.org • Principles guaranteeing the quality/excellence of research (doctoral) training • Structures and infrastructures • Admission • Supervision • Introduction into the scientific community • Transferable skills • Research and teaching • Thesis and final evaluation • Partnerships - Links to business and industry • Recommendations for actors and stakeholders

  14. Critical aspects • Mass education versus excellent performance • Not all universities can or should achieve excellence • Examples: • Germany – Exzellenz Initiative • USA – 7016 universities, 1640 ofering MA programmes and only 614 PhD programmes • Trying to achieve world-class status may lead to favouring hard sciences (easier to quantify and evaluate) to the detriment of soft sciences • “Is excellence becoming too common?”

  15. Thank you for your attention! • sonia.pavlenko@euro.ubbcluj.ro • bojanc@euro.ubbcluj.ro

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