Ministers of Education Endorse a Statement on Quality Assurance for Degree Education in Canada [PDF]
In Canada, postsecondary education is a provincial/territorial responsibility. Therefore, the direct funding of postsecondary education institutions and the accompanying quality assurance mechanisms are provincial/territorial responsibilities.
Each province and territory has its own system of postsecondary education institutions, and there are no common or national quality assurance policies and programs. However, it has become apparent to jurisdictions over the last few years that it is important to have a set of consistent and coherent standards at a pan-Canadian level to facilitate mobility and transferability domestically and to increase understanding of Canada's postsecondary education institutions internationally.
Governments share the desire of students, parents, employers, and postsecondary institutions to be able to understand and assess the level and quality of new degrees and of new degree-granting institutions. In the context of a dynamic and increasingly more varied degree-granting environment in Canada, determining the level and the quality of new degree credentials is of concern to the provincial and territorial governments that must make decisions relating to them. Two key issues prompted this concern.
- In the context of a growing international trade in educational services in which quality assurance standards and procedures are a major marketing theme, Canada may be at a disadvantage in attracting foreign students and exporting programs abroad. Our universities and other degree-granting institutions must compete in a global context in which other countries not only assess programs against published standards at home but also assess them when offered at foreign sites.
- Although some provinces have arm's-length quality assurance agencies, and some professions and regulated fields have national accrediting bodies, there is no pan-Canadian consensus on a degree qualifications framework and standards for assessing the quality of degree programs and the institutions that offer them. This is rare among advanced countries.
- Increasing international trade in educational services has included the expansion of "degree mills" into Canada and other countries, underlining the need for clear standards and appropriate quality assurance both at home and abroad. Accreditation protocols in the home jurisdiction are increasingly being used by other jurisdictions as the simplest means to distinguish between legitimate and unscrupulous degree-program providers. As Canada moves increasingly toward the export of its programs, it may be expected to identify the standards and procedures used for quality assurance.
- Internationally, the trend in quality assurance is toward assessing academic quality in terms of program learning outcomes, published standards, and transparent assessment procedures and outcomes. The International Network for Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education (INQAAHE) was established in 1991 to collect and disseminate information on current and developing theory and practice in the assessment, improvement, and maintenance of quality in higher education. INQAAHE currently has membership from agencies representing 74 countries, 67 of which have formal quality assessment requirements at the institutional and/or program levels.
- In 2003, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) published guidelines on quality provision in cross-border higher education that acknowledge the "need for new international initiatives to enhance quality provision in cross-border higher education at a global level by further strengthening quality assurance, accreditation and recognition of qualifications schemes at both national and international levels."
- In response to rising demand for degree programming, degree-granting has become more complex in Canada, increasing the need for the establishment of quality assurance procedures and standards. Graduates of such programs require the acceptance of their degrees by employers, licensing and professional bodies, and other postsecondary institutions as a prerequisite to further studies.
- In recent years, new degree-granting institutions have emerged, and new degree programs and degree nomenclatures have multiplied. There are new public universities, new private universities and degree-granting institutions, public colleges offering both diplomas and degrees, non-resident institutions, and distance-delivery universities operating in various parts of Canada.
- Four provinces (Alberta, British Columbia, New Brunswick, and Ontario) have permitted private degree-granting institutions, including for-profit institutions, to develop or operate. Four provinces (Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario, and Prince Edward Island) have enabled their colleges to offer degree or applied-degree programs. Degree-completion partnerships have multiplied between colleges and Canadian and American universities.
- It is easy to anticipate that more institutions and programs will emerge as Canadian society grows and changes. The question of how the new degree credentials fit into the context of existing credentials is a natural matter of concern to students, postsecondary institutions, employers, and governments. As mobile Canadians expect their learning achievements to be recognized by postsecondary institutions and employers across Canada and in other countries, the impact of the changing postsecondary scene will sooner or later affect all provinces and territories.
Current Work
At its meeting of August 2004, the Advisory Committee of Deputy Ministers of Education (ACDME) established a committee to draft standards and procedures to assist provincial and territorial governments in assessing the acceptability of new degree programs and new degree-granting institutions. To that end, the quality assurance committee drafted standards for three areas: (a) degree-level standards, (b) program assessment standards and procedures, and (c) institutional assessment standards and procedures.
The framework of standards includes
- descriptions of the general learning outcome competencies expected of degree holders at each level, with a view to articulating threshold degree standards and enabling credentials to be mapped against one another
- standards for quality assurance reviews of sufficient rigour to generate the confidence of all stakeholders that the standards in the degree-qualifications framework and any other standards for programs are met in practice
After a period of consultations with stakeholders, the standards were revised to reflect stakeholder comments and suggestions. On February 12, 2007, all ministers endorsed the pan-Canadian degree-level standards framework.
The committee has also undertaken a series of reports on issues related to quality assurance, the first of which, the Report of the Pan-Canadian Committee on Quality Assurance of Degree Programming: Quality Assurance of E-Learning and Private Institutions [PDF], by Dr. Virginia Hatchette, is now available for download.
For reference, listed in the right column are the provincial and territorial Web site links related to quality assurance activities.
For further reference, please visit CMEC's Web site for the Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials.
