Volume 9 Issue 1 (2020)

Quality Assurance Practices Applied in PTTCs: Listening to the Student Teachers’ Voice Through Focus Group Discussion

pp. 23-42  |  Published Online: March 2020  |  DOI: 10.22521/edupij.2020.91.2

Edward Kigozi

Abstract

Ensuring the quality of education is the major concern affecting all tertiary and higher education institutions in Uganda, including Primary Teacher Training colleges (PTTCs). The primary aim of the current study was to provide the students’ perspective on quality assurance (QA) practices applied in Uganda’s PTTCs. The study applied a qualitative research design based on focus group discussion. Four PTTCs were purposively selected, which were Buloba (BLK), Ggaba (GBK), which are both private PTTCs; and Kibuli (KIB) and Rakai (RBK), which are both public PTTCs. The study identified “continuous improvement,” “accreditation,” “self-evaluation,” “external examinations,” and “student involvement in QA” as the QA practices applied in Uganda’s PTTCs. Furthermore, the study also revealed several challenges to the successful implementation of QA in PTTCs, which were “negative attitude towards quality assurance,” “lack of skilled manpower regarding QA,” “improper communication,” and “lack of financial resources for QA implementation.” The study concluded that although this research was limited to primary teacher training institutions in Uganda’s educational setting, and on an interpretative qualitative paradigm, it is anticipated that the study’s findings will provide an understanding on the QA practices implemented in Uganda’s PTTCs through listening to the students as the primary stakeholders of primary teacher education.

Keywords: Quality assurance practices, primary teacher training colleges (PTTCs), student teachers’ voice.

References

Abdel-Karim, R., & Helou, S. H. (2013). The future of engineering education in Palestine. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 102, 482-489.

Abejehu, S. B. (2016). The Practice of Continuous Assessment in Primary Schools: The Case of Chagni, Ethiopia. Journal of Education and Practice, 7(31), 24-30.

Adebowale, O. F., & Alao, K. A. (2008). Continuous assessment policy implementation in selected local government areas of Ondo state (Nigeria): Implications for a successful implementation of the UBE program. KEDI Journal of Educational Policy, 5(1), 3-18.

Amedeker, M. K. (2014). The Contributions of Continuous Assessment to the Improvement of Students’ Learning of School Science: A Case of Ghana. In A. Asabere-Ameyaw, J. Anamuah-Mensah, G. J. S. Dei, & K. Raheem (Eds.), Indigenist African Development and Related Issues (pp. 91-100). Brill Sense.

Aworanti, O. (2011). Why candidates fail in public examinations. Paper Presented at Federal Ministry of Education Stakeholders Consultative Meeting on Improving Performance in Public Examinations.

Bisaso, R. (2010). Organisational responses to public sector reforms in higher education in Uganda: A case study of Makerere University. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, 32(4), 343-351.

Boring, A., Ottoboni, K., & Stark, P. (2016). Student evaluations of teaching (mostly) do not measure teaching effectiveness. ScienceOpen Research. DOI: 10.14293/S2199-1006.1.SOR-EDU.AETBZC.v1.

Bunge, N. (2018, November 27). Students evaluating teachers doesn’t just hurt teachers, it hurts students. The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Campbell, C., & Rozsnyai, C. (2002). Quality Assurance and the Development of Course Programmes. UNESCO Papers on Higher Education. ERIC Number ED 475 532.

Carless, D. (2007). Conceptualizing pre-emptive formative assessment. Assessment in Education, 14(2), 171-184.

Coates, H. (2007). A model of online and general campus-based student engagement. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 32(2), 121-141. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602930600801878

Di Biase, R., & Maniku, A. A. (2019). Transforming Education in the Maldives: The Challenges of a Small Island Developing State. In P. Sarangapani, & R. Pappu (Eds.), Handbook of Education Systems in South Asia (pp. 1-29). Singapore, Springer.

Drennan, L. T. (2000). Total quality management in higher education: An evaluation of the impact of assessment and audit on the quality of teaching and learning in the Scottish Universities (Doctoral dissertation). University of Glasgow.

Duvie, A. N., & Eluwa, B. O. (2016). Assessment of the Effectiveness of Management Strategies for Curbing Examination Malpractices in Secondary Schools in Nigeria. European Journal of Education Studies, 2(11), 47-70.

Essel, H. B., Boakye-Yiadom, M., & Kyeremeh, F. A. (2018). Assessing students’ experiences of internal quality assurance practices in selected private higher education institutions. International Journal of Science and Research, 7(2), 804-809.

Geda, A. G. (2014). Quality assurance policy and practice in higher education institutions in Ethiopia (Doctoral dissertation). University of South Africa.

Harman, G. S., & Meek, V. L. (2000). Repositioning quality assurance and accreditation in Australian higher education. Canberra, Australia: Department of Education, Training and Youth Affairs.

Harvey, L. (2006). Understanding quality. In L. Purser (Ed.), EUA Bologna Handbook: Making Bologna Work (B 4.1-1). Berlin, Germany: Raabe.

Harvey, L. (2007). Quality culture, quality assurance and impact. Overview of discussions. In L. Bollaert, S. Brus, B. Curvale, L. Harvey, E. Helle, H. Toft….A. Sursock (Eds.), Embedding Quality Culture in Higher Education, EUA Case Studies (pp. 81-84). Brussels, Belgium: European University Association.

Harvey, L., & Green, D. (1993). Defining quality. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 18(1), 9-34.

Hayward, F. M. (2006, June). Quality assurance and accreditation of higher education in Africa. Paper presented at the Conference on Higher Education Reform in Francophone Africa: Understanding the Keys of Success.

Hernández, R. (2012). Does continuous assessment in higher education support student learning? Higher Education, 64(4), 489-502.

Hornstein, H. A. (2017). Student evaluations of teaching are an inadequate assessment tool for evaluating faculty performance. Cogent Education, 4(1), 1304016.

Ingvarson, L., & Rowley, G. (2017). Quality assurance in teacher education and outcomes: A study of 17 countries. Educational Researcher, 46(4), 177-193.

Kahsay, M. N. (2012). Quality and quality assurance in Ethiopian higher education: Critical issues and practical implications. (Doctoral dissertation). University of Twente.

Kasozi, A. B. K. (2006, June). A proposed quality assurance framework for institutions of higher learning in Uganda. Paper Presented at the Seminar on Quality Assurance in Tertiary Education, Servres, France.

Kember, D., Leung, D. Y., & Kwan, K. (2002). Does the use of student feedback questionnaires improve the overall quality of teaching? Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 27(5), 411-425.

Krečič, M. J., & Grmek, M. I. (2010). Teachers’ conceptions of self-regulated learning–A comparative study by level of professional development. Odgojne Znanosti, 12(2), 399-412.

Martin, M., & Stella, A. (2007). External Quality Assurance in Higher Education: Making Choices. Fundamentals of Educational Planning 85. Paris, France: International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP) UNESCO.

Muresan, L. (2009, May). Quality enhancement in higher education through self-evaluation and targeted professional development. Paper presented at the Symposium on Educational Technologies on Electronic Platforms in Engineering Higher Education.

Noonan, B., & Duncan, C. R. (2005). Peer and self-assessment in high schools. Practical Assessment, Research and Evaluation, 10(17), 1-8.

Odhiambo, G. (2014). The challenges and future of public higher education leadership in Kenya. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, 36(2), 183-195. https://doi.org/10.1080/1360080X.2014.884676

Okwakol, M. J. (2008). Challenges and Prospects for Quality Assurance in Science and Technology Education in African Universities. The Uganda Higher Education Review Journal of the National Council of Higher Education, 5(2), 17-26.

Pongo, N. A., Asare, T. O., & Abdul-Fatahi, I. (2015). Evaluation of the Challenges of 21st Century on Quality Assurance of Higher Fashion Education in Ghana. Arts and Design Studies, 29, 18-28.

Rind, I. A., & Mari, M. A. (2019). Analysing the impact of external examination on teaching and learning of English at the secondary level education. Cogent Education, 6(1), 1574947.

Runte, R. (1998). The impact of centralized examinations on teacher professionalism. Canadian Journal of Education/Revue Canadienne de l’education, 23(2), 166-181.

Ryan, T. (2015). Quality assurance in higher education: A review of literature. Higher Learning Research Communications, 2015(4), Art. 1. DOI: 10.18870/hlrc.v5i4.257.

Sallis, E. (2014). Total quality management in education. Routledge.

Samson, B., & Allida, V. (n.d.). The Influence of Continuous Assessment on Academic Performance in Primary Schools of Ibulanku Sub-County, Iganga District (Uganda). Retrieved from https://www.ueab.ac.ke/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Basome-Samson-3-1.pdf

Schomaker, R. (2015). Accreditation and quality assurance in the Egyptian higher education system. Quality Assurance in Education, 23(2), 149-165.

Spooren, P., Brockx, B., & Mortelmans, D. (2013). On the validity of student evaluation of teaching: The state of the art. Review of Educational Research, 83(4), 598-642.

Sywelem, M. M. (2009). Higher Education Accreditation in View of International Contemporary Attitudes. Online Submission, 2(2), 41-54.

Szanto, T. R. (2005). Evaluations of the third kind: External evaluations of external quality assurance agencies. Quality in Higher Education, 11(3), 183-193.

Thielsch, M. T., Brinkmöller, B., & Forthmann, B. (2018). Reasons for responding in student evaluation of teaching. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 56, 189-196.

Vlaardingerbroek, B., & Taylor, N. (Eds.). (2009). Secondary school external examination systems: Reliability, robustness and resilience. Amherst, NY: Cambria.

Waheed, A. H. (2013). A higher education quality assurance model for small states: The Maldives case study (Doctoral dissertation). Queensland University of Technology.

Woodhouse, D. (1999). Quality and quality assurance. In Quality and Internationalisation in Higher Education (pp. 29-44). Paris, France: Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development.

Zavale, N. C., Santos, L. A., & da Conceição Dias, M. (2016). Main Features and Challenges of Implementing Internal Quality Assurance Within African Higher Education Institutions: The Case of Eduardo Mondlane University. International Journal of African Higher Education, 2(1).

Announcement

EDUPIJ Citation Metrics

EDUPIJ News!

► Educational Process: International Journal has adopted continuous publication beginning with Volume 14 (2025).

► Educational Process: International Journal is member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). 

► New issue coming soon! (Volume 13 Issue 4, 2024)