Research. Accrediting Agencies/Bodies. Accrediting Agencies/Bodies The Impact of Accreditation to Libraries and Librarians : the Philippine experience

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The Impact of Accreditation to

Libraries and Librarians : the

Philippine experience

Corazon M. Nera

Director of Libraries, Lyceum of the Philippines University Chairman, Board for Librarians, PRC

• ACSC-AA

Association of Christian Schools, Colleges and Universities -Accrediting Agency

• AACCUP

Accrediting Association of

Chartered Colleges and Universities in the Philippines

• ALCU-COA

Association of Local Colleges and

Universities – Commission on Accreditation

Accrediting Agencies/Bodies

• PAASCU

Philippine Accrediting Association

of Schools, Colleges and Universities

• PACUCOA

Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities – Commission on Accreditation

Federation of Accrediting Agencies of the

Philippines

In pursuit of continuing quality in higher

education through accreditation : the

Philippine experience by Adriano A.

Arcelo. Paris, UNESCO-IEEP, 2003.

Federating Body

Research

Letter from Fr. Antonio Samson

Dear Mrs. Nera:

For 52 years, the Philippine Accrediting Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities (PAASCU) has worked quietly with government and the private sector to elevate educational standards in our country through accreditation. From a small group of pioneering colleges in 1957, the Association has grown to a membership of over 400 today. The work it has accomplished is significant, but what remains to be done is enormous.

Letter from Fr. Antonio Samson

We believe that the success of accreditation in this country as propagated by PAASCU is due mainly to the anonymous and selfless effort of volunteers like you. Unmindful of the inconveniences and the exacting demands on your time and effort, you gladly accept an accrediting assignment.

The Association takes this opportunity to thank you for having been with the team.

Sincerely yours,

Fr. Antonio S. Samson, SJ President

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Accreditation is a non-governmental, peer-review process that assures the quality of education students receive. Educational institutions or programs volunteer to undergo this review periodically to determine if certain criteria are being met. (ABET)

What is accreditation?

There are two types of accreditation : institutional and program

• Institutional accreditationevaluates overall institutional quality. (IQUaME)

• Program accreditationexamines specific programs of study. This type of accreditation is granted to specific programs at specific levels.

Two Types of Accreditation

1. A concept based on self-regulation which focuses on evaluation and the continuing improvement of educational quality. (PACUCOA, PAASCU)

2. A process by which institutions or programs continuously upgrade their educational quality and services through self-evaluation and the judgment of peers (PACUCOA, PAASCU)

3. A status granted to an educational institution or program which meets commonly accepted standards of quality or excellence (PAASCU)

Accreditation is

…

4. A result, it is a form of certification granted by a recognized and authorized accrediting agency to an educational program or to an educational institution as possessing certain standards of quality which are over and above those prescribed as minimum requirements for government recognition. (PACUCOA)

Accreditation is

…

• Based on accepted standards

• Concerned with the teacher-learner relationship • Provides opportunities for institutional growth

through study and evaluation and self-regulation

• Admits periodic review, criticism and readjustment of its criteria, policies and procedures to changes in education.

Principles of Accreditation

(PACUCOA)

1. Its prevailing sense of volunteerism (PAASCU, PACUCOA)

2. Its emphasis on empowerment of people to accomplish the business of the school/program in an excellent manner (PACUCOA)

3. Its strong tradition of self-regulation (PAASCU, PACUCOA)

Characteristics of Accreditation

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4. Its reliance on comprehensive evaluative techniques (PAASCU, PACUCOA)

5. Its primary concern and passion for quality assurance and continues improvement (PAASCU, PACUCOA)

6. Its cultivation of a culture founded on organized orderliness, and adherence to greater

efficiency, effectiveness and productivity. (PACUCOA)

Characteristics of Accreditation

• Helps students and their parents choose

quality college programs.

• Enables employers to recruit graduates

they know are well-prepared.

• Is used by registration, licensure, and

certification boards to screen applicants.

• Gives colleges and universities a

structured mechanism to assess, evaluate

and improve the quality of their programs.

Why is accreditation important?

1. College/School Community Involvement

2. Faculty

3. Instruction

4. Library

5. Laboratories

6. Physical Plant

7. Student Services

8. Administration

Areas Evaluated :

1. Agency does not impose arbitrary standards. 2. The survey forms identify principles and practices

which are found in excellent institutions. 3. The statements in the survey forms are more

qualitative rather than quantitative. The agency does not have specific formulas to apply or particular patterns of organization to follow.

4. The criteria and survey instruments are merely tools to help the school measure educational quality.

Standards

(PAASCU)

5. They are intended to serve as a guide for institutions as they strive for excellence and for accreditors as they assess institutional achievement.

6. The standards reflect a realistic appraisal of the school’s resources and their efficient utilization to help the institution achieve its goals.

7. Much emphasis is placed on the formulation of the school’s purposes and objectives.

Standards

(PAASCU)

8. Only when its goals are clear can the school discover the extent to which purposes and objectives are being achieved.

9. Essential in the accreditation process is the self-survey made by an institution applying accreditation.

10. The self-survey is an analysis by its own staff of the institution’s educational resources and effectiveness in relation to its own purposes and objectives.

Standards

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11. The agency judges an institution not by comparison with other institutions but primarily by the degree to which each institution’s own avowed purposes are matched by actual practice in the various areas being evaluated.

12. A school is judged on the basis of the “total pattern” presented by it.

Standards

(PAASCU)

What are the benefits and

incentives for various

levels?

• Full administrative deregulation. • Financial deregulation in terms of setting

institution and other school fees and charges. • Authority to revise the curriculum without CHED

approval.

• Authority to graduate students from accredited courses or programs of study in the levels accredited without prior approval of the CHED and without need for Special Orders.

A. Level I/Level II

• Priority in the awards of grants/subsidies or funding assistance from CHED.

• Right to use on its publications or

advertisements the word “ACCREDITED,” pursuant to CHED policies and rules.

• Limited visitation, inspection and/or supervision by CHED supervisory personnel or

representatives.

A. Level I/Level II

• All the benefits for Level I/II.

• Authority to offer new courses allied to existing Level III courses.

• Privilege to apply for authority to offer new graduate programs, open learning/distance education, extension classes and to participate in the transnational education.

• Vii. Extensive and functional library and other learning resources facilities

B. Level III

REQUIREMENT

• All the benefits for Levels I, II and III. • Grant of full autonomy for the program for the

duration of its Level IV accredited status. • Authority to offer new graduate programs allied

to existing Level IV courses, open learning/distance education and extension classes.

C. Level IV

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“Librarians view accreditation as a once in a lifetime opportunity for advancement not only of the physical plant and collection but also the career and economic status of the library staff.”

J.C.Buenrostro, Jr.

On/For Librarians

The librarians have starring roles to play in the accreditation process. Here are some roles of the librarian.

(JCB)

1. Coordinator of the site visit.

2. Chairman of the self-survey committee. 3. Editor of the self-survey report.

4. Chairman of the self-survey committee on the library.

The Librarians Involvement

5. Resource person on accreditation. 6. Member of the campus administrators to

welcome the visiting committee on its arrival for a formal breakfast or dinner hosted by the school.

7. A person to be interviewed by one or more members of the visiting committee. 8. Member of the campus administrators that

will hear the committee’s exit report.

The Librarians Involvement

(JCB)

Have commonalities in terms of objectives, and scope, i.e. “provision of adequate library materials to support the nature, level and scope of the different programs offered by the institution, and the library in each institution must maintain adequate and well-organized collections which are accessible to all students, faculty, administrative and research staff.

Accreditors Expectations (JCB)

Actions taken/compliance to team recommendations with emphasis on planning, outcomes of previous evaluation, utilization of information resources, involvement and collaboration of faculty and students in collection building.

Accreditors Expectations (JCB)

1. Accreditors who are knowledgeable and conversant with recent issues in librarianship. 2. Accreditors who will not only focus on input

measures such as strengths and weaknesses of book collection but other information resources and services such as staffing, library hours, technical services, public services, allocation of resources and other aspects of library operations.

Librarians Expectations from

Accreditors (JCB)

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3. Librarians prefer accreditors who will

appreciate what the library is doing to support the local needs of the institution instead of comparing its activities against his/her library or a bigger, richer and nearly perfect library. 4. Accreditors who are warm and friendly. Who

will not ask brusque questions while checking a list of requirements, but will engage in a real conversation and offer ideas and suggestions.

Librarians Expectations from

Accreditors (JCB)

5. Accreditors who are reasonable and not developmental, as if they were checking test papers or composition papers using red ball pen.

6. An Accreditor who does not know anything about libraries is a big disappointment because he will surely produce a weak report. Meaning, a report which does not reflect key issues as perceived by the librarians.

Librarians Expectations from

Accreditors (JCB)

“The bottom line of accreditation is customer satisfaction. Accreditation assures quality. Accreditation is an approach, a method used to address the requirements of Total Quality Management. It is leveled with BISA, IQA, ISO,QC, IQUaME, COD, COE, ETEEAP, PQA.”

Dr. Conrado E. Iñigo,Jr., LPU-VPAA

Conclusions

The overall impact of accreditation are:

Quality Education

Ownership of Accomplishment Standards Compliant Satisfying Customers Pride for Contribution

Work to lessen stress rather than Negative Stress Benefits everybody e.g. Stakeholders

Motivation

Outcomes Based – to help students

Conclusions

Accreditation is a learning experience,

a humbling experience, a culture and a

habit as well.

Conclusions