Ensuring quality in education

ASSESSMENT AND ACCREDITATION IN INDIAN HIGHER EDUCATION (Issues of Policy and Prospects): Antony Stella, A. Gnanam; Published by Books Plus, H-46, First Floor, South Extension, Part I, New Delhi-110049. Rs. 500.

AWARENESS OF quality control has started permeating the minds of educational planners, academics and administrators in India only during the recent past. This is no doubt due to the declining standards of higher education noticed in a large section among our universities and colleges. It is against this background that the setting up in 1994 of the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) as an autonomous entity by the University Grants Commission (UGC) must be viewed.

The concept of external quality assurance (EQA) is something new to our milieu and the NAAC is given the mandate of assessing the work of over 250 universities and 10,000 colleges located in different states. India can boast of the second largest higher education network in the world, thanks to a rapid growth in the number of institutions. One can understand the nature of the Herculean task to be done by the NAAC, not only in the context of the large numbers but also on account of the bewildering variety and diversity, social backdrop and different cultural settings of the institutions.

The book under review gives an excellent overview of the entire process of assessment and accreditation. The authors, fully familiar with the ramifications of such an exercise, discuss without any inhibition the various pitfalls (natural to such a complex process) and highlight the benefits that ultimately accrue to society when EQA is adopted. Academic audit, assessment and accreditation are the main components of EQA and over 100 EQA agencies in different countries are functioning already. Over the last seven years, the NAAC has been engaged in evolving and adopting the EQA mechanism to Indian conditions. Nearly 200 institutions (universities and colleges) have so far been assessed and accredited in the last seven years.

Part I (Emergence of EQA) gives a succinct account of the emerging trends in higher education and their implications, a retrospect of quality concern, and also the relevance of assessment and accreditation. The value of a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis for educational institutions is nicely portrayed. The questions raised cover a range of issues that dominate the minds of academics everywhere, and the authors have taken great pains to disarm the critics.

Part II, with four chapters, deals with such aspects as unit of assessment for accreditation, ensuring objectivity in assessment, performance indicators in quality assessment, and implications of institutional grades.

That the process is transparent with the focus on a self-study by the institution is made amply clear. Similarly, the formation of the peer team to visit the campus is done carefully; the peers have to sign a "no conflict of interest certificate" although they are experts known for their integrity. In addition, the NAAC makes sure that the peer does not belong to the same State where the institution is located. During the campus visit, the peer team members have to step into many departments, hold discussions with faculty and the head of the institution, management representatives etc. It is obvious that the three to five members who constitute the peer team are perforce to do a gargantuan task in a limited time of about four or five days.

In Part III, the authors raise issues like institutional response, collaborative assessment with other professional bodies, and the international agenda. About the institutions rated high by the NAAC, the question arises, "What makes them different?" and the authors point out that these institutions go beyond the minimum and try to attain well-defined goals. They also provide enriched educational experience for the students in the campus and have a high faculty profile. In addition, they endeavour to go closer to the community.

Several recent developments merit attention. The UGC has now made it obligatory on the part of universities and colleges to get assessed and receive the stamp of accreditation by linking this with the grant of funds to them. Similarly, the colleges aspiring for autonomous or deemed university status must also go through the accreditation process as a prerequisite.

Naturally, the NAAC faces an uphill task since a large volume of assessment has to be managed; the situation is really serious on account of the deadline stipulated by the UGC (December 2002 for universities, and December 2003 for colleges).

When it comes to other professional bodies like the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), the Medical Council of India (MCI), the Bar Council of India and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), it is significant that some of these have formed their own accreditation systems; the National Board of Accreditation or NBA under the aegis of the AICTE is a case in point.

The authors point out that these are in-house mechanism to serve an internal purpose, and they "fall short of the national stature ad also the element of being external."

Onthe global scene, they refer to the International Network of Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education (INQAAHE) and its work in enabling academic audit agencies in different countries to exchange information.

The authors have done a commendable job by bringing out all the salient features of this absorbing theme. The book is bound to be of great interest to educationists and laymen alike.

T. RAJAGOPALAN

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