the bologna process and lmd implementation

Université of Sousse

The Bologna process and LMD Implementation:

There is still a lot to do

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Introduction

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The core declaration 2010, Bologna Process is the process of Creation of an European Higher Education Area (EHEA) expected to be more Uniformly Structured and more Universally Understandable is based on Cooperation between structures in adopting countries:

- Ministries - Higher education institutions- Students- Staff- International organisations

The Economic Appraoch Behind The Bologna Process

- The basic idea behind all educational EU-plans is ECONOMIC through the enlargement of scale of the european systems of higher education, by making studying

- MORE INTERNATIONAL and

- REDUCING THE TIME it took to get a degree had been fulfilled.

- ENHANCE ITS 'COMPETITIVENESS' by CUTTING DOWN COSTS

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The Rational Behind The Bologna Process

- The "Bologna reforms” INTENDS TO BENEFIT STUDENTS.

- TO MODERNIZE Europe's university education system,

- - TO INCREASE INTERCOMPATIBILITY between institutions

- TO making it easier for students TO SWITCH and Study BETWEEN UNIVERSITIES - TO INCREASE COMPETITIVENESS IN HE BY COST REDUCTION

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Specific Objectives the Bologna Process

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The major elements of this process include the objectives:

- Allow Mobility- Strengthen Employability- Increase of the international competitiveness

- Enhance attractiveness and European Dimension of the HE System- Harmonization and acceptance of study degrees

- Implement of a credit point system (ECTS) - Cooperation regarding Quality Assurance - Allow Lifelong Learning - Stress Students‘ participation in decisions on all

level

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Free Student mobility and portability of diplomas within the Bologna Process area are the major objectives.

The Bologna Declaration emphasized :“a commitment to overcome obstacles to the effective exercise of free movement, with particular attention to … access to study and training opportunities and to related services”

THE BOLOGNA PROCESS AND LMD IMPLEMENTATION:

Student free Mobility and Portability

A DIPLOMA STRUCTURE: system of three consecutive structure around the Bachelor-Licence-Masters-Doctorate (LMD) degrees, with completion of the Licence 3-4 years after secondary school completion. This convergence is expected to ensure Portability of Diplomas within the framewoek of the EHEA qualifications framework.

A CREDIT SYSTEM — the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS). licence cycle (180 credits over three years, master program cycle (120 credits over two years), DOCTORAL CYCLE (THREE YEARS)

The DIPLOMA SUPPLEMENT is a document attached to the diploma providing a standardized description of the nature, level, context, content and status of the studies completed by the diploma holder, In order to FACILITATE ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION OF QUALIFICATIONS. 7

THE BOLOGNA PROCESS AND LMD IMPLEMENTATION: The Diploma Structure,

Credit System

Historical Development

The Bologna Declaration was signed by 27 European countries in 1999 (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden) In 2001 joined (Switzerland, United Kingdom. Croatia, Cyprus, Liechtenstein, Turkey)In 2003, joined (Albania, Andorra, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Macedonia Russia, Holy See) In 2005 joined (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, then Montenegro) In 2007; KazakhstanIn 2009, 47 countries were participating in the process

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Organization and The Follow Up Groups

A. European Level: • Ministers and Experts meet every 2 years to assess

progress achieved and to agree upon new steps to be taken: 2001 Prague, 2003 Berlin, 2005 Bergen, 2007 London, 2009 Louvain, 2010 Vienna; 2012 Bucharest.

B. National Level: • Bologna groups (Politicians, Academic Exchange Service,

Rectors‘ Conference, students, employers‘ federation, trade union for education and science, accreditation council) work on concepts and report to the European Bologna group

C. Higher Education Institutions Level (HEI): - Interpret the requirements,

- Find local solutions, - Put into practice

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the Bologna Process is indeed the product of a series of ministerial meetings at which policy decisions are taken aimed at establishment of the European Higher Education Area.

The following timeline in Figure 1 provides an overview of these meetings and the major points on their respective agendas.

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THE BOLOGNA PROCESS AND ITS IMPLEMENTATION:

THE ROLE OF POLITICIANS

Figure 1. Timeline of the Bologna Process

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THE BOLOGNA PROCESS AND LMD IMPLEMENTATION

The Timeline of the Bologna Process

The National Qualifications Framework (NQF) is a single and clear description of the education system to clarify and explain goals, relationship, similarities and differences between higher education qualifications.

NQFs are internationally understood and clearly describe all qualifications and other learning achievements in higher education and relate them to each other.

The principle elements are: learning outcomes; competences; levels; credits; workload; and profile.

The design of the NQF has proved to be a complex task which was underestimated in many countries.

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THE BOLOGNA PROCESS AND LMD IMPLEMENTATION:

National Qualifications Framework (NQF)

Quality Assurance within the Bologna Process

- Promotion of European cooperation in quality assurance with a view to development comparable criteria and methodologies (1999)

- Ministers gave the mandate to develop a system of quality Assurance (QA), standards, procedures and guidelines (2003)

- Standards and Guidelines for QA in the European HEA“ published (2005), based on autonomy and responsibility: - agencies should be accredited every 5 years

- the accreditation should be organized on national level

- establishment of European register of QA agencies

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Quality Assurance and the Bologna Process:

European Standards and Guidelines for QAPart 1: standards and guidelines for internal QA

- Policy and procedures- Approval, monitoring and periodic review of programmes- Assessments of students

Part 2: standards and guidelines for external QA- Development of external QA processes- Follow-up procedures

Part 3: standards and guidelines for external QA agencies- QA procedures- Status of agencies

STANDARDS ARE MET, BUT NO REAL COOPERATION UP TO NOW, QM-SYSTEMS ARE NOT COMPARABLE

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Problems and Limits Related to Implementation of Bologna Process

- Implementation of the reform was overshadowed by many mistakes and that THERE IS NEED FOR IMPROVEMENT (BOLOGNA RELOADED).

- A reform of this magnitude could not be implemented without START-UP PROBLEMS.

- Actors responsible for implementing Bologna had either an INDIFFERENT or even NEGATIVE ATTITUDE to the reform; or they had SECOND MOTIVES that were unrelated to the creation of an EHEA.

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Problems and Limits: Government Responsibilities

- BOLOGNA Process was to used TO PUSH NATIONAL POLICIES, those who are in charge are likely to reject that policy

- In many cases the content of the former 4 years course was SQUEEZED into a 3 years Bachelor course.(The Case of Tunisia)

- Countries did not adopt the new system at the same SPEED in the same TIME with the same EFFORTS and the same MOTIVATIONS and CONVICTIONS- The opponents were quite successful to assimilate the new degree to the traditional one tier framework.

- In many cases the reform was implemented in a way that contradicts the spirit of the Bologna declaration (Tunisia).

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Problems and Criticisms: Student Complaints

The bologna reforms is supposed to increase intercompatibility between institutions, to making it easier for students to switch between universities or study in a foreign country.

- too much material has been squeezed into the three-year bachelor's degree and that

- there are not enough master's program places to go around

- too focused on preparing students for the workplace, instead of giving them a broad education.

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- Shortening the time it takes doctoral students to complete their studies - Preventing doctoral students them from dropping out - Joint supervision, evaluations and the creation of a critical mass of professors and researchers as well as ethical codes for research. - Education of doctoral candidates is regarded as

too long, too academictoo narrow

not particularly relevant to non-academic labor markets.

- The status of doctoral candidate – and hence the social and material situation of doctoral candidates themselves differs from institution to institution.

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PROBLEMS AND LIMITS Doctoral STUDENTS COMPLAINTS

Problems and Criticism: HE Institutions Universities

Responsibilities UNIVERSITIES ARE PARTLY TO BLAME for

OVERCROWDED LECTURE HALLS and UNHAPPY STUDENTS.

- - Universities DISINTEREST in carrying out new reforms, having to deal with larger numbers of students

- - Universities do not have ENOUGH MONEY AND HUMAN RESSOURCES to offer more places in master's courses.

- CENTRALIZED MANAGEMENT by ministries (national platforms and university plateforms Tunisia)

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Problems and Criticism: Experts Criticisms

- REPLACING THE OLD DEGREE system with a bachelor's/master's degree system, where students could graduate with a bachelor's degree and enter labor market after JUST THREE YEARS, or GO ON TO STUDY FOR A MASTER'S DEGREE.-- So CONTENTS OF FORMER PROGRAMS have been SQUEEZED into three year Bachelor’s degree with

- SAME CONTENT, - LESS TIME

- THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH MASTER'S PROGRAM PLACES TO GO AROUND

- - PLANNED STANDARDIZATION OF COURSES HAS NOT HAPPENED, MAKING IT HARD TO SWITCH between universities.

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- TOO FOCUSED ON JOB MARKET, with curriculum not focused on INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT OF STUDENTS in the absence of BROAD EDUCATION

-HURRYING YOUNG PEOPLE through their studies and GETTING THEM quickly INTO A JOB IS not necessarily a good thing,

-Universities HAVE TO EDUCATE PEOPLE as well as TRAINING THEM FOR A JOB - Companies wanted to hire WELL-ROUNDED INDIVIDUALS, not just graduates. But students REQUIRED MORE TIME in order to develop their personalities.

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- MUTUAL APPROVAL OF QUALIFICATIONS does not work properly

- HANDLING OF DIVERSITY have not been addressed yet

- ESTABLISHMENT OF EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES for all students have not been addressed yet

- LIFELONG LEARNING have not been addressed yet

- FINANCING SHORTFALL in whole HE System capacity problems

- QUALITY ASSURANCE STANDARDS ARE MET, BUT NO REAL COOPERATION UP TO NOW, as a consequence QA-SYSTEMS ARE NOT COMPARABLE 22


- The goal of making it easier for students to study abroad has not been reached.- -The new European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) has not made courses intercompatible and getting credits recognized can still be difficult.

- Universities need more Finance to cope with the current flood of students.

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Problems and Criticism:Experts Criticisms

Many of the GOALS OF THE REFORMS HAVE ONLY PARTIALLY been MET:

- NUMBER OF STUDENTS SWITCHING UNIVERSITIES IS FAR TOO LOW, while THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE DROPPING OUT IS TOO HIGH.

- STRUCTURES ARE FAR TOO INFLEXIBLE TO COPE WITH STUDENTS SPENDING SEMESTERS ABROAD, (combining studies with having children and working part-time).

-The Bologna Process PRODUCES GRADUATES MORE QUICKLY, but unfortunately it PRODUCES FEWER PEOPLE WHO FIT THE PROFILE THAT INDUSTRY ACTUALLY WANTS.

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General Conclusions- Is is true that IMPLEMENTATION of higher education policies requires EFFECTIVE COORDINATION, PRESSURES, INCENTIVES to contribute to convergence?. - How to REINFORCE THE ROLE OF STUDENTS, who are THE LEAST INVOLVED in the implementation OF BOLOGNA process? - Do all OR MOST OF students ENTER the labor market after completing the first cycle?- Do employers see the first cycle as GRANTING EMPLOYABILITY?

- Did Bologna Process increase INDEED student and GRADUATE MOBILITY?- Is the European higher education area efficient in attracting students from outside Europe?

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Conclusions

- It is becoming increasingly impossible to spend a semester at a foreign university without losing time, despite the fact that the Bologna reform is actually supposed to make stays abroad easier.

- How to make the move to master cycle more accessible since three years is not enough?

- There are not enough master's program places to go around. This is a true problem, and a source of dislike by the students - There is a taste of incompleteness. The student is

foreseen not be ready for the workplace ? - How to make the Bologna System less Complicated

to handle, less difficult to handle administratively, records, curriculum, grades, etc

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T H A N K Y O UF O R Y O U R A T T E N T I O N

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