MAKING CONNECTIONS BETWEEN THE INSTITUTIONAL EVALUATION AND THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS. EMPOWERING STAKEHOLDERS FOR QUALITY ENHANCEMENT

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Consult the Proposal of Indicators "Quality indicators in Higher Education for Sustainable Development" presented at the International Meeting in the Pyrenees "The 2030 Agenda: Embarking QA Agencies and stakeholders in this collective journey" on May 28 and 29 at Canfranc


 

 

 

Quality and Sustainability in Higher Education

 

1. Presentation
2. Project Description
3. Participants
4. Oultine of the Project

5. Board of the Project and expert advisor
6. The Project in the press
7. The experience of the participants

 

1. Presentation

 

AQUA has been awarded $10,000 to carry out the project: Making connections between the Institutional Evaluation and the Sustainable Development Goals. Empowering stakeholders for quality enhancement (Q&S&HE).The award was given by the International Network for Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education (INQAAHE) and is part of the 2017-2018 capacity building projects. In total, 3 capacity building projects have been awarded around the world.This project will be carried out in collaboration with the Aragon Agency for Quality Assurance and Strategic Foresight in Higher Education (ACPUA), with whom AQUA has a close relationship regarding the promotion of quality assurance in higher education.The basis of the project is to constitute a board of international experts regarding Quality and the SDGs. This board will organize two forums that will be useful as a work and training space.The participants of these forums will be the major stakeholders related to higher education and sustainable development in Andorra and Aragon. In accordance with participants’ reflections and proposals, the board of experts will draw up a proposal of indicators for the Institutional accreditation, which will include the SDGs.

 

2. Project Description

 

The project aims to address the following challenges:

Connecting the Institutional accreditation and the SDGs.
Establishing a participatory process to reflect on the Higher education quality enhancement model.

The specific objectives of the project are as follows:

Mapping the initiatives that HEIs and policy makers are carrying out in Aragon and Andorra to achieve the SDGs and drawing up shared commitments.
Drawing up a proposal of indicators to include the SDGs in Institutional accreditation
Training internal and external stakeholders for quality enhancement, taking the SDGs into consideration.

 

3. Participants

The project is aimed at internal and external stakeholders related to quality in Higher Education in Aragon and Andorra:

The project will encourage the students’ participation, as they play an important role in this process.
The participants will have to attend the forums. The experts will draw up the quality indicators in accordance with the participants’ discussions and proposals.

4. Outline of the Project

 

 

The development of the project is based on the organization of two forums, one in Andorra and the other in Zaragoza, both driven by the members of the Board and Expert Advisors of the project.

The The First Forum Andorra – Aragon regarding quality and sustainability in higher education: empowering stakeholders for quality enhancement was celebrated on 2 and 3 October 2018 in Andorra la Vella. One of the main conclusions of this Forum was the need to establish strategic plans in higher education for integrating the SDGs in higher education through the creation of alliances among stakeholders, training and the definition of transversal competencies. This was one of the challenges formulated that we will work on autonomously before the celebrating of the second Forum in Zaragoza on 13 and 14 December 2018.

 


The Second Forum Andorra - Aragon regarding quality and sustainability in higher education: empowering stakeholders for quality enhancement was celebrated on 13 and 14 December 2018 in Zaragoza. In this event, on the one hand, the government of Andorra and the universities of both regions demonstrated their commitment to connecting the quality of Higher Education with the SDGs. The universities presented their plans related to the SDGs, such as the introduction of one specific competence in sustainability. On the other hand, all the participants explained their initiatives in the First Forum to promote alliances between internal and external stakeholders of the university, such as training in sustainability and joint working groups.
Furthermore, representatives of the University of Andorra and the Ministry of Education gave a presentation on the introduction of democratic culture competencies to the Andorran education model, and the case of the University of Andorra, which is leading an innovation process, based on competencies. This case is considered a benchmark for innovative education and competencies in relation to the current challenges.
Finally, we performed an in-depth examination on society’s commitment to universities to promote alliances, which contribute to quality and sustainability. In this respect, the representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs presented the implementation process of the 2030 Agenda in Andorra. The Andorran National Commission for UNESCO explained this institution’s work and their contribution to the SDGs. Moreover, a spokesperson from Andorra’s Observatory of Sustainability explained how they are working on this institution.

The section “the project in the media” includes news about both forums being held.

 

  • Validation meeting

 

5. Board del projecte i expert advisor

Participants from both regions met to review and validate the proposal of indicators; the Board of Experts raised some questions to make a reflection and integrate the improvements within a final proposal.
 

Board of Experts and expert advisor

Board:


Dra. Íngrid Mulà Ponsdevall                                                              Dr. David Alba
Promotor of tranfer and knowledge                                                Environmental education project specialist                                            
of the University of Girona                                                              at Transitando and associate researcher                                             
                                                                                                        at the Autonomous University of Madrid

Dr. Pepe Gutiérrez                                                                             Dra. Mercè Junyent
Professor of research methods                                                          Professor of the Department of Didactics of Mathematics
at the University of Granada                                                               and experimental sciencesat the Autonomous University of Barcelona
Faculty of Education Sciences (ORCID)                                           and researcher in the Còmplex research group (ORCID)

Expert Advisor:


Prof Dr Daniella Tilbury
Commissioner for Sustainable Development.
HM Government of Gibraltar  and Honorary Fellow, St Catharine's College
University of Cambridge (ResearchGate, Google Scholar)

6. The Project in the Media

Press Conference on September 6, 2018 - Project presentation

 

 

 

Press conference: I Andorra - Aragon Forum on quality and sustainability in higher education: Empowering stakeholders for quality enhancement

Reconeixement internacional a l'Agència de Qualitat de l'Ensenyament per un projecte sobre medi ambient

Primer fòrum d'Andorra-Aragó sobre qualitat i sostenibilitat en l'educació superior

 

Press collection: II  Andorra - Aragon Forum on quality and sustainability in higher education: Empowering stakeholders for quality enhancement

 

Opinion - Diari d'Andorra

7. The experience of the participants
 

Excma. Mrs. Pilar Alegría

 

Minister of Innovation, Research and Higher Education (Governement of Aragon) and President of ACPUA

 

Antonio Serrano

 

Director of the Aragon Agency for Quality Assurance and Strategic Foresight in Higher Education (ACPUA)

 

Carmen Pérez-Llantada

Director of the Secretariat of Teaching Quality and Innovation at the Office of the Vice President for Academic Policy at the University of Zaragoza

 

Paloma Ibarra

Director of the Secretariat of Modernization of the Vicerrectorado of Prospectiva, Sostenibilidad e Infraestructura of the University of Zaragoza respectively.

 
Carlos Pérez

Magnific Rector of the University San Jorge (Zaragoza-Aragon-Spain)

 
Laura Peiró

President of the Student Council of the University of Zaragoza. Member of the Governing Council of the ACPUA

Mar Zamorano

Representative of the San Jorge University. Member of the Governing Council of the ACPUA

Nerea Navarro

Student at the University of Zaragoza

Esther Pérez

Student at the University San Jorge.

 
Dolores Cepero

Deputy Director of Students and Quality at the Polytechnic School of the University of Zaragoza, campus of Huesca

Mercedes García

Administrator and the Polytechnic College of the University of Zaragoza, campus of Huesca.

 
Marta Fonolleda

Director of the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education of Andorra (AQUA)

 
Rosa Mariño

Coordinator of the rectorate in quality management and teaching at the University of Andorra (UdA)

 
Clàudia Call

Studying the Bàtxelor in Sciences of the Education of the University of Andorra (UdA)

Member of the Steering Committee of the Higher Education Quality Agency of Andorra (AQUA)

 
Nahia Roche

Desk Officer for Multilateral Affairs – Government of Andorra

 
August Climent

Rector of the Open University of La Salle (UOLS)

 
Oriol Travesset

Researcher of the Observatory for the Sustainability of Andorra (OBSA)

 
 
MI. Mr. Ferran Costa

President of the Legislative Commission of Education (Parliament of Andorra) and President of AQUA

 
Mrs. Daniella Tilbury

Commissioner for Sustainable Development. Governement of Gibraltar, Honorary Fellow of the Cambridge University

 

 
David Alba
Member of the board of experts - Environmental education project specialist at Transitando and associate researcher at the Autonomous University of Madrid

 

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