Quality is an inherent and distinguished characteristic through which an institution can guarantee the maintenance and enhancement of its education. Quality is an ongoing process of building and sustaining relationships among all the stakeholders by assessing, anticipating and implied needs. The recent endeavours of the MoHE GoIRA to improve the overall quality of education have tended to rely on national and international educational policy reforms that build on the rich research findings through linking educational inputs to the student’s achievement.
Since quality enhancement is a continuous process, the Quality Assurance and Accreditation Coordination Office (QAACO) is a regular and integral part of Kardan University and it works towards realizing the goals and objectives of quality assurance in tune with the vision and mission of Kardan University. Throughout the world and especially in the context of Afghanistan, one of the emerging challenges faced by any higher education institution is the development, application and maintenance of quality benchmarks in all its key performance areas. To institutionalize the process of quality sustenance and enhancement, Kardan University has Established Quality Assurance and accreditation Office with the following Objectives, Functions and Responsibilities.
Objectives
The general objective of the QAACO is to promote a quality assurance culture within the university. The specific objectives are to:
- Institutionalise the quality assurance culture in accordance with the national quality assurance and accreditation guidelines and international practices;
- Ensure that the university’s quality assurance procedures are designed following Quality Assurance and Accreditation Directorate (QAAD) guidelines and national requirements;
- Develop, maintain and enhance the quality of education and people’s perception in favour of the university through consistent quality assurance practices and performance;
- Build an image of the university with having the confidence of stakeholders ensuring transparency, accountability, and good practices in all aspects of management
- Prepare the university to meet the external quality assurance assessment and accreditation requirement
Functions
- Facilitate the mission and objectives of the university for enhancing the quality and relevance of teaching and learning and respond to global trends on quality education;
- Guide and assist the program offering entitles i.e. departments, faculties, and institutes of the university to define program objectives;
- Develop standards and benchmarks for various academics and administrative activities of the university;
- Organize workshops, seminars and appropriate training for capacity building and promoting QA culture at all levels of the university;
- Facilitating the creation of outcomes-based education and a student-centred learning throughout the university using technology for a participatory teaching and learning process;
- Review existing procedures for further improvement of delivery teaching and learning;
- Provide support to the study program offering academic units to conduct the self-assessment, external peer review and implement QA process at program level;
- Facilitate the approval of new program offering entity and new programs for existing entities using appropriate QA procedures
- Develop a data base containing information regarding quality assurance, which will be available to all stakeholders
- Prepare and produce an annual institutional Quality Assurance Monitoring Report which will be discussed and approved by the university’s QAAC and subsequently submitted to the QAAD
- Advise university management, faculty, and departments on QA and related matters;
- Prepare the detailed budget of the QAAC
- Facilitating International cooperation in quality assurance and accreditation.