Quality Control in the Learning Process - Report Example

Quality control in the learning process Name Course Name and Code Instructor’s Name Date Table of Contents Quality in higher education 3 The context and dimensions of quality in higher education 3 Steps of the processes of learning 5 Critical operation of the processes of learning where inspection may be needed 9 Critical learning characteristics for critical operation 9 Appropriate process control chart 10 Measurement and monitoring the performance of critical learning characteristics 11 Conclusion 11 Quality in higher education I have found out that there are two distinct types of processes which exist in higher education. First are the services to the student body which include academic and administrative areas. The second process is the teaching and learning activities. From the argument of different authors I noted that it is difficult to apply quality management models to teaching and learning. This is based on the fact that quality management models are focused on measurement whereas the core processes of learning are too subtle to allow meaningful measurement. Another reason is that the product control is crucial for quality management where as teaching in higher education is very variable in its products, delivery modes, site delivered, personnel and processes to be controlled. Moreover, quality management lays focus on customer while the identification of the customer in higher education as I found out is a critical problem since customers can variously be employers, students and the government. This implies that implementation of quality management across all the operations of a higher learning institution may be a flop. In this paper I analyze ways that can be used to implement quality management in the process of learning. The context and dimensions of quality in higher education I have noted that quality dimensions are grouped into technical, functional and corporate image quality. from my readings I have found that technical quality can be measured objectively irrespective of the opinion of the customer while functional quality is related to the interaction between the provider and the recipient and are usually perceived subjectively. From my experience, in the higher learning the interaction between students themselves is important. On tge other hand I found that the corporate image dimension refers to the overall picture of the firm as perceived by the customers. It results from a combination of technical and functional quality dimensions in addition to factors such as price of the product or service and the reputation of the organization. From my experience, services such as learning are intangible, can be delivered simultaneously and are heterogeneous hence their quality differs from that of manufactured products. This is true in higher learning institutions since most attributes of quality cannot be felt, seen or touched in advance. Service production and consumption are inseparable since personal contact, for instance between students and lecturer, are essential and quality differs greatly in various circumstances. I noted that the products quality dimensions of products can be interpreted in higher education scenario. I found out that the performance dimension of the product can be interpreted to refer to primary knowledge/skills needed for graduates. From my research I found that the features dimension of the product can be interpreted to refer to secondary/supplementary knowledge and skills. The reliability dimension may refer to the extent to which knowledge /skills learned are correct, accurate and current. Conformance dimension of the product may refer to the degree to which an institution/program/course meets established standards, promises and plans in the higher learning context. Durability dimension could be interpreted in the higher learning context to refer to the depth of learning. Finally, I noted that the serviceability dimension may refer to how well an organization handles complaints of customers in the higher learning context. I was not able to find relevant interpretation of the aesthetics and perceived quality dimensions in the higher learning contexts. From my experience, quality dimensions that are more relevant to learning in higher education include tangibles, competence, attitude, content, delivery and reliability. Tangibles in in my view that exists in the higher education include sufficient facilities and equipment, modern facilities and equipments, ease access, visually appealing environment and support services such as accommodation and sports. On the other hand, competence dimension include sufficient academic staff which is well equipped with theoretical knowledge, qualifications, up to date, practical knowledge and teaching expertise in addition to good communication skills. From my experience, attitude dimension in higher education context refers to understanding the needs of the students, willingness to help, availability for guidance and advice, provision of personal attention, courtesy and emotion. I found out that the content dimension could refer to relevance of the curriculum to the future jobs of students, effectiveness, containing primary knowledge/skills, completeness and use of computer, communication skills and team working, and flexibility of knowledge in the context of higher learning education. Effective presentation, sequencing and timeliness, consistency, fairness of examinations, feedback from students and encouragement of students from my view could refer to the delivery dimension. Finally, I attribute the reliability dimension to trustworthiness, giving valid award, keeping promises and match to the goals, and handling complaints appropriately via provision of solution to problems in the higher learning context. Steps of the processes of learning From my own experience and research via reading different articles I have found out that learning process is complex and is often understood as an intellectual activity through which knowledge is gained or a combination of physical and intellectual dimensions needed for developing a certain skill. For learning to take place I have noted that an effective action has to be taken or an error has to be detected and corrected. Thus there are several steps in the learning process. From various articles I noted that the first step in the learning process is the action. The action brings relevance to learning. I found out that the relevance of current action is used as a platform for launching the learning process; and brings the ownership and interest needed to engage in a learning process. Thus the starting point in the learning process is taking a current action that directly involves the learners. Therefore it is apparent that the learning scenarios should be set up where the learning can flow naturally from an action that is both current and relevant to the learner. I noted that the second step of the process of learning is reflection on action. I found out that this step involves reflecting on what happened and drawing meaning from an action taken. It is assumed that knowledge and ideas only emerge from a situation that learners are able to extract experience which has meaning and importance to them. This may be a reflection on the result or hearing what others have to say. From my experience reflection on action involves pausing to ponder what happened and looking back and developing observation skills by describing a result in terms of what happened, how it happened, when and why so. When I reflect on the action I often experience a first moment of awareness. This makes my learning to go beyond tacit and intuition that happens at the first step of the process of learning. Reflection on action allows me to articulate in words the connections within an event, the elements that played a role and the relationship with the result obtained. Research has shown that each student comes with his/her own knowledge which can only be questioned when a new experience shows that the knowledge is not applicable or cannot explain a result or event. I noted that this only happens to me when I reflect on the event, describing it and explaining it with my frameworks. The instructor is often instrumental in aiding me in the reflection process by having me observe what I perceived, describing it in my words, reflecting on the thoughts the event triggered in me, reflecting on the feelings the event generated in me and reflecting on the frames of observing and describing. This process helps me to move from mere cognition to meta-cognition, that is, from being aware of what happened to developing awareness of how my frames, my thinking patterns and my assumptions and values conditions my interpretation of what happened. In most cases I reflect on the action better when I participate in group discussions where I can hear and be confronted by differing frames and experiences to challenge my own experiences and assumptions. This increases my observation skills as I become familiar with this step since I am able to know that I will be asked to reflect on what I observed and perceived. From my studies I have found out that self-awareness is the next step in the process of learning. This is an individual contribution to an event. In my own experience this step brings to the front what an I have done that made an impact on the result. This helps me to increase awareness of the power and impact of my own actions which may be in terms of words, decisions or attitudes. Research has shown that we as student spend much time doing and reflecting to what others do. I have noted that this contributes to the feeling of being exposed and at the mercy of events, of other people’s actions and decisions which have a restricted level of influence and no action of what takes place. My experiences have made me to know that whenever I experience this powerlessness feeling I often become stressed. However, most of the time I am able to understand my own cognitive processes which enables me to control and manage such experiences , increase my feelings of ownership of the task, responsibility for the results and raising my confidence with respect to my capabilities. The need is the next step of the process of learning. This entails establishing the need for change. The energy that I need to effect behavioral change, to learn and try out something new, to unlearn a pattern of behavior is related directly to the benefits that are anticipated to accrue to the individual making the effort. From my experience, the need for change can come from avoidance of certain results or attraction of certain results. When the need for change results from avoidance of certain results then it is desirable to explore scenarios that would be attractive. The last step of the learning process is the plan. This involves channeling the energy provided by the need into a feasible concrete plan. A plan for making the wish to change a behavior makes it successful. These steps can be understood through analysis of the following map: Critical operation of the processes of learning where inspection may be needed The action involves the course and instruction in higher learning institution. From my point of view, the course curriculum and the instruction process can be inspected. Inspection of the course may involve inspection of how the curriculum is planned and delivered by the program team and resources to support the course. Critical operation of the action could include testing, homework, evaluation, class management and documentation. All these can require inspection. Reflection on the action in the learning process in my view involves ensuring that teaching is for transformation. I argue that this should involve focusing on discovering students’ ways of seeing, development of multiple perspectives with discrimination and building of an epistemological infrastructure for insights into knowledge. The critical operation in the reflection on the action that may be inspected may be assessment of the advice, guidance and support provided to students. Self awareness involves societal and cultural values that develop after reflection. In my own view assessment of the societal and cultural values of students may help to get insight on the self awareness process of learning. The need and the plan can be inspected by looking at the institutional values and learning. Critical learning characteristics for critical operation Critical learning characteristic for evaluation from my findings is that it helps learners know how they are doing. It allows them to make comparison with say the best performing or poor performing students. To ensure that evaluation is effective, it ought to be standardized by say an external evaluating body before the evaluation is administered to the student. In addition the evaluation ought to be continuous to ensure that the learning process is continuous rather than just a seasonal activity. Evaluation should not only involve written exams but should involve things like participation in group discussions, class discussions and case studies. The evaluation should also be collaborative in order to enhance success and to perpetuate a positive learning atmosphere and raising quality. Collaborative evaluation can also help to promote quality. Evaluation is an attribute since its data may be expressed as pass/fail, yes/no or presence/absence of defect. Critical learning characteristics for support advice are that it provides constant engagement of the student in order to allow them to be wedded to academic learning. Instructor should thus be involved in discussions that constitute a quality experience. These negotiations and discussions should be done on continuous basis. Support advice also be expressed as pass/fail, yes/no or presence/absence of defect and hence is an attribute. Appropriate process control chart I found out that control chart is a statistical tool that is used for distinguishing between variation in a process resulting from common causes and variation resulting from special causes. All process is known to have variation. I also noted that some variations could result from causes which are not normally present in the process. This may be special cause variation while variations which are ever present in the process are common cause variations. I also found out that there are two main categories of control charts, those that display variable data and those that display attribute data. I find that the appropriate process control chart for evaluation and support advice is the attribute data control chart. From the analysis that I have made, the appropriate type of attribute data control chart for expressing these characteristics is the moving range chart. This is appropriate for evaluation and support advice because these processes repeat themselves infrequently and appears to operate differently at different times. Measurement and monitoring the performance of critical learning characteristics Measurement of the evaluation process from my analysis should entail documentation of tests, homework and examinations administered to students. Frequent questionnaires to both students and instructors on issues such as types of evaluation, frequency of evaluation and standardization of evaluation process can help in measuring evaluation process. Comparison of curriculum with the standard curriculum and also market absorption rates of graduates can also provide some evaluation data. To monitor evaluation, instructors ought to provide annual reports to provide analytical overview of quality improvement. From my conceptualization of support advice, it can also be established through administration of questionnaires to tutors and students to establish the frequency and types of support advice provided to students. Students can be asked to provide short reports on support advices they have received from their instructors throughout the semester in order to help in monitoring the process of support advice. Conclusion This exercise has enabled me to understand that the learning process is too subtle and its measurement can be very challenging. The exercise has also enabled me to learn that quality dimensions that are more relevant to learning in higher education include tangibles, competence, attitude, content, delivery and reliability. I have been able to learn different steps involved in the process learning: the action, reflection on the action, self awareness, the need and the plan. Of these steps evaluation is a critical operation that can be inspected in the action step of the process of learning and support advice is the critical operation that can be inspected in the reflection on the action. Evaluation and support advice are attributes since they can be expressed as pass/fail or yes/no. the exercise has also enabled me to know that there are two categories of control charts: attribute data and variable data. In this case evaluation and support advice can be appropriately represented using attribute data control chart. The type of attribute data control chart that was appropriate in this case was the moving range chart. This is because evaluation and support advice because these processes repeats themselves infrequently and appears to operate differently at different times. I have also learned how I can measure and monitor evaluation and support advice process during this exercise. Read More