According to the EQARF recommendation the four stages of the quality assurance cycle shall be interrelated and addressed holistically. In order to determine the effectiveness of current practice and identify what more can be achieved, each stage of the cycle is considered to be described with the help of indicative descriptors. The four stages of the cycle reflect the key aspects of quality management, and can be reformulated into the following questions:
|
Stages |
Key questions |
EQARF framework of action[1] |
|
Quality planning |
What do we want to achieve? |
Refers to setting up clear, appropriate and measurable goals and objectives in terms of policies, procedures and tasks and human resources |
|
Quality control |
How do we ensure achievement of goals? |
Establishes the procedures to ensure achievement of goals and objectives (e.g. development of partnerships, involvement of stakeholders, allocation of resources and implementation of operational procedures |
|
Quality assurance |
What have we achieved? |
Evaluation of VET provision and assessment of outcomes at system and individual level |
|
Quality improvement |
What needs to be improved? |
Applies to developing operations in order to achieve the targeted outcomes and/or setting new objectives, after discussion and analysis have been made by key stakeholders |
[1] ECVET Workshop 2, 22.-24. Nov. 2010.