Three criteria are expected to be removed from the accreditation of university and college programs.

The Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) is seeking feedback on a draft Circular amending Circular No. 04/2016/TT-BGDĐT dated March 14, 2016, on the accreditation of university and college teacher training programs (Circular 04) and replacing related Circulars.

The draft Circular amending Circular 04, once issued, will abolish the Circulars stipulating standards for evaluating the quality of training programs in certain specialized fields, as the provisions of these Circulars are incompatible with current regulations on how to evaluate criteria and standards.

Specifically, unlike Circular 04, the draft revised Circular has integrated professional guidance and forms into the attached appendices.

Specifically, the draft includes 8 standards and 52 criteria, along with an Appendix providing guidance on criterion evaluation and an Appendix of forms.

Thus, compared to Circular 04, the revised draft reduces the number of standards from 11 to 8, overcoming the overlap when evaluating according to the standards of Circular 04.

Dự kiến rút 3 tiêu chí trong kiểm định chương trình đại học, cao đẳng - 1 — The draft amendment on accreditation of university and teacher training programs reduces the number of standards from 11 to 8 (Illustrative image: My Ha).

According to the Ministry of Education and Training , the draft Circular amending the regulations stipulates 10 mandatory criteria for training programs to meet quality standards.

This is the regulation currently applied by FIBAA (with 29/4 criteria), and it is also suitable for the context and current state of curriculum development in Vietnam.

The results of quality assessment analysis of more than 1,200 training programs evaluated according to domestic standards from 2017 to the present show that the criteria that did not meet the standards (below 4 points as stipulated in Circulars 03 and 38) mainly relate to program design, development, and evaluation.

This also shows that the development of training programs that meet output standards and the assessment of learners, as well as gathering feedback from stakeholders to improve the quality of training programs, are weaknesses that need to be addressed through regulations that schools should prioritize.

The draft Circular amends the method of evaluating criteria, standards, and training programs to align with international practices in quality accreditation.

According to Circular 04, the evaluation criteria consist of 7 levels from 1 to 7; the revised draft now has only 2 levels (pass/fail).

According to the Ministry of Education and Training, the 7-level criteria assessment approach as in the old circular is suitable for helping to develop an internal quality assurance system in the initial stages of familiarizing oneself with and shaping the quality management model in ASEAN countries.

However, this approach is not common in quality accreditation in many countries and international accreditation organizations. Vietnamese higher education institutions have already undergone accreditation up to the second cycle and have about 10 years of experience in implementing university quality accreditation activities, so the evaluation method needs to be adjusted.

The draft Circular amends and supplements regulations to expand the rights of accreditation organizations in developing external assessment tools. The Ministry of Education and Training issues standards for educational quality accreditation, accreditation procedures, and accreditation cycles.

Based on the framework of 8 standards and 52 criteria for evaluating training institutions issued by the Ministry of Education and Training, accreditation organizations develop professional guidelines and integrated criteria for evaluating training programs in specialized fields as prescribed by the Government.

The draft Circular amends regulations on the form of evaluation, the number and composition of external evaluation teams; clearly defines the responsibilities of training institutions in committing to ensuring the maintenance of the program; clearly defines the responsibilities of relevant units under the Ministry of Education and Training and the coordination between units in ensuring and accrediting the quality of education…

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