Introduction:

Achieving excellence in Teaching and Learning to provide quality education is one of the major themes in the PSU Mission. To realize this, a coherent framework for quality assurance named as Teaching & Learning Quality Framework (TLQF) has been established and is being maintained periodically which helps in continuous improvement in Teaching and Learning process.

PSU Teaching & Learning Quality Framework (TLQF) is a guide to know how to implement the Teaching & Learning Strategy as well as a frame for how to put into practice the policies that support it as mandated by PSU’s Teaching and Learning Strategy.

Below you will find a collection of the policies, processes and guidelines that have been developed to oversee and ensure the quality of Teaching and Learning in all programs offered. The policies cover the major areas of T&L Quality assurance such as Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes, Curriculum Development, Student Assessment, Academic Advising, Program Evaluation & Assessment, or Faculty Professional Development. In addition, the TLQF defines a reporting process with clear responsibilities and KPI’s to facilitate effective monitoring of the T&L quality strategy and timely actions for corrections and improvement.

As may be expected, the TLQF assumes an Outcome-Based approach where all activities from Program Design to Student Assessment are strongly based on clearly defined Program and Course Learning Outcomes.

Objectives:

The main objectives of the TLQF are:

1. Is to provide a framework encapsulating the policies, processes and procedures for faculty and students for imparting quality education at PSU.
2. Adopt the best teaching and learning practices by the faculty which are aligned with the outcome based approach of education.
3. Establish assessment measures that help to ensure that the students’ knowledge and skills are assessed using right type of assessment method.
4. Offer Quality Professional Development workshops for the faculty, staff which are in line with PSU mission statement
5. Establish assessment measures that help to ensure that the teaching and learning practices and professional development for the faculty, students, and administrators are of the utmost quality in all programs and are in-line with the mission statement of the university.
6. Include the stakeholders (employer, faculty, students, external factors) in the quality assurance and improvement process for teaching and learning.
7. Establish an effective reporting channel through which quality measures may be regularly monitored and issues if any, may be addressed by different levels of PSU management.
8. Use standard documentation practice for planning and reporting meeting the national and international standards.
9. Establish a set of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for teaching and learning process at the institutional and program level as well as their internal and external Benchmarks against which quality may be compared and tuned for providing quality education.

System Overview: The Teaching and Learning Quality Improvement Cycle:

PSU provides sound and current programs designed using a proven curriculum development process that takes into consideration current developments and society’s needs. All programs in PSU are required to do the following:

1. To establish, monitor and improve the quality measures of Teaching and Learning practices in the academic units, a well defined Quality Assurance structure has been established at PSU. Department Quality Committees (DQC) report regularly to the College Quality Committee (CQC) who in turn reports to the Quality Assurance Centre (QAC). The IQAC (Institutional Quality Assurance Committee) is a supporting committee at the institutional level which supports the Quality Assurance Centre in overseeing the overall T&L quality assessment and assurance processes, approves and implements recommended improvements. The whole process is supervised and guided by the Institutional Executive Quality Committee (IEQC). The final decision making body is the university council for any major changes that improve the quality of education. Various kinds of documentation for planning and reporting at different levels of administration is imperative.
2. Program specification are prepared by every academic program which should be updated on regular basis to reflect the changes in the curriculum, institutional policies, program administration, program goals or learning outcomes.
3. Course specification are prepared for every course in an academic year which are in line with the relevant program specification stating the learning outcomes, the course contents used to achieve the Learning Outcome(LO), types of assessments, their schedule, contribution of CLO to PLO.
4. The course reports are prepared by every course instructor reflecting the findings of the courses they have taught in the form of grade statistics, CLO results, course evaluation and improvement plan for the following semesters,
5. Annual Report are prepared by every academic program based on the templates prescribed by EEC-HES, stating the actual statistics of cohort, alumni, survey/KPI results. This report is also based on all the course reports submitted by the course instructors.
6. Annual Progress Reports of 5-year strategic plans are prepared by every academic units to evaluate the accomplishment of the action plan for the current academic year.
7. Based on the annual program reports, action plans are prepared for the coming academic year.
8. The faculty members are also evaluated at the end of an academic year by using predefined performance criteria to ensure the teaching and learning practices are of quality standards.

In addition, the Teaching and Learning Centre (TLC) conducts regular T&L skills development programs helping the academic programs in ensuring all faculty members and instructors are equipped with the necessary T&L skills needed for the courses they teach in their programs. Generally, the T&L Quality Assurance Framework is based on the wellknown PIMRU Model (Plan→ Implement →Monitor →Review →Update).

Figure 1: The PIMRU Model

Academic Programs or General Education departments are required to prepare 4 or 5 year Assessment Plans and execute it based on the elements of PIMRU cycle.

The main Components of the System:

The TLQF is an umbrella system that involves many policies, procedures and organizational structures in the field of Teaching and Learning. The main components of the system include:

1. 1. New Faculty Orientation Policy: It is mandatory for all new faculty members to participate in this orientation. The orientation should take place during the non-teaching week prior to the start of the academic semester. (Please note that if for some reason the date has to be modified then the faculty member along with the department chairperson/director need to find someone to cover their courses.)
2. Course Design Policy: A policy that provides general guidelines for designing courses and modules in the context of an OBE (Outcome Based Education) system.
3. Professional Development Policy: This policy describes PSU strategy regarding the professional development of T&L skills. PSU mission emphasizes on “continuous improvement” which requires that faculty members should stay current and well abreast with their fields and the required T&L skills helping in active engagement of the students in their learning process. The quality assessment improvement cycle will not be complete without continuous support for the professional development for faculty members in all skill areas relating to Teaching and Learning.
4. Classroom Observation Policy: The purpose for this policy is to provide guidelines on the process and procedures of classroom observations.
5. Recruitment Policy: The purpose of this policy is to provide guidelines on the policies and procedures for recruitment in the academic departments of the Colleges.
6. Program Assessment Policy(PAP): This policy outlines the assessment processes of the learning outcomes at the program level and the institutional level for continuous improvement in teaching and learning practices. The underlying philosophy of PAP is based on the Outcome Based Education(OBE) and employs a number of direct and indirect assessment tools to assess T&L Quality and recommend improvements for offering quality education. The review process is cyclic, and the results are raised every year to the Quality Assurance Centre (QAC) through Institutional Quality Assurance Committee (IQAC).
7. Curriculum Development and Review Policy: A policy that describes in details the principles and procedures that should be followed to develop new curricula or review existing programs. The policy ensures that all PSU programs remain current, sound and relevant.
8. COOP Policy: The goal of the CO-OP Program is to associate academic studies with the job market or business sector. The Program exposes the students to the practical environment of selected training organizations for 28 weeks related to their field of study, where the students apply their knowledge skills in the real life situations. In other words, the coop program enables the students to gain hands-on experience in a realistic environment. This program also helps the students to acquire high order thinking skills, getting them used to innovative thinking and permitting them to practice problem solving and decision making.
9. Student Assessment Policy & Final Examination Policy: A policy that outlines the major principles, goals, guidelines and processes for Student formative and summative assessments. This policy is strongly based on the principles of Outcome Based Education (OBE Centric).
10. Learning Management System (LMS) Policy: The purpose of this policy is to enhance the quality and effectiveness of the University’s LMS with the aim of providing students with access to fundamental course materials, resources and any needful information.
11. Information Technology Support Teaching and Learning Policy: The ITTL Policy is to provide IT support for faculty members to become more effective and more efficient in their teaching. It is to encourage collaboration with students and faculty members to promote high quality educational experiences at Prince Sultan University via the use technology in the T&L cycle in line with the Learning Outcomes. The Instructional Technology Unit (ITU) is developed to support, promote and encourage faculty and staff to apply technology in their day-to-day academic and administrative (tasks/responsibilities).
12. Academic advising Policy: The purpose of this policy is to provide guidelines on academic advising for PSU Students. All faculty members within a degree granting program will be assigned students to advice. Academic advising is considered as an important and prerequisite step for all students to be able to register for their courses. All faculty members attend regular workshops sessions organized by the Teaching and Learning Center and the Deanship of Admission and Registration where they are made familiar about the procedures required for advising.
13. Student Special Needs Policy: A policy that attempts to identify problems and other difficulties with those students who are perceived as being somewhat challenged and in need of more remediation than the norm in that group or class.
14. Academic Integrity Policy: A policy that emphasizes academic honesty and the avoidance of plagiarism and all practices that contradict well established academic integrity standards.
15. Faculty Code of Conduct Policy: This policy provides guiding principles on the code of ethics of faculty members in order to help them maintain a high standard of professional conduct and personal integrity. It informs the faculty members about the acceptable work ethics that is consistent with the university mission, the core values of the society, and the universally-accepted principles or norms of academic professionalism.