Enhancement of Mutual Understanding
and Information Provision in HigherEducation – Japanese Efforts –2010 International Information Package Workshop
2 March 2010

Specially Appointed Professor, NIAD‐UE
Advisor to the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports,
Science and Technology (MEXT)
President, JABEE, Japan

Tsutomu Kimura
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Contents

1. What is ‘mutual understanding’?

2. NIAD‐UE’s initiatives: Information Package
Project
3. Japanese information provision policyon quality of higher education:
challenges and future2

1. What is ‘mutual understanding’?

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1. What is ‘mutual understanding’?

Definition in the context of international
quality assurance ‐ NIAD‐UE’s view
Mutual Understanding:To understand each country’s/region’s higher
education and quality assurance systems andbackground information of these systems, and toshare the sense of diversity among partners inorder to make international collaborative links andactivities work4

1. What is ‘mutual understanding’?

The necessity of mutual understandingz

UNESCO/OECD ‘Guidelines for Quality Provisionin Cross‐border Higher Education’

Guidelines for quality assurance and accreditation bodies (c)‘Establish links to strengthen the collaboration
between the bodies of the sending county and thereceiving country and enhance the mutual
understanding of different systems of quality
assurance and accreditation. This may facilitate
the process of assuring the quality of programmesdelivered across borders and institutions operating
across borders while respecting the quality
assurance and accreditation systems of thereceiving countries;’
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1. What is ‘mutual understanding’?

z

Respond to global challenges, typically:
9 ensuring the quality of cross‐border provisions,i.e. double degree programs, branch campuses, etc.
9 eliminating degree/accreditation millszEnhance the quality of QA in every country/region

Aiming at strengthening sustainable partnerships
in the international QA community based on asolid foundation of mutual understanding62. NIAD‐UE’s initiatives:
Information Package Project7

2. NIAD‐UE’s initiatives: Information Package Project

Purpose ~ spirits of UNESCO‐OECD guidelinesz

To provide an information tool with overseas
partners to help them understand the jargons
and basic information on Japanese higher
education system including QA mechanismzTo encourage Japanese universities to presentlegitimate information internationally on their
institutional performance and quality of researchand teaching82. NIAD‐UE’s initiatives: Information Package Project

NIAD‐UE’s idea ‐ Information provision taking into
account the following elements would lead to high‐level understanding for partners:zConsistent information ‐ authorized atorganizational‐levelz

Reliable information ‐ published as an officialresourcez

Integrated information ‐ not fragmentedzUpdated information ‐ periodically reviewed
and updated
92. NIAD‐UE’s initiatives: Information Package ProjectComponentsz Glossaryz Overview on higher education system andQA system in Japanz General Principles and theEvaluation Standards
for NIAD‐UE’s QA practice

Published inSeptember 200910

2. NIAD‐UE’s initiatives: Information Package ProjectConceptsz‘Packaging’ – Easy to access legitimate

information on higher education system on thewhole and to carry out data upgrading on regularbasisz Encourage other countries to produce a similar

information toolz Pilot works carried out by NIAD‐UE: The overview

on higher education and QA systems in othercountries (UK, US, AUS, Netherlands, China, Koreaetc.) to enable various stakeholders in highereducation to understand different systems indifferent countries. The project organized in11

2. NIAD‐UE’s initiatives: Information Package Project

cooperation with the government of each country,
QA agencies, and embassies in Japanz NIAD‐UE has full responsibility for the project toensure the coherence of productsz Timely updating of the components undercooperative structures123. Japanese information provision policyon quality of higher education:challenges and future13

3. Japanese information provision policy on quality ofhigher education ‐ challenges and future

Discussions at Ministerial Council
The necessity to present information on thequality of higher education to various
stakeholders:z

For universities to achieve accountability to thepublic as public organizations to meet publicinterestsz

To demonstrate the contents and standards ofhigher education activities to students as clientsz

Providing information to international highereducation community for enhancing
international mobility of students as well as
academicians14

3. Japanese information provision policy on quality ofhigher education ‐ challenges and future

Current situation in JapanThe School Education Law and the Establishment
Standards stipulate the disclosure of institutionalinformation to ensure accountability to the public
and encourage proactive internal QA. Nearly all
the universities observe the Laws and comply with
the Standards.
However,some progress is necessary with respect toinformation provision to international higher
education community, and development and useof national platforms/database.
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3. Japanese information provision policy on quality ofhigher education ‐ challenges and future

Future directions of the governmental policyzGreater emphasis on the universities’ initiatives tofurnish information
9 Re‐defining necessary items by laws and regulations
9 Developing guidelines or reference pointsz

Making full use of existing platforms… Strengthening links between UNESCO Portaland Japanese higher education database/websites

zProvision of information on the names andattributes of academic degrees and definition oftechnical terms related to higher education in orderto enable to compare Japanese qualifications withinternational qualifications
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3. Japanese information provision policy on quality ofhigher education ‐ challenges and future

Samples of institutional information which
universities should furnish
proposed by the Working Group for Quality Assurance System, Division ofUniversities, Central Council for Education, MEXT

1. Objectives of education, teaching contents andlearning outcomes: Goal for students’ capacity
building, the type of academic degrees conferred,target for learning outcomes, standards for student
assessment
2. Students: admission‐related information,
progression rate, retention rate, jobs acquired by
students on graduation
173. Japanese information provision policy on quality ofhigher education ‐ challenges and future

3. Organization: Institutional basic information(purpose of foundation, location, contact details),
academic staff structure, the number of academicstaff
4. Financial aspect: Tuition fee, enrollment fee,scholarships, bursaries, other financial support
5. Student support: Learning support, student life
support, career guidance, facilities for students(e.g. library)18

Thank you for your attention
For further information:www.niad.ac.jp
NIAD‐UE
National Institution for Academic Degrees
and University Evaluation, Japan
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