Geelong Educational Institutions: Growing And Nurturing Students Everyday!

By Author: sarar dunn
Total Articles: 23
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Quality assurance is defined as a process meant to assure the quality of a program - a straightforward definition and understanding for Geelong Schools and Geelong colleges. There are many ways in which quality can be measured or assessed; however, to assure quality is a much more complicated procedure. Throughout the short history of teacher education in Geelong, consistent work has been done to improve programs and to achieve the best system of teacher education possible.
Currently, efforts are being made to institutionalize a process of quality assurance based on a four-step repeating cycle of self-assessment, external consideration of the self-assessment, feedback, and monitored change/development. This article outlines the process used to establish quality assurance in Geelong's Colleges of Education, and discusses what is seen as the power of the process, the challenges it has presented, and the solutions that have been jointly developed. The Geelong College - face the normal challenges of any educational institution: timetabling, resources, recruitment, admission requirements, programming, finances, etc. However, ...
... as a direct result of the history of formal education in Geelong, there are special situations presented here that require careful and well-considered responses.
Well-qualified and respected personnel have been hired. However, the following three points are necessary to keep in mind as the colleges mature and begin to find their own way in tertiary education. The teachers generally tend to have a formal style of teaching, heavily dependent on lectures and formal exams. The colleges wish to develop a more open form of teaching, particularly in the areas of pedagogy. Second, in many cases, the teachers are dependent on their employment in this country. This can lead to a tendency to wish to please, causing particular concern over possible grade inflation. The third is another cogitating factor. The teachers are hired on relatively short-term contracts so that turnover is constant. This fact, in and of itself, has had an impact on the quality assurance process.
The goal to Geelong the teaching force in the schools as rapidly as possible has meant that the Colleges, on the whole, have the maximum students that they can handle. Even though the Geelong schools and Geelong Colleges are located in different geographical areas, the number of schools and school teachers available to receive students for their practical work is limited. The ongoing search to find the best solution for this imbalance requires creativity and patience.
Author’s Bio
The author is one of the most revered men of education in the Geelong region. He heads a couple of educational institutions in and around Geelong and a member of the educational reforms in the region. For more information on Geelong College and Geelong Schools, please visit: http://www.christiancollege.vic.edu.au