{"id":165855,"date":"2024-03-28T13:26:40","date_gmt":"2024-03-28T12:26:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=165855"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:27:15","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:27:15","slug":"inspectorate-of-education-intervene-more-quickly-if-programme-is-bad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2024\/03\/28\/inspectorate-of-education-intervene-more-quickly-if-programme-is-bad\/","title":{"rendered":"Inspectorate of Education: intervene more quickly if programme is bad"},"content":{"rendered":"

Failed educational innovation, shortage of teachers, useless courses… When a degree programme suddenly takes a turn for the worse, who intervenes? There\u2019s a \u2018gap\u2019 in the monitoring of higher education institutions, the Inspectorate of Education thinks.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tElzeline Kooy<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Just like cars have to undergo an annual inspection, higher education programmes have to be approved by accreditation organisation NVAO every six years. Without accreditation, they are not allowed to give out diplomas and their students can\u2019t get student financing.<\/p>\n

The accreditation is sometimes criticised: isn\u2019t it a paper tiger? Doesn\u2019t it cost too much time? What does such an assessment really say about the quality of the education? Politicians keep tinkering with the system.<\/p>\n

But the assessment is \u201cgenerally in order\u201d, writes<\/a> the Inspectorate of Education in its final report on the accreditation in higher education. Students can rest assured the quality of their programme is sufficient.<\/p>\n

Powerless<\/h2>

That is, at the time of assessment. But six years in between accreditations is fairly long. In the meantime, things can change. What if the quality goes downhill? Neither the Inspectorate nor accreditation organisation NVAO can intervene as long as a programme complies with laws and regulations.<\/p>\n

This is what the Inspectorate calls the \u2018monitoring gap\u2019. NVAO should pay an interim visit if there are signs that the quality has drastically decreased, the inspectors believe. They would like to discuss this with the minister and NVAO.<\/p>\n\n\t

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Read more<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t