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THE 2nd TEMPUS JEP WORKSHOP June, 16-17, 2008, Faculty of Organization S ciences, University of Belgrade. THE REVIEW AND INTRODUCTION OF ECTS SYSTEM. Suzana Loskovska. Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technolog ies , Skopje, R. Macedonia.
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THE 2nd TEMPUS JEP WORKSHOP June, 16-17, 2008, Faculty of Organization Sciences, University of Belgrade THE REVIEW AND INTRODUCTION OF ECTS SYSTEM Suzana Loskovska Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technologies, Skopje, R. Macedonia
The European Credit Transfer System • The European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) is a student-centered system based on the student workload required to achieve the objectives of a programme.
ECTS Credits • The most commonly used basis for measuring student workload in European higher education. • Describe student workload in terms of time employed to complete a course or a course unit. • The calculation of credits in terms of workload is a difficult issue.
Credits in Terms of Workload • Credit is a measure of workload of typical student based on the time necessary to complete a given teaching/learning unit. • What is the typical student? • The number of hours of student work required to achieve a given set of learning outcomes depends on student ability, teaching and learning methods, teaching and learning resources, curriculum design.
Calculation of Workload • Different approaches are used to calculate the student workload. • Common items used to calculate workload are • the total number of contact hours for the course unit • number of hours per week x number of weeks; • preparation before and finalising of notes after the attendance of the lecture / seminar; • the amount of independent work required to finish the course successfully.
Calculation of Workload • Independent work can contain the following items: • the collection and selection of relevant material; • reading and study of the material; • preparation of an oral or written examination; • writing of a paper or dissertation; • independent work in a lab; • preparation for contact teaching sessions (revising course material, preliminary exercises, other intellectual training); • doing tasks/exercises given during contact teaching time; • doing assignments; • other spontaneous work • The calculation of workload in terms of credits is not an automatic process.
Workload for Blended Courses • Teaching methods • Information transmission (lectures, demonstrations) • Activity based teaching (guided exercises, active demonstrations, seminars) • Assignment based teaching (research project, home essay...) • Literature based learning • Virtual teaching • Via a computer network in electronic learning environments • Teacher/tutor is present via electronic instrument; students working with computer, searching for material, reading and writing (electronic) materials • No face-to-face contact
Workload for Blended Courses • Time required in virtual teaching • time for completing learning assignments • time for communication with tutors and other course participants • time for reading course literature of other study material • time for material search • time required to learn how to operate the software, learning environments and other special tools, • time required for possible contact teaching modules connected with the course • examples • Time provided for electronic communication is estimated according to messages produced by a student - 100-200 words/hour • Every new software application at least 8 hours is needed for learning how to use it • Technical errors.. How much time?
Methods for Credit Allocation in Curricula • Experts identify three different methods of credits allocation within curricula • The top-down method • The bottom-up method • Credit allocation by reference to learning outcomes.
The Top-down Method • the easiest method to allocate credits • a programme is divided into course units or modules, to which are allocated a limited/reasonable number of credits in more or less standard multiples • Advantages • it might prevent too much fragmentation and avoids too many examinations. • it makes the transfer of credits easier. • Dissadvantages • decreases the teaching freedom, when the amount of contact hours within the module is limited • Problems • How to assess credits for modules which are essentially different in character? • How to cope with particular modules which, although involving the same amount of work for students, count for a different credit weighting when taken within different degree programmes? • How to deal with programme building unless one makes sure that all modules fit together in a coherent fashion?
Credit allocation for MSc in elearning • The courses included in the curriculum were determined so the top-down method is the easiest method and most suitable for credit allocation. • To achieve (arithmetical) coherence of credits for different courses the credits for all modules are multiples of a given basic size. • The basic size of a course is chosen to be 5 credits and all the courses are awarded credits that are multiples of 5.
The Bottom-up Method • Credits are allocated to individual units or modules by calculating student workloadby counting the “hours of work”. • Attention is concentrated on how many actual hours it takes an average student to accomplish the work for a specific module, in an individual module or all the modules for an entire semester’s or academic year’s work. • The highly professional statistical surveys are carried out all over Europe. • The average student estimates that he/she requires 1600 +/- 200 hours to complete one academic year’s work. • 1 ECTS credit is equivalent to something between 25 and 30 hours of work.
Credit Allocation According to Learning Outcomes • The best way, to calculate the number of student hours for successfully completing a new module, is to identify and enumerate the learning outcomes and competences. • Advantages • The use of learning outcomes in describing programmes and individual modules helps to establish programme equivalence. • Learning outcomes indicate equivalence in terms of both the volume and the level of those contents. • This method enables the curriculum developer to look at exactly how much student effort is necessary to achieve the specified outcomes. • In theory, this method of credit allocation is excellent and it is consistently used by those who design open and distance learning modules.
Credit Allocation According to Learning Outcomes • Problems • The theory and the vocabulary of learning outcomes is still imprecise. • Academics are often to be found in the process of developing a basic vocabulary for the whole area of learning outcomes. • Much work is still in progress on reaching commonly accepted definitions of levels of learning. Levelsare not necessarily related directly to years of study. • The learning outcomes in individual cases may be very different from that which the teacher may primarily have had in mind.
Which of the Three Methods is the Best? • Because all three methods have problems and limitations, the best way is to use all three methods as far as possible, then each one can act as a check on the others. • It is to be recommended that those charged with credit allocation within universities attempt first to use the simplest approach, and then pass on to the others as a check on that method if and when it has worked reasonably well.
