ZIMBABWE COUNCIL FOR HIGHER EDUCATION THE WORK OF PEER REVIEWERS Dr. L. Nembaware

1. ZIMBABWE COUNCIL FOR HIGHER EDUCATION THE WORK OF PEER REVIEWERS Dr. L. Nembaware

2. THE PRESENTATION • SELECTION OF PEER REVIEWERS • THE PEER REVIEWER APPROACH • PEER REVIEWERS’ WORK • ACCREDITATION OF THE 2010 PROGRAMMES • PEER REVIEWERS AND MINIMUM BODY OF KNOWLEDGE (MBK) OF DEGREE PROGRAMMES

3. THE PEER REVIEWER APPROACH • Why Use a Peer Review Approach • A Peer is an equal, a colleague, a friend. • Review is to evaluate, assess, examine, appraise. • Compliments, criticisms, suggestions to improve performance that are given by persons in the same profession are taken seriously and with no acrimony • A Panel is used to ensure Objectivity in the process

4. SELECTION OF PEER REVIEWERS • All Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) were invited to submit names of Peer Reviewers • Council set the selection criteria of Peer Reviewers • At least a master’s degree • At least ten years of teaching at University level • At least eight publications in refereed journals • Call for Peer Reviewers was not taken seriously by some Universities. However some now see the value of having Peer reviewers • Database of Peer Reviewers was constructed • Those who did not meet the criteria of experience are kept on the database

5. PEER REVIEWERS’ WORK • Evaluation of new programmes before they are introduced by an HEI • No programme is allowed to run until ZIMCHE has evaluated it • Do the regulations of the programme meet the set standards • Does the content of the programme fulfill the objectives of the programme • Review a programme to check on whether or not it meets the set standards as per criteria set for programme accreditation • Work with Internal Quality Assurance units in reviewing programmes and institutions. • Process Qualification equivalence • ZIMCHE Pays for the work done by Peer Reviewers

6. ACCREDITATION OF THE 2010 PROGRAMMES • Decision to start with 2010 programmes was made in 2010 • Universities have sent in • lists of the programmes that were introduced in 2010 • Regulations and content of the programmes that were introduced in 2010 • Problem being experienced is that Universities are not sending course synopsis • ZIMCHE has • Selected three to five peer reviewers for each programme • Sent out the regulations and content of each programme to peer reviewers • Peer Reviewers are expected to • Evaluate the programmes and present reports to ZIMCHE • After Receipt of Reports, ZIMCHE will • Visit the Institutions to verify the Human, financial and physical resources that support for the programmes • Certify that a study programme has been accredited • Publish in the media the accredited programme

7. PEER REVIEWERS AND MINIMUM BODY OF KNOWLEDGE (MBK) • Compilation of Minimum Body of Knowledge of degrees offered in Zimbabwe • Peer Reviewers are looking at the minimum content which student at HEIs should study • Advantages of defining MBK • Provides a means for Higher Education Institutions to describe the nature and characteristics of programmes; • Sets out expectations about standards of degrees in different universities in the country; • Describes what gives a degree its identity and coherence; • Defines what can be expected of a graduate in terms of the abilities and skills needed to develop understanding and competence in the subject studied; • Assists those involved in programme design, delivery and review; and • Are of interest to prospective students and employers seeking information about the nature and standards of awards in a degree programme. • Disadvantage of Benchmarks • Benchmarks may be used by some higher education institutions to indicate the maximum that the students will be taught yet they are meant to give the minimum acceptable.

8. PROGRAMMES SENT OUT TO PEER REVIEWERS • B.Sc Mathematics • B.Sc Physics • B.Sc Agriculture • Soil Science • Animal Science • Horticulture • B.Sc Computer Science • B. A in English, Shona, Ndebele • B. Ed in English, Mathematics