HESAs Equivalence Setting Project: Beginning at the beginning

1
HESAs Equivalence Setting ProjectBeginning at
the beginning

• Cheryl Foxcroft
• Registrars Imbizo, March 2009

2
Approach to the Project

• The introduction of NSC the three-tier minimum
  HE admission requirements prompted HESA to
  consider the activation of NSC-based equivalence
  setting research project to map foreign
  qualifications to the NSC minimum admission
  requirements for degree, diploma and higher
  certificate entry.
• In September 2006, HESAs Admissions Committee
  decided to establish an Equivalence Setting Task
  Team (ESTT).
• The general brief of the ESTT is to develop a
  rigorous approach to equivalence setting for the
  new three-tier NSC HE admission requirements to
  pilot its implementation.

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Establishing the ESTT

• Various organisations/agencies in South Africa
  are involved with
• Establishing the equivalence of foreign
  qualifications (Matriculation Board and SAQAs
  Centre for the Evaluation of Educational
  Qualifications, abbreviated to CEEQ).
• Benchmarking South African school curricula
  (which includes assessment) against those of
  other countries as both a quality assurance
  mechanism (Umalusi) as well as to externally
  benchmark the new NSC (DoE).
• Aligning their school-leaving qualifications with
  the NSC and the statutory HE Admission
  requirements based on the NSC (Independent
  Examinations Board).
• Consultation with related stakeholders thus
  became important as it is wise to pool resources
  to research qualifications and subjects
  together. This also poses challenges in that each
  stakeholder brings a slightly different
  perspective expertise to the project and will
  want a slightly different outcome/ product.

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Focus of the Project - Initially

• The project has two main foci
• The one focus of the project would be to compare
  select education systems and school-leaving
  qualifications to the NSCs minimum HE admission
  requirements to reach equivalence decisions (HESA
  and CEEQ and HE institutions were particularly
  interested in this part of the project).
• The other focus of the project would be to
  compare select NSC subjects with their foreign
  equivalents with an emphasis on HE gateway
  subjects (the DoE, Umalusi, and IEB were
  particularly interested in this aspect of the
  project).

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Understanding reached with Umalusi

• Umalusi would concentrate on
• Subject comparisons
• Maintaining Standards research in which the NSC
  curricula and exam papers of six high-enrollment
  gateway subjects (ie Maths Mathematical
  Literacy Physical Science Life Sciences
  Geography English FAL) were compared to their
  NATED 550 Higher and Standard Grade (HG and SG)
  equivalents in 2008. In 2009, Accounting History
  and Agricultural Science will be added the pool
  of subjects analyzed. In 2010, further subjects
  will be included (Business Studies Economics
  Computer Applications Technology a subject from
  the Consumer StudiesHospitality StudiesTourism
  group a subject from the engineering-related
  subjects group one of the Arts, probably Music
  given the controversy around the NCS Music
  curriculum.
• Developing Maintaining Standards instruments in
  such a way that HESAs needs are taken into
  account
• Building its database of experts

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Understanding reached with Umalusi

• HESA would focus on foreign qualifications to map
  them in relation to the NSC. As Umalusi have
  ongoing research projects related to subject
  comparisons, the results of which will be shared
  with HE, there is a need to reconceptualize the
  Equivalence-setting project. It is proposed that
  the focus on subject comparisons is discontinued.
  Instead, the sole focus will be on the
  equivalence of foreign qualifications.
• 3. Umalusi and HESA will develop a research
  protocol to undertake research to track the
  progress of NSC-students in higher education
  studies so as to build a common understanding and
  to feed information back to curriculum planners
  (at school and university level) and to the NSC
  assessment and standard setting process.

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NSC Research Protocol (Draft)

• Purpose
• To systematize the research that HE institutions
  need to do with respect to the NSC. This will
  enable a research overview to be developed for
  the HE sector as a whole. The results will be
  shared with the sector as well as Umalusi and the
  DoE.
• Nature of the research
• Correlation between performance in 1st year and
  school performance (Grade 11, June, Sept and
  final marks for different programmes and
  disciplines. Need to negotiate with ITS for 4
  sets of school marks to be captured.
• Cohort studies to determine throughput and
  success rates in different areas of study for
  graduation n, n1, n 2, etc.
• Determining minimum standards w.r.t.
  institution-specific admission requirements and
  also for degree, diploma and certificate entry.
• Correlations between access/placement/benchmarking
  test results and NSC performance. In the
  process, the best predictors of academic
  performance using both NSC and test results can
  be established. Gaps in what incoming students
  know and can do could also be identified,
  especially if diagnostic tests are used.

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NSC Research Protocol (Draft)

• Minimum descriptors of the sample
• Minimum requirements for certain types of studies
  (e.g., in cohort studies, pass/success rate per
  module and per programme needs to be provided as
  does the promotion and retention rates of the
  cohort.)
• Coordination mechanism
• The overarching research protocol needs to be
  agreed to across the sector and be disseminated
  within institutions.
• Someone needs to be designated per institution as
  the coordinator of NSC-related research. The
  coordinator must be given a copy of the findings
  of all NSC-related research done at the
  institution and might request the data set for
  the purposes of further analysis.
• Feedback mechanism
• HE institutions provide HESA with a copy of their
  findings.
• HESA undertakes meta-analytic studies? Or
  compiles an overview report from time to time for
  the HE sector? Such reports are shared with
  Umalusi and the DoE.

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Equivalence setting Project Methodology

• Desk-based research gather information
  existing research on the qualifications to be
  researched.
• Review process
• Develop evaluation/review criteria for
  education system gateway subjects
• Develop a review protocol for education systems
  subjects
• Identify and train reviewers
• Undertake the reviews
• Reach decisions on the recognition of foreign
  qualifications reviewed for entry to higher
  certificate, diploma and degree studies. These
  decisions will have to be translated into a set
  of regulations.

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Criteria for Reviewing the Education System in a
Country

• Structure of education system (e.g., year 0
  preparatory year years 1-7 primary school
  years 8-12 secondary schooling in Australia
  generally-speaking).
• Length of schooling and of school year
• Learning experience provided at each level.
• General learning outcomes.
• Intended curricula - Specific outcomes per
  subject content covered and model followed to
  manifest the curriculum.
• Language of instruction
• Assessment of learner achievement (includes
  grading system and comparability of grades across
  countries)
• Quality Assurance mechanisms
• Regulations/rules for awarding qualifications
• What the qualifications give access to (after
  school).

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In the meanwhile

• We have existing regulations for foreign
  qualifications in comparison to the SC. As we
  will still be admitting SC graduates for a while,
  it should not be problematic to use these
  regulations?
• Use equivalence table developed by CIE for
  awarding points?