Quality Assurance in teacher education through insider evaluation and stakeholder involvement: A case for programme renewal

Abstract

This paper presents a description of a teacher education programme evaluation that was initiated, planned, and executed in an attempt to enhance the quality of the programme's content, delivery, and impact. The evaluation comprised reports on the perspectives of major stakeholders on whether the Diploma in Education (Dip.Ed.) programme (2004-2009) had met their expectations, and on the benefits and limitations of the programme and its impact on teachers' practice. Subsequent to the preliminary inquiry into those stakeholders' perpectives, a more probing approach was applied to the perspectives of Heads of Department, School of Education (SOE) staff and Ministry of Education officials. The evaluation was guided by Guskey's (2002) theoretical and conceptual model of evaluating the impact of continuing professional development (CPD) on teachers' practice, and by the fourth generation evaluation model of Guba and Lincoln (1989). The sample for each phase was either stratified random or purposive. This research is significant in that it provides a model for programme evaluation that focuses on the role of the stakeholder in determining effective practice in teacher education. It also highlights the process of rigorous programme evaluation and renewal through staff engagement.