About Us

  1. Overview

The Quality Assurance Unit (QAU) of the University of Education, Winneba (UEW) was established in 2003 and upgraded into a Directorate in 2014 in order to enhance efficiency and full coverage of all satellite campuses of the University. The Directorate is mandated with the responsibility of monitoring and ensuring quality in the operations of the University. The Directorate through its institutional and quality improvement drives assesses the quality of academic and non-academic processes through the development of evaluation instruments for the conduction of various surveys/research, facility-based inspections, and interactions with Faculties, Departments, Sections and Units.

  1. About Information

History

The Quality Assurance Unit was established by the former Vice-Chancellor of the University, Prof. Jophus Anamuah-Mensah in 2003. The Unit was housed at the Main Administrative Block of the University. The Unit began with only one staff: a Director.

In 2014, the QAU was upgraded into a Directorate by the then Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Akwasi Asabere-Ameyaw. Currently, the Quality Assurance Directorate is located in the Faculty of Social Sciences Education Block. The staff number at the Directorate now is three: a Director and two Senior Administrative Assistants.

Mission Statement

To provide quality teachers who will in turn maintain and enhance the status of learners to meet the demands in the world of work.

Vision Statement

To provide quality education to its students most efficient over a broad range of subjects taught by the most effective teachers.

Our Motto

Ensuring quality.

Total Administrative Staff

The Quality Assurance Directorate (QAD) has three staff members – a Director and two Senior Administrative Assistants. Prof. Yaw Ameyaw is the current Director of QAD. The two Senior Administrative Assistants are Ms. Anastasia Ocran and Mr. Ebenezer Adams who are in charge of administrative and research duties respectfully. National Service Personnel are requested as and when needed.

There are also Coordinators or Quality Assurance Officers heading the QAUs of the satellite campuses. Dr. Nongba Alkanam Kheni and Dr. J. M. Seidu are the respective heads of the QAUs of the College of Technology Education, UEW Kumasi campus and the College of Agriculture Education, UEW Asante Mampong campus.

  1. Services Rendered/Provided and Processes

Quality Assurance is a by-product of ongoing efforts to define the objectives of an institution to have a work plan to achieve them and to specify the checks and balances to evaluate the degree to which each of the tasks is fulfilled (NAAC, cited in this The Academic Quality Assurance Control Unit, 2006, p.6).

What is Quality Assurance?

  • It is about improvement not control
  • It is about transformation and change: Quality as transformation implies that the teaching that goes on in the institution should transform students’ perceptions of their world and be able to apply their knowledge to real world problems.
  • It is about commitment and participation
  • It is about being relevant: Quality as fit for purpose implies that, the institution’s purposes and aims must themselves be ones that have some kind of public sanction.
  • It is about value for money: Quality as value for money implies that, the institution should emphasize effective teaching, train more graduates for less public money, be accountable to public demands, and attract outside funding.
  • It is about actions leading to expected standards and benchmarks
  • It promotes innovation and its systematic internal quality assurance unit

Procedures for Quality Assurance

It is suggested that, each educational institution, as a first step towards quality assurance, must develop Strategic Plans which spell out clearly the aims and objectives of the institution as regards:

  • Teaching and learning
  • Faculty development
  • Departments and units/sections
  • Course and curricular matters
  • Research and community services
  • Physical development
  • Income generation activities

With the Strategic Plan in place, the next important quality assurance procedure is the annual assessment of teaching and learning including assignment, quizzes, project works, examinations, grading systems, methods of teaching and course contents.

In this regard, each Faculty, Department or Section of the University should be involved in quality assurance by developing assessment strategies including the following:

  • Well-written aims and objectives of the Faculty/Department/Section
  • Various courses offered
  • Teaching and learning support services
  • Course related statistics
  • Feedback from relevant constituencies (students, past students, employers, external examiners etc.)
  • Staff research and development activities
  • Issues of professional recognition

It is obvious from the above that, for a Dean of a Faculty to feed Central Administration with complete quality assurance reports, heads of units, lecturers, supporting staff and students should all be fully involved. More especially, Heads of Department should require all lecturers to be accountable and give assurance as regards:

  • Students’ learning activities (in their Course Outline)
  • Teaching and learning developments
  • Assignments, projects and mode of assessment
  • Resources available for teaching
  • Courses, seminars, workshops etc. to be undertaken
  • Plans and development for the coming year

It is now a common practice for students to appraise their lecturers at the end of each semester using assessment ratings designed by Quality Assurance Directorate.

Usually, the assessment covers such areas as knowledge of subjects, course content and objectives, teaching strategies, adequacy of class assignment and quizzes, and classroom management techniques. With the student assessment results, the assurances that an external examiner’s report, and general observation by the Head of Department, a fair assessment can be made on each lecturer in the University.

Functions of Quality Assurance Directorate

Each Quality Assurance Office on the campus of UEW ensures effective implementation of QA policy of UEW through the following activities:

  1. Evaluate the academic programmes for their relevance to the mission of the University
  2. Evaluate the lecturers’ approach to teaching through students’ appraisal of courses and teaching
  3. Evaluate students’ learning behaviour through lecturers’ appraisal of students’ learning
  4. Evaluate guidelines with which all sections of the University operate to obtain performance indicators that would enable them to respond positively to QA issues concerning their outfits
  5. Provide leadership to the campuses on issues of quality assurance such as accreditation of new programmes; re-accreditation of existing programmes; and campus accreditation
  6. Advise various sections of the University in areas such as capacity building, good governance and, maintenance of University’s properties, infrastructure, equipment and furniture
  7. Evaluate the quality of collaboration between internal partners (various sections of the University) with each other as well as with external partners (industries, philanthropists, alumni etc.)
  8. Evaluate University policy documents for their relevance to the University’s mission and vision as well as the transparency with which the policies are implemented
  9. Recording and monitoring quality measures of the institution
  10. Dissemination of information on academic quality
  11. Acting as a nodal agency of the institution for quality related activities

 

  1. Research and Collaborations

The Quality Assurance Directorate bases its research on assessment of teaching and learning. The appraisal of courses, teaching and learning is conducted in collaboration with various Faculties/Departments every semester. Findings on these evaluation are submitted to Deans of Faculty and Heads of Department. Also, interactions which focus on best practices as well as challenges in areas such as teaching, research works, course evaluation, innovative teaching, facilities and resources among others are occasionally held with Faculties, Departments, Sections and Units. 

  1. Policies/Handbook/Manuals/Guidelines

The policy document for quality assurance was published in 2014 by the then Director, Prof. Mawuadem K. Amedeker. The policy document gives a detailed description of what quality means to the UEW; rationale for setting up the QAD; responsibilities of QA Officers in the various sectors of the University; the administrative structures of the Directorate and, the implementation and evaluation strategies to be used.

Beside it policy guidelines, the QAD is also mandated to evaluate UEW Policy Documents for their relevance and transparency in implementation and quality. Existing policy documents of UEW include the following:

  • Graduate Admission Brochure
  • Affiliation Policy
  • Gender Policy
  • GUSS Policy
  • Health and Sanitation Policy
  • Policy Guidelines for Security Employees
  • Repository Policy
  • Statutes
  • UEW Act – Act 2004

Membership of Standing Committees of Academic Board

As stipulated in the Policy Guidelines for Quality Assurance Directorate, the Director of QAD is a member of the following Standing Committees of the Academic Board:

  • Executive Committee
  • Board of School of Graduate Studies
  • Academic Planning Committee
  • Research, Conferences and Scholarship Committee
  • Library Committee
  • Joint Admissions Board
  • Finance and Development Planning Committee
  • Appointment and Promotion Committee for Junior/Senior Staff
  • Appointment and Promotion Board for Senior Members
  • ICT Board
  • Student-Staff Consultative Committee
  • Housing Committee
  • Security and Safety Committee
  • Residential Management Committee
  • Administrative Committee

Former Directors

Dr. Paul Naah Yemeh             

Prof. Jonas N. Akpanglo-Nartey

Prof. Yao Gadagbui 

Prof Mawuadem K. Amedeker

  1. Contacts

Location:

1st Floor

Faculty of Social Sciences Education Block

North Campus

Address:

The Director

Quality Assurance Directorate

University of Education, Winneba

Post Office Box 25

Winneba

Telephone:

0202041045

Email:

qualityassurance@uew.edu.gh

© 2019 University of Education, Winneba