The First Assembly and Prize Presentation

An international panel, led by Professor Rosie Young, visited the Institute in June. Panel members spoke with students and staff and took a close look atour teaching and learning operations. Initial feedback from the panel has been very encouraging and positive.


Endorsement of quality through validation
Currently, however, all programmes - new or existing - must undergo internal and external evaluation to ensure they achieve their intended outcomes and to identify areas for restructuring, if necessary. Quality assurance measures are in place to make certain our programmes respond to the needs of students and the community and are delivered with the highest levels of teaching and learning effectiveness.

A prime example of success in this respect was the introduction in 2001 of a rigorous and exciting new programme, the Bachelor of Education (Honours) (Languages). This four-year programme underwent an exacting external validation process during the previous year. It includes a compulsory immersion semester conducted overseas for English majors or in China for Chinese majors. It is also pioneering a new form of language- focussed personal tutorial system. Forty-six students were admitted in the first intake in September 2001.

	The Institute expects students to be fully aware of recent educational developments

Also validated for introduction in September 2001 was the one-year, full-time Qualified Kindergarten Teacher Education programme, which addresses the growing demand for trained kindergarten teachers.

Other new programmes were also validated for introduction in 2001. The three-year, mixed mode Bachelor of Education (Honours) (Secondary) will enable certificate holders teaching cultural and technological subjects, to upgrade to a degree through in-service study. The counterpart programme for language teachers, the Bachelor of Education (Honours) (Language Teaching) was successfully validated in March 2002 and will serve teachers of Chinese and English in the same way. A new postgraduate programme, the one-year full-time Postgraduate Diploma in Education (Secondary) will cater to degree holders who want to gain a grounding in education.

	Students participating in the PE immersion programme at the Nanjing Institute of Physical Education

Confirming quality through revalidation
Just as we are required to gain external validation for new programmes, we must also demonstrate that existing programmes continue to meet high standards. Several were revalidated during the year, including the Institute's flagship programme, the four-year Bachelor of Education (Honours) (Primary).