Monitoring quality

Monitoring quality through vision development, systematic collection of data, reflection and improvement initiatives in the light of optimization.

Areas

Early years
Primary education
Secondary education
Higher Education
Elderly care

A constant pursuit of the operationalization of the concepts that have to do with quality is expressed in the many instruments that have been designed in the EXE. They provide the tools for systematic collection of information in practice and research. The experiential methodology makes it possible to extend boundaries and gain more control over difficult to grasp aspects such as taking perspective, the experience of learners, group climate, talent, intuitive intelligence …

The EXE’s contribution to quality assurance is primarily situated at the micro level: where the learning environment takes shape and adults and children / young people interact with each other. The Approach-Process-Effect model (APE model for short) comprises three types of variables that matter.

The central issue is the process, or the perception of children / young people / adults with well-being and involvement as the two main indicators. The approach refers to the components of the learning environment that contribute to a qualitative process and includes the 10 Action points, the 7 Involvement-increasing factors, and the guidance style of the adult. The output is about the sustainable effects or what is structurally embedded in the person. Here, the EXE aligns itself with the concept of deep-level learning with the competency-based paradigm, a holistic approach to development in which knowledge is not in itself. The APE model can be used for both large-scale research and self-evaluation by facilities / schools, with the scanning of well-being and involvement as a core. In addition, tracking systems have been designed for the practice, also at all levels, with the screening of the process variables as the starting point. In the collection of data, meso aspects also come into view, such as the (efficiency) perception of the adults, the team climate and the collective goal orientation.

References

  • Laevers, F., & Heylen, L. (2015). Daarom inzetten op welbevinden en betrokkenheid: De kracht van een procesgerichte benadering. Leuven: KU Leuven.