The BWSE FORward project advanced to the next phase!

The BWSE FORward project advanced to the next phase, intending to develop recommendations and guidelines on the Bologna Process’s problematic areas through a series of peer-learning activities (PLAs). The meetings’ unique format enabled interaction between students, representatives from quality assurance agencies and higher education institutions.

The beginning of the week was highly strenuous for the entire consortium, which was tasked with coordinating the first peer-learning activities on students’ role in internal quality assurance, ECTS implementation, and student-centred learning: three of many areas in which the project partners will conduct extensive research.

The PLAs were convened to discuss the areas mentioned above and findings of the most recent edition of the European Students Union’s Bologna with Student Eyes publication, which has been published every two years since 2003 to reflect the students’ perspective and countries’ implementation approaches, and to discuss possible solutions and guidelines which the projects’ consortium will describe in the Green Paper.

The speeches of experts who introduced us to the details of the implementation of such processes in their countries, paying attention to good practices, successful solutions, and opportunities arising from the actions taken, were an essential component of the meetings. They allowed a proactive and comparative study of dependencies, challenges, and implemented solutions, which in the long run can alter the trend and improve the Bologna Process’s capacity, both at the national and European Higher Education Area levels.

Throughout the event, we heard from the following speakers, who prefaced the group discussions about the questions sent to participants in advance to the meeting’s start.

Student Participation in internal quality assurance

• Prof. Dr. Teun J. Dekker, Profesor of the University College Maastricht
• Maria Tziamali, President of the Pancyprian Federation of Student Unions of Cypriot Students (POFEN)
• Prof.Dr.Olgun Cicek, International QA expert & Executive Board Member of Higher Education Council

Student-centred learning and implementation of ECTS

• Dagmar Provijn, Senior policy advisor at the Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders (NVAO)
• Simon Varwell, Senior Development Consultant with sparqs, Scotland’s student engagement agency
• Bryan Maguire, Director of quality assurance in Quality and Qualifications Ireland

The project’s growth will continue with additional PLAs, this time focusing on recognition of prior learning (RPL), internationalisation and mobility. They will take place on May 27 and 28 and, as with the first meetings, will be targeted at academics from countries experiencing difficulties with the proper implementation of these elements in this scheme.