Officer of the Director Academic
Office of the Director Academics
Office is responsible for management of all kinds of academic’s activities and department is established to maintain equilibrium between students and teacher.
Responsibilities may include but not limited to:
- Management academic activates among all schools through their relevant principals and Deans
- Serving as bridge between faculty and the management of JIPS
- Coordination with all other Directors
- Checking academic tasks of the teachers and faculty through their principals and Deans
- In time completion of course for all schools
- Intime setting of examinations for all schools through their Principal and Deans
Quality Enhancement of the Profession/Faculty development
Guidelines for Education Quality Enhancement Cell
These guidelines are written in hot days of summer and the motto of writing these guidelines is “BRINGING OUT THE BEST IN EDUCATION”
The major questions or problems the institute of higher education facing now a days are as under
- Quality of education in Pakistan has become an issue of importance as the landscape of higher education has been facing continuous changes: increased competition, increasing social and geographical diversity of the student body, increasing demands of value for money, introduction of information technologies, etc.
- But quality education lacks a clear definition, because quality can be regarded as an outcome or a property, or even a process, and because conceptions of education quality happen to be Stake holder relative.
- The implementation of a more structured approach to quality assurance and enhancement is a challenge for academic and administrative staff at all levels.
- To ensure the quality in higher education institute following guidelines must be ensured.
Leadership:
The quality of the academic leadership and the support of the most senior management was a sine qua non. Initiating change in essentially conservative institutions, where power is often still vested in faculties and departments, requires considerable management skills, vision and leadership qualities.
A key area for staff development relates to experience academics staff. Such staffs are essential in a range of areas of university life and work, but, in the context of this study, particularly in the development of the quality assurance structure and the staffing of quality assurance units. Quality assurance is a developing field and the staff charged with responsibility for implementing and overseeing this work need to keep up to date with local, national and international developments in the area. In most institutions this will require a dedicated team of professionals, who will gain and keep the respect of colleagues through their commitment to professional standards.
Although quality assurance units and offices are being established, it is evident that, in general, their staffing is minimal. Often it consists of part-time academics that obviously have a range of other responsibilities. In large higher education institutions it is essential that the quality assurance office should have an appropriate full-time level of staffing capable of ensuring the implementation of all aspects of quality assurance and enhancement within the institution. It is not sufficient simply to develop full documentation of processes and procedures, which in itself is a significant and time-consuming professional task; effective implementation of the processes must be supported and maintained, and documentation kept continually up to date. Achieving this will require professional, well-qualified administrative staff who are well supported and included in the staff development process.
The aim of teaching is simple: it is to make student learning possible. To teach is to make an assumption about what and how the student learns; therefore, to teach well implies learning about students' learning.
The task of the teacher in higher education has many dimensions: it involves the provision of a broad context of knowledge within which students can locate and understand the content of their more specific studies; it involves the creation of a learning environment in which students are encouraged to think carefully and critically and express their thoughts, and in which they wish to confront and resolve difficulties rather than gloss over them, it involves constantly monitoring and reflecting on the processes of teaching and student understanding and seeking to improve them. Most difficult of all perhaps, it involves helping students to achieve their own aims, and adopt the notion that underlies higher education: that students' learning requires from them commitment, work, responsibility for their own learning, and a willingness to take risks, and that this process has its rewards, not the least of which is that learning can be fun!
- One set of characteristics of good teaching, extracted from research studies and summarized from the individual lecturer's point of view.
- A desire to share your love of the subject with students.
- An ability to make the material being taught stimulating and interesting.
- A facility for engaging with students at their level of understanding.
- A capacity to explain the material plainly.
- A commitment to making it absolutely clear what has to be understood at what level and why.
- Showing concern and respect for students.
- A commitment to encouraging independence.
- An ability to improvise and adapt to new demands.
- Using teaching methods and academic tasks that require students to learn actively, responsibly and co-operatively.
- Using valid assessment methods.
- A focus on key concepts, and students misunderstandings of them, rather than covering the ground.
- Giving the highest quality feedback on student work.
- A desire to learn from students and other sources about the effects of teaching and how it can be improved.
Highly rated lecturers genuinely wanted students to learn, understand and develop critical thinking abilities, as well as master content or learn skills. They demonstrate an empathy with student thinking, anticipating misconceptions and allowing students to develop understanding in a variety of ways. They observe students in class for signs that they were failing to keep up, were bored, or were not understanding, and flexible in responding to student needs. They encouraged student feedback on their teaching, and often sought informal feedback during classes.
Outside class time, they should make a point of being approachable and willing to help students. They avoid "spoon-feeding" and encouraged students to take an active role in working through their difficulties, but would take time to work though concepts in detail with those who genuinely had difficulties.
Diversity can enhance quality learning
Many services offered by the higher education institutes considerably affect the quality of the teaching. With adequate support to staff and students, teachers teach better and students learn better.
These services include:
- Student financial support.
- Financial scholarships for underrepresented / disadvantaged groups of students.
- Student educational/academic support.
- Student social support, transition programs.
- Support specifically for minority students.
- Guidance/ counseling services.
- Staff development programs.
- The provision of advice and support for the interpretation of feedback/evaluation data.
Competition is explicitly a driver for the introduction of quality procedures in a number of institutions. In these institutions the competitive environment may be generated by different factors: a selective admissions process within which students and their families are acutely aware of what the higher education institution is offering; the need to earn and justify higher tuition fees; an awareness of national or international competitors; the demands of the labor market; an increasing awareness of international competition for the best students.
Competition for the most able professional staff also provides a powerful incentive for institutions to address issues of quality in order to enhance their reputation and attract and retain the best staff.
Staff development and training is a fundamental aspect of the implementation and sustainability of a quality assurance and enhancement culture. The primary responsibility for training and development lies with higher education institutions.
Staff will be trained through various training programs and on annual renewal of their appointment the renewal must be ensured by the progress report submitted by the nominated higher authority.
Annual Teacher Training Programs and Seminars
At least two seminars will be conducted at institute premises for the training of teachers. The objective of these training programs or seminars are to educate and trained our faculty members with the advancements, tackle problems arises during teaching in private sector institutes, enhance the learning environment at institute, increase the quality of education through novel creative learning techniques.
The schedule of these seminars/training programs will be included in the academic calendar at the start of each academic year.
