Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia started cluster accreditation of higher education programs. In order to better prepare the process, the first training for accreditation experts in the field of humanitarian sciences was held at the National Center for Education Quality Development under the leadership of First Deputy Minister Tamar Makharashvili.
Accreditation experts familiarized themselves with updated accreditation standards, procedures and evaluation principles in order to finally agree on the specifics of the evaluation process.
Informational meetings with higher educational institutions are also planned at the Center for the Development of the Quality of Education, which will contribute to better preparation for the cluster accreditation process and consistent and effective implementation of the assessment process.
It is worth noting that by order of the Minister of Education and Science of Georgia dated July 7, 2022 83/N, an amendment was introduced “On the approval of educational programs of general educational institutions and higher educational institutions and the regulations and fees of educational accreditation of higher educational institutions” of the Minister of Education and Science of May 4, 2011 No. 65/n in the order.
With the mentioned change, updated cluster accreditation standards, procedures and fees were implemented, which implies that the educational programs of higher educational institutions will be evaluated according to the cluster accreditation model and principles.
In order to fully implement the cluster accreditation process, the National Center for the Development of Education Quality consistently carries out relevant preparatory work.
The centre’s employees held a working meeting with the Council for Accreditation of Educational Programs, where they discussed updated cluster accreditation standards and procedures.
The participants of the meeting also discussed the specifics of cluster evaluation of educational programs.
It should be noted that the necessary documentation for the evaluation process was updated for cluster accreditation.
In 2022, the accreditation of educational programs included in the humanitarian sciences cluster is planned, and the body of accreditation experts was updated – the existing experts were certified, and the body was enriched with local and international experts.
During cluster accreditation, higher education institutions will be able to submit grouped higher education programs for accreditation instead of individual programs. In the cluster, the programs will be grouped according to content.
The transition to the cluster accreditation system will significantly contribute to the improvement of the quality of education in educational programs, as well as the new system allows experts to assess how specific fields and areas of higher education are developing, both within the country and within a specific institution.
