Quality assurance is increasingly becoming an important aspect of higher education institutions in developing countries, as expressed in the development of relevant policies, structures and systems at national and institutional levels. This thesis critically examines the nature of quality assurance policies and practices in selected universities in the Southern African Development Community (SADC), as well as the factors that shape these policies. Through a close examination of these policies and practices, the thesis explains why some universities realise better quality than others, even though they fall within the same geographical region and share relatively similar historical legacies. Although this study was largely qualitative, it did not preclude quantitative dimensions. Integrating the two approaches made it possible not only to triangulate data, but also to engage in multidimensional analysis of some of the phenomena under investigation. While debates in the literature locate quality assurance within internal and external discourses, this does not sufficiently explain the tensions that were observed amongst the various stakeholders within institutions, especially between management and academic staff. The manner in which institutional policies were developed, the role academic staff played in the process, and the reporting lines associated with institutional quality assurance arrangements, are reflected in staff perceptions on whether or not they regarded the policies as internal to the academic community and the extent to which they own the policies. The main contribution of this thesis to debates on quality assurance is its revelation of the complexities that arise in institutional policy making as a result of the highly differentiated nature of the academy. This aspect points at the need for institutions to pay particular care in adopting most appropriate strategies that privilege the organic development of policies within institutions. On the whole, institutions were mainly preoccupied with developing quality assurance policies and systems that are comparable to international standards, hence the heavy reliance on external/international expertise in doing so. Whilst this is not necessarily a iii bad thing, the quality assurance systems that were developed did not take into account the contextual peculiarities of the studied institutions. A direct consequence of this was the development of policies and mechanisms that are more concerned with standardisation of procedures than with enhancement of academic practice. Such quality assurance systems have not resulted in the self-improvement of institutions. The establishment of quality assurance policies and the putting in place of structures and procedures are necessary but not sufficient conditions for enhancing academic practice in universities.

Submitted by Renata Lopes (renatasil82@gmail.com) on 2017-04-10T12:16:12Z No. of bitstreams: 1 algizalopesesilva.pdf: 1214850 bytes, checksum: bfb86a0e1d038de1d78afe70cbeacd62 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Adriana Oliveira (adriana.oliveira@ufjf.edu.br) on 2017-04-11T11:34:41Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 algizalopesesilva.pdf: 1214850 bytes, checksum: bfb86a0e1d038de1d78afe70cbeacd62 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-04-11T11:34:41Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 algizalopesesilva.pdf: 1214850 bytes, checksum: bfb86a0e1d038de1d78afe70cbeacd62 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-12-15 / A presente dissertação é desenvolvida no âmbito do Mestrado Profissional em Gestão e Avaliação da Educação (PPGP) do Centro de Políticas Públicas e Avaliação da Educação da Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora (CAEd/UFJF). O caso de gestão em foco buscou analisar quais os papéis e as atribuições destinadas ao pedagogo e/ou apoio pedagógico na constituição da Resolução nº. 122/2010 em suas práticas diárias no acompanhamento das avaliações internas e externas em três escolas estaduais pertencentes à Coordenadoria Distrital de Educação 7 (CDE 7), na zona norte de Manaus, no estado do Amazonas. Os objetivos definidos para este estudo são o de investigar os sentidos atribuídos pela equipe escolar diante de uma política pública de monitoramento, que foi criada para auxiliar no processo de aprendizagem, além de visualizar como esses profissionais têm se comportado frente aos desafios e práticas diárias, expostas na resolução e nas demandas de trabalho. Para alcançar os objetivos, utilizamos como metodologia o estudo de caso, tendo por base a pesquisa qualitativa. Como procedimentos de pesquisa, utilizamos a aplicação de questionário de escala tipo Lickert aos 14 gestores de escolas de Ensino Fundamental I da CDE 7, para escolha das três escolas que serviram de campo da pesquisa. Usamos também a entrevista semiestruturada com pedagogos, apoios pedagógicos, professores de Matemática e Língua Portuguesa do 5º ano do Ensino Fundamental I e com o coordenador adjunto pedagógico desse nível de ensino da CDE 7. O referencial teórico da pesquisa se deu através do diálogo com os trabalhos de Cipriano Luckesi, Heloísa Lück, Hilda Micarello, Jamil Cury, Thelma Polon, entre outros. Os resultados apontaram para um desconhecimento da legislação que rege a avaliação da aprendizagem, para indícios da redução do currículo na tentativa de se adequar o uso das matrizes de referência e para a ausência de capacitação para pedagogos e apoios pedagógicos. Dados esses achados, propomos um Plano de Ação Educacional com estratégias de formação continuada que possam contribuir para práticas efetivas com as quais os profissionais das escolas poderão refletir sobre o uso dos resultados diagnósticos das avaliações internas e externas como mais um instrumento para a melhoria da qualidade da aprendizagem dos nossos alunos. / The present dissertation is developed under the Professional Master in Management and Evaluation of Education (PPGP) of the Center for Public Policies and Education Evaluation of the Federal University of Juiz de Fora (CAEd / UFJF). The case of management in focus sought to analyze the roles and responsibilities assigned to the pedagogue and / or pedagogical support in the constitution of resolution 122/2010 and in its daily practices in the monitoring of internal and external evaluations in three state schools belonging to the District Coordination of Education 7 (CDE 7), in the northern part of Manaus, in the state of Amazonas. The objectives defined for this study are to investigate the meanings attributed by the school team to a public policy of monitoring, which was created to aid in the learning process, as well as to visualize how these professionals have behaved in face of daily challenges and practices, Exposed in the resolution and in the demands of work. In order to reach the objectives, we use as methodology the case study, based on the qualitative research. As research procedures we used the Lickert scale questionnaire to the 14 managers of elementary schools I of CDE 7, to choose the three schools that served as research field. We also used the semi-structured interview with pedagogues, pedagogical support, teachers of Mathematics and Portuguese Language of the 5th year of Elementary School I and with the assistant pedagogical coordinator of this level of education of CDE 7. The theoretical reference of the research was given through dialogue with the Works by Cipriano Luckesi, Heloísa Lück, Hilda Micarello, Jamil Cury, Thelma Polon, among others. The results pointed to a lack of knowledge of the legislation that governs the assessment of learning, to evidence of curriculum reduction in an attempt to adjust the use of reference matrices, and lack of training for pedagogues and pedagogical supports. Given these findings, we propose an Educational Action Plan with continuing education strategies that can contribute to effective practices with which school professionals can reflect on the use of the diagnostic results of internal and external evaluations as another tool for improving quality of our students.