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In the Netherlands, thesis assessment quality is a growing concern for the national accreditation organization due to increasing student numbers and supervisor workload. However, the accreditation framework lacks guidance on how to meet quality standards. This study aims to address these issues by sharing our experience, identifying problems and proposing guidelines for quality assurance for a thesis assessment system.

This study has two parts. The first part is a narrative literature review conducted to derive guidelines for thesis assessment based on observations made at four Dutch universities. The second part is a case study conducted in one bachelor’s psychology-related program, where the assessment practitioners and the vice program director analyzed the assessment documents based on the guidelines developed from the literature review.

The findings of this study include a list of guidelines based on the four standards. The case study results showed that the program meets most of the guidelines, as it has a comprehensive set of thesis learning outcomes, peer coaching for novice supervisors, clear and complete assessment information and procedures for both examiners and students, and a concise assessment form.

This study is original in that it demonstrates how to holistically ensure the quality of thesis assessments by considering the context of the program and paying more attention to validity (e.g. program curriculum and assessment design), transparency (e.g. integrating assessment into the supervision process) and the assessment expertise of teaching staff.

This article focuses on the assessment of entrepreneurship competence by selected vocational teachers in Italy. The exploratory research question addresses the extent to which entrepreneurship assessments are competence based, and the research seeks to identify fully fledged assessment programmes with both a formative and summative component, and the use of assessment rubrics. It also explores the extent to which entrepreneurship competence is referred to in school documentation and later assessed, and the tools and strategies used for such assessment.

This case study is part of a larger European research project promoted by Cedefop; in Italy it focused on six selected vocational IVET and CVET programmes and apprenticeship schemes. It used a wide range of instruments to ensure triangulation and multiple perspectives: analysed policy documents and undertook online interviews with experts and policy makers. At VET providers' premises it deployed: analysis of school documents; observations of learning environments; interviews and focus groups with (in schools) teachers, directors and vice directors, learners and alumni (in companies) instructors, company tutors and employers, apprentices and alumni.

Assessment tasks were rarely embedded within fully fledged assessment programmes involving both formative and summative tasks, and assessment rubric for grading. Most of the time, entrepreneurship programmes lacked self-assessment, peer assessment and structured feedback and did not involve learners in the assessment process. Some instructors coached the students, but undertook no clear formative assessment. These findings suggest institutions have a testing culture with regard to assessment, at the level of both policy and practice. In most cases, entrepreneurship competence was not directly assessed, and learning outcomes were only loosely related to entrepreneurship.

One limitation concerned the selection of the VET providers: these were chosen not on a casual basis, but because they ran programmes that were relevant to the development of entrepreneurship competence.

At the policy level, there is a need for new guidelines on competence development and assessment in VET, guidelines that are more aligned with educational research on competence development. To ensure the development of entrepreneurship competence, educators need in-service training and a community of practice.

So far, the literature has concentrated on entrepreneurship education at the tertiary level. Little is known about how VET instructors assess entrepreneurship competence. This study updates the picture of policy and practice in Italy, illustrating how entrepreneurship competence is developed in selected IVET and CVET programmes and apprenticeships.

This research aims to explore stakeholder perspectives on Ethiopia’s occupational competency assessment and certification systems.

The study utilized a mixed-methods strategy within a concurrent embedded design and adopted a pragmatic perspective. Data collection involved questionnaires, interviews, and focus group discussions, selecting respondents via purposive sampling for their significant experience and deep understanding of competency assessment. Analytical methods included descriptive and inferential statistics, as well as narrative techniques.

There is a generally positive perception of the value of competency assessments. However, the study finds several major limitations: inadequate candidate competency assessment, lack of skill gap analysis in TVET institutions for improved training, failure to maintain assessment standards, a high candidate-to-assessor ratio, and assessment tools that do not meet occupational standards. These issues show that the existing method misjudges TVET candidates' skills. To increase employer acceptance of competency assessments, the Center of Competence (CoC) agencies should integrate industry expertise, highlight their benefits, and emphasize the importance of training quality and career goals for candidates and trainers.

A study reveals that African nations like Ethiopia, Ghana, South Africa, Rwanda, Morocco, Benin, and Senegal have been implementing competency-based training (CBT) for around two decades, with support from countries like Canada, France, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Australia, Luxembourg, and Japan. However, the programs are often inconsistent and disorganized, with little private sector participation. There is a significant difference between the goals of quality assurance entities and the resources allocated. Although competency assessment is a fundamental part of CBT, there is a lack of research demonstrating its practice. Therefore, we conducted this research in Ethiopia, the second most densely populated nation in Africa. The results apply to other comparable nations implementing CBT programs (IIEP-UNESCO, 2021).

The research on stakeholders' perceptions of competency assessment is still in its early stages, with most studies focusing on training quality-related issues. This study expands on our knowledge of occupational competency assessment by analyzing perspectives from a comprehensive stakeholder perspective, considering contextualized assessment practices, addressing stakeholder needs, providing practical implications, and identifying future research directions. Furthermore, it offers valuable perspectives on developing competency-based education in Africa and other regions.

This article describes an onboarding program created for liaison librarians at an academic library and details a replicable framework for effective implementation at other institutions.

This article outlines a month-long onboarding program that provides new-to-the-field and experienced librarians with support and structure as they learn the core competencies of liaison work, adjust to a new professional setting and grow in their practice as liaison librarians.

Information about onboarding practices across academic libraries, liaison librarianship within the library and information science (LIS) curriculum and the need for onboarding programs that provide a comprehensive overview of core liaison librarianship competencies is provided.

Onboarding programs specific to liaison librarians is an underexplored topic. This article emphasizes fostering community and skill development throughout the onboarding process to bolster confidence, engagement and retention.

Many librarians are asked questions about copyright and intellectual property. They may be expected to advise on copyright or provide copyright education as part of their duties. Others may be “voluntold” to take on copyright, which may come as an unexpected addition to their workload. This case study provides suggestions for librarians to increase their copyright knowledge and create copyright education programs.

This case study showcases two copyright education programs created by a librarian in a college and another in a university. The librarians collaborated to learn more about the state of copyright education within academic libraries and explore their commonalities and differences. This case study introduces two copyright education programs and summarizes the state of copyright education within library and information science (LIS) and academic libraries.

The following themes within the two copyright education programs were identified through a case study: the complexity of copyright, the engagement (or lack thereof) across a college or university, the necessity of including copyright in information literacy instruction and the calls for professional development with copyright.

This case study covers two differing institutions so its conclusions may not be applicable to all libraries or educational settings.

Many individuals who are in disciplines or occupations that regularly work with copyright may generate ideas for creating and providing continuing education within their organizations.

Library or education professionals can use the case study’s conclusions to inform and support their ongoing work with teaching and learning about copyright and intellectual property. By doing so, they can better support their students, faculty and institutions.

Compliance risk management in the banking sector is crucial because of its multifaceted nature and its potential repercussions on reputation and financial stability. This study aims to present a systematic approach to mapping compliance risks, leveraging the risk self-control assessment (RSCA) method. Integrating quantitative and qualitative assessment techniques and drawing on human expertise and industry best practices.

The authors followed a methodology that involves conducting semistructured interviews with banking compliance professionals and analyzing professional frameworks to gather pertinent information. This comprehensive approach allows to obtain a holistic view of the risks involved and to refine the risk analysis process.

A step-by-step guide to map compliance risk within banks is proposed. The authors offer a rigorous process to enhance compliance risk management practices within the banking sector, providing actionable insights to effectively navigate regulatory complexities and safeguard financial stability.

The insights from this paper will guide compliance officers and risk managers to better assess and monitor compliance risk within their organizations.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this may be the first thorough paper that tackles the topic of mapping compliance risk in banks, from identifying areas of risk to corrective measures after drawing up the risk map, using the RSCA approach.

The OSCE is regarded as the gold standard of competence assessment in many healthcare programs, however, there are numerous internal and external sources of variation contributing to checklist marks. There is concern amongst organisers that candidates may be unfairly disadvantaged if they follow an “excellent” preceding candidate. This study assessed if average checklist scores differed depending on who a candidate follows accounted for different sources of variation.

This study examined assessment data from final year MBChB OSCEs at the University of Aberdeen and categorised candidates into three levels dependent on examiner awarded global scores of preceding candidates for each station. Data were modelled using a linear mixed model incorporating fixed and random effects.

A total of 349 candidates sat the OSCEs. The predicted mean (95% CI) score for students following an “excellent” candidate was 21.6 (20.6, 22.6), followed “others” was 21.5 (20.5, 22.4) and followed an “unsatisfactory” student was 22.2 (21.1, 23.3). When accounted for individual, examiner and station levels variabilities, students following an “excellent” candidate did not have different mean scores compared to those who followed “other” (p = 0.829) or “unsatisfactory” candidates (p = 0.162), however, students who followed an “unsatisfactory” student scored slightly higher on average compared to those who followed “other” (p = 0.038).

There was weak evidence that candidate's checklist variations could be attributed to who they followed, particularly those following unsatisfactory students; the difference in predicted mean scores may be of little practical relevance. Further studies with multiple centres may be warranted assuring perceived fairness of the OSCE to candidates and educators.

The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a scale to assess the influence of Higher Educational Facilities for the growth of education in higher education institutions.

The first step in the process of scale development is to generate an item pool containing as many items as possible which captures the construct of interest. A total of 111 items were constructed for the initial try-out of the scale measuring the construct of higher educational facilities. This rating scale was based on the Likert-type was designed, where each item had to be rated on a five-point scale. The scale consisted of a few items involving the dimensions of infrastructure, quality assessment and quality assurance regard to the vision actualization.

Higher Educational Facilities Scale (HEFS) was developed by the investigator and designed in the format of a 5-point rating scale of the Likert type. There are different phases identified for the scale construction. In the first phase, items are created and the content’s validity is determined. The scale is constructed in the second phase. Pre-testing the questions, administering the survey, reducing the number of items and determining how many factors the scale captures are all steps in the scale construction process. The number of dimensions, reliability and validity are all verified in the third phase, scale evaluation. In developing the scale, the content and face validity was ascertained. The reliability of the scale and its three subscales were established. This scale has potential value for policymakers to assess the perception held by the religious faculty members working in higher education institutions.

The research is part of the doctoral thesis by Dr Deepa Thomas under the supervision of Dr Fr. Joseph C. C. and the co-supervision of Dr Kennedy Andrew Thomas. The purpose of the scale is to assess the higher educational facilities of in institutions of higher Education. Quality, excellence and service are the vision and purpose of higher education institutions to provide ample opportunities and good facilities for their beneficiaries, thus creating tremendous changes in the Indian education scenario.

The study aims to investigate the characteristics of the current situation of library programs and explore the possible reasons behind the low participation in Hong Kong. It focuses on the development of library programs in the era of digital technology, which can lead to discussion and reflections on the further development of library programs with innovative technology services.

This study applied a mixed-method research approach to investigate the current situation of library programming and the reasons for low participation in Hong Kong. The first part analyzes the characteristics of library programs offered by the Hong Kong Public Libraries (HKPL) through data collection from the HKPL website. The second part of this study investigated the reasons behind the low participation in library programs through quantitative research through an online survey.

The findings show that current library programs were dominated by reading activities and children's programs to a great extent, which both users and non-users are not very interested in. Further, most respondents expressed more interest in cultural and leisure events and hands-on activities (especially new technologies related) than traditional library programming. Many lapsed and non-users chose not to attend the library programs for boredom and uselessness. As a result, there is a need for HKPL to adjust its services to stay relevant to the needs and interests of local communities.

Scant studies explored the reasons behind non-users of public library programs, especially in Asia. This research contributes to the literature by analyzing and proposing the characteristics of the current situation of library programs and exploring the possible reasons behind the low participation in Hong Kong.