Faculty Perspectives on Independent Accreditation of Pedagogical Programs in Kyrgyzstan
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FACULTY PERSPECTIVES ON INDEPENDENT ACCREDITATION OF PEDAGOGICAL PROGRAMS IN KYRGYZSTAN A dissertation submitted to the Kent State University College of Education, Health, and Human Services in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy By Chynarkul Ryskulova May 2019 © Copyright, 2019 by Chynarkul Ryskulova All Rights Reserved ii A dissertation written by Chynarkul Ryskulova Specialist of Philology, Interpreter, Teacher of English, Kyrgyz State University, 1982 Candidate of Philological Sciences (Ph.D.), Kyrgyz-Russian Slavonic University, 2009 Approved by _________________________, Director, Doctoral Dissertation Committee Martha C. Merrill _________________________, Member, Doctoral Dissertation Committee Mark Kretovics _________________________, Member, Doctoral Dissertation Committee Linda F. Robertson Accepted by _________________________, Director, School of Foundations, Leadership Kimberly S. Schimmel and Administration _________________________, Dean, College of Education, Health and Human Service James C. Hannon iii RYSKULOVA, CHYNARKUL S., Ph.D., May 2019 Higher Education Administration FACULTY PERSPECTIVES ON INDEPENDENT ACCREDITATION OF PEDAGOGICAL PROGRAMS IN KYRGYZSTAN (210 pp.) Director of Dissertation: Martha C. Merrill, Ph.D. Kyrgyzstan shifted from the Soviet state attestation system to independent accreditation of academic programs to assure the public about the quality of higher education in fall 2016. The purpose of this interpretative qualitative study was to explore faculty perspectives on new independent accreditation of pedagogical programs at three public universities in Kyrgyzstan. The data were collected using semi-structured interviews with sixteen faculty, participant observation and review of Government regulations on the new accreditation system, accreditation standards, policies and procedures. Schlossberg’s Transition Theory (Schlossberg et al., 1995) guided the study in understanding the distinct experiences of faculty with the new program accreditation process conducted by the independent accreditation agency EdNet. The data analysis identified various factors that impact faculty attitudes towards the independent accreditation. The findings showed how the faculty professional lives changed as a result of multiple transitions related to the Bologna Process reforms in higher education. Faculty expressed both positive and negative attitudes towards the new independent accreditation. Some faculty found the new accreditation system as an opportunity for quality improvement and professional development; others considered it to be a challenge that would not promote the quality of education. The study provides valuable insights on the new accreditation system that will help both the Ministry of Education and Sciences and the accreditation agency EdNet to review the accreditation regulations, standards and procedures for further quality improvement of higher education programs. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank my professors at Kent State University, my adviser, dissertation committee chair and members, my fellow students, friends and my family who helped make it possible for me to undertake and complete my Ph.D. I am very grateful to Dr. Merrill, who was my academic adviser, mentor, leader and best friend throughout the Ph.D. program. Dr. Merrill and I have known each other since 1998 when she became Vice President of American University of Central Asia. It was her who encouraged me to pursue a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration at Kent State University. She continues to support me and my daughter in every way, for which I am eternally grateful. Your advice and long comments in ‘blue’ on my papers were the best way to learn from you. Those later changed into ‘red’ in my dissertation drafts, which were the best guidelines to improve and complete my dissertation thesis. Your patience and responsiveness to my complaints and myriad of questions has and will always amaze me. You are the kind of adviser and mentor that every graduate student wishes to have. I would like to thank the dissertation committee members: Dr. Kretovics and Dr. Robertson for their time, advice, and constructive feedback. Thank you for your constant support outside of classroom. It is an honor to have you on the board. Thank you to my friends and fellow students. Thank you to Sharon Bailey, Carolyn Schlemmer and Lola Raimbekova for proof reading my early drafts. A big thank you goes to Gyorgyi Mihalyi-Jewell for helping me format the dissertation thesis. Thank iv you to Shakhnoza Yakubova, Ilfa Zhulamanova, Kevin Spence, Jessica Jewell, Judy Lightner and Mayagul Satlykgylyjova for sharing resources, supporting me and keeping me motivated to finish my dissertation. I would also like to thank my family. Thank you to my mother, Sakatai Asanbai kyzy, who at the age of 82 managed to save 50 000 soms (about $700) from her monthly pension of 4600 soms (less than $100) to support my education in the USA. I am grateful for my daughter, Eldana, who was my motivator and moral support on a daily basis in our life far from home. She was the one who proof read and edited my papers, and encouraged me to persist. Thank you to my extended family: especially, my sister Tynarkul and her daughter, Aidana, my brother, Turusbek, my niece, Gulnura and nephew, Amantur for believing in my academic success and their encouragement. I am also very grateful for the opportunity to have received the International Peace Scholarship and for the support of P.E.O. Chapter members. I would especially like to thank Janet Mather from Hudson Chapter ET and Deb Saito from Kent Chapter DG for supporting me throughout my Ph.D. journey. I learned a lot from these women and understand how much people can do to each other to make life better. v DEDICATION I dedicate this dissertation to my father, Sheishe Ryskulov; to my mother, Sakatai Asanbai kyzy; and to my daughter, Eldana Ryskulova. My parents played a special role in my educational journey. Because of their wisdom, I was able to value education and respect educators since my childhood. Originally, I am from a traditional Kyrgyz family with 10 children. My parents viewed education as a powerful tool to get rid of the hardships of the rural life and poverty, which is why they created conditions for all of their children to get education with their limited resources. My father had only 7 grades of secondary education and 2 years of vocational school. He was a very intelligent, knowledgeable and hard working person. My mother has never attended any school because of the World War II. Despite the fact that she cannot read and write, she and my father were able to support the education of 10 children. We did not have a TV-set but we had our father’s collection of books and that is where I got my love for reading. As for my daughter, I hope I was able to pass on the value of education that was instilled in me by my parents. May this experience serve as a symbol of perseverance. Without them, I would not be able to get to where I am today. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................. iv DEDICATION…………………………………………………………………………....vi CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................1 Problem Statement ......................................................................................................7 Purpose Statement and Research Questions .............................................................10 Significance of the Study .........................................................................................11 Theoretical Framework .............................................................................................12 Organization of the Dissertation ..............................................................................15 II. LITERATURE REVIEW .........................................................................................17 Introduction ...............................................................................................................17 The Concept of Quality .............................................................................................19 Shift from Input Assessment to Outcome Assessment .............................................27 Accreditation as a Quality Assurance System ..........................................................29 Changes in the Accreditation System of Post-Soviet Countries ...............................42 Faculty in the Context of Multiple Transitions .........................................................47 Quality of Teacher Education Programs ...................................................................57 Summary ...................................................................................................................61 III. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS ................................................................62 Introduction ...............................................................................................................62 Research Approach ...................................................................................................63 Research Sites ...........................................................................................................64 Participant Selection .................................................................................................66