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ISO Focus The Magazine of the International Organization for Standardization VolumeVolume 4, No.No. 1111, November 2007, ISSN 1729-8709 • ISO Award for Higher Education • 30th ISO General Assembly Contents 1 Comment Ziva Patir, ISO Vice-President (technical management) 2 World Scene Highlights of events from around the world 3 ISO Scene Highlights of news and developments from ISO members 4 Guest View Winner of the ISO Award for Higher Education ISO Focus is published 11 times a year (single issue : July-August). in Standardization : Prof. Song Mingshun from It is available in English. China Jiliang University Annual subscription 158 Swiss Francs Individual copies 16 Swiss Francs 8 Main Focus Publisher ISO Central Secretariat (International Organization for Education for all Standardization) • ISO Award selection committee 1, ch. de la Voie-Creuse • Five out of the six ISO Award finalists : CH-1211 Genève 20 Egypt, France, Japan, Republic of Korea, and The Netherlands Switzerland Telephone + 41 22 749 01 11 Fax + 41 22 733 34 30 E-mail [email protected] Web www.iso.org Manager : Roger Frost Editor : Elizabeth Gasiorowski-Denis Assistant Editor : Maria Lazarte Artwork : Pascal Krieger and Pierre Granier ISO Update : Dominique Chevaux Subscription enquiries : Sonia Rosas Friot ISO Central Secretariat • Standardization goes East Telephone + 41 22 749 03 36 • Lessons from Asia Fax + 41 22 749 09 47 • Improved guidelines on implementing ISO 9001 in the E-mail [email protected] education sector • The learning curve – How quality shapes e-learning environments © ISO, 2007. All rights reserved. • International Standards turn to education services The contents of ISO Focus are copyright and may not, whether in whole or in • Standards as databases and the development of knowledge part, be reproduced, stored in a retrieval • ISO e-learning completed ! – A convenient, practical and fun system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, way to become a standardization expert photocopying or otherwise, without th written permission of the Editor. 44 ISO 30 General Assembly The articles in ISO Focus express the views • ISO’s positive contribution to sustainable development of the author, and do not necessarily reflect • International Standards in support of public policies the views of ISO or of any of its members. • Engaging developing countries ISSN 1729-8709 58 New on the shelf Printed in Switzerland Cover photo : iStock. 61 Coming up ISO Focus November 2007 Comment How to get top marks in the global marketplace hat are the key challenges for standards on training services or to sup- that allows scientists and technician to standardization in education in port the development of e-learning. Per- collaborate, as well as buyers and sellers Wthe 21st century ? Education, I haps one day this could be applied to the around the world to trade. Logically, we believe, is a special type of service. One educational system as a whole. should expect students of all subjects, not that will have a major impact on the future just engineering and science, to be fluent of society, from its basic roots to the most “ Standardization can upon graduation. Yet, rarely are courses sophisticated technological aspects. Edu- on fundamental standards in the global cation has to anticipate the needs of future contribute to our goals of marketplace, such as ISO 9001 and oth- generations, years in advance ! sustainable development.” er management system standards, part of Today’s fast paced, changing world a regular university curriculum. Is it not demands lifelong learning, and thus pos- Teaching standardization and rais- our aim to prepare students for the real es a challenge for defining educational ing awareness in the academic world on world ? The views contained in this issue needs, values, curricula and operational the benefits and use of standards, on the of the ISO award selection committee on issues. From conventional schooling to other hand, is already part of ISO’s strat- the benefits of standards, provide food continual innovation, from a results-ori- egy. Although key in the global economy for thought on the urgency for education. ented approach to an emphasis on teach- for industry, trade and services, a great Making the connection between education ing methods, from the traditional deliv- proportion of the world’s workforce, and standardization is one of the key fac- ery of courses to an increasing use of including post-secondary graduates, has tors for sustainability in the global econ- technology and e-learning – educational little or no exposure to and understanding omy, and can contribute to our goals of concerns are multiple and varied. of standards. Students complete degrees sustainable development. It is up to all of us who represent the standards com- As citizens of a global village – an in engineering and business manage- ment without ever learning who develops munity to promote and translate these intertwined economic and social system into actions: whether this involves pro- with worldwide movement of goods and standards and how, their importance and application and their key role in technol- moting quality management in the edu- people – we are all consumers and hence cation system, developing standards on customers of education. Is there then a ogy and international trade. This is why ISO established the ISO Award for Higher professional qualifications, teaching the need and demand, as with any other glo- principles of standardization within this bally consumed product or service, for Education in Standardization, presented for the first time this year at the General system, or using standards as part of the standardization in education ? ISO must course curriculum and learning material. reflect on these questions to understand Assembly in September. In this issue of ISO Focus, we will learn of the universi- In the context of globalization, this pos- what issues lie within its scope, and es an enormous challenge, but one that which should be dealt with elsewhere. ties and institutions which are leading the way in standardization education, shap- we must take, as a way to ensure the free What do we mean by associating stand- movement of goods and people between ardization to education, and what kind of ing the next generation of professionals to be better equipped to face the global countries enabling a sustainable develop- role can ISO play ? We can interpret it in ment, for generations to come. three different ways : to promote quality marketplace. management in education and standards Standardization education should relating to qualifications worldwide ; to begin in early childhood. Several ISO teach standardization within the education- members are already developing educa- al system ; or to include courses on specif- tional tools, such as the British Stand- ic standards within educational curricula. ards Institute (BSI) Web site for chil- Promoting quality management and inter- dren (www.bsieducation.org) and we national standards on qualifications would also support the international deploy- be a huge leap forward towards the crea- ment of the ISO 14000 Kids Programme tion of a truly global society. Although initiated in Japan. I encourage others to standardizing teaching methods and mate- do the same, in order to create a more rials, for instance, could prove a daunting intelligent marketplace, where all play- task, ISO’s experience in creating con- ers – manufacturers, suppliers, distribu- sensus among stakeholders from around tors, consumers and government – under- the world provides a unique platform stand one of the basic rules of the game. to meet this challenge. ISO has already An overwhelming majority of universities introduced the concept of harmonized are also failing to include key standards ZivaZiva PatirPatir international requirements in education in their course curriculum. International through standardized personnel qualifi- Standards are a form of communication, ISO Vice-President cation requirements. And we have ISO an agreed-upon international language (technical management) ISO Focus November 2007 1 World Scene ASEAN Consultative ing take-up of ISO standards for Development, the French Committee for Standards in the region, associated with Minister for sustainable devel- and Quality various regional training and opment, the African Water awareness-raising events sup- Association, the National Water The ASEAN Consultative ported by ISO. and Sewerage Corporation of Committee for Standards and Uganda, the French NGO Pro- In conjunction with the meet- Quality (ACCSQ) met for its gramme Solidarité Eau, the th ing, the ISO Secretary-Gener- 13 session in August 2007, national body for water of al visited the Asian Develop- in Manila, Philippines. With Morocco and the Water and ment Bank (ADB), where he the recent admission of the Sanitation Programme. Department of Intellectual met with its Director General, Property, Standardization and Mr. Rajat Nag. This gave an This workshop is one of a series Metrology (DISM) of the Lao opportunity to review and of meetings on water service People’s Democratic Repub- promote the interest of ADB governance. The first was held lic, all ACCSQ members are in supporting the quality for a francophone audience in now members of ISO. infrastructures in the region. Rabat, earlier this year. At the Kampala session, Rabat partici- The meeting reviewed the Governance of water pants shared their experiences – mechanism to monitor the and sanitation services some had begun to establish implementation of the in Africa committees to conduct testing that has been submitted to “ASEAN Policy Guideline on activities – and planned a road ISO member bodies. Many Standards and Conformance”, Building African water stake- map. The standards will be test- UN RSC members present which, inter alia, encourages holders’ capacities was the ed in 10 African sites, for a felt that an appropriate pro- the use of International Stand- goal of the workshop held in period of three years. gramme in this area could ards. It adopted the “Guide on July 2007, in Kampala, Ugan- help fill a gap in their activities, da.