Dr. Valbona Nathanaili

LOGOS University College, Tirana, Albania.

e-mail: valbona.nathanaili@kulogos.edu.al

Dr. Nevila Mehmeti 

“Aleksandër Moisiu” University (UAMD)

nevilamehmeti@yahoo.com

Prof. Asoc. Llambi Prendi 

“Aleksandër Moisiu” University (UAMD)

llambi.prendi@yahoo.com

Abstract  

This paper focuses on the role of regulations in promoting teaching improvement and career progression based on it in Higher Education Institutions in Albania. Obstacles and facilitators for enhancing teaching are identified, providing insights into the challenges and opportunities within the higher education landscape. Elevating teaching standards in Albanian HEIs involves addressing resource constraints, modernizing curricula, fostering pedagogical innovation, and adapting to changing demographics. A significant obstacle is the language barrier; the absence of a language policy within Albanian HEIs inhibits the potential for study programs to adopt English as a medium of instruction, limiting international exposure. Collaboration with industry, international partnerships, and a commitment to quality assurance can be key strategies for improving the overall quality of teaching in higher education. An imperative recommendation is for Albanian HEIs to invest in the professional development of academic staff as educators, alongside a critical review of their appraisal processes.

Keywords: teaching, pedagogy, higher education, Albania 

Acknowledgements 

This paper is part of the MAGNET project, funding from the European Education and Culture Executive Agency, in the framework of ERASMUS-EDU-2022-CBHE.

A special thanks for the coordinator of MAGNET project, Prof. Katerina Kedraka, Assoc. Professor, Department of Molecular Biology & Genetics, Democritus University of Thrace, Greece. 

Societal impact: teaching approach in Albanian Higher Education  

The Albanian approach, in the context of higher education in Albania, quality is primarily associated with the accreditation of study programs offered by higher education institutions. In this level of education, the main achievements, according to National Strategy for Development and Integration (2015-2020), consisted in the implementation of the reformed 3-cycle studies. Despite the introduction of a number of standards over the years, expansion and development of the higher education sector proceeded in a fragmented manner. According to the same document, forty-four private and fifteen public higher education institutions failed to meet the minimum requirements, as established in the law on higher education. 

Furthermore, the curricula are not adequately harmonized at the national level. That there is no national strategy specifically dedicated to teaching in higher education. For the first time, the need for enhancing teaching in higher education in official documents can be founded in a report of OECD. According to it, Albania needs to ensure that initial teacher education programmes are equipping future entrants with the student‑centred approaches and other competencies they will need for the classroom. But at the best, the quality of teaching is subject to evaluation based on standards and criteria that can be considered external to the daily classroom experience. 

Methodology 

This study is based on the qualitative method. The first step was to conduct a content analyses of official websites of Albanian HEIs, in order to explore for official sources, such as documents, news, notifications, posts, etc., relevant for the aim of this paper, deriving from the HEIs. Our findings were categorised through those core themes: strategy for enhancement of teaching; reports regarding internal quality assurance; the existence of a Centre for teaching and learning and its vision and mission; news regarding activities focusing in training or conferences targets. Those virtual documents and resources produced the main information. However, a great consideration was for the entire official pages of the HEIs, in order to establish conclusions in a wider context. In the case of University “Aleksandër Moisiu”, Durrës, a focus group method was selected, with two full academic staff. The aim was to build up a detailed perspective on how the centre for learning and teaching operate and also to bring what both deem to be important and significant. It was only one session, which was recorded and subsequently transcribed. Both participants were asked on how the CTL operates, and the role in enhancing teaching for academic staff. The main reason was to minimalize the reasonable and common dilemma on how representative websites are on this topic. The next step was to analyse the role of national regulations in promoting teaching improvement and career progression based on it in Higher Education Institutions. 

Implications: Teaching enhancement and career progression inside HEIs

In all Albanian HEIs, the academic staff engages in different activities, which usually are listed as: teaching activities, scientific research, support services for the development of the higher education institution and counselling for students. 

Law No. 80/2015 ‘On Higher Education and Scientific Research in Higher Education Institutions in The Republic of Albania’, defines the categories of academic staff: a) professors; b) lecturers; c) assistant-lecturers. Career advancement for academic staff in HEIs is based usually on the above categories, where professors - a tittle that can be obtained based on some specific achievements - are at the top of the hierarchy.

While in the public HEIS the above rule is almost impossible to break, the private ones are more flexible regarding carrier progression, depending on the institution's culture, policies, visions and human capital. But even at the second case, career progression rarely is based on teaching enhancement. Usually, if one is holder of a PhD obtained abroad is evaluated as a valuable asset to advance in Albanian higher education system. 

In general, there is not any relevance regulation between teaching enhancement and career progression. The Albanian higher education system is not designed to support professional growth of academic staff as good teachers. Also, there are currently no specific regulations in Albania regarding mandatory training courses for entry-level teaching staff, or policies for staff development. 

Some HEIs, mostly public, that have a faculty of education also operate a Center for Lifelong Learning. These centers offer training programs and usually has as target the teachers of pre-university education system. All these programs receive approval from the Albanian Agency for Quality Assurance in Pre-University (ASCAP) and the Ministry of Education and Sports (MoES) following an application process. The primary objective of these centers is to provide training programs for pre-university level teachers, rather than their own academic staff.

For instance, at the University of Gjirokastra “Eqerem Çabej”, an Albanian public HEI, operates a Center for Lifelong Learning (UOGJ) that exclusively offers training programs for pre-university education teachers. These training courses are fee-based, with the cost determined by credits (1 credit = 11 euros).

Some of the training modules scheduled for May-June 2023 included:

• Comprehensive Strategies in the Classroom (2 credits)
• Identification, Prevention, and Intervention in Problematic Student Behaviors (1 credit)
• Preschool Education Curriculum Framework (2 credits)
• Designing Learning for Various Teaching and Learning Styles (2 credits)
• Project-Based Teaching and Learning (1 credit)

At the Marin Barleti (UMB), a private HEI for profit, there is a professional unit of comprehensive courses and trainings, under the name “Academy of Education and Teaching”, that offer training programs with the same focus and target. The national fee for one ETC (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System) credit typically ranges from 15 to 25 euros, but the Center for Continuing Education charges 10 euros per ETC credit and 20 euros for 2 ETC credits.

Also, various HEIs host conferences with sessions focused on teaching in pre-university level.

At the institutional level, none of the Albanian HEIs has any strategy for teaching and learning for academic staff. In the best scenario, there are mentioned as part of institutional document for quality assurance. This is the case of University “Aleksandër Moisiu”, Durrës. 

At University “Aleksandër Moisiu”, Durrës, special emphasis is placed on internal trainings that each faculty organizes with academic staff. At the beginning of every year, the Life Long Learning Centre in the Faculty of Education, with the support of the Department of Pedagogy, drafts a work plan for the internal development of academic personnel. The training topics to be conducted are decided based on questionnaires developed by the Unit of Internal Quality Assurance at the Faculty of Education in cooperation with the Dean's Office (NjBSC Faculty). These questionnaires contain several questions directed at staff concerning the improvement of teaching quality and the need for training. Participation in these trainings is mandatory for new teaching staff, but rarely influence or help in passing successfully from one category of academic staff to another. 

Implications: Teaching enhancement based on national documents 

The most significant strategic documents and laws that supervise the quality in higher education, are Law 80/2015 “On Higher Education and Scientific Research in Higher Education Institutions in the Republic of Albania”, National Strategy for Development and Integration (2015-2020) and Quality Code.

According to Law 80/2015, the state’s role is to assess the quality and functioning of higher education institutions through its agencies, whether independent or foreign, and make the process and its results public. This process is known as accreditation, which is an independent external quality assessment determining whether the higher education institution and its offered study programs meet specific quality standards in line with applicable legal and regulatory provisions. External quality assurance is overseen by Quality Assurance Agency in Higher Education (ASCAL), which cooperates and coordinates its activity with European counterparts. External quality assurance for each study program includes three phases: first evaluation, periodic evaluation and comparative evaluation. The results of these evaluations are made public by ASCAL. The validity of each institutional accreditation and study programs related to it cannot last more than 6 years. 

According to the same law, “Internal quality assurance” is the continuous process of monitoring, evaluating, guaranteeing, maintaining and improving the quality of activity in higher education institutions, which is developed by the institutions themselves. At institutional level, one of the functions of the Academic Senate, is quality assurance and to create mechanisms for evaluating the teaching and research-scientific activity of the academic staff. In addition to the law, every higher education institution has a permanent committee for internal quality assurance. Scientific activity is also seen as a function of ensuring the quality of teaching. Students have the right to express their opinion about the quality of teaching. More specifically, this law has a chapter (Chapter X) on “Quality assurance in higher education”.

Standards for quality assurance are drawn up by higher education institutions, in accordance with the “Quality code” - a summary of standards and guidelines for internal and external quality assurance in higher education.

The Quality Code of Higher Education, in session III “Study programs, teaching and assessment”, standard 12, states: the institution follows a clear policy for improving the quality of teaching. This standard contains three assessment criteria: 1. The institution is responsible for the quality of teaching and designs a regulatory/guideline framework in relation to it. 2. The institution has an auxiliary structure that promotes the continuous completion of teaching. 3. The institution qualifies/trains academic staff in the field of scientific research to help further improve teaching. For bachelor's study programs and those of the second cycle the main aim is to promote competence-based learning. Responsible structures and units support experimentation and development of new innovative teaching methods, continuously train academic staff to improve teaching skills and implement new methods.

Conclusions: challenges for enhancing teaching and learning

Albanian Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are facing some challenges in providing high-quality education, from limited resources and outdated to the fierce competition mostly with foreign HEIs from region. 

Encouraging a culture of continuous improvement in teaching methods and the need to make investments in the professional development of their academic staff as educators are becoming an imperative. Language proficiency is another challenge. There are a few HEIs that offer study program in foreign language, like Epoka University and Catholic University “Our Lady of Good Counsel”. But none of the Albanian HEIs offer teaching foreign language for students and staff, in form of extra classes, for free. For example, Catholic University “Our Lady of Good Counsel” (UNIZKM), has a language center, that organises and offers foreign language courses of different levels under the Common European Framework of References for Languages (CEFRL), but those are with a fee. Additionally, the majority of the public HEIs that offer study program in education, also have established their centres for teaching and lifelong learning, which can be a good support for staff development.

Our concern should be about the future of the increasingly ‘research-led’ university, which is arguably a euphemism for the institution’s role in the manufacture and certification of expertise. In this spirit, Fuller (2016) appeals for a shift in the university’s mission from research back to teaching. 

References

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UOGJ. https://uogj.edu.al/category/lll/