Accreditation
This week’s post involves my exploration of institutional and program accrediting agencies, with a focus on ABET (including its history, its areas of accreditation, and curriculum accreditation criteria for Information Science programs) and its move to accredit undergraduate information technology programs. Much of the information regarding ABET was obtained from the ABET Website: http://www.abet.org/
The following is an incomplete list of other, non-ABET, academic program accreditors.
AACSB International: The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business
ACOTE: Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education
ALA: American Library Association (ALA Accreditation)
APA: American Psychological Association
CAA: Council on Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology
CAAHEP: Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs
CACREP: Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Health Programs
CADE: Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics Education
CAPTE: Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education
CCNE*: Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education
CPTACS: Committee on Professional Training of the American Chemical Society
LCME: Liaison Committee on Medical Education
NAEYC: National Association for the Education of Young Children
NASM: National Academy of Sports Medicine
NCATE: National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education
NLN-AC: National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission
TEAC: Teacher Education Accreditation Council
*CCNE and NLN-AC are the two national nursing accreditors.
As Dr. Burnett discussed in class, the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) is a federation of 30 professional and technical societies* representing the fields of applied science, computing, engineering, and technology. She also pointed out that members of ABET are the members of the professional organization and that ABET is still relatively autonomous.
* ABET member societies <http://www.abet.org/member.html> include the American Academy of Environmental Engineers, American Congress on Surveying and Mapping, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, American Institute of Chemical Engineers, American Industrial Hygiene Association, Biomedical Engineering Society, CSAB, Inc. <http://www.csab.org/>, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers, and The Minerals, Metals and Materials Society. Note that CSAB is the lead society within ABET for accreditation of programs in computer science, information systems, and software engineering, and is a cooperating society for accreditation of computer engineering.
The specific ABET criteria that resemble computer science program requirements to which Dr. Burnett referred in class are part of the general, the information systems, and the quantitative analysis standards. These criteria include the following.
1. “The curriculum must contain at least 15 semester-hours of study in an information systems environment, such as business.” (IV-2)
2. “The core materials must provide basic coverage of the hardware and software, a modern programming language…” (IV-6)
3. “Students must be exposed to a variety of information and computing systems and must become proficient in one modern programming language.” (IV-8)
4. “The curriculum must include at least 9 semester-hours of quantitative analysis beyond pre-calculus.” (IV-11)
5. “Statistics must be included.” (IV-12)
6. “Calculus or discrete mathematics must be included.” (IV-13)
History
ABET has provided quality assurance in higher education for over 70 years. ABET was established in New York in 1932 as the Engineers’ Council for Professional Development (ECPD). As a result of surveys conducted by professional engineering societies in the 1920s, ECPD was formed to fill the apparent need for a “joint program for upbuilding engineering as a profession.” The original focus of ECPD was on the following:
Guidance - Supplying information to engineering students and potential students.
Training - Developing plans for personal and professional development.
Education - Appraising engineering curricula and maintaining a list of accredited curricula.
Recognition - Developing methods whereby individuals could achieve recognition by the profession and the general public.
In 1980, ECPD was renamed the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) in order to more accurately reflect its emphasis on accreditation, and it continues to put most of its emphasis on accreditation today. Now active in two additional areas, applied science and computing, ABET accredits some 2,500 programs at over 550 colleges and universities nationwide.
In 1997, following nearly a decade of development, ABET adopted Engineering Criteria 2000 (EC2000), considered at the time a revolutionary approach to accreditation criteria.
Accreditation
In the United States, accreditation is used to assure quality in educational institutions and programs. Accreditation is a voluntary, non-governmental process of peer review. In order to be accredited, an educational institution or program must meet certain prescribed standards. Accreditation is not certification. Institutions and programs are accredited, while individuals are certified.
The ABET Website distinguishes between two types of accreditation -- institutional and specialized.
Institutional accreditation: The college or university as a whole educational institution is examined and evaluated.
Specialized accreditation: Specific educational programs are evaluated by an accreditor. Professional accreditors, such as those for medicine, law, architecture and engineering, fall into this category. The Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) is a professional accrediting organization that accredits programs, not institutions.
Accreditation serves:
- Parents and prospective students by ensuring that a program has met the minimum standards of the accrediting agency. In some instances, ABET accreditation may permit students to receive federal funds in the form of scholarships, loans and grants.
- Faculty, Deans and administrators by providing insight into a program’s strengths and weaknesses and means to improve the program;
- Employers by providing endorsement that the program is of adequate quality to prepare graduates to begin professional practice;
- Taxpayers by providing evidence that their funds are spent well; and
- The public by making it generally known that graduates are aware of public health and safety considerations.
An itemized list of accreditation fees can be accessed at: http://www.abet.org/images/Misc/Revised%20Fee%20FY%2005-06NL1(A).pdf
Areas of Accreditation
Engineering Accreditation: http://www.abet.org/eac1.html
Engineering Technology Accreditation: http://www.abet.org/tac1.html
Computing Accreditation: http://www.abet.org/cac1.html
Applied Science Accreditation*: http://www.abet.org/rac1.html
Applied Science Programs are comprised of the disciplines of Health Physics, Industrial Hygiene, Industrial Management, Safety and Surveying.
Computing Accreditation
11 Information Systems programs (all B.S.) are accredited (e.g., the undergraduate Information Science program in Drexel’s College of Information Science and Technology)
Accreditation Criteria
ABET’s criteria are being built on a C.S. program. Information Technology programs would be accredited within the Computing &
EC2000 was its focus on what is learned rather than what is taught
ABET Evaluation Criteria: http://www.abet.org/criteria.html
The 2005-2006 Criteria for Accrediting Computing Programs (PDF file) includes the Criteria for Information Science Programs (p. 7)
The curriculum requirements for Information Science programs are as follows (verbatim, p. 7-9).
IV. Curriculum
Intent: The curriculum combines professional requirements with general education requirements and electives to prepare students for a professional career in the information systems field, for further study in information systems, and for functioning in modern society. The professional requirements include coverage of basic and advanced topics in information systems as well as an emphasis on an IS environment. Curricula are consistent with widely recognized models and standards.
Standards: Curriculum standards are specified in terms of semester-hours of study. Thirty semester-hours generally constitutes one year of full-time study and is equivalent to 45 quarter-hours. A course or a specific part of a course can only be applied toward one standard.
General
IV-1. The curriculum must include at least 30 semester-hours of study in information systems topics.
IV-2. The curriculum must contain at least 15 semester-hours of study in an information systems environment, such as business.
IV-3. The curriculum must include at least 9 semester-hours of study in quantitative analysis as specified below under quantitative analysis.
IV-4. The curriculum must include at least 30 semester-hours of study in general education to 8 2005-2006 Criteria for Accrediting Information Systems Programs broaden the background of the student.
Information systems
IV-5. All students must take a broad-based core of fundamental information systems material consisting of at least 12 semester hours.
IV-6. The core materials must provide basic coverage of the hardware and software, a modern programming language, data management, networking and telecommunications, analysis and design, and role of IS in organizations.
IV-7. Theoretical foundations, analysis, and design must be stressed throughout the program.
IV-8. Students must be exposed to a variety of information and computing systems and must become proficient in one modern programming language.
IV-9. All students must take at least 12 semester hours of advanced course work in information systems that provides breadth and builds on the IS core to provide depth.
Information Systems Environment
IV-10. The 15 semester hours must be a cohesive body of knowledge to prepare the student to function effectively as an IS professional in the IS environment.
Quantitative Analysis
IV-11 The curriculum must include at least 9 semester-hours of quantitative analysis beyond pre-calculus.
IV-12 Statistics must be included.
IV-13 Calculus or discrete mathematics must be included.
Additional Areas of Study
IV-14. The oral and written communications skills of the student must be developed and applied in the program.
IV-15. There must be sufficient coverage of global, economic, social and ethical implications of computing to give students an understanding of a broad range of issues in these areas.
IV-16 Collaborative skills must be developed and applied in the program.
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