Cyprus Agency of Quality Assurance and Accreditation Essay

Cyprus Agency of Quality Assurance and Accreditation - Essay Example In the United States, most of the control over education rests with the various state governments. Each state has different laws and objectives for education, but the states generally permit schools and colleges to operate with considerable independence and autonomy. As a result, American educational institutions can vary widely in the type and quality of their programs. To maintain consistent standards of education, the U.S. Department of Education has recognized private accrediting agencies whom it considers reliable, to develop the standards and accrediting procedures. Most other countries do not have a system of accreditation such as that used in the United States. Instead, they rely primarily on governmental agencies to monitor the quality of education provided by their schools and colleges. In Cyprus, however, private educational associations increasingly work with provincial governmental authorities to periodically assess the quality of colleges and universities. According to Babylon English-English, accreditation is a provision of credentials, delegation of authority; authorization, recognition of (school, a program of learning), http://dictionary.babylon.com/Accreditation A. It is the act of granting credit or recognition (especially with respect to educational institution that maintains suitable standards); "a commission is responsible for the accreditation of medical schools" Institutional accreditation indicates that an entire institution has met certain standards of educational quality. Institutional accreditation suggests that each of an institution’s parts—such as its academic departments or degree programs—contributes to the achievement of the institution’s main educational objectives. Most of the regional and national accrediting associations perform institutional accreditation.