Introduction
The purpose of the guidelines
These guidelines offer advice on assuring the quality and academic standards of higher education programmes of study provided through distance learning. The practice of 'distance learning'has been developing and evolving in many different forms in recent years, so that the phrase is now routinely applied to a very wide spectrum of activities. Distance learning is increasingly being looked to by many institutions as an economical way of expanding their activities, widening opportunities for students around the world, and making effective use of the new technologies which are rapidly emerging. The guidelines have been produced at the request of the distance learning community in the United Kingdom, which has recognised not only that the continued development of this form of higher education and its worldwide acceptance depend upon rigorous quality assurance, but also that there are many areas in which the usual ways of doing things for 'on-campus' provision are not necessarily appropriate in the context of distance learning.
For the purpose of these guidelines, 'distance learning' has been taken to mean a way of providing higher education that involves the transfer to the student's location of the materials that form the main basis of study, rather than the student moving to the location of the resource provider. There is considerable debate, nationally and internationally, about appropriate terminology, and a number of different terms are commonly used which refer to the same or similar sort of activity. There is also great diversity in the large number of actual arrangements - and even more in potential arrangements - to which these guidelines are directed. As the nature of institution-centred and of collaborative provision develops and changes, and as the potential for distance learning is explored further, the boundaries between different forms of higher education are becoming less easy to recognise. These guidelines do not assume that distance learning is a separate and unique form of higher education around which there are clear, let alone fixed, boundaries. Nor is it assumed that all distance learning has uniform characteristics. Nevertheless, a large and diverse body of current provision, although often described using different terms, is readily identifiable.
Programmes of distance learning have some basic features in common which broadly distinguish them from institution-centred modes of learning: physical proximity is not a requirement of study and programmes made available through distance learning all involve some degree of physical separation of the student (the learner) from the institution responsible for providing the teaching and making the award. There are also a number of ways in which teaching and learning activities to support students on distance learning programmes of study involve distinctive divisions of labour and allocations of responsibilities.
System design, programme design and delivery, student development and support, student communication and representation, and student assessment all raise particular questions for institutions about the ways in which they 'manage' teaching and learning to ensure that the quality of provision and security of academic standards are as they need to be. The purpose of the present guidelines is to help institutions to check the soundness of their arrangements for these aspects when the programmes of study are offered through distance learning.
The guidelines have been developed with the assistance of a working group initially convened in 1997 by the former Higher Education Quality Council (HEQC), and continued by the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA). They build on the generic Guidelines on quality assurance produced by the HEQC in 1996 and on institutional quality audit reports, undertaken in the first instance by the HEQC and latterly by QAA. In the preparation of the guidelines the working group has also drawn on advice from colleagues with an active involvement in, and experience of, a variety of forms of distance learning, and has taken into account existing guidelines and codes, both generic and specific to individual institutions. Appendix 3 provides details of the groups involved. A list of generic publications offering additional advice on quality assurance with particular reference to distance learning, and which the working group has found helpful, is given in Appendix 4.
The form and status of the guidelines
As part of its development of a comprehensive quality assurance process for higher education, QAA is producing a Code of Practice for Quality Assurance in Higher Education in the form of a series of self-contained sections covering the management of quality and standards in all teaching and learning activities. As part of this work, these present guidelines (which do not in their current form have the status of a section of the Code of Practice) will in due course be reviewed and become the starting point for a code of practice for distance learning which will be incorporated into the wider QAA Code. To this end they have been designed to resemble the QAA codes in format, extended by the inclusion of additional 'exemplifying questions'. Users of this publication are invited to offer their comments and opinions on the usefulness or otherwise of the guidelines, and on their coverage. There will be further consultation with the higher education sector in the course of preparing the formal Code of Practice.
The scope of the guidelines
These guidelines are concerned with arrangements made by UK universities and colleges to provide programmes of study by means of distance learning, whether in the UK or overseas. The guidelines focus on those aspects where the 'distance element'presents a special challenge to the assurance of quality of provision and the security of academic standards of programmes of study and awards. In these particular areas the guidelines build on principles which apply generally to higher education and relate those principles to distance learning provision. In other areas, guidance relating generally to higher education is equally applicable to provision through distance learning. Precepts and guidance for higher education on aspects, for example, of admissions requirements and external examining, apply equally to distance learning provision.
Distance learning must rely on a sound and effective logistical and administrative infrastructure to ensure that all participants' activities are co-ordinated and engage with the programme as designed by the provider. There is likely to be a distinct division of labour both in teaching and administration. An integral part of the teaching and administrative system is the timing of action and the lead times needed to meet deadlines. The guidelines place particular emphasis on these points.
Definitions and dimensions of distance learning
Throughout these guidelines, the terms 'providing institution' and 'provider' are used to indicate the higher education institution that is responsible for designing the distance learning system, for designing and delivering programmes of study and for the academic standard of the award granted upon successful completion of that programme. Other terms are used which are intended to convey a function - such as local agent (where the function is normally limited to administrative or organisational activities), local tutor, travelling teacher - for which other words could be substituted according to choice but which are expected to be readily understandable.
Distance learning is approached in many different ways. These guidelines have not been designed to apply equally in all respects to every individual arrangement. They take a generic view based on underlying principles or precepts. But in doing so they also take particular account of a number of approaches which, while not necessarily present in all arrangements, do frequently occur in many of them. The component elements of these approaches, and the meaning given to them, are set out below as four dimensions of distance learning. The dimensions do not refer to different models of distance learning and should not be construed as setting out alternative forms or distinct systems of distance learning. They refer to certain distinguishable aspects that are commonly found, under varying labels, as components within systems of distance learning.
The terms used to refer to four dimensions of distance learning are as follows:
Materials-based learning. This dimension of a system of distance learning refers to all the learning resource materials made available by the programme provider to students studying at a distance. The range and diversity of materials provided can be great. It may include printed, audio or audio-visual material, experimental equipment and material on the world wide web and other electronic or computer-based resources. Materials forming the basis of study may also be drawn from local public providers or resources accessible locally - as with local libraries, local book suppliers or information on the world wide web. The scope of materials provided may range from statements simply of syllabuses and learning outcomes to complex collections of multi-media materials structured to support self-study. The methods for distributing materials to form the basis of study include personal delivery to students by travelling teachers, despatch to the student through the post, distribution through electronic communication and personal collection by the student from a distribution point.
Programme components delivered by travelling teachers. This dimension refers to staff of the providing institution travelling on a periodic basis to the location of the student to deliver components of the programme. The delivery may be concentrated into a period of intensive classroom-based study for a group of students or be arranged on a scheduled basis for an individual student. The scope of the functions carried out by travelling teachers may include initial orientation; delivery of learning materials; intensive teaching of the programme; tutorial support; student development and guidance; assessment; and gathering feedback. The operations of travelling teachers may be supported and supplemented by a local agent.
Learning supported locally. This dimension involves the providing institution employing persons specifically to undertake certain defined functions for the local support of students following the programme. It may involve administrative tasks for which a local agent is contracted and/or specified teaching functions for which a local tutor is engaged. An example of the latter might be the provision of residential weekend workshops or the like.
Learning supported from the providing institution remotely from the student. This dimension refers to defined support and specified components of teaching provided remotely for individual distant students by a tutor from the providing institution. The forms of communication between the tutor and student may include postal correspondence in print or by audio or video-cassette, telephone, fax, email and the Internet. It may be solely between tutor and individual student or may include voice, video or computer-based conferencing. The scope of the teaching may be limited to defined components of the programme or form a larger and more open-ended component.
The terms set out above refer to dimensions that are common components within systems of distance learning but for which there are no uniform labels. They have been briefly elaborated here so that the content of the guidelines is more readily understandable. They may also help readers to understand better some of the structural aspects of distance learning. In practice, different distance learning systems will rely more on one dimension than another and may not contain some of the dimensions at all, such as that of 'travelling teacher'. Other aspects or dimensions of distance learning systems that are dealt with in the guidelines, such as assessment and examining, do not need to be explained.
How the guidelines are structured
The guidelines are arranged under six headings, each dealing with an aspect where quality assurance is likely to require attention in a particular way when study is by distance learning:
- System design;
- Programme design, approval and review;
- The management of programme delivery;
- Student development and support;
- Student communication and representation;
- Student assessment.
Each section contains generic precepts and outline guidance. The precepts identify those key matters which an institution might reasonably be expected to be able to demonstrate that it is addressing effectively through its own relevant quality assurance mechanisms. The purpose of the accompanying outline guidance is to offer suggestions on quality assurance and control which institutions can use, elaborate, and adapt according to their own needs, traditions, cultures and decision-making processes.
At the end of the guidelines, in Appendix 1, are a series of exemplifying questions which have been included to provide further prompts to the detailed consideration of matters covered by the precepts and outline guidance, They are grouped by guideline and are formulated as a series of questions that an institution might wish to ask itself, before it establishes distance learning activities or as it considers and reviews its current arrangements.
These guidelines need to be considered in conjunction with the various sections of the formal Code of Practice for Quality Assurance in Higher Education which QAA is in the process of preparing, especially the section dealing with the quality assurance of collaborative provision. The six sections in these guidelines build on the wider principles that apply generally to higher education. They pre-suppose and assume that the general precepts and guidance contained in the QAA Code of Practice will directly underpin the distance learning activity.
The combined attention to the guidelines set out here, and to the more generally applicable precepts and outline guidance, is intended to support total quality and effectiveness. The strength of the chain of system and programme design, implementation, delivery, support, student communication and assessment, and the matters addressed in more general precepts such as those concerning external examining, lies in its weakest link. Those responsible for the overall management of a programme of distance learning should monitor all aspects of provision for weakness, and should be able to take timely corrective action at that point. The effectiveness of programme management will depend upon the infrastructure for distance learning activity which exists in the providing institution. This infrastructure may be integrated with, or be separated from, that established for institution-centred provision (where this exists), and may be more, or less, sensitive to the funding arrangements associated with distance learning programmes of study. These guidelines do not cover general management practice in the providing institution, but users will not wish to lose sight of the fact that poor general management or an inadequate administrative infrastructure can negate otherwise good practice in the provision of distance learning.
The guidelines
Guideline 1: System design - the development of an integrated approach
Precepts
1
Higher education by distance learning should be underpinned by principles
relevant generally to higher education. An institution intending
to offer distance learning programmes of study should design and manage
its operations
in a way that applies those principles and, at the same time, takes
full account of considerations specific to teaching its students at
a distance.
2
The provision of programmes of study by distance learning should form
part of an explicit strategy for achieving an institution's stated
aims, and the distance learning system or systems should be designed
and developed in ways that will give effect to the strategy.
3
Prior to offering programmes of study by distance learning, an institution
should explicitly design and test its system for administering
and teaching students at a distance and plan for contingencies in order
to meet its stated
aims in terms of academic quality and standards.
4
An institution should safeguard its position in respect of the law in any
country in which it is proposed that programmes of study should
be made available by distance learning.
Outline guidance
An institution might be expected to:
- establish and make publicly available a policy for assuring the quality and academic standards of the education that the institution provides at a distance;
- identify the processes and range of tasks involved in designing programmes of study, in designing and preparing learning materials and in delivering programmes to students studying at a distance, recognising that these processes and tasks are not the same in important respects as those applying in institution-centred teaching;
- determine the organisation and distribution of responsibilities appropriate to the system of distance learning;
- determine how to identify the characteristics and situation of students projected to study through the system of distance learning;
- identify which teaching media would be most suitable to a distance learning system, bearing in mind the educational aims of the programmes of study to be offered, the accessibility to prospective students of various teaching media and their relative costs to providers and students;
- determine whether there will be electronic (including telephone), postal and/or local support for distance learning students and, if so, in what forms;
- determine an appropriate structure through which to provide student support;
- identify, and wherever possible test, the forms and lines of communication to be used between all the parties to be involved, in the context of constraints imposed by the timetable and, where relevant, time zones;
- determine the processes that should apply to piloting, or otherwise field testing, learning materials, and to evaluating any locally provided facilities or services on which successful study is assumed to depend;
- determine the appropriate schedule for all activities forming part of the designed system and test the feasibility of timetables;
- devise processes appropriate to the system of distance learning, as designed, for feedback, review and evaluation of all components and specify how resulting information is to be incorporated into quality management and quality enhancement processes;
- incorporate projections on the updating and enhancement of learning materials and ensure that the design and operation of the distance learning system can take account of this updating and enhancement;
- prepare contingency plans to provide timely and effective learner support consistent with the standards to which the institution is committed in the event of projections, such as those for students admitted, not being achieved;
- where it is proposed to extend the operation of a distance learning programme of study from one country to another, test the system on which it depends in the context of the new country prior to a programme being offered;
- where distance learning programmes of study may be made available, establish procedures for reviewing legal requirements concerning any approval for programmes to be offered in a particular country and also requirements under local law in respect of relevant matters including consumer protection, copyright, employment, packaging and postal despatch;
- establish a process for reviewing periodically whether the strategy of offering programmes of study by distance learning should be revised or discontinued;
- provide for a process under which, in the event of a programme of study being discontinued, due attention is given to meeting the institution's commitments to students registered on the programme.
Precept
5
A providing institution's plans for offering programmes of study
by distance learning should be financially underwritten for the full
period during which students will be studying on them and at a level that
safeguards
the quality and standards to which the institution is committed.
Outline guidance
An institution might be expected to have developed:
- realistic projections on costs and income including those associated with the distance learning system, each specific programme of study offered and the projected numbers of students and their distribution;
- financial plans for programmes of study offered through distance learning which take account of realistic contingencies and are formally approved and underwritten by the providing institution at a level which ensures that any variation between planned and actual financial performance of the activity does not compromise academic standards and that the interests of students will be protected even where assumptions, such as those on the numbers of students registered, do not accord with what was projected;
- financial policies which make clear how expenditure and income associated with each activity in preparing and delivering programmes will be apportioned between all parties including between the providing institution, any local agent, tutor and students and how this apportionment varies in relation to student take-up;
- procedures providing for reviews of, and decisions on, performance against plans.
Guideline 2: The establishment of academic standards and quality in programme design, approval and review procedures
Precepts
6
The providing institution is responsible for ensuring that programmes
to be offered at a distance are designed so that the academic standards
of the awards
will be demonstrably comparable with those of awards delivered by the institution
in other ways and consistent with any relevant benchmark information recognised
within the UK.
7
In designing distance learning programmes of study, and any component
modules, a providing institution should ensure explicit and reasoned
coherence between,
on the one hand, the aims and intended learning outcomes, and, on the other,
the strategies for teaching at a distance, the scope of the learning materials
and the modes and criteria of assessment.
Outline guidance
Institutional processes for designing programmes and any component modules might be expected to include:
- a requirement that explicit attention be given to the academic standards appropriate to the programme and associated award, including a formal statement of how the programme conforms with any relevant and authoritative internal or external benchmarks;
- the identification of minimum academic prerequisites for the programme, and for each module, and the expression of these in ways that will be understandable in all parts of the world where the programme is to be offered;
- specification of the plans for updating learning materials so that these plans, and associated estimated costs, are taken into account in the initial design and preparation of learning materials;
- consideration of the strategy for formative and summative assessments including an indication of how summative assessments relate to the learning outcomes specified for the programme and/or module;
- a description of the relationship between the strategy for teaching and the stated aims and intended learning outcomes;
- provision for the implementation of quality control processes over core components of the programme as designed.
Precept
8
A providing institution is responsible for ensuring that the design of distance
learning programmes of study provides a learning opportunity which gives to
students a fair and reasonable chance of achieving the academic standards required
for
successful completion.
Outline guidance
An institution might be expected to:
- take account of the skills, knowledge and experience of targeted students and of the circumstances in which students are expected to study using the institution's distance learning system;
- be explicit about the basis for selecting the teaching media chosen;
- consider and specify in unambiguous detail the learning resources and the support that will be made available directly to students from the providing institution and any assumed or required to be in place at the location of the student, and any to be obtained by the student;
- consider how learning materials might be structured to support achievement of the learning outcomes and to encourage the completion of programmes;
- consider how learning materials might be made interactive and allow students to gain formative feedback;
- specify in detail the schedule of student activities in following the programme of study using the planned system of distance learning;
- identify the timetabling implications of any actions to be taken by the providing institution or any local agent or local tutor;
and in distance learning programmes offered overseas:
- ensure that where the English language is the medium of learning the academic terminology used to describe a programme of study is readily accessible to non-native speakers;
- take account of the impact of local language, culture and educational traditions, and be specific about the language permitted for any local tuition and for assessment.
Precepts
9
A providing institution should have processes for approving distance learning
programmes of study which, while underpinned by principles relevant to all
educational programmes, take specific account of the requirements of the
system of distance
learning adopted and of the opportunities provided for scrutiny.
10
A providing institution's processes for the approval of programmes
of study, and any component modules, should include an element of scrutiny
external to the institution.
Outline guidance
- An institution might be expected to have in place procedures which allow distance learning programmes of study, and any component modules, to be considered and, if appropriate, given a relevant level of approval at points in the process when choices can still be made between alternative courses of action. This may be expected to involve, depending on the system of distance learning in use:
- distinguishing outline approval of a programme of study and its intended design from final approval of a programme, or any component module, once learning materials have been prepared;
- finally approving a programme of study, and any component module, after taking account of the results of field testing and external peer review of the strategy for teaching, the quality of the learning materials and the modes and criteria of assessment;
- approving the arrangements for student support by, for example, local tutors and/or through intensive teaching, and approving also any facilities provided at a local centre.
- Scrutiny by a person external to an institution might be expected to form part of the final approval of programmes of study and of component modules.
Precept
11
An institution should ensure that programmes of study and component modules
once designed, and in use, are monitored, reviewed and subject to re-approval
regularly; in particular an institution should ensure that the content of all
learning materials remains current and relevant and that learning materials,
teaching strategies and forms of assessment are enhanced in the light of findings
from feedback.
Outline guidance
An institution might be expected to have:
- procedures for monitoring and review which are appropriate to its distance learning system and the programmes of study that are taught using it;
- the same general aims for the periodic review of programmes of study where it is offering a programme of study both by distance learning and on an institution-centred basis, but have specific objectives and processes for periodic review that are adapted to the mode of study;
- a procedure through which learning materials are verified as to their continued effectiveness, accessibility and currency, and action taken to effect necessary modifications and updating before a new intake of students begins work on a programme, or on a component module;
- a procedure for monitoring data on student progress and completion on programmes of study offered by distance learning, for reviewing any consequent implications for the programmes, and for taking appropriate action.
Guideline 3: The assurance of quality and standards in the management of programme delivery
Precepts
12
The providing institution is responsible for managing the delivery of
each distance learning programme of study in a manner that safeguards
the academic
standards of the award.
13
The providing institution is responsible for ensuring that each distance
learning programme of study is delivered in a manner that provides,
in practice, a learning
opportunity which gives students a fair and reasonable chance of achieving
the academic standards required for successful completion.
Outline guidance
In exercising its responsibility of ensuring that distance learning programmes are delivered using the system designed for the purpose, an institution might be expected to:
- state the respective entitlements, responsibilities and accountability of the several parties in respect of the programme of study under the distance learning system, including, as appropriate, those of the student, any local agent, local tutor, travelling teacher and those associated with the programme in the providing institution, these to be contained in written, binding, agreements;
- specify the qualifications and experience required of any local administrative agent and academic tutor; formally approve and appoint any directly-employed local staff after operating a due recruitment process, and appraise staff performance regularly;
- plan and conduct briefing, training and staff development for those filling both administrative and academic roles associated with delivering the distance learning programme;
- operate a procedure for approving and reviewing any, and every, local support centre to be employed in delivering the programme;
- establish reliable systems for maintaining effective communication;
- make clear statements to each relevant party on the expected communication between the several parties in the distance learning system;
- establish, and make clear to each relevant party, the timetables along with the action required of each party in delivering the programme or module;
- provide for access by students to tutors on a sufficient, regular and known basis;
- ensure that all enquiries from students are handled promptly and sympathetically;
- ensure that student progress is monitored regularly and that students are provided with helpful comments on their progress in relation to the stated learning outcomes for their programme of study;
- detail what student and staff records are to be kept, by whom and in what form;
- establish and operate a system of quality controls which include regular monitoring and review against defined levels of performance of processes undertaken by local agents, local tutors, travelling teachers and those conducting teaching at a distance;
- specify the responsibilities of different parties in the distance learning system to take measures to protect students and any local staff in the event of communication failures or other emergencies;
- maintain full records on the action taken in delivering each programme.
Precept
14
Learning, although at a distance, should be treated as an activity involving
all participants in the system, in which monitoring, review and feedback to those
who manage the programmes of study are used regularly to enhance all components
of teaching, learning and the system of delivery.
Outline guidance
The institution might want to:
- specify the procedures to be used for feedback, monitoring and review of the delivery of distance learning provision and determine the relationship between these procedures and its quality assurance system;
- include within its procedures provision for regular monitoring and appraisal of the programme of study as a whole and of each component in the system for delivering it;
- evaluate the effectiveness of teaching, learning and assessment strategies in the programme of study;
- record the findings from feedback, review and evaluation, and also the action taken on the findings, with the purpose of enhancing all aspects of the institution's provision.
Guideline 4: Student development and support
Precept
15
In respect of students taught at a distance, a providing institution
should give explicit attention to its responsibility for supporting and
promoting autonomous
learning and enabling learners to take personal control of their own development.
An institution should set realistic aims, devise practical methods for achieving
them, and monitor its practice.
Outline guidance
An institution should consider as a matter of policy how far its distance learning activities are intended to promote autonomous learning and to enable students studying at a distance to take further control of their own development.
An institution should give attention to, and make explicit statements about (including statements to students):
- its aims in promoting student development and autonomous learning, how far achieving these aims will be integral to the programme of study and what means it will use to promote the stated aims;
- the extent to which the institution will make available educational and personal guidance and the manner in which any such guidance will be provided;
- the extent to which vocational information and guidance is provided and how any such guidance will be made available;
- the processes by which it will evaluate the effectiveness of the action taken to secure its stated aims and how it will use feedback to enhance institutional performance.
Guideline 5: Student communication and representation
Precepts
16
A providing institution should meet the need of its students who are studying
at a distance for information that is particularly full and clear about the
nature and expectations of their programme of study; the relationship between
achievement
and assessment, academic progress and accumulation of credit; the characteristics
of the distance learning system and how students interact with it. The information
provided should be conveyed in a way that enables them to make informed decisions
about their own education, and to monitor their progress against clear expectations
of achievement.
17
A providing institution should monitor the effectiveness of information
provided to students and, in the light of its findings, take steps
to enhance its provision.
18
An institution should determine what means of student representation
are appropriate and realistic for students on distance learning
programmes of
study and should
provide these students with accurate information about them.
Outline guidance
The institution will need to consider what information is required by both prospective and registered students and how it can provide information with the necessary clarity. This is likely to include, at least:
- a statement of the responsibilities of the institution to the student, and of the entitlements and responsibilities of the student, in respect of the programme of study under the distance learning system;
- a clear statement about the nature of the award involved and the information which a successful candidate would expect to see recorded on the award certificate and/or the transcript;
- information on any professional recognition formally accorded to the award;
- information on programme admission requirements and the institution's admission criteria;
- information on the content and coverage of the programme of study and of any component modules;
- information on the intended outcomes of the programme of study;
- information on the characteristics of the distance learning system;
- information on the assessment methods and requirements and the procedures followed in determining results;
- the timetable for all activities including the deadlines for the submission of any assignments and the consequences of not meeting deadlines;
- information on the communications the student can expect from different parties in the institution;
- the fees and charges, when these will be required to be paid, how payment is to be made and how the institution will confirm receipt of payments;
- information about the time commitments required by the programme of study;
- information on the respective roles of academic and administrative staff, both local and remote, as they relate to students in following their programme of study;
- information on students' entitlement to support and guidance at their own location and any opportunity for direct contact with the providing institution and its staff;
- information on the learning support which students can expect on an individual basis, and on the basis of a local or networked group;
- information on the availability of networks and frameworks through which students can seek support at a distance;
- information on the mechanisms for regular feedback to students on their performance, both formative and summative;
- information on the arrangements made by the institution for access to learning resources and support services in local agencies or institutions, other than those made available directly by the providing institution, including through libraries and guidance and counselling services;
- information on how the institution safeguards the reliability of assessment;
- information on the procedures for dealing with detected instances of impersonation, plagiarism or fraud;
- a statement of the institution's aims with regard to the promotion of student development and autonomous learning;
- information on the formal status and rights of students within the institution including any which result from the provisions of student charters;
- information on procedures to handle students' representation and feedback including provision of means to contribute to discussion of quality assurance policies and their operation;
- information on appeals, complaints and grievance procedures including procedures for students to make representation directly to the providing institution;
- information on the processes through which the institution secures feedback, and reviews, evaluates and acts on its findings;
and in distance learning programmes offered overseas:
- information on the language of instruction and assessment;
- information on the methods used to establish language proficiency;
- information on any requirements or restrictions imposed by UK professional bodies or overseas governments in respect of the recognition of the awards;
- information on the protocols governing the translation of any material forming part of assessment.
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