QCI may sign MoU with state government for education accreditation board

In a bid to set up an accreditation board for education in the state of Gujarat, the Quality Council of India (QCI) is looking at signing an memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the government. The board is likely to regulate quality of governance among government schools in the state, said Girdhar Gyani, secretary general, QCI.

"The Gujarat government has suggested signing of an MoU for setting up a Gujarat Accreditation Board for Education which will be affiliated to QCI. This board will regulate quality of governance among government schools in the state and help them adopt standards. If successful, we hope to replicate this model in other states," said Gyani. The council is also in the process of rolling out 'Accreditation Standard for Quality School Governance' across states in the country.

According to Gyani, QCI has been able to implement the accreditation standards in some of the states and should be able to reach all the state by March 2010. "So far we have received good response on acceptance of these standards from states like Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh and Kerala. Unlike infrastructure standards, these standards focus more on the quality of teachers, curriculum and academic outcomes among schools," he added.

Talking further about Gujarat's response to 'Accreditation Standard for Quality School Governance', Gyani said, "The Gujarat government has shown positive response to the idea of implementing the standards. So much so that the state government is also planning translate the standards in Gujarati language."

Meanwhile, QCI is organising its 5th National Quality Conclave on February 19 and 20, 2010 in New Delhi.