Academic fraud, accreditation and quality assurance: learning from the past and challenges for the future

This paper starts by contextualizing the current trend of increasing academic fraud and corrupt practices in quality assurance and accreditation processes. Several factors are considered, such as the diversification of higher education services and delivery systems, increased competition among students and institutions, globalization and the cross-border education phenomenon. The next section focuses on the opportunities for fraud and corruption that have been observed in two different contexts: first, in countries in which mechanisms for examination and accreditation are under the authority of central public bodies; and second, in countries where these mechanisms are regulated and controlled by non-governmental bodies. Special attention is given here to international delivery services, including nstitutions with large numbers of overseas students, extramural education institutions and e-higher education. The next section considers six key strategies that can be adopted to address these challenges, namely: regulating the market by means of transparent criteria, reducing the risks of conflict of interest, using more appropriate management tools, developing standards and codes of practice, facilitating public access to information and establishing and using awareness indicators, commonly referred to as red flags. After presenting the rationale behind each strategy, the paper then provides examples of good practices. The paper concludes with policy recommendations for the national, regional and international levels.Peer Reviewe

Fraude académico, acreditación y garantía de la calidad: lecciones aprendidas del pasado y retos para el futuro

Este artículo empieza contextualizando la tendencia actual de crecimiento del fraude académico y las prácticas corruptas en los procesos de garantía de la calidad y de acreditación. Se consideran varios factores, como la diversificación de los servicios y sistemas de provisión de la educación superior, el aumento de la competitividad entre estudiantes e instituciones, la globalización y el fenómeno de la educación transfronteriza. La siguiente sección se centra en las oportunidades que favorecen el fraude y la corrupción, que se han observado en dos contextos distintos: en primer lugar, en los países en que los mecanismos de evaluación y acreditación dependen de organismos públicos centralizados; en segundo lugar, en los países en los que estos mecanismos están regulados y controlados por organismos no gubernamentales. Se pone especial atención tanto en los proveedores internacionales, como en las instituciones con un gran número de estudiantes extranjeros, las instituciones de educación externa y la educación superior a distancia. En la siguiente sección se analizan seis estrategias clave que pueden adoptarse para afrontar estos retos, a saber: regular el mercado mediante criterios transparentes, reducir los riesgos que comporta el conflicto de intereses, usar herramientas de gestión más adecuadas, desarrollar criterios estándar y códigos de buenas prácticas, favorecer el acceso público a la información y establecer y usar indicadores del grado de conciencia, que suelen conocerse como banderas rojas. Una vez presentados los argumentos que respaldan cada estrategia, el artículo ofrece ejemplos de buenas prácticas. Concluye con recomendaciones sobre las políticas que se deben adoptar en los ámbitos regional, nacional e internacional.Peer Reviewe

Retreat into scientism, paradoxes of transparency, and corruption in education

Um dos sintomas da razão indolente (SANTOS, 2006) é o recuo ao cientificismo, o qual tem sido, particularmente, acentuado nas políticas, cada vez mais hegemônicas, de avaliação, de prestação de contas e de responsabilização. Por isso, um dos objetivos deste texto é o de colocar em causa este aparente consenso cientificista (ou este consenso supostamente transideológico) e fazer uma breve incursão exploratória ao que aqui se designa de paradoxos da transparência. Considera-se que esses paradoxos traduzem a existência de tensões e contradições relativas a uma dimensão central dos discursos políticos e educacionais contemporâneos. Com isso, o artigo pretende dar continuidade a uma linha de pesquisa que tem procurado sublinhar a relevância da necessidade de complexificar e dar maior rigor teórico-conceptual à accountability em educação. Finalmente, tentando abrir caminho para o desenvolvimento de novas articulações e análises, chama-se a atenção para a corrupção na educação cuja complexidade ainda é insuficientemente conhecida e pesquisada, nomeadamente, nas suas relações com as problemáticas da transparência e da accountability. Admite-se que as práticas de corrupção em educação, em muitas situações, são (paradoxalmente) induzidas pela necessidade de dar resposta à governação baseada nos números, nos rankings e nas (supostas) evidências, anulando completamente as expectativas legítimas em torno da transparência dos processos educacionais e das decisões políticas.One symptom of “indolent reason” (SANTOS, 2006) is the retreat into scientism, which is especially marked in the increasingly hegemonic policies surrounding assessment, reporting and accountability. As such, one of the aims of this paper is to call into question this apparent consensus on scientism (a supposedly trans-ideological consensus), and briefly explore what we define as the paradoxes of transparency. These paradoxes are found to reveal the existence of tensions and contradictions concerning a central aspect of current political and educational discourse. In doing so, the article seeks to continue a line of study which has aimed to emphasize the significance of the need for a more complex, and theoretically and conceptually rigorous understanding of accountability in education. Finally, in an attempt to pave the way for further discussion and analysis, attention is drawn to corruption in education, the complex nature of which remains insufficiently understood and studied, notably in terms of its relationship with the problems of transparency and accountability. It is acknowledged that practices of corruption within education are, in many situations, (paradoxically) caused by the need to answer to a system of governance based on numbers, league tables, and (supposed) truths, completely nullifying legitimate expectations about the transparency of educational processes and policy decisions.Trabalho financiado por Fundos Nacionais através da FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia – no âmbito do Projeto PEst-OE/CED/UI1661/2014.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The Changing Landscape for Stroke\ua0Prevention in AF: Findings From the GLORIA-AF Registry Phase 2

Background GLORIA-AF (Global Registry on Long-Term Oral Antithrombotic Treatment in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation) is a prospective, global registry program describing antithrombotic treatment patterns in patients with newly diagnosed nonvalvular atrial fibrillation at risk of stroke. Phase 2 began when dabigatran, the first non\u2013vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulant (NOAC), became available. Objectives This study sought to describe phase 2 baseline data and compare these with the pre-NOAC era collected during phase 1. Methods During phase 2, 15,641 consenting patients were enrolled (November 2011 to December 2014); 15,092 were eligible. This pre-specified cross-sectional analysis describes eligible patients\u2019 baseline characteristics. Atrial fibrillation disease characteristics, medical outcomes, and concomitant diseases and medications were collected. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results Of the total patients, 45.5% were female; median age was 71 (interquartile range: 64, 78) years. Patients were from Europe (47.1%), North America (22.5%), Asia (20.3%), Latin America (6.0%), and the Middle East/Africa (4.0%). Most had high stroke risk (CHA2DS2-VASc [Congestive heart failure, Hypertension, Age  6575 years, Diabetes mellitus, previous Stroke, Vascular disease, Age 65 to 74 years, Sex category] score  652; 86.1%); 13.9% had moderate risk (CHA2DS2-VASc = 1). Overall, 79.9% received oral anticoagulants, of whom 47.6% received NOAC and 32.3% vitamin K antagonists (VKA); 12.1% received antiplatelet agents; 7.8% received no antithrombotic treatment. For comparison, the proportion of phase 1 patients (of N = 1,063 all eligible) prescribed VKA was 32.8%, acetylsalicylic acid 41.7%, and no therapy 20.2%. In Europe in phase 2, treatment with NOAC was more common than VKA (52.3% and 37.8%, respectively); 6.0% of patients received antiplatelet treatment; and 3.8% received no antithrombotic treatment. In North America, 52.1%, 26.2%, and 14.0% of patients received NOAC, VKA, and antiplatelet drugs, respectively; 7.5% received no antithrombotic treatment. NOAC use was less common in Asia (27.7%), where 27.5% of patients received VKA, 25.0% antiplatelet drugs, and 19.8% no antithrombotic treatment. Conclusions The baseline data from GLORIA-AF phase 2 demonstrate that in newly diagnosed nonvalvular atrial fibrillation patients, NOAC have been highly adopted into practice, becoming more frequently prescribed than VKA in Europe and North America. Worldwide, however, a large proportion of patients remain undertreated, particularly in Asia and North America. (Global Registry on Long-Term Oral Antithrombotic Treatment in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation [GLORIA-AF]; NCT01468701

Planning the location of educational policy

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Academic fraud, accreditation and quality assurance: learning from the past and challenges for the future

This paper starts by contextualizing the current trend of increasing academic fraud and corrupt practices in quality assurance and accreditation processes. Several factors are considered, such as the diversification of higher education services and delivery systems, increased competition among students and institutions, globalization and the cross-border education phenomenon. The next section focuses on the opportunities for fraud and corruption that have been observed in two different contexts: first, in countries in which mechanisms for examination and accreditation are under the authority of central public bodies; and second, in countries where these mechanisms are regulated and controlled by non-governmental bodies. Special attention is given here to international delivery services, including nstitutions with large numbers of overseas students, extramural education institutions and e-higher education. The next section considers six key strategies that can be adopted to address these challenges, namely: regulating the market by means of transparent criteria, reducing the risks of conflict of interest, using more appropriate management tools, developing standards and codes of practice, facilitating public access to information and establishing and using awareness indicators, commonly referred to as red flags. After presenting the rationale behind each strategy, the paper then provides examples of good practices. The paper concludes with policy recommendations for the national, regional and international levels.Peer Reviewe

Descentralização do sistema educacional: desafios do ponto de vista da transparência e da accountability

O artigo trata dos riscos de corrupção em contextos de descentralização da gestão educacional. A reflexão abrange o financiamento da educação, a gestão do pessoal docente e os contratos públicos. Para cada dimensão, são abordados riscos e fatores associados à corrupção, bem como boas práticas e recomendações direcionadas a prevenir, detectar e superar problemas de corrupção. Como fatores importantes na luta contra a corrupção no setor educacional, são sublinhados a constituição de sistemas de regulação transparentes sujeitos à accountability, o reforço das capacidades de gestão e uma maior apropriação de informação e conhecimento dos processos de gestão pelos cidadãos