School Quality Assessment and Accreditation – SQAA
Let us learn SQAA!
School Education in India has evolved immensely in the current decade. School Quality Assessment and Accreditation – SQAA is a quality initiative proposed by Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to provide global parameters of attainment as standards in schools affiliated to it. The CBSE aspires to lay down a set of standards and best practices as paradigms for attaining the best benchmark in an individual institution for the upliftment of learning outcomes in the domain of school education imparted to children.
The CBSE School Quality Assessment and Accreditations (SQAA) is holistic as it covers all aspects of a school functioning, namely its Scholastic and Co-scholastic Domains, Infrastructural Areas, Human Resources, Management and Administration, Leadership and Beneficiary Satisfaction. These Seven Domains identified by CBSE infact focus on the seven areas and processes of developing the capabilities of school holistically. It is expected that by participating in the process of accreditation the institutions will raise their bar of excellence and move towards continuous improvement in terms of quality.
Central Board of Secondary Education (INDIA)
Importance and benefits of SQAA for a School
SQAA will help a school to:-
- assess how well it is doing in different areas of school functioning
- review its ongoing process of improvement of the institution
- use the feedback to plan for the future
Approach and Impact (Sqaa-1.5)
The complete focus of the standards is on encouraging Self-Evaluation, Accountability, Collaboration and Innovation. Apart from this, the following has also been kept in mind while framing of standards:
| Empowerment of Leaders Growth Self Esteem |
| Holistic All parameters of school functioning integrated seamlessly into one whole |
| Self-Assessment -Self-Reflection to bring about improvement in life and work to create overall well being |
| Student Learning Outcomes Application of Standards |
| Nonthreatening Flexibility in time period |
| Self-explanatory- Framework Clarity |
| Adaptability Contextual |
| Confident and better equipped schools Handholding, support and mentorship |
| Continual improvement Creation of an enabling learning environment in school |
| Standardization Common School Quality Assessment Framework for all schools |
How many domains are mentioned in the SQAA? What are the importance of SQAA Domains?
Standards and Performance Indicators are at the centre of any assessment framework.
SQAA Domain
- SQAA Framework rests on the following seven domains which ensure school effectiveness:
| Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment |
| Infrastructure – Adequacy, Functionality and Aesthetics |
| Human Resources |
| Inclusive Practices |
| Management and Governance |
| Leadership |
| Beneficiary Satisfaction |
- These domains are the key performance areas of school.
- The seven domains are not independent of each other but interlinked and interdependent in a systematic and seamless manner. An example would be that of leadership that develops capacity of teachers by providing resources and training benchmarked with best practices and good governance leading to enhanced learning outcomes in all students in all curricular areas.
Weightage Assigned to Domains of SQAA
The domain of ‘Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment’ carries highest (40%) weightage as compared to other domains. In the SQAA Framework, the domain of Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment has been treated as core domain because it consists of teaching-learning processes, learning outcomes, assessment practices, etc. that are used as yardstick for determining quality of school education.
| SQAA Domains Weightage |
| Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment 40% |
| Infrastructure 10% |
| Human Resources 10% |
| Inclusive Practices 10% |
| Management and Governance 10% |
| Leadership 10% |
| Beneficiary Satisfaction 10% |
Division of Domains-Subdomains and Standards/Benchmarking Statements
Resources and Reference-
CBSE SQAA-School Quality Assessment and Assurance
https://cbseacademic.nic.in/sqaa/
SCHOOL QUALITY ASSESSMENT AND ASSURANCE FRAMEWORK