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In this explorative study, the translation perspective from organisational studies is taken to analyse how national accreditation agencies interpret the so-called European Standards and Guidelines (ESG) and adjust these to the domestic context. Additionally, the study investigates how review panels make use of the ESG vocabulary in their review reports. The empirical materials stem from a variety of 17 higher education institutions in Croatia, Estonia, Finland and Portugal. The findings illustrate the translation processes (copying and modification) taking place and reveal that particularly national quality assurance frameworks often deviate from the ESG. Review panels stay fairly close to the domestic frameworks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates institutional policies and academic practices of student assessment in four Portuguese higher education institutions (HEIs) in the wake of European policy developments driven by the Bologna Process. Specifically, it examines the correspondence between European policy recommendations related to student assessment (promotion of student-centred learning by the Bologna Process and the European quality assurance standard and guidelines on student assessment) and actual assessment procedures in the investigated Portuguese HEIs. It concludes that despite student-centred methodologies having started to make inroads, it does not emerge clearly how far changes (and practices) have been driven by recent European policy. Another notable aspect is that despite apparent institutional compliance with national or European orientations meant to improve the student experience of assessment (as reflected in policy documents), academic practices and students' experiences sometimes tell a story of resistance and enduring academic beliefs and traditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) play a crucial role in knowledge society by providing and disseminating knowledge. In this regard, academics have been encouraged to collaborate with society, leading to the emergence of new modes of knowledge production. Several institutional and individual factors have been identified as determinants of the academic engagement. Hence, using data from a survey delivered to a representative sample of Portuguese academics, this paper analyses the influence of different modes of knowledge production, institutional diversity and individual characteristics on distinct dimensions of academic engagement (Formal Research Collaboration; Informal Dissemination of Knowledge; Commercialization of Knowledge; and Teaching-related Activities and Supervision of Students). We propose as research hypotheses the existence of an influence of individual academics' values, identity and types of knowledge on the engagement with society, addressing them using a linear regression. Results suggest the influence of CUDOS, (i.e. communalism, disinterestedness and organized scepticism) and PLACE, (i.e. proprietary, local, authority, commissioned and expert) on academic engagement, although this influence differs according to distinct dimensions. The findings also reveal differences according to the type of institutional affiliation. Moreover, the study confirms the relevance of individual characteristics in explaining different forms of academic engagement, such as gender, discipline and seniority. Since the results do not align entirely with the theory, this paper may be of particular relevance to launch a discussion around the type of engagement higher education institutions intend to promote and how far their own characteristics and those of their academics may influence such engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]