The Office of the Board for Undergraduate Studies (OBUS) has three broad responsibilities within the University:

Policy – responsibility to develop and coordinate policy initiatives to guide all aspects of undergraduate and sub-degree programming at The UWI and its regional and global affiliates. The Board for Undergraduate Studies (BUS) formally approves policy with respect to undergraduate studies, and provides formal approval of all new or revised undergraduate and sub-degree programming.

Quality – The Quality Assurance Unit, located within OBUS, articulates, implements and manages The UWI’s academic quality assurance enhancement system.

Regionality – OBUS is charged with the preservation of the regional mandate of The UWI.

During the fifth year of The UWI’s Triple A Strategic Plan, OBUS rolled out initiatives in three core areas:

• Implementation of The UWI Quality Policy university-wide
• Student Retention and Success
• Students as Partners in Learning

These initiatives relate mostly to Strategic Objective AC3 under the ACCESS pillar: Improving the Quality of Teaching, Learning and Student Development.

ACCESS

Improving the Quality of Teaching, Learning and Student Development.

The Quality Assurance Unit (QAU) organised fourteen quality assurance reviews during 2022/2023, as follows:

Cave Hill

Biological Sciences
Political Science

Five Islands Campus

Campus not yet on the review cycle

Mona

Department of Modern Languages and Literatures (Chinese and Japanese)
Theology Programme delivered through St Michael’s College and the United Theological College of the West Indies
University Health Services

Open Campus

Early Childhood Studies and Development

St. Augustine

Literatures in English
Computing and Information Technology
Department of Creative and Festival Arts (DCFA) Visual Arts/Musical Arts
Management Studies
UWI School of Nursing
DCFA Dance/Theatre Arts/Carnival Studies
Political Science

Fifteen Quality Evaluations were also conducted during the period under review. In addition to the core work of the Unit, Officers continue to support quality-related matters on the campuses, such as the Campus Quality Management Teams (CQMT), the Quality Policy, Academic Quality Assurance Committees, and Accreditation activities when required. The QAU has also continued to contribute to continuous quality improvement through activities such as training, teaching, research, membership on university committees and public service.

The UWI Quality Policy

All QAU Officers continued work in support of the implementation of The UWI Quality Policy: Campus and Centre Quality Management Teams (C-QMTs) are functioning; all are meeting periodically and there is a harmonized set of Terms of Reference. There is evidence during the reporting period that the CQMTs have sought to engage the Quality Policy Champions on pertinent matters arising at the campuses, and the QAU notes ongoing interest in further training for the QP Champions.

The UWI Quality Week Celebrations

World Quality Week was commemorated from November 7–11 2022. The theme was “Quality Conscience: Doing the right thing”. As is customary, for each day of the week the spotlight was turned to one of the five campuses, with a focus on doing the right thing as a quality consideration. Activities at the various campuses are available at https:// www.uwi.edu/quality/pg-qualityday2022.php.

On November 10, 2022, Officers also constituted a World Quality Week Panel Discussion organised by the Caribbean Quality Institute: “The UWI: The Journey from a focus on Quality Assurance to Quality Improvement”.

Maintaining Quality Post Pandemic

The QAU continues to conduct hybrid, and in most cases, completely online quality assurance reviews and evaluations. The move to virtual reviews has limited to some extent the range of professionals upon whom the QAU can draw, because of time zone differences, while the inability to offer travel to the region had somewhat affected the attractiveness of the process for external professionals. However, officers of the QAU continue to support quality-related matters on the campuses, such as the Campus Quality Management Teams (CQMT), Quality Policy implementation, Academic Quality Assurance Committees and Accreditation activities, as necessary. The QAU has also been at the forefront of drafting new policies and processes. These include the proposal on a risk-based approach to quality assurance at The UWI and the concept paper, “Towards Agility in Course and Programme Approval at The UWI”. The early conceptualising of these initiatives commenced in the period under review.

Student Members of Quality Assurance Review Teams (SMQARTs)

Students were trained by the QAU to participate as members of the Quality Assurance Review teams and were deployed with honoraria since Semester 2, 2021– 2022. No new students have been trained. This best practice is one for which the QAU has observed great potential and tangible benefits during the time it was initiated.

Scholarships

During the year, OBUS continued to offer and administer a range of regional undergraduate scholarships. These were important means of supporting the brightest and best students from across the region wishing to attend any campus of The UWI. There were 56 UGC-funded regional scholarships awarded through OBUS in 2022–2023, with an approximate total value of BDS$1,698,242 million. In addition, BDS$50,133 was allocated to university bursaries across three physical campuses, namely Mona, St. Augustine and Cave Hill. The following scholarships were offered:

• The UWI Open Scholarships (42)
• The UWI/ Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) Scholarships (14)

The total number of donor-sponsored scholarships, bursaries, and grants administered during the 2022/2023 academic year was over 394 with a total value of approximately J$79,284,672.13 or US$512,364.87:

• Scholarships/bursaries/grants awarded in J$ totalled: J$13,232,089.00/ US$8,5737.61
• Scholarships/bursaries/grants awarded in US$ totalled: US$286,261.67
• Scholarships /bursaries/grants awarded in CAD$ totalled: CAD$190,000.00/US$142,217.85

ALIGNMENT

National and Regional Alignment

During the year under review, the PVC BUS continued to serve on several committees and boards including Chair, Board for Undergraduate Studies; Chair, The University Quality Management Committee; Barbados Museum and Historical Society; Caribbean Credit Rating Services; Central Bank of Barbados; Fiscal Oversight Commission, St. Vincent and The Grenadines and JMMB Global.

All members of the QAU conducted research and published in their own areas of academic interest, presented lectures, and gave seminar or conference presentations.

Other presentations by QAU at CANQATE 2023: Thurab-Nkhosi, D. 2023. “Quality Assurance in Course Development and Delivery in a Post-Pandemic World: Riding the Wave of Technology Transformations”. Presentation at the CANQATE Conference on the theme Higher Education Quality and Workforce Development in the Caribbean: Issues, Challenges, Opportunities and Solutions, October 24–27, 2023, Hilton Hotel, Trinidad and Tobago

Lochan, S. and Thurab-Nkhosi, D. 2023. “Maintaining and Enhancing Blended and Online Teaching and Learning: Lessons Learnt from Student Experiences of Select Programmes During the Pandemic Period”. Presentation at the CANQATE Conference on the theme “Higher Education Quality and Workforce Development in the Caribbean: Issues, Challenges, Opportunities and Solutions”, October 24–27, 2023, Hilton Hotel, Trinidad and Tobago

Publications by staff for the period under review include:

Thurab-Nkhosi, D., co-authored with Jovanca Smith, Sharad Maharaj, Arvind Singh and Chris Maharaj (In press) “An Evaluation of Emergency Remote Teaching in Engineering Based on a Community of Inquiry Framework”. Journal of Engineering Education Transformations

Thurab-Nkhosi, D. Ed [In press] Re-visioning Education 2030: Towards Quality Lifelong Learning Opportunities for All [Kingston, Jamaica: The University of the West Indies Press.

Thurab-Nkhosi, D. [Chapter in press]. “Conversations on Reimagining Higher Education”. In Thurab-Nkhosi Ed. Re-visioning Education 2030: Towards Quality Lifelong Learning Opportunities for All. Kingston, Jamaica: The University of the West Indies Press.

Thurab-Nkhosi, D. [Chapter in press] “Rethinking teaching and learning in Higher Education: Preparing for the ‘New Normal’” in Prospects and Challenges for Caribbean Societies in and Beyond COVID-19. Springer Nature

Dottin, P. (In press). “Why do Some Stay, While Others Leave? A Case Study of Online BSc Management Studies at The UWI”. Caribbean Educational Research Journal, The UWI Cave Hill Campus, School of Education.

Perkins, Anna Kasafi (2022). “The Church, IPV, and LBTQ+ in Jamaica.” In Ramona Biholar and Dacia L. Leslie, eds., Critical Caribbean Perspectives on Preventing Gender-Based Violence. Routledge 2022, 125–149.

Perkins, Anna Kasafi (2022). “RastafarI and Domestic Labour: Roots in Menstrual Taboos and Western Inequality”. In Jione Havea (ed), Dissension and Tenacity: Doing Theology with Nerves. Rowman & Littlefield, 125- 140.

Perkins, Anna Kasafi and Dane C. Lewis. (2022). “Jesus Ate with Pras: Christianity and Commercial Sex Work in the Caribbean”. In Lauren McGrow (ed.), Religious Responses to Sex Work and Sex Trafficking, 130–154.

Perkins, Anna Kasafi (2022). “The Earth is the Lord”: Towards an Ecospirituality for the Caribbean”, International Handbook on Creation Care and Eco-Diakonia: Concepts and Perspectives from the Churches of the Global South, edited by Daniel Beros, Eale Bosela, Lesmore Ezechiel, Kambale Kahongya, Ruomin Liu, Grace Moon, Marisa Strizzi, Dietrich Werner (lead editor). Regnum Books International: 2022, 239–250.

Perkins, Anna Kasafi (2022). “Heartbless and Mek a Trod: Meditation on a Rasta Spirituality for Justice and Peace”, Transformative Spiritualities for the Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace, edited by Fernando Enns, Upolu Lumā Vaai, Andrés Pacheco Lozano and Betty Pries. Globethics.net, Geneva: WCC Publications & Globethics.net, 45–62.

Perkins, Anna (2022). “Moral Disengagement at the Workplace”, VIV (July), 13. https://uwi.edu/ooa/content/viv-newsletter-vol-6

Book Review: SimonMary Asese A. Aihiokhai. Fostering Interreligious Encounters in Pluralist Societies: Hospitality and Friendship. The Journal of the Black Catholic Theological Symposium XIII (2019): 65–67.

Hinds-Thompson, K. (In press). “Workforce Development and 21st. Century Competencies”: In Thurab-Nkhosi, D. Ed [In press] Re-visioning Education 2030: Towards Quality Lifelong Learning Opportunities for All [Kingston, Jamaica: The University of the West Indies Press.

The Quality Education Forum, Issues No. 26 and No. 27

The Quality Education Forum (QEF), OBUS’ refereed Journal on Teaching and Learning, is published online under the theme, “Student Support Systems and Student Success”. This journal, which is managed by Dr. Angella Stephens on behalf of OBUS and edited by Professor Paulette Ramsay, is available via the following link: http://uwi.edu/undergraduatestudies/default.aspx

The Quality Education Forum, Issue No. 27 (being edited)

will be published online under the theme, “Faculty Development: Teaching and Learning Excellence in Higher Education”. This is a special edition dedicated to CETL in celebration of their 30th anniversary and is also managed by Dr. Stephens and edited by Dr. Ingrid McLaren.

The UWI Quality Circle (Volume 24)

Volume 24 of The UWI Quality Circle, the newsletter of the QAU, co-edited by Dr. Anna Kasafi Perkins, Mrs. June Wheatley- Holness and Dr. Kay Thompson, focused on The UWI: “75 Years of Continuous Quality Enhancement”.

AGILITY

Students as Partners in Learning

One UWI Disability Policy

The UWI Disabilities Policy was approved in May 2023. This single university-wide policy establishes a common blueprint for supporting students and staff with a disability.

Towards Agility in Course and Programme Approval

The concept paper Towards Agility in Course and Programme Approval, which proposes revisions to The UWI programme approval and revision process, will be tabled at the meetings of the respective academic boards in 2023. The concept paper is intended to make the process less onerous for course and programme developers, while maintaining attention to quality considerations.

Student Retention and Success

BUS continues to monitor and review student performances. A one-year Consolidated Report for the academic year 2021/2022, presented courses with high pass and high failure rates (25% and higher) with the agreed new minimum class size of 16 and above across The UWI. It was also agreed that the minimum percentage grade to be applied for the review of courses which present high failure and pass grades including ‘A’ grades was 25%.

Fail No Penalty (FNP)Designation

It was agreed that effective August 2023, all campuses except the Open Campus, now Global Campus would operationalize the FNP amnesty to students placed on academic warning and/or required to withdraw after Semester1, 2022/2023.

Multi-Campus Teaching and Learning Initiative (MCTLI)

The Multi-Campus Teaching and Learning Initiative (MCTLI) was being piloted under the auspices of the Boards for Undergraduate and Graduate Studies and is a mechanism that aims at enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of the human resource utilisation across the University. The Multi-Campus Teaching and Learning Policy was approved and circulated to all Deans. Faculties were expected to indicate which courses could be delivered under the initiative.