Quality Assurance Practices Applied in PTTCs: Listening to the Student Teachers’ Voice Through Focus Group Discussion

Abstract

Ensuring the quality of education is the major concern affecting all tertiary and higher education institutions in Uganda, including Primary Teacher Training colleges (PTTCs). The primary aim of the current study was to provide the students’ perspective on quality assurance (QA) practices applied in Uganda’s PTTCs. The study applied a qualitative research design based on focus group discussion. Four PTTCs were purposively selected, which were Buloba (BLK), Ggaba (GBK), which are both private PTTCs; and Kibuli (KIB) and Rakai (RBK), which are both public PTTCs. The study identified “continuous improvement,” “accreditation,” “self-evaluation,” “external examinations,” and “student involvement in QA” as the QA practices applied in Uganda’s PTTCs. Furthermore, the study also revealed several challenges to the successful implementation of QA in PTTCs, which were “negative attitude towards quality assurance,” “lack of skilled manpower regarding QA,” “improper communication,” and “lack of financial resources for QA implementation.” The study concluded that although this research was limited to primary teacher training institutions in Uganda’s educational setting, and on an interpretative qualitative paradigm, it is anticipated that the study’s findings will provide an understanding on the QA practices implemented in Uganda’s PTTCs through listening to the students as the primary stakeholders of primary teacher education.