Educational accreditation is a
quality assurance
Quality assurance (QA) is the term used in both manufacturing and service industries to describe the systematic efforts taken to ensure that the product(s) delivered to customer(s) meet with the contractual and other agreed upon performance, design ...
process under which services and operations of educational institutions or programs are evaluated and verified by an external body to determine whether applicable and recognized standards are met. If standards are met, accredited status is granted by the appropriate agency.
In most countries, the function of educational
accreditation
Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...
is conducted by a government organization, such as the Ministry of Education. The
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
government instead delegates the quality assurance process to private non-profit organizations. Those organizations are formally called accreditors. In order to receive federal funding and any other type of federal recognition, all accreditors in the US must, in turn, be recognized by the
(NACIQI), which is an advisory body to the
U.S. Secretary of Education
The United States secretary of education is the head of the U.S. Department of Education. The secretary serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States, and the federal government, on policies, programs, and activities rel ...
. The federal government is, therefore, still the top-level architect and controlling authority of accreditation. The U.S. accreditation process was developed in the late 19th century and early 20th century after educational institutions perceived a need for improved coordination and articulation between
secondary
Secondary may refer to: Science and nature
* Secondary emission, of particles
** Secondary electrons, electrons generated as ionization products
* The secondary winding, or the electrical or electronic circuit connected to the secondary winding i ...
and post-secondary educational institutions, along with standardization of requirements between the two levels.
In higher education
Accreditation of
higher education
Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after completi ...
varies by jurisdiction and may focus on either or both the institution and the individual programs of study.
Higher education accreditation in the United States
Higher education accreditation in the United States is a peer review process by which the validity of degrees and credits awarded by higher education institutions is assured. It is coordinated by accreditation commissions made up of member ins ...
has long been established as a
peer review
Peer review is the evaluation of work by one or more people with similar competencies as the producers of the work (peers). It functions as a form of self-regulation by qualified members of a profession within the relevant field. Peer review ...
process coordinated by accreditation commissions and member institutions. The federal government began to play a limited role in
higher education
Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after completi ...
accreditation in 1952 with the reauthorization of the
GI Bill
The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, commonly known as the G.I. Bill, was a law that provided a range of benefits for some of the returning World War II veterans (commonly referred to as G.I.s). The original G.I. Bill expired in 1956, bu ...
for
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
veterans
A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military.
A military veteran that has ...
. With the creation of the U.S. Department of Education and under the terms of the
Higher Education Act of 1965
The Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) () was legislation signed into Law of the United States, United States law on November 8, 1965, as part of President Lyndon Johnson's Great Society domestic agenda. Johnson chose Texas State University (t ...
, as amended, the
U.S. Secretary of Education
The United States secretary of education is the head of the U.S. Department of Education. The secretary serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States, and the federal government, on policies, programs, and activities rel ...
is required by law to publish a list of
nationally recognized accrediting agencies
Higher education accreditation in the United States is a peer review process by which the validity of degrees and credits awarded by higher education institutions is assured. It is coordinated by accreditation commissions made up of member ins ...
for higher education.
In primary and secondary education
In the United States, there is no federal government list of recognized accreditation agencies for primary and secondary schools like there is for higher education.
Public schools must adhere to criteria set by the
state
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State
* ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States
* ''Our S ...
governments, and there is wide variation among the individual states in the requirements applied to non-public primary and secondary schools. There are seven
regional accreditors in the United States that have historically accredited
elementary school
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...
s,
junior high school
A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school ...
s,
middle school
A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school. ...
s,
high school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
s, as well as
institutions of higher education. Some of the regional accreditors, such as, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, International Association for Learner Driven Schools (IALDS), New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Western Association of Schools and Colleges
AdvancED, and some independent associations, such as the
Association of Christian Schools International and Council of Islamic Schools of North America (CISNA), have expanded their accreditation activity to include schools outside the United States.
Association of Christian Schools International
Acsi.org
See also
*Academic achievement
Academic achievement or academic performance is the extent to which a student, teacher or institution has attained their short or long-term educational goals. Completion of educational benchmarks such as secondary school diplomas and bachelor's deg ...
* Academic standards
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Educational Accreditation
Educational evaluation methods