International and local accreditation
All FLS programs are internationally and locally accredited. The programs are accredited by OUUK every 5 years, and by the local Education Ministries in the branches hosting our programs. Our programs are designed according to the international standards and benchmarks and delivered in state-of-the-art classrooms equipped with modern facilities. Students receive a dual degree, one from the branch and the other from OUUK. Both degrees are locally and internationally validated.
Quality Assurance life cycle
FLS works closely with OU Quality Assurance Department at different stages. Programs are designed in accordance with QA. Once programs are implemented, they are assessed by QA, and FLS consults with this department to modify and improve the programs. At the end of each semester, QA administers a survey to students and tutors. The results are collected and sent by QA to FLS. This large data is analyzed by FLS in its Annual Report to shed more light on the programs offered and suggests ways and means by which they can be improved.
FLS coordinates with the QA Department all its plans and monitoring procedures. QA Department supervises the implementation and execution of FLS plans and monitors the performance and the satisfaction of our students and tutors through surveys and feedback from students and staff. FLS coordinates with HQ the necessary steps for the enhancements of its programs.
Internal Moderation:
FLS was the first Deanship at AOU to pilot and then introduce the Cross-Branch Marking Scheme, which has contributed greatly to the narrowing of discrepancies in marking across branches and which has become a good practice for other Deanships at AOU to follow.
To further improve the marking process and to narrow differences in marking within and across branches, FLS has also started implementing an Internal Moderation Scheme for marking of exams, which all of the other AOU deanships have adopted. The scheme aims to ensure that once the exams (MTAs and Finals) were drafted by the GCC, after due consultation with the concerned BCCs and tutors, they are carefully inspected by a fellow tutor who is an expert in the material (before the exams are sent to the external examiners) to ensure that the questions are a) free of any errors of any sort, b) are in line with the learning outcomes, c) and that the GCCs have taken into account the initial feedback given by the tutors.
FLS has come up with a procedure for this scheme, which is as follows:
Procedure for Internal Moderation of Exams
(MTAs and FEs)
All correspondence throughout the process will be done via password-protected files.
External Examiners Team and Duties:
FLS has five External Examiners:
Annual Monitoring Reports:
FLS program continues to be reviewed, assessed and critically appraised by the relevant competent bodies at AOU itself as well as those in the branch countries. It should be emphasized, first of all, that since much of the program is OU-based, it does meet the requirements of the OU-related professional, statutory, and regulatory bodies. Toward this end, we provide CICP every year with the Annual Monitoring Report (AMR) in which we report on and assess essentially all aspects of the program, and which CICP examines carefully and gives us feedback. A large part of the AMR is based on student questionnaires administered by QA. Such questionnaires receive careful attention at the Deanship level (as well as at the level of the branches) in terms of both careful analysis, as well as meticulous follow up. The CICP reports about the FLS AMRs have been very positive.
Principal Performance Indicators
Teaching
The Faculty of Language Studies (FLS) has a distinguished group of Staff Members specialized in English literature, linguistics and translation. They are renowned by their dedication and cooperation in carrying out their teaching and advisory duties.
They are usually classified highly in evaluations made by their peers and by their students reaching 3.5 to 4 on a scale of 5.
Research
In addition to their distinction in teaching, their research performance is also deemed praiseworthy. For example, the number of research papers that they have published in the past years has approached 100. As for their participation in specialized academic conferences and seminars, the figure here is in access of 35.
Community Service
FLS Staff Members are effective contributors to serving the community. This is done through lectures and workshops held in various Kuwaiti schools concerning the teaching of English language.
