AGHE GERONTOLOGICAL COMPETENCIES PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT AND ACCREDITATION FOR GERONTOLOGY EDUCATION

摘要

It is essential that there is a well- educated and trained workforce in gerontology.A major step was taken with the development of AGHE Gerontological Competencies that are now being used to design courses and programs. International examples will be presented. In addition, these competencies are being used to develop dimensions of program evaluation for accreditation. To this end and in partnership with the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education the Accreditation for Gerontology Education Council in (AGEC) was formed. Four features of this process will be presented (1) the history of curriculum development starting with the Foundations Project, multiple iterations of the Standards Document, Competencies and how these have led to application in course and program design and the formation of the accreditation council;(2) the design of the accreditation council including its mission, vision, international outreach, organizational chart, Board of Governors, and its procedures for accreditation and reaccreditation; (3) the implementation of accreditation for gerontology degree granting programs by the AGEC including preparing for accreditation, curriculum mapping, and the council’s focus on quality control; and (4) the outcome focusing on what accreditation does for the program regarding marketing and what it does for the students.