Quality and learning outcomes in a Bachelor's Degree

The work intends to confirm the importance of “competences-planning” with particular regard to evaluation as a quality factor for an appropriate level of qualification of the degree. The course of “Educational planning and evaluation” in Padua (Italy) during the Academic Year 2010-1011 (Bachelor’s Degree of Educational Sciences, curriculum for Educators for the early childhood) has been planned in order to promote the development of didactics and include evaluations based upon competences. The course unit has been defined in terms of learning outcomes (format of Dublin Descriptors), including methodologies and suitable and effective teaching and learning times compared with the learning outcomes (Biggs, 2007). Students indicated in a questionnaire how much of the learning outcomes they thought they possessed at the beginning and at the end of the course unit. This allowed lecturers to understand the mastery of knowledge and skills developed by the students during a course and also allowed them to measure the improvement compared with the one declared at the beginning. A statystical significant difference between the Ex ante and the Ex Post results form the self-evaluation questionnaire suggest that students' perception of their skills and knowledge increased across the course.