ISO 21001: 2018 Educational Organizations Management System

What is ISO 21001:2018 Educational Organizations Management System?

ISO 21001:2018 is the first International Management System Standard. It provides a common management tool for organizations providing educational products and services capable of meeting learners’ and other beneficiaries’ requirements.

• It Focuses on the management systems of educational organizations and the impact these have on learners and other relevant interested parties.
• It can be implemented along with other standards/documents.
• This applies to any organization that uses a curriculum to develop competence, irrespective of type, size, or delivery method.
• This Standard aims to standardize or prioritize the education management system.
• It is based on ISO 9001 Quality Management System, but it provides a specific framework for educational organizations.
• It intends to help educational providers meet students’ requirements and needs.
• Enhance the specification of their learners by improving the educational processes.

Why is ISO 21001 important for the Education Sector?

This standard focuses on the specific interaction between an educational organization, the learner, and other customers. Current educational processes increasingly focus on co-creation, where the traditional customer-supplier relationship is refined into a collaborative partnership. This standard will guide how to deliver quality in this challenging new environment.

What are the Benefits of ISO 21001?

• Better alignment of educational mission, vision, objectives, and action plans.
• Inclusive and equitable quality education for all.
• Promotion of self-learning and lifelong learning opportunities.
• More personalized learning and effective response to special educational needs.
• Consistent processes and evaluation tools to demonstrate increased effectiveness and efficiency.
• Increased credibility of the educational organization.
• Recognized means to enable organizations to demonstrate commitment to education management practices in the most effective manner.
• A benchmark and model for improvement.
• Widened participation of interested parties.
• Stimulation of excellence and innovation.

What are the requirements of ISO 21001?

3 High-Level Requirements of ISO 21001

1. An educational organization shall focus on using a curriculum that enables proficiency development through teaching, learning, or research, irrespective of the nature, scale, or implementation procedure.
2. Demonstrate its potential to work on the gradual development of proficiency through teaching, training, learning, and research.
3. Enhance the learners’ satisfaction, i.e., the pupils and other beneficiaries, staff, or personnel.

What are the Clauses of ISO 21001:2018?

1). Context of the Organization

• Understanding the external and internal challenges, both positive and negative – Competition, market condition, cultural, Social, Political, Economic, and Environmental Factors.
• Expressed through documented information such as a mission or vision statement.
• Understanding the needs and expectations of interested parties.

2). Leadership

• Being accountable for the effectiveness of EOMS.
• To establish EOMS policy and objectives.
• Ensuring availability of resources.
• Evolving strategic plan for the organization.
• Engaging, directing, and supporting persons contributing to EOMS.
• Considering principles of social responsibility.

3). Policy

• The top management shall establish, review, and maintain an EOMS policy aligned with the institution’s mission, vision, values, and philosophy.
• It showcases its support and commitment toward continual improvement by fulfilling social responsibility.
• The policy shall be communicated, understood, and applied within the organization.
• Role, responsibilities, and authorities are to be communicated.
• To evidence how organizational communication is managed.
• To ensure that the policy is understood and implemented, all the concerned.
• To ensure that integrity is maintained when changes in EOMS are planned and implemented.

4). Planning

• While planning shall determine all the internal and external issues, requirements, and opportunities.
• Ensure that it gives achieved outcomes, enhances desirable results, reduces undesired effects, and achieves continual improvement.
• To address these risks and opportunities.
• To integrate the above, implement, and evaluate its effectiveness.
• This shall be continually monitored, communicated, and appropriately updated.
• The organization shall determine and outline what will be done. What resources will be required? When will it be completed? And how the outcomes/results will be evaluated?
• There shall also be planning for changes.

5). Support

Human Resource – Includes teaching and non-staff (Recruitment Criteria) volunteers and contributors to the organization.

Facilities – Buildings, playfields, hardware, software, utilities, learning resources, rest and recreations, rewards and recognition, physical factors, work-life balance, etc.

Faculty Empowerment Initiatives – Participation in symposiums and conferences, Higher studies, Merits Rating, Special Training, etc.

6). Communication

The organization shall determine the internal and external communication regarding EOMS;

• On what will it Communicate?
• Why Communicate?
• When to Communicate?
• To whom to Communicate?
• How to Communicate?
• Who should Communicate?

Communication Includes;

• Organization policy and strategic plan.
• Curriculum design, development & delivery.
• Inquiries, applications, prospectus, newsletters, magazines, advertisements, annual reports, etc.
• Students’ performance data, results, grievances.
• Feedback from interested parties.
• This shall be at planned intervals.
• To monitor its implementation.
• To improve upon the communication plan.
• Using social media as a source of communication.

7). Operation

• The organization shall plan, implement and control all its processes to meet the requirements of EOMS.
• At the planning stage, requirements, sources, and criteria for the process must be determined.
• When planning for changes, predict the consequences of unintended changes.
• Operational planning includes learning outcomes, learning environment, teaching method, assessment, improvement methods, and support services.
• Operational planning also includes additional requirements for special needs education, like a slow learner, visually impaired, etc.
• Planning should aim to meet the demands and developments of international.
• It also should focus on applicable health, safety, and environmental requirements.
• Professional qualification and professional experience, skills, and ICT requirements shall also be the focus at the planning stage.
• The design and development of the curriculum shall be evidence-based, student-centric, and subject to change in times of need.
• There shall be periodic reviews, checks, and balances to ensure that the intended results are met with
• We must ensure that the learning outcomes are specific, consistent, relaxant and time-bound
• Learners should take active participation in the learning process.
• Feedback on the learning process shall be obtained and assessed periodically.
• Process of student’s admission shall be uniform, transparent, and shall align with university regulations,
• Learners are to be informed to refrain from malpractices and plagiarism.
• Learners are to be informed of the assessment results and shall have the right to appeal, lodge grievances, and ratify.
• Faculty shall employ differentiated teaching strategies for special education needs through tutor ward and mentorship.

8). Performance Evaluation

• The student admission process shall be uniform, transparent, and aligned with university regulations.
• Learners are to be informed to refrain from malpractices and plagiarism.
• Learners are to be informed of the assessment results and shall have the right to appeal, lodge grievances, and ratify.
• Faculty shall employ differentiated teaching strategies for special education needs through tutor ward and mentorship.
• The organization hall determines what needs to monitor and measured and when.
• The organization shall establish and communicate the methods for handling complaints and appeals to all interested parties.
• It should also investigate and communicate the decision to close the complaints and appeals.
• Confidentiality shall be maintained whenever necessary.
• Feedback shall be obtained from all interested parties and be properly analyzed.
• The feedback shall be utilized for the improvement of EOMS.
• The organization shall conduct an internal audit for us once a semester at planned intervals.
• The internal audit shall be identified, and the audits shall be conducted freely and fairly.
• Auditors should focus on opportunities for correction and corrective actions without undue delay.
• An Auditor shall not audit their Dept/Work.
• Management Review meetings shall be conducted at planned intervals, twice a year, in a structured way.
• All their EOMS activities shall be measurable, and the outcome shall be taken as a source for further improvement.

9). Improvement

• The organization shall review, react, and correct the non-conformity without delay.
• To determine if similar non-conformity may likely exist in other areas of the process.
• If necessary, ensure the effectiveness of corrective actions taken by making changes to the EOMS.
• The organization shall continually improve the suitability, adequacy, and effectiveness of EOMS through research and best practices.
• Result analysis, Remedial classes, Tutor ward system, Management Review, Internal Audits, etc., are some key areas where improvements can be established.

In Addition, to ISO 21001:2018 audits TUV Austria BIC. also offer a range of complimentary services:

• ISO Certifications
• ISO 9001 – Quality Management System
• ISO 14001 – Environmental Management System
• ISO 45001 – Occupational Health & Safety Management System
• ISO 50001 – Energy Management System
• ISO 27001 – Information Security Management System
• ISO 20000 – IT Service Management System
• ISO 22000 – Food Safety Management System
• FSSC 22000 – Food Safety System Certification
• HACCP – Food Safety Management System
• ISO 29990 – Learning Services Management System
• ISO 20121 – Sustainability Event Management System
• ISO 22301 – Business Continuity Management System
• ISO 37001 – Anti-Bribery Management System
• ISO 28000 – Supply Chain Security Management System
• ISO 13485 – Quality Management Systems for Medical Devices
• ISO 39001 – Road Traffic Safety Management System
• ISO 31000 – Risk Management – Guidelines
• ISO 22716 – Good Manufacturing Practices for Cosmetics
• ISO 3834 – Quality Requirements for Fusion Welding of Metallic Materials
• Halal Certification
• “Covid-Shield” Certification
• GlobalG.A.P. Certification
• IFS Certification Services

FAQ’s

Why ISO 21001 standard?

A Critical and continuous need for educational organizations to evaluate the degree to which they meet the requirements of learners, other beneficiaries, and other relevant interested parties.

What are the objectives of ISO 21001?

• Understand the operation of a Management System for Educational Organizations (EOMS) based on ISO 21001.
• Acknowledge the correlation between ISO 21001, ISO 9001, and other standards and regulatory frameworks.

Is ISO 21001 standard compatible with ISO 9001?

Yes, It is very similar to ISO 9001 and focuses on client satisfaction. Hence, this is compatible with ISO 9001.

Where is ISO 21001 standard Not Applicable?

ISO 21001 Standard does not apply to organizations that are involved in only the production or manufacturing of educational products, such as stationery manufacturers, book publication houses, booksellers, and printing presses.

Who can avail of ISO 21001 Certification?

Educational Organizations & Professional Training Institutes

• School
• College
• Institutes

What are the focus points for implementing ISO 21001 certification?

• Streamlining and Standardizing the educational needs.
• Formulating Quality Policy and Objectives.
• Documentation Review and Gap Analysis.
• Management Information system.
• Performance and sustainability.

What are the implementation phases of ISO 21001?

1. Initial visits and review of the existing system.
2. Gap Analysis and planning for the documentation.
3. Training and Handholding/support for implementation.
4. Internal audit for verification of the implemented system.
5. Certification Audit.
6. Rewarding the Certification to the organization.

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