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AUDITORS - Seeking understandings
of the local contexts
During the first meeting with program faculty, after the introductions
are complete, the discussion turns to the Summary of the Case prepared
by the TEAC staff and auditors that explicates the case the program
has made to support its claims. The purpose of the Summary is at
least three-fold: (1) to convey to the authors (and to others) the
auditors’ interest in fully understanding the Inquiry
Brief’s meanings and contexts, (2) to facilitate the
construction of the final audit strategy, and (3) to provide the
members of the Accreditation Panel and the Accreditation Committee
with an accurate summary of the case the Brief makes.
The auditors seek the program faculty’s reaction
to the Summary of the Case the auditors and staff prepared and sent
to the program faculty. Does it hit the mark? Is it complete? Has
it distorted any elements of the Brief? Feedback from the
faculty is received without argument or debate but with words of
appreciation. When the auditors write their report, they will also
emend the Summary, based on these comments from the program faculty.
The auditors will also ask the authors of the Inquiry
Brief to clarify any language used in the Inquiry Brief
that may be still unclear to the auditors. This effort is critical
as it is essential that the program faculty believe that the auditors
understand the Brief. It is anticipated that this phase
of the audit process will also help build rapport between the audit
team members and the program faculty that comes when one party feels
the other party understands its positions.
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