Portfolio of KoKoHs Assessments published

To design study programs, courses and examinations with competencies in mind and based on consistent measurement of students’ learning progress, practitioners require objective, reliable, and valid assessments of the competencies acquired in higher education. To this end, the national research initiative KoKoHs “Modeling and Measuring Competencies in Higher Education” was established by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). In two funding phases from 2011 to 2019, theoretical-conceptual competence models and corresponding test instruments and assessment procedures were developed and comprehensively validated. The result is the KoKoHS Assessment Portfolio, which presents developed test instruments in detail and makes them available for further use in research.

New handout on data protection in the empirical social sciences published

The Council for Social and Economic Sciences (RatSWD) has revised its handout on data protection and adapted it to the new European legal framework. The handout provides a concise overview of the basics of data protection law and its implications for research practice in the social, behavioral and economic sciences. With this publication, the RatSWD aims to strengthen data protection competencies in the planning of research projects and in the handling of sensitive, personal data.

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DZHW : , Topic Institutes of research

The German Centre for Higher Education Research and Science Studies (DZHW) was established, by the Federal Government and the Länder, to meet the demand for scientifically reliable findings regarding the ongoing process of change in the knowledge society and in the higher education sector.

In keeping with this mission, the DZHW views itself as a partner and service provider for the science and science-policy sectors. It functions in this role by participating in scientific discourse and by collecting data and preparing analyses, relative to the design and structuring of higher education in Germany and Europe, for policymakers, higher education institutions and educational administrations.

DepSTS : , Topic Institutes abroad

Department of Science and Technology Studies (STS)

York University, Canada

ITAS : , Topic Institutes of research

The Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS) pursues problem-oriented research with a view to advising policy-makers and society. To this end, it analyses and assesses technologies and innovation processes with regard to the opportunities and risks they present and, in its primary focus, studies the societal conditions under which technology development and innovation thrive.