The Australian higher education quality assurance framework

The Australian government initiated a review of higher education in 2008. One of the outcomes of the review was the formation of a national regulator, the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA), with responsibilities to: register all higher education providers, accredit the courses of the non self-accrediting providers, assure quality against externally set standards and reduce risk by monitoring institutional performance on various measures. One of the key changes in Australian higher education quality assurance is the shift from a ‘fitness-for-purpose’ approach to quality assurance to a compliance-driven approach using an externally developed set of standards monitored by the national regulator, which has legislated powers to place sanctions on universities and other providers for non-compliance. This article outlines the new framework introduced by the government and analyses its limitations in assuring and improving quality in core and support areas. It cautions universities against being dominated by TEQSA's compliance agenda. Rather, it encourages the development and maintenance of shared governance principles and strong internal quality improvement processes along with the establishment of an outcomes focus, which will stand the test of external compliance auditing while allowing the institution to pursue its own educational objectives. The article is based on the authors’ experience and reflection on external, improvement-led quality audits in Australia over the past decade compared with the present compliance-oriented audits now required for institutional registration and ongoing accreditation.     

英国高等教育质量保证传统评述

文章主要分四个阶段对英国高等教育的质量保证传统进行梳理:1)双重制体制以前的质量保证;2)双重制体制下的质量保证;3)过渡时期的质量保证;4)QAA的质量保证.     

Professionalism,profession and quality assurance practitioners in external quality assurance agencies in higher education

This article seeks to spark a dialectic discussion on the establishment of a set of professional competencies for quality assurance practitioners who serve in external quality assurance agencies in higher education. Such a need is identified due to the shortage of relevant and sufficient coverage in the quality assurance literature. To substantiate the need, the concepts of professionalism and profession, and how these concepts are linked to the quality assurance in higher education sector, are carefully examined through a desk-top research study. References are drawn from the experiences in several other occupations. The result reveals that the development of the essential competencies for external quality assurance practitioners in higher education is valuable and essential and it will be useful for the practitioners to transform themselves into a profession in the long run.     

Path dependency and the politics of quality assurance in higher education

Abstract

National policy agendas for quality assurance in higher education (HE) are increasingly influenced by supra‐national trends and decisions. Taking Spain, Switzerland and The Netherlands as examples, the paper analyses how supranational trends are re‐interpreted at the national level and how recently formulated national policies combine the demands for cross‐national harmonisation with the long‐lasting influence of decisions and procedures run in the past in the domain of quality assurance. In this perspective, the paper argues that cross‐national policy harmonisation, a key prerequisite for the construction of the European Higher Education Area is challenged by the long‐lasting influence of national path dependent policies.     

马来西亚高等教育质量保障体系浅析

自高校脱离象牙塔进入现代社会中心以来,质量问题逐渐成为社会关注的焦点。马来西亚高等教育质量保障体系由高校、政府、民间第三方机构共同组成,在马来西亚高等教育的蓬勃发展中起到了重要作用。其与我国高等教育质量保障体系存在一定差异,为我国高等教育质量保障体系的完善提供了可借鉴的经验。     

高等职业教育的规模发展与质量保证

一定的办学规模是发展高等教育的必要条件，学校和政府是保证高职教育质量提高的两个方面，建立市场化的质量评估机制，办出自己的特色，是提高高职教育质量的必然选择。     

我国高等教育质量保证的体系结构

本文以高等教育质量保证及其实践为核心，对我国高等教育质量保证的体系结构、不同模式及其建立的关键进行了讨论。     

Impact evaluation of quality assurance in higher education: methodology and causal designs

In this paper, the theoretical perspectives and general methodological elements of impact evaluation of quality assurance in higher education institutions are discussed, which should be a cornerstone of quality development in higher education and contribute to improving the knowledge about the effectiveness (or ineffectiveness) of quality assurance. The suggested core methodology consists in comparative and longitudinal studies carried out simultaneously to the quality assurance interventions and relying on surveys and mixed methods. The methodology is applicable to any particular quality assurance procedure and any achievement area of higher education institutions. To round off the methodology presentation, an overview of causal designs, in particular causal social mechanisms, for impact analyses of quality assurance in higher education institutions and its challenges and limits is outlined and some characteristics of survey questionnaire construction are given.     

Trading quality across borders: colonial discourse and international quality assurance policies in higher education

Accountability and quality assurance have become central discourses in higher education policy throughout the world. However, accountability and quality assurance involve power and control. Practices and ideas about quality developed in the Global North are spreading rapidly across the Global South, leading to increased uniformity in the approaches to quality assurance. Given the significant asymmetries that divide the Global North and Global South, this article maps interdiscursive relations among key texts that influence policy development on international quality in higher education, and explores the applicability of colonial discourse as a perspective for understanding this increasing international convergence.     

The quality assurance system and market forces in Japanese higher education

This article analyzes thedevelopment of the quality assurance system andchanges in market forces in higher education inJapan. First, the article focuses on thefunction and impact of self-monitoring andself-evaluation systems as unique processesoriented towards decentralization and internalreflection. Second, the changes in marketforces in higher education during rapideconomic globalization are discussed. Third,the possibility of external evaluation by theNational Institution for Academic Degrees isintroduced as a bureaucratic approach to showaccountability in the national universitysystem. Finally, the relationship between thechanges in the quality assurance system and thechanges in market forces is addressed.     

Benchmarks and quality assurance for online course development in higher education

As online education has entered the main stream of the U.S. higher education, quality assurance in online course development has become a critical topic in distance education. This short article summarizes the major benchmarks related to online course development, listing and comparing the benchmarks of the National Education Association （NEA）, the benchmarks of the American Distance Education Consortium （ADEC）, the benchmarks of the American Federation of Teachers, and the benchmarks of the Quality Matters project. In doing so the author hopes to promote awareness of and commitment to quality assurance in online education.     

高等教育质量管理的道德危机与道德保证

基于现代性测量与排名的逻辑,质量评估加剧了高等教育领域的道德恐慌,增大了道德风险在大学里发生的概率,也促使现代大学的道德危机普遍化.在超越质量评估、走向质量管理之后,道德仍然是现照高等教育质量的重要维度.因为无论在哪个领域,质量都必须是道德的,质量管理也必须是道德的.对质量的管理绝不能也不应成为超越道德之上的制度的暴力.只有以道德保证与制度保证的结合作为高等教育质量管理的基础,现代大学才有可能在质量持续改进的基础上,超越生产力或效率的标准而成为公民社会的重镇.     

The contribution of professional accreditation to quality assurance in higher education

This article examines the extent to which the professional accreditation of professional higher education programmes can complement other quality assurance endeavours being carried out. An analysis of a sample of professional accreditation reports for pharmacy education programmes in Ireland provides insight into the priorities of the regulatory professional body with regard to preparation for the profession. The results show that the reports address issues that are of relevance for the higher education institutions’ provision of quality programmes and for their quality assurance. The article also considers the extent to which the reports hold institutions accountable against the professional standards, while also acknowledging the professional responsibility of institution staff. Catering for both of these logics is necessary so that professional accreditation can contribute effectively as a mechanism for quality assurance, including enhancement, in the institution.     

高等教育质量保证机制的国际比较

高等教育大众化在一些发达国家已成为现实，高等教育质量保证机制是确保大众化高等教育健康发展的必要途径。某些发达国家的高等教育保证机制主要有政府主导型、民间中介组织主导型和中介机构与院校的内部质量保证机制相结合型三种模式，几种模式各有利弊。我国建立高等教育质量保证机制对此应加以借鉴。     

A strategic quality assurance framework in an African higher education context

This study is based on a pragmatist analysis of selected international accounts on quality assurance in higher education. A pragmatist perspective was used to conceptualise a logical internal quality assurance model to embed and support the alignment of graduate competencies in curriculum and assessment of Ghanaian polytechnics. Through focus group and in-depth interviews, the framework was evaluated by internal stakeholders including lecturers, students and administrators of the polytechnics. It was found that from a pragmatist perspective, quality assurance concepts and practices in higher education reported in the international literature could be used to design a context-specific quality assurance framework for higher education systems in Africa but there will be challenges with implementation of such a framework. The challenges found include quality culture and financial resources. Nonetheless, it was noted that effective planning and stakeholder commitment can surmount the challenges to ensure effective implementation of the framework to enhance quality.     

关于高职多媒体教学质量保障机制的若干思考

高职多媒体教学质量保障机制不仅能推动高职教学活动的高效进行,而且对于规范教学行为,提高课堂教学效率,降低教学成本都有重要意义。对高职多媒体教学质量保障机制进行探索,可以为实际高职教学提供有利条件。本文主要对高职多媒体教学反思,从而总结保障机制的重要意义和提出完善保障机制的主要策略。     

我国高等教育质量保证模式的建构策略

我国现有的以政府控制为显著特征的高等教育质量保证模式,在实际运行中产生了理论和实践上的诸多问题,改革势在必行。应逐步实行市场化策略,培育与建立评估市场。政府应变“行政管理”为“政策调控”,变“统包统揽”为“多边共识”,高校应从他律走向自律,社会则应从缺席到参与。     

Scenarios of quality assurance of stakeholder relationships in Finnish higher education institutions

Although the role and significance of the external stakeholders of higher education institutions has grown in recent years, quality assurance of stakeholder relationships remains a new phenomenon in the management practices of higher education institutions and in higher education research. Based on interviews and expert panel data, this article analyses the internal and external stakeholders’ perceptions of scenarios of the quality assurance of stakeholder relationships in Finnish higher education institutions. It especially focuses on exploring how institutions can balance internal and external stakeholders’ perspectives with regard to quality assurance. The results show that an essential challenge for Finnish higher education institutions is to develop flexible quality assurance practices capable of balancing the academic goals of the institutions and the needs of the external stakeholders. This also requires seeking balance between the centralised coordination and the differentiated practices of disciplines and academic units inside institutions.