How are Quality Assurance Agencies Evaluating and Supporting the Quality of Digital Higher Education?
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Opening presentation at International Quality Assurance Standards, Practices and Supports for Digital Higher Education, Online Conference, OECD, 14th June
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How are Quality Assurance Agencies Evaluating and Supporting the Quality of Digital Higher Education?
- 1. Professor Mark Brown Director, National Institute for Digital Learning Dublin City University, Ireland 14 June 2022 How are Quality Assurance Agencies Evaluating and Supporting the Quality of Digital Higher Education?
- 2. How are Quality Assurance Agencies Evaluating and Supporting the Quality of Digital Higher Education? 1. A few opening remarks 2. Response of QA agencies 3. Complexity of the global QA landscape Outline…
- 3. 1. A few opening remarks “Quality is an elusive term for which there is a wide variety of interpretations depending upon the views of different stakeholders.” (Schindler, et al., 2015, p. 4) Framing perspective…
- 4. QA is not a new issue… 2002 2005 1. A few opening remarks 2004 US UK NZ
- 5. Multifaced and multifunctional Mission driven and fit-for-purpose Where institutions are central to QA processes Owned, shared, and distributed across institutions Approach is contextualised to meet local requirements Is representative of all stakeholders, especially students Intentional and integrated into mainstream QA processes Conversational, shares experiences and involves feedback loops Evidence driven, transparent, action-focused, and impactful Dynamic as part of a living and thriving quality culture Synthesis of common principles… 1. A few opening remarks
- 6. “The overarching paradox is that online and distance education systems with their digital content and the persistent record of online transactions provide a rich source of evidence to enable quality assurance and audit processes. 1. A few opening remarks If open and distance learning were the current dominant mode of Higher Education… the challenge would lie in how to quality assure a form of education in which interactions at the core of the system were ephemeral, highly dependent on personal interpretation by the teacher and student and seldom directly monitored” (2015, p. 16). A new opportunity…
- 7. https://eddl.tru.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/PreparingDigitalUniversity-George-Siemens.pdf 2015 “Distance education, when properly planned, designed, and supported by the appropriate mix of technology and pedagogy, is equivalent to, or in certain scenarios more effective than, traditional face-to-face classroom instruction” (p. 11). 2004 1. A few opening remarks About good design…
- 8. 2. Response of QA agencies Macro-Level - National level focus A Diverse response… Meso-Level - Institution level focus Micro-Level - Programme level focus
- 9. • Mainstreamed within existing general quality guidelines / processes - By default - Or by intent • Specific aligned or supplementary quality guidelines / processes - Sitting alongside - No legal status • Integrated into revised quality guidelines / process - Mapped to standards - Focus on good practice Three responses… 2. Response of QA agencies…
- 10. “Standards or criteria take into consideration the specific aspects related to different modes of provision, such as transnational education, distance or online programmes or other non- traditional approaches to HE as relevant to the context in which they operate” (p.7). 2. Response of QA agencies…
- 11. 2. Response of QA agencies… 2018 No Formal Status Specific Aligned
- 12. 2. Response of QA agencies… 2018
- 13. 2. Response of QA agencies… 2020 New Integrated
- 14. 2. Response of QA agencies…
- 15. 2. Response of QA agencies… Mapped to standards Enabling 2020 Evolving
- 16. 2. Response of QA agencies… https://www.teqsa.gov.au/online-learning-good-practice Additional Guidance
- 17. 2. Response of QA agencies… Quality Considerations New and Emerging 2018
- 18. 3. Complexity of the global QA landscape 2021
- 19. 3. Complexity of the global QA landscape
- 20. 3. Complexity of the global QA landscape
- 21. • An abundance of QA frameworks • Many common dimensions shared across the different QA frameworks and self- assessment tools • More research needed on how institutions implement QA frameworks and self- assessment tools to promote cultures of continuous improvement Findings… 3. Complexity of the global QA landscape
- 22. • Towards integration • Greater enabling focus • Journey rather than destination In sum… How are Quality Assurance Agencies Evaluating and Supporting the Quality of Digital Higher Education?
- 23. How are Quality Assurance Agencies Evaluating and Supporting the Quality of Digital Higher Education?
Hinweis der Redaktion
- Three parts to the presentation with the focus mainly on response of QA agencies…
- I want to start by with this framing perspective…
- QA of online distance education is not a new issue as these three examples illustrate
- We may not all agree on the definition of quality but there are some common contemporary principles of QA…
- New models of digital higher education are not a threat but rather new opportunity…
- We know conclusively from the research literature that quality is not defined by delivery mode – it’s about design
- There has been a diverse response ranging from national initiatives to a focus institutions and the QA of programmes – or all three in some juristictions
- Broadly speaking, QA agencies have responded in one of the following ways…
- An example of mainstreaming QA processes for online and distance programmes
- In the EU context, this ENQA specific initiative is noteworthy as considerations align to ESGs. However, no formal status
- A similar specific initiative was launched in Ireland in the same year that you will hear more about from Walter
- This recent integrated quality initiative by Romania is also noteworthy but it differs from the Australian response
- In Australia, there are common threshold standards for tertiary education. You can see the different standards on this slide
- In response to new and emerging delivery modes, key considerations for providers have been published that map to the standards but also aim to enable their practices.
- Indeed, TEQSA has launched a good practice guide drawing on experts in the field with several information sheets written on relevant topics to provide additional guidance.
- What’s clear from an analysis of the different responses and the related literature is a move towards integration whilst recognizing there are new and emerging quality considerations. This slide offers a gap analysis of areas for further consideration
- But the global QA landscape is more complex than just looking at the response of QA agencies. There are other stakeholders including professional associations and supra-national bodies such as APEC, the OECD, etc.
- And we should not overlook the role professional bodies play in monitoring and enabling quality as this AACSB example for business accreditation illustrates
- And here is a plethora of quality frameworks, self-assessment tools and benchmarking instruments available for digital higher education. This EUA report published last year summarises 20 of the more common ones.
- There are useful lessons to learn from the research literature too, although more research is needed on how institutions use these quality tools and frameworks and how best to support them.
- In sum, there is a general trends towards greater integration, a more enabling focus and recognition that new quality considerations are likely to emerge with new developments in digital education. As this famous Irish quote acknowledges, a culture of learning innovation requires a mindset that values risk taking, experimentation and reimagination, which might not always work but is core to quality enhancement.