Quality And Accountability In Higher Education

As higher education becomes a key determinant for economic competitiveness, institutions face increasing pressure to demonstrate their fitness to meet the needs of society and individuals. Blending innovative research with richly contextualised examples this unique Research Handbook provides authoritative insights from around the globe on how best to understand, assess and improve quality, performance and accountability in higher education.

Beginning with the earliest efforts to regulate schools, the author reveals the rationale behind accountability and outlines the historical development of how US federal and state policies, accreditation practices, private-sector interests, and internal requirements have become so important to institutional success and survival

The latest volume in the Routledge International Studies in Higher Education series, Accountability in Higher Education takes an in-depth look at accountability initiatives around the world. Various evaluations, reporting schemes, and indicator systems have been initiated both to inform the public about higher education performance and to help transform universities and colleges and improve their functioning. This edited collection provides a comparative analysis of the promises, perils and paradoxes of accountability, and the potential effect on power structures and higher education autonomy, trust and the legitimacy of the sector. Part I describes how accountability is perceived and understood in different regions of the world, identifies some of the most common elements in established accountability initiatives, especially related to quality assurance, and provides direction for possible future development. Part II focuses on responses to new demands for accountability at institutional, national and international levels, and provides practical guidance for handling accountability going forward, emphasizing the dynamic relationship between international development, government strategies and organizational change. This volume is a must-have resource for HE managers, administrators, policy makers, researchers, HE graduate students and those interested or involved with HE accountability practices.

This comprehensive volume clarifies the historical, technical, and philosophical details present in the various quality assurance theories and policy systems of the American higher education system. The authors, E. Grady Bogue and Kimberely Bingham Hall, examine the theories of quality, including goal achievement, outcomes, value-added impacts, and reputation. They trace the philosophical heritage and analyze the strengths and weaknesses of quality assurance policy systems such as accreditation, rankings and ratings, outcomes, licensure, program reviews, follow-up studies, and total quality management. They also recommend a set of policy principles for improving their integration and effectiveness. Besides offering the details of policy systems for defining, developing, and demonstrating quality, this work also delves into the moral and ethical issues inherent in quality measures of higher education institutions. Bogue and Hall assert that quality cannot exist without integrity in personnel, policies, and programs. Political and academic officers must work together more closely in order to design appropriate collegiate accountability systems. Administrators, professors, and government leaders would all benefit from this thorough analysis of past and present quality assurance programs and the subsequent recommendations for future policies.

Whilst quality assessment is now very much a 'hot' issue, it is only within the last few years that such assessment within institutions of Higher Education has become the concern of outside organisations. This book is a practical manual for the design and development of systems of external quality assessment. The author highlights the dual function of EQA: quality improvement and greater accountability; demonstrates the importance of striking a good balance between these two elements in order to develop an effective EQA system. He also stresses the need for individual institutions to develop systems suited to their particular needs and bases his arguments on over five years' experience of working on EQA schemes in universities and colleges in the Netherlands, one of the first countries to develop such a system.

For many years the benefits conferred by a higher education went undisputed. But students, employers, governments, and taxpayers are now demanding evidence of educational quality and value. At the same time, fiscally strapped governments are raising questions about how institutions are funded and the role quality should play in setting funding levels. In the face of these mounting pressures, jurisdictions around the world are working toward designing meaningful indicators to measure the performance of postsecondary institutions that go beyond enrolment numbers, graduation rates, and ever-popular reputational rankings. Assessing Quality in Postsecondary Education: International Perspectives presents a collection of thought-provoking essays by world-renowned higher-education thinkers and policy experts that discuss ways of defining and measuring academic quality. The papers were presented at a conference convened by the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario in May 2017 and provide valuable insight into this pressing issue and underscore the need for reform.

Meet calls for increased quality and understand accreditation expectations Author Linda Suskie is internationally recognized for her work in higher education assessment, and she is a former vice president of a major regional accreditor. In Five Dimensions of Quality: A Common Sense Guide to Accreditation and Accountability in Higher Education she provides a simple, straightforward model for understanding and meeting the calls for increased quality in higher education ever-present in today's culture. Whether your institution is seeking accreditation or not, the five dimensions she outlines will help you to identify ways to improve institutional quality and demonstrate that quality to constituents. For those wading through the accreditation process, which has become more difficult in recent years due to increasing regulation and pressure for greater accountability, Suskie offers expert guidance on understanding the underlying principles of the expectations of accrediting bodies. Using the model presented here, which is much easier to understand than the sometimes complex resources provided by individual accrediting bodies, American colleges and universities can understand what they need to do to earn and maintain their regional accreditation as well as improve overall institutional quality for their students. You'll be able to: Identify ways to improve institutional quality Demonstrate the quality of your institution to internal and external constituents Avoid wasting time and energy on misguided institutional processes to comply with accreditation requirements By focusing on why colleges and universities should take particular actions rather than only on what those actions should be, Five Dimensions of Quality gives them the knowledge and strategies to prepare for a successful review. It is an ideal resource for leaders, accreditation committee members, and everyone on campus.

The study of educational leadership makes little sense unless it is in relation to who the leaders are, how they are leading, what is being led and with what effect. Based on the premise that learning is at the heart of leadership and that leaders themselves should be learners, the Leadership for Learning series explores the connections between educational leadership, policy, curriculum, human resources, and accountability. Each book in the series approaches its subject matter through a three-fold structure of process, themes and impact. Series Editors - Clive Dimmock, Mark Brundrett and Les Bell What is the role of leadership in developing strategies that enhance learning outcomes? Leadership for Quality and Accountability in Education addresses the interconnected issues of quality and accountability in the education system and provides a coherent framework within which these issues can be analysed. The authors outline the significance of promoting quality in all educational establishments and go on to discuss why quality and accountability have become so essential to the framework of leadership in education, how quality and accountability have been utilised on a national and international scale and what the defining characteristics of these terms are. The book is divided into three sections which explore three linked key aspects: Part I focuses on the concept and nature of quality and accountability and the process of developing a culture of quality; Part II addresses the issues of managing staff and resources, leadership for high-quality teaching and learning and relationships with stakeholders; Part III considers the impact and prospect of quality and accountability, including internal evaluation and external inspection. The book will appeal to educational leaders and managers, advisors and inspectors, and academic researchers. It will also be of particular relevance to Masters and doctoral degree students specialising in school leadership and management.