Quality, whether in business or education, is the most crucial attribute that adds value to a product or service for the recipient. It also serves as the means through which business and educational providers set themselves apart from their rivals. By implementing relevant strategies, educational institutions can establish higher standards of quality in education.

What does quality in education signify, whether it pertains to general education, tertiary, vocational, or higher university education? How do we evaluate and ensure the quality of education provided by an institution to affirm that it is delivering quality education?

The notion of “quality” is complex, as it conveys a relative yet noticeable distinction between different entities. It is essential to comprehend the various concepts that prevail in education and are utilized to guarantee quality.

Does this pertain to the quality of facilities?

Does this pertain to the quality of resources?

Does this pertain to the quality of teachers?

Does this pertain to the quality of the teaching process?

Does this pertain to the quality of the curriculum and content?

Does this pertain to the quality of management and governance?

Does this pertain to adherence to standards or regulations set by the government, regulatory bodies, or certification organizations?

To grasp quality and quality assurance in education and training, it is vital to begin by defining quality.

QUALITY

Quality in education is a continuous process that ensures the delivery of agreed standards to achieve predetermined learning outcomes.

According to Juran, quality is defined as ‘fitness for purpose,’ while Crosby describes quality as ‘conformance to requirements.’

Harvey and Green (1993) identify five categories or perspectives on quality:

– Exception: distinctive, characterized by excellence, meeting a minimum set of standards.
– Perfection: zero defects, achieving accuracy on the first attempt (emphasizing process over inputs and outputs).
– Fitness for purpose: relating quality to a purpose defined by the provider.
– Value for money: focusing on efficiency and effectiveness, measuring outputs against inputs, a populist view of quality (government).
– Transformation: a qualitative change; education is about impacting the student rather than serving the consumer, encompassing concepts of enhancement and empowerment: democratizing the process, not just the outcomes.

Later, Watty (2003) suggested that the dimension of quality as perfection could be excluded, as education does not aim to produce defect-free graduates.

The next question is: who is accountable for the quality of education?

Is quality the responsibility of the educational institution?

Is quality the responsibility of independent quality assurance or certification bodies?

Is quality the responsibility of the government?

Primarily, the responsibility for quality lies with the educational institution itself. They must ensure the quality of the education they provide. Government bodies often play a significant role in assuring the quality of education. Typically, the government is either directly involved in overseeing the quality of education through various mechanisms or approves external agencies to manage the quality of educational institutions, standards, and provisions.

There are various methods to ensure quality. Recently, particularly in the public sector, quality assurance has been implemented as a watchdog approach, relying on government controls, professional credentials, internal audits, and external inspections to maintain standards, eliminate poor performers, and address issues.

Key methods/approaches to ensure the quality of education include:

INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL QUALITY ASSURANCE

Quality assurance is a process through which an institution can confidently guarantee that the standards and quality of its educational offerings are being upheld and improved. Quality Assurance is a condition that promotes transparency.

According to Vroeijenstijn, quality assurance involves structured and ongoing attention to quality regarding maintenance and improvement. Achieving improvement necessitates an acknowledgment by educational providers of the need for enhancement, an understanding of the appropriate focus for improvement, knowledge of how to achieve improvement objectives, and an appreciation of the benefits that will result from these efforts.

It is suggested that without intrinsic motivation to enhance quality, the best that can be hoped for is compliance with external requirements. While compliance may appear as improvement in the short term, old habits are likely to resurface once the need to demonstrate ‘improvement’ has passed (Middlehurst and Woodhouse, 1995). Askling (1997) also emphasizes the critical role of internal quality assurance as a sustainable approach for improving/enhancing the quality of education.

External quality assurance conducted by third parties ensures integrity and acts as a catalyst for enhancing the quality of education, thereby assisting institutions in their accountability to ensure quality education.

Harvey (2002) argued that both internal and external quality assurance approaches are essential for ensuring continuous and lasting improvements.

QUALITY CONTROL

Quality control refers to the internal verification procedures (both formal and informal) employed by educational institutions to monitor the quality and standards of education delivery to an acceptable standard and as intended.

QUALITY ASSESSMENT

Quality Assessment is the process of external evaluation conducted by an external body regarding the quality of educational provisions in institutions, particularly focusing on the quality of the student experience.

QUALITY AUDIT

Quality Audit involves examining institutional procedures for assuring quality and standards to verify that the arrangements are effectively implemented and meet stated objectives. Quality audit also assesses whether the quality of education (teaching/training) provided enables students to achieve standards and whether assessments are conducted at the appropriate level of standards. It further evaluates if institutions are effectively fulfilling their responsibilities regarding the standards of awards granted in their name or on behalf of their certification body.

STANDARDS

Standards define levels of attainment against which performance can be measured. Achieving a standard typically implies a measure of fitness for a specified purpose.

QUALITY CULTURE

Quality Culture refers to the integration of quality as a fundamental principle in every operation of an educational institution to ensure the delivery of quality education. Quality Culture signifies a shift from periodic assessments to ingrained quality assurance.

QUALITY ENHANCEMENT

Quality Enhancement is the process of actively changing activities to facilitate ongoing improvement in the quality of institutional offerings.

ACCREDITATION

Accreditation results from a review of an educational program or institution based on predetermined quality standards. It serves as a form of recognition that a program or institution meets specific standards. Accreditation may involve approval from government authorities to deliver certain programs.

There exists a wide array of Quality Assurance Agencies (QAA) globally involved in the quality of education. Currently, there is little uniformity or harmonization among quality assurance agencies and their procedures. Many countries, regions, and cultures are developing their own methods for quality assurance in education, with some agencies being state-driven and others private, along with numerous intermediate forms.

Source: Linkedin – Mukkta Verma