Online learning environments (OLEs) are complex information technology (IT) systems that intersect with many areas of university organisation. Distributed models of leadership have been proposed as appropriate for the good governance of OLEs. Based on theoretical and empirical research, a group of Australian universities proposed a framework for…

High EdWell aware of the growing importance of the global university ranking exercises, many governments in East Asia have introduced different strategies to benchmark with leading universities in order to enhance the global competitiveness of their universities. With strong determination to do better in such global ranking exercises, universities…

Authorizers are as varied as the schools they oversee. Some are responsible for just one charter, while others monitor hundreds of charters serving tens of thousands of students. Some are school districts, while others are independent statewide boards, universities, not-for-profits, or state education agencies. Regardless of their size and type,…

Digital learning makes possible the "unbundling" of school provisions--that is, it allows children to be served by providers from almost anywhere, in new and more customized ways. At the same time, because it destandardizes and decentralizes educational delivery, digital education is far harder to bring under the yoke of the…

Governing processes in Europe and within Europeanization are often opaque and appearances can deceive. The normative practices of improvement in education, and the connected growth in performance measurement, have been largely understood in their own terms. However, the management of flows of information through quality assurance can be examined…

This article deals with the Bologna Process (BP), which since its creation in 1999 has deeply influenced European higher education: What is it? How did it come into being? How far has it come? The BP is both a political phenomenon and a reform taking place in European higher education. As a political phenomenon it consists of a series of…

This paper explores the relationship between changing forms of the governance of education and the growth and uses of data in the context of England--a context that can be described as the most "advanced" in Europe in terms of data production and use. The paper links the shifting relations between the central department of education…

This report is a product of an European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA) Workshop "Assessing educational quality: Knowledge production and the role of experts" hosted by the Norwegian Agency for Quality Assurance in Education (NOKUT) in Oslo in February, 2008. The workshop gathered representatives from higher…

"IMHE-Info" is the newsletter published by the Institutional Management in Higher Education (IMHE) programme of OECD. This issue includes: (1) Tertiary Education for the Knowledge Society; (2) The Assessment of Higher Education Learning Outcomes (AHELO); and (3) City-Regions in Focus. Publications of interest, IMHE News, and a calendar…

Quality assurance in higher education is in the interest of all concerned. Universities must formulate objectives and goals, but attainment of them requires external assessment and cooperation of all parties. Assessment must be based on clear and attainable expectations, aim at improvement, provide insight into quality, contribute to institutional…

Whereas internationally the shift towards quality control of school systems started in the early 1980s, mainly promoted by transnational agencies, this development only began in Germany in the mid 1990s. However, a clear-cut change from an input-controlled and centralised to a more output-controlled, decentralised and deregulated supervision…

Recently the Spanish higher education board launched a university evaluation program to institutionalize quality assessment as an extended, continuous, system-wide process. Self-study and external assessments are the program's cornerstones. The new quality assessment program and the experiences leading to it are explained. Potential problems and…

Current and likely future national policy and procedures for British university program evaluation are discussed, including assessments undertaken at different levels of governance. Issues in the national debate over assessment and accountability are enumerated and illustrated in the case of the University of Brighton. Persistent difficulties in…