This paper reflects on what we have learned about how quality has been received in higher education. The complexity of quality policy in terms of implementation is noted, as is the importance of front-line academics as policy users. The "formal" and "situated" meanings of quality are considered and the importance of context is emphasised. It is…

Examined how academics have sought to make sense of the "quality revolution" that has been dominant in UK higher education in the last decade. Uncovered various types of behavioral responses by faculty to the requirements of quality assurance and monitoring processes. (EV)

Discussion of quality assurance in Australian higher education focuses on a case study of a university sector college. Identifies an "implementation gap" between the intentions underpinning "quality policy" and actual outcomes. Argues that institutions and external quality bodies need to consider the conditions and context of…

This paper outlines the preponderant approaches to external quality evaluation, including the purpose, focus, object, rationale, and methods of external evaluations. Accountability, compliance and, in some countries, control are much more frequent rationales for external monitoring than improvement. Research on the impact of quality monitoring is…

The prospects for managing the tension between accountability and improvement in further and higher education (FHE) were examined through a literature review and a 5-year ethnographic study of a change management project at a higher education college in Wales. Special attention was paid to the following challenges facing FHE: globalization; the…