The Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award (MBNQA) framework for defining organizational quality is widely accepted in for-profit organizations. A study examined the validity of the proposed relationships among MBNQA dimensions using data from higher education. The empirical results help identify a modified model that has implications for…

Discusses the regional accrediting commissions that provide quality assurance for the majority of degree-granting institutions in the United States. Considers the balance between accountability and innovation regarding new forms of educational delivery and describes draft guidelines being developed for evaluating electronic programs. (LRW)

It is argued that university faculty, in their involvement with students, have the most direct impact on educational quality, and that impingement on their autonomy leads to reactive curriculum design, decreased motivation, and skewed values concerning research and publication. Australian university administrators are called on to use available…

Refereeing describes the process by which an independent expert assists a journal editor in evaluating materials submitted for publication. Discusses the history, purposes, and criticisms of refereeing, as well as technical aspects that include standards, rejection rates, interrater reliability and bias, the referees, ethics and malpractice,…

Outlines the context to the development of national standards in advice, guidance, and counseling. Reviews definitions of national occupations standards. Explains the approach to writing generic standards across the advice, guidance, and counselling fields. Examines ethics and equality in detail and generic standards imported from elsewhere.…

Development of quality-assurance mechanisms for course and program offerings delivered internationally is lagging; only the United States, Australia, and Hong Kong have taken steps to regulate the quality of such imported or exported offerings. A nongovernmental organization, the Global Alliance for Transnational Education, created in 1995, will…

Discusses quality assurance and evaluation at institutions of higher education in Africa. Notes driving forces behind this trend, including declining financial resources; accountability to stakeholders; and massification, internationalization, and globalization of education. Notes establishment by many institutions of internal and external quality…

Reports on a pilot project which examined the feasibility of introducing a quality assurance system, originally developed in the United Kingdom, in Turkish universities. Although a convergence between systems was observed, there emerged significant cultural, structural, political, and technical issues that affected the transfer fo the UK system to…

Discusses the changing role of government as Australian universities face restructuring including: (1) shaping the system for national policy purposes; (2) funding research and teaching; (3) setting industrial relations and related policy parameters; and (4) quality assurance and accountability. Urges universities to tackle their problems without…

In the ephemeral dot.com economy, numerous education portals (search engines) are emerging just as unsuccessful ones are terminating or trimming services. Ideally, portals offer an online school/home gateway and provide tailored content for parents, students, and teachers. However, quality, equity, reliability, and commercialism issues abound.…

A research project examined what form of organizational structures have been adopted within British further-education colleges 5 years after their incorporation and removal from local-education authority control. Colleges are representing their structures as market models (alongside a clan culture), rather than Weberian bureaucracies. (Contains 29…

The basic philosophy of organization and management of a learning resource center is to maximize the effectiveness/efficiency for the use of all resources and establish proper management control and cost effectiveness. Qualities should include accountability, consistent service, reliable professional consulting, and standardized procedures. A…

Examines the integration of a systematic in-house certification framework and outlines an evaluation model to validate and justify certification as a performance management tool of value to organizations and individuals. Discusses the six elements of effective competency certification programs: competency analysis; training for certification;…

Outlines a study to develop methods to assess the quality of digital reference services, test and refine measures and quality standards to describe digital reference services, and to produce a guidebook that describes how to collect and report data for these measures and standards. (Author/AEF)

Discussion of the use of self-instructional materials (SIMs) in distance learning at Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) and State Open Universities (SOUs) in India. Focuses on the need for Correspondence Course Institutes in conventional Indian universities to transform printed course materials into SIMs. Discusses revision and…