Accreditation System of Distance Higher Education in the U.S. and Its Implications for China

Abstract

Distance higher education is an important component of the Chinese higher education. How to enhance the quality of distance higher education is one of the key issues to be addressed in the research areas of distance education and higher education. As a crucial step to quality improvement, the constitution of accreditation system in distance higher education balances the benefits of all parties involved. This paper explores the American accreditation system of higher education and distance education and concludes with suggestions for the constitution of the Chinese quality assurance system: 1) establishing third-party institutions to share part of the government roles; 2) constituting the accreditation system; 3) setting up appropriate standards; 4) publicizing results of quality assurance work; and 5) building internal quality assurance mechanism. This paper is aimed to provide some reference to the constitution of accreditation system of distance higher education in China, facilitate the solution of quality problems in distance education, and promote the continuous improvement and development of distance education in China.