Quality assurance and e‐learning: reflections from the front line

Abstract

This paper describes the experience of one university in quality assuring higher education courses that were to be delivered by E‐learning, or blended learning. The form of blended learning relies upon the use of staff from partner institutions who may not have been employed primarily solely to deliver higher education courses, be it by face‐to‐face or E‐delivery. The paper examines approaches to quality assurance, transformation and enhancement used at the university. It describes a four phase, or dimension, model of quality assurance specifically designed to ensure that the quality of the new forms of delivery was as robust and rigorous as that of the more traditional face‐to‐face delivery methods. Finally, the paper reflects upon the efficacy of the new approach to quality assurance and comments upon the changes that have been provoked by these new approaches to learning and assurance.