TEACHING AND LEARNING QUALITY IN A HIGHER EDUCATION CONTEXT IN CHINA

Abstract

Higher education institutions around the world have seen a surge in quality evaluations as a result of an increase in public sector accountability. Student learning is facilitated by high-quality teaching. The quality of teaching and learning at higher education institutions is being closely monitored. Academic quality in higher education has been the subject of new policy instruments introduced in many nations during the last decade. These include the UK, the US, and Australia. There was increasing pressure on UK's higher education system, for example, due to the growth of tertiary institutions and increased consumer expectations. The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAAHE) was established in 1997 to implement a dual system of quality assurance that included quality audits and quality assessments. As a result of the establishment of the Australian University Quality Agency in 2001 to monitor the quality of the country's higher education system, a quality assurance program was implemented, requiring universities to incorporate quality assurance and improvement planning into their annual published educational plans. And this is a review paper. For Chinese universities, quality assurance is a novel notion. The fast growth of Chinese tertiary institutions in the last 15 years has resulted in an increased focus on teaching quality. The number of students enrolled in China's higher education institutions has increased dramatically since 1999 as a result of increased enrolment.