Factors affecting quality enhancement procedures for e‐learning courses
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/09684880910970632 |
| Pages | 220-232 |
| Date | 10 July 2009 |
| Published date | 10 July 2009 |
| Author | Magdalena Jara,Harvey Mellar |
| Subject Matter | Education |
Factors affecting quality
enhancement procedures
for e-learning courses
Magdalena Jara and Harvey Mellar
London Knowledge Lab, Institute of Education, University of London,
London, UK
Abstract
Purpose – This paper reports on an empirical study exploring the way in which campus-based
higher education institutions (HEIs) in the UK apply their internal quality assurance and enhancement
(QA/QE) procedures to their e-learning courses. The purpose of this paper is to identify those
characteristics of e-learning courses which affected the capacity of these procedures to assure and
enhance the quality of courses.
Design/methodology/approach – A case study approach is selected as most appropriate for an
in-depth examination of the features of the courses as well as the way in which the procedures
are applied. Two sets of data are collected and analysed from each of four e-learning courses:
QA documentation and interviews with stakeholders.
Findings – It is found that the main factors impacting on the effectiveness of the QA procedures are:
the organisational position that these courses had within their institutions; the distributed
configuration of course, teams; the disaggregated processes that characterise e-learning courses; and
the distant location of students. These factors are found to be impacting on the potential of the QA/QE
procedures to enhance the quality of the courses.
Practical implications – These case studies highlight the need for campus-based universities
to reassess their approach to the QA/QE of e-learning courses, and identify the challenges
that course teams face in moving on from the application of QA procedures to addressing the issues
of QE.
Originality/value – The originality of this paper lies in its analysis of empirical data about the
application of QA/QE procedures in e-learning courses in higher education.
Keywords Quality assurance,Quality improvement, E-learning,Higher education, UnitedKingdom
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Traditional campus-based universities are increasingly using technologies to support
the delivery of their courses, resulting in a range of models of technology enhanced
provision. For the purposes of this paper, we will use the term “e-learning course” to
refer either to a wholly online course or to a blended course where a substantial fraction
of the course is delivered online. The quality assurance (QA; that is determining that
objectives and aims have been achieved) and quality enhancement (QE; that is a
concern with making improvements) of courses within a mixed culture of provision
where both on-campus and e-learning courses are being delivered is increasingly
becoming an issue of concern for universities.
In the UK, the Code of Practice of the Quality Assurance Agency – QAA(2002)
requires that all higher education institutions (HEIs) implement a set of internal
QA/QE procedures as part of their responsibility for the quality of their programmes.
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
www.emeraldinsight.com/0968-4883.htm
QAE
17,3
220
Quality Assurance in Education
Vol. 17 No. 3, 2009
pp. 220-232
qEmerald Group Publishing Limited
0968-4883
DOI 10.1108/09684880910970632
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