Renewing quality assurance at a time of turbulence

Taylor and Francis PSP_A_580793. gm 10.1080/136 3108.2011.580793 Perspectives 360-3108 (pri t)/1460-7018 (online) Articl 2 11 & Francis 0 0 002011 Mr MahsoodShah mahsood.sh h@canberra.edu.au Introduction The renewal of quality assurance in Australian higher education comes at a time when the higher education sectors in Australia and around the world are experiencing a number of key challenges. These include: ongoing decline in public funding of universities; the massification of higher education and demand for it during global recession; governments’ focus on increasing enrolments in universities and particularly on access and participation by students from disadvantaged backgrounds; the rise of private for-profit higher education; use of ICT in learning; and the increased diversity of student populations. Specific to the Australian higher education sector, another key challenge is the sharp downturn of international student enrolments since early 2010, by around 10%, due to changes in government policy on skilled migration. These challenges, together with the government’s interest in quality assurance, a key element in the Australian labour party’s political platform, are driving reforms in higher education. These include: a shift of funding of projected student numbers in universities to a demand-driven model with funding of actual student places and encouragement of competition; increasing access and participation in higher education by disadvantaged students; a new quality assurance framework focused on assessing and monitoring standards; performance-based funding using various measures to reward universities; and the development of the My University website to publish university performance based on various measures for public access.