The SAGE Encyclopedia of Online Education

Academic Quality

Contributors: Sharayi Chakanyuka

Edited by: Steven L. Danver
Book Title: The SAGE Encyclopedia of Online Education
Chapter Title: "Academic Quality"
Pub. Date: 2016
Access Date: March 30, 2020
Publishing Company: SAGE Publications, Inc.
City: Thousand Oaks,
Print ISBN: 9781483318356
Online ISBN: 9781483318332
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781483318332.n12
Print pages: 25-28
© 2016 SAGE Publications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
This PDF has been generated from SAGE Knowledge. Please note that the pagination of the online
version will vary from the pagination of the print book.
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© 2016 by SAGE Publications, Inc.

The term academic quality is used to refer to excellent education programs that give education of value to
learners. The term can also refer to how and how well an institution carries out its teaching and learning func-
tion or provides the best possible education that empowers students to operate meaningfully as citizens and
professionals. Many institutions have always built into their systems issues of academic quality such as the
quality of the students enrolled, quality of the staff hired, quality of the curricula, and quality of the learning
environments.

While much attention is paid to academic quality nowadays, its conception among institutions varies. Some
institutions perceive it as having to do with the quality of the resources that are committed to the teaching
and learning process, while others view it as based on the outcomes of the teaching and learning processes.
Quality online education requires clearly spelled-out goals, sound pedagogy, committed and dedicated learn-
ers and instructors, excellent support from institutional leadership, and opportunities to practice application of
new knowledge and skills. This entry discusses various perceptions of academic quality in online education
and discuses three strategies for achieving academic quality: (1) the seven principles of effective online edu-
cation, (2) guidelines for achieving academic quality, and (3) accreditation.

Perceptions of Academic Quality

Different institutions perceive academic quality differently, as there is no single model that fits all institutions.
Having high quality can be viewed as being exceptional, of a high standard, excellent, fit for purpose, trans-
formative, or providing value for cost. It is a term that can refer to both the process and outcome of an activity.
With reference to education, each of these possible definitions refers to some aspect of the education process
in an institution. For example, the definition “exceptional” would refer to the best students, best resources,
best reputation, and best graduates; “fitness for purpose” would refer to achievement of the intended objec-
tives as determined by the customer or the provider; and “transformative” would refer to the extent to which
the program of study transforms and empowers the students. These definitions of the term quality apply to
both conventional and online education.

From a systems theory perspective, there is a need to examine inputs, process, and outputs of an educational
institution. In this regard, academic quality can be viewed as the level of excellence with which an institution
performs its teaching and learning function in terms of the resources it invests, the processes it goes through,
and the outcomes of that process. The learners who graduate from the system are a key indicator of the de-
gree to which an institution offered excellent education.

According to the above broad definition, some institutions perceive academic quality in terms of the resources
invested into the teaching and learning process. Such resources include, among others, the qualifications of
lecturers, their research publications, their deployment and teaching loads, financial resources available for
the teaching and learning process, institutional willingness to commit these into the teaching and learning
process, the quality of students recruited into the institution, library resources, and facilities and equipment.
An additional element in this perspective is the feedback on each of the system’s key inputs. The argument is
that if all these inputs are both efficient and effective, then the institution will achieve academic quality.

Other institutions focus on the process of teaching and learning, particularly on what goes on between the
instructor and the learner. This focus encompasses the methodologies selected for teaching, the availability
of resources for teaching and learning, the time allocated to the process, and the assessment procedures
adopted. The methodologies selected for online learning should, as much as possible, encourage interaction
between learners and instructors and among learners themselves. They should also encourage collaborative
learning and creation of learning communities. The learning materials used should be of high quality and de-
signed by experts in the field.

Yet other institutions focus on the outcomes of the system as a means of determining academic quality.
The focus is on aspects such as the performance of the system in comparison to its mission, the learning
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outcomes, the competencies acquired, operational outcomes, knowledge acquisition, and student learning,
skills, and abilities. The major institutional concerns involve what students achieve at the end of their program
of study and what they can do as members of their communities. Do the graduates find a place in the em-
ployment environments of the 21st century?

Strategies for Achieving Academic Quality in Online Education

Seven Principles of Online Education

In many institutions, the issue of academic quality in online education has led to the development of strategies
for achieving academic quality. In 1987, education researchers Arthur W. Chickering and Zelda F. Gamson
authored “Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education,” which has been applied by later
scholars to the online environment.

1. The student/faculty contact principle recommends that there should be regular student/
faculty contact using interactive dialogue in the areas of feedback, course expectations,
and conveying respect for students.
2. The cooperation among students principle requires students to actively collaborate with
one another as they learn. Online instructors are expected to create environments where
learners freely interact with one another, solve problems together, and develop relation-
ships. Collaborative learning of this type encourages greater understanding of concepts
and encourages reflection.
3. The active learning principle expects online learners to be engaged in genuine learning
activities that enable them to select, organize, and integrate newly acquired learning with
existing knowledge and to solve problems. Instructors could use a variety of strategies
such as simulations, case studies, and other problem-solving activities.
4. The prompt feedback principle expects learners to receive individual feedback on any
work done. Meaningful comments need to be written and sent directly to each learner.
This also serves as a means of interaction between the learner and the instructor. It may
even be necessary for instructors to read and comment on the learners’ postings on dis-
cussion boards.
5. The time on task principle recommends that learners be responsible for creating mean-
ingful learning experiences through monitoring the time they spend on their academic
work, persist in their work even when they face academic challenges, and regularly eval-
uate their own progress to develop self-efficacy.
6. The high expectations principle recommends that learners be made aware of the require-
ments for successful performance. Instructors need to give learners clear instructions
about course goals and the relevant assessment criteria. This empowers learners to take
charge of their own learning.
7. The respect for diverse talents and ways of learning principle recommends that learners
be given online opportunities to demonstrate their academic achievement and to develop
according to their individual abilities and talents and their different learning styles. The
element of choice needs to be built in so that learners develop according to their personal
learning styles, academic strengths, and interests.

These principles focus on the learner in the learning process and achievement of learner satisfaction as a
measure of academic quality.

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Guidelines for Achieving Academic Quality

Another perspective has been put forth by the Institute of Higher Education Policy, which suggested the fol-
lowing guidelines for achieving quality in online education. As opposed to Chickering and Gamson’s seven
principles, these guidelines are directed at different aspects of the institution offering online education.

Institutional support is vital. The institutional leadership should be supportive of online education through
provision of relevant facilities and technology for staff and students. Institutional leadership should make re-
sources available for online educational equipment and facilities and for issues such as accessibility, provision
of electronic security, and training for online education for both learners and instructors.

Course development refers to the development of curricula that prepare students to be lifelong learners and
productive professionals in their communities and in the workplaces of the 21st century. Curriculum devel-
opers need to be academics with high qualifications and training in designing online courses. Reviewing the
designed materials should be built into the curriculum development process.

The teaching and learning processes need regular student and lecturer interaction in the use of technologies,
provision of regular and timely instructor feedback to learners, and development of communities of learning
and small learning groups through the use of instructor-facilitated online discussion. In online education, stu-
dent interaction and communication is of utmost importance. It is through such communication that communi-
ties of learning are developed.

Instructors need to encourage students to use available technology such as forums, e-mails, chats, and tele-
phone conversations to interact with peers and instructors. The course structure should require student ac-
cess and understanding of technology, provision of course information, agreed course assessment expecta-
tions, and access to physical and virtual libraries. Student support is important, in that students should receive
training in the use of online tools, technical assistance and administrative support as the students learn on-
line, strong student social and psychological advisement, and career guidance.

Evaluation and assessment are used to measure student learning outcomes and achievement in learning
over a period of time. There should be clearly stipulated standards for assessment for improvement of learn-
ing and assessment of learning. Learners should understand these standards fully, and the learners and their
instructors must agree on them.

Faculty support refers to the support given to online instructors in terms of developing online courses, training
in teaching online, mentoring services available to new instructors, and availability of print resources to sup-
port online technology. It also refers to the instructors’ willingness to view themselves as facilitators rather
than dispensers of learning. In online education, there is a need for instructors to work collaboratively in the
process of providing online support to learners. There is also a need for institutions to design reward struc-
tures that actively support online teaching. In addition, academic teams need to adopt flexible learning cul-
tures.

Institutions offering online education need to consider both Chickering and Gamson’s seven principles and
the Institute of Higher Education Policy’s guidelines as strategies to ensure achievement of academic quality.

Accreditation
In most countries, higher education institutions have to be reviewed for accreditation, the results of which are
used for ranking and benchmarking. Accreditation helps ensure academic quality in the institutions. The re-
view process leads to development of sound institutions that hold high standards of integrity and offer learners
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education of value, which empowers them to live productive lives. The process also provides sound judg-
ments on institutions being reviewed and information and strategies on how to improve academic quality.

See alsoAcademic Integrity; Academic Rigor; Instructional Quality; Quality Assurance; Student Satisfaction

• online education
• learners
• teaching and learning
• learning processes
• higher education policy
• learning outcomes
• assessment for learning

Sharayi Chakanyuka
http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781483318332.n12
10.4135/9781483318332.n12

Further Readings
Bangert, A. (2005). Identifying factors underlying the quality of online teaching effectiveness: An exploratory
study. Journal of Computing in Higher Education, 17(2), 79–99.
Bangert, A. (2008). The influences of social presence and teaching presence on the quality of online critical
inquiry. Journal of Computing in Higher Education, 20(1), 34–61.
Chickering, A. W., & Gamson, Z. F. (1987). Seven principles for good practice in undergraduate education.
AAHE Bulletin, pp. 3–7. Retrieved January 29, 2016, from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED282491.pdf
Dill, D. D. (2003). 12. An institutional perspective on higher education policy: The case of academic quality
assurance. In J. C. Smart & M. B. Paulsen (Eds.), Higher education: Handbook of theory and research (Vol.
18, pp. 669–700). New York, NY: Springer.
Dreon, O. (2013). Applying the seven principles for good practice to the online classroom. Retrieved from
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/online-education/applying-the-seven-principles-for-good-practice-to-the-
online-classroom/
Epps J., & Stacey E. (2003). Establishing quality online: Supporting productive teams. In G. Davies & E.
Stacey (Eds.), Quality education @ a distance (pp. 289–297). Boston, MA: Kluwer.
McDougall, R., Flanders, M., Buchanan, R., & Lindsay S. (2003). Developing a local framework for quality in
an online learning environment: A case study. In G. Davies & E. Stacey (Eds.), Quality education @ a dis-
tance (pp. 93–100). Boston, MA: Kluwer.
Newton, J. (2006, November 23–25). What is quality? Paper presented at the First European Forum for Qual-
ity Assurance, Munich, Germany.
Reid, I. C. (2003). Quality goes online. In G. Davies & E. Stacey (Eds.), Quality education @ a distance (pp.
249–256). Boston, MA: Kluwer.
Woolsey, S. (2013). Quality and sustainability concerns for online course offerings in higher education. In M.
Kompf & P. M. Denicolo (Eds.), Critical issues in higher education (pp. 237–251). Boston, MA: Sense.

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