Fourth Report of the Tertiary Education Advisory Commission - full report 56/58

Shaping the Funding Framework
Fourth Report
of the Tertiary Education Advisory Commission

Appendix 3: Current Quality Assurance Mechanisms

The existence of robust and strong quality assurance mechanisms is a
necessary feature of a well-functioning tertiary education system. Learners
require confidence that the award of any qualification represents meaningful and
credible attainment of learning outcomes that will be recognised, nationally and
internationally, both in the workplace and by providers of any future education.
Similarly, ensuring the effective and efficient allocation of public funds
requires the government to have some guarantee that the courses it is funding
are of reasonable quality.

The initial responsibility for quality in education, training and assessment
rests with the organisation that provides those services (polytechnics,
universities, colleges of education, wananga, and PTEs). To ensure that both the
government and individuals are investing time and money in quality education,
however, the government has set up nationally recognised processes to oversee
and reinforce internal quality assurance processes. The New Zealand
Qualifications Authority (NZQA) has overall responsibility for assuring quality
in polytechnics, colleges of education, wananga, PTEs, GTEs and Industry
Training Organisations (ITOs), while the New Zealand Vice-Chancellors Committee
(NZVCC) co-ordinates quality assurance for universities. Quality assurance and
control roles are also undertaken by Industry Training Organisations and a
number of external bodies.

The NZQA has delegated authority for quality assurance in polytechnics to the
Association of Polytechnics in New Zealand (APNZ). The New Zealand Polytechnic
Programmes Committee (NZPPC) exercises this delegation on behalf of APNZ.
Quality assurance in colleges of education is delegated by NZQA to the Colleges
of Education Accreditation Committee (CEAC).

Ensuring quality is achieved through quality assurance (including programme
approval and provider accreditation) and audit systems. This is a legislative
requirement, with Sections 158 and 159 of the Education Act 1989 requiring that
all programmes be approved, and all providers to be accredited, by the NZQA.
Section 241 of the Act enables the NZVCC to exercise these powers in relation to
universities.

Registration, approval and accreditation are the three main outcomes of the
various quality assurance process. Registration is conducted by NZQA for PTEs
and GTEs and indicates that a provider is capable of providing high quality
education and training in a safe and sound learning environment (polytechnics,
universities, colleges of education and wananga do not need to be registered).
Once registered, PTEs can apply for approval of their courses and for
accreditation as well as applying for government funding. Course approval
determines whether or not a course or programme is academically sound and will
lead to the outcomes prescribed. Accreditation ensures that a provider is
capable of establishing, delivering and maintaining the delivery of a particular
course, programme or field of study.

Quality audit is undertaken by the Academic Audit Unit (AAU) for
universities, by NZPPC for polytechnics, CEAC for colleges of
education³⁸⁸ and NZQA for wananga, PTEs
and other providers. This process examines the performance of the provider as a
whole, their management processes for achieving quality learning and research,
and their success as an education provider. Audits involve the provider
undertaking a self-evaluation, which is then followed up by an external quality
audit by an independent panel including peers and quality assurance experts.

Another important feature of the quality assurance system is the National
Qualifications Framework and The Register of Quality Assured Qualifications. The
National Qualifications Framework (NQF) is a register of national standards and
qualifications, each described in terms of level, credit value, and intended
learning outcome. These standards and qualifications are developed or endorsed
by either ITOs or National Standards Bodies (NSBs).

The NQF is a sub-set of the broader New Zealand Register of Quality Assured
Qualifications. The purpose of this Register is to:

• identify all quality assured qualifications in New Zealand;
• ensure that all qualifications have a purpose and a relation to each other
  that students and the public can understand;
• maintain and enhance learners'sability to transfer credit by establishing a
  common system of credit; and
• enhance the international recognition of New Zealand qualifications.

The credibility of the Register of Quality Assured Qualifications is
dependent on the quality of assurance process related to approval and
accreditation.

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Footnote(s):

388

CEAC is currently moving towards use of quality audit, but has yet to
receive formal NZQA delegation.