External Quality Monitoring in New Zealand Tertiary Education

Abstract

Within the context of rapid educational reform in New Zealand, external quality monitoring requirements in the 1990s have expanded significantly. The requirements for external quality monitoring can be directly linked to the devolution of ‘control’ from a centralised to a devolved model of educational funding and management, with criteria for demonstrating accountability now the key factor in determining external quality monitoring policy. Key influences on recent external quality monitoring developments are explored, and a brief case study illustrating the impact of external processes on internal quality monitoring and the enhancement of teaching and learning in a New Zealand polytechnic is provided. Despite tensions between the accountability‐led requirements and teaching and learning enhancement, some positive impact of external quality monitoring on teaching programmes is evident.