Collecting feedback on the quality of distance education: a follow‐up survey of China Central Radio and TV University graduates and their employers

Abstract

Timely collection of feedback on the quality of teaching from graduates and their employers is of great significance in distance education, and can help enhance the quality of teaching and improve management and all‐round learner support. However, since the graduates left university some years ago, are now widely dispersed and consequently may have changed jobs various times, it becomes more difficult to collect feedback effectively at low cost, and it is even more challenging to establish a regular mechanism for collecting this feedback. This research was based on a follow‐up survey of 280,000 graduates, who graduated from China Central Radio and TV University (CCRTVU) between 2002 and 2004, and a sample of 3–5% of them who were participants for research through questionnaires and interviews. Their employers were also invited as participants. The research data covered the feedback collected on the open learning programmes offered by the CCRTVU, in terms of curriculum design, learning resources, learner support and the delivery and effectiveness of teaching. This in turn provided the basis for improving teaching and learner support. The successful conduct of the follow‐up survey and the effective use of its results have shown that the establishment of such a mechanism is significant in improving the quality of distance education. This article focuses on the establishment of a mechanism for large‐scale feedback and provides some insights into the development of the questionnaire, which will be discussed in more detail elsewhere.

Keywords:

• graduate surveys
• educational quality
• distance education
• feedback
• China

Acknowledgements

Special thanks go to the CCRTVU Distance Education Research Centre, who provided us with a great deal of useful information. In addition, special gratitude will be extended to Zhang Shaogang, who has given us great encouragement and valuable advice for the writing of the paper.