Quality Assurance and Quality Indicators in Open and Distance Education: Context, Concerns and Challenges

Quality has become a matter of major importance for higher education institutions generally, but particularly so for institutions involved in open and distance learning (ODL) (Higher Education Council, 1997; Twigg, 2000; Western Cooperative for Educational Telecommucations, 2003). Quality assurance for distance higher education is one of the main concerns among institutions and stakeholders today. The emergence of open and distance education has introduced various dimensions about quality assurance in this environment and the inevitability of the development of some quality assurance principles, benchmarks and guidelines. Distance learning today is seen as a subset of distributed learning, focusing on students who may be separated in time and space from their peers and the instructor. The new forms and meanings it is acquiring, its convergence with traditional learning and its global impact have posed several challenges as for education, it has caused a serious ‘concern for quality’. Some think that quality assurance practices for open and distance education are essentially the same as those used for traditional education. Others argue that open and distance education tests conventional assumptions and hence the present mechanisms of quality assurance are not adequate to ensure the quality of open distance education. This paper examines the differences in meaning between quality, quality assurance and Total Quality Management processes in higher education which are generally issues of concern for both on-campus and online delivery of courses. The paper further examined the historical development of open and distance education worldwide. Finally the paper examined the various quality assurance indicators in open and distance learning environments and the various challenges facing them.