Benchmarking and Quality Management: The Debate in UK Higher Education

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE BODY IS OF SCAN QUALITY The Quality Assurance Agency’s proposed ‘new methods’ of quality assessment in Higher Education (HE) were the subject of widespread consultation and much debate, a good deal of it hostile. It is now clear that the ‘new methods’, although scaled down, will nevertheless play a major part in the new requirements for quality assurance across the UK. The chapters in this volume deal with the generalities of the culture of accountability and enhancement in contemporary HE. Three of the chapters explore, in particular, the regulatory, informational and developmental functions claimed for Subject Benchmarking. Other chapters deal with assessment and standards and with possible alternatives to existing forms of audit, accountability and enhancement.