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Quality Assurance in Higher Education in Southern Africa: The Case of the Universities of the Witwatersrand, Zimbabwe and Botswana Ephraim Mhlanga A thesis submitted to the School of Education of the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Johannesburg, 2008 ABSTRACT Quality assurance is increasingly becoming an important aspect of higher education institutions in developing countries, as expressed in the development of relevant policies, structures and systems at national and institutional levels. This thesis critically examines the nature of quality assurance policies and practices in selected universities in the Southern African Development Community (SADC), as well as the factors that shape these policies. Through a close examination of these policies and practices, the thesis explains why some universities realise better quality than others, even though they fall within the same geographical region and share relatively similar historical legacies. Although this study was largely qualitative, it did not preclude quantitative dimensions. Integrating the two approaches made it possible not only to triangulate data, but also to engage in multidimensional analysis of some of the phenomena under investigation. While debates in the literature locate quality assurance within internal and external discourses, this does not sufficiently explain the tensions that were observed amongst the various stakeholders within institutions, especially between management and academic staff. The manner in which institutional policies were developed, the role academic staff played in the process, and the reporting lines associated with institutional quality assurance arrangements, are reflected in staff perceptions on whether or not they regarded the policies as internal to the academic community and the extent to which they own the policies. The main contribution of this thesis to debates on quality assurance is its revelation of the complexities that arise in institutional policy making as a result of the highly differentiated nature of the academy. This aspect points at the need for institutions to pay particular care in adopting most appropriate strategies that privilege the organic development of policies within institutions. On the whole, institutions were mainly preoccupied with developing quality assurance policies and systems that are comparable to international standards, hence the heavy reliance on external/international expertise in doing so. Whilst this is not necessarily a ii bad thing, the quality assurance systems that were developed did not take into account the contextual peculiarities of the studied institutions. A direct consequence of this was the development of policies and mechanisms that are more concerned with standardisation of procedures than with enhancement of academic practice. Such quality assurance systems have not resulted in the self-improvement of institutions. The establishment of quality assurance policies and the putting in place of structures and procedures are necessary but not sufficient conditions for enhancing academic practice in universities. Keywords: quality assurance accountability accreditation institutional collegiality internal and external evaluation policy process and implementation quality management higher education case studies iii DECLARATION I declare that this thesis is my own original work except where otherwise acknowledged. The thesis is submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. It has not been submitted before for any other degree or examination at any other university. __________________________________________ Ephraim Mhlanga 10th day of December, 2008 iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis would not have been successful without the unwavering mentoring I received from Professor Michael Cross. His encouragement, patience and scholarly advice were invaluable in realising such a piece of work. I would also like to acknowledge the contribution of other staff at the University of the Witwatersrand, especially for the information they provided on matters of quality assurance in the university. My special thanks in this regard are extended to Ms Linda Murray, head of the Academic Planning and Development Office, for providing documentary information on quality assurance policy issues and structures that are in place at Wits. I also thank all the members of staff in the University who participated in the interviews and the quality assurance survey for this study, who are too many to mention by name. I owe gratitude to the administration at the Universities of Botswana and Zimbabwe for granting permission to use the institutions as research sites. In particular I would like to thank the Deputy Vice Chancellor and the then Director of the Centre for Academic Development (CAD) at the University of Botswana for granting me permission to undertake the study in the university. Similar thanks are extended to Vice Chancellor Professor Nyagura and his registrar, Mr. Chevo, for sanctioning the study at the University of Zimbabwe at difficult times during the life of the institution, when such studies were very sensitive in higher education institutions in the country. I acknowledge the contribution of academic staff in the two institutions who responded to my surveys and participated in the interviews. Last but not least, I would like to thank my wife Tendayi, my daughter Chido Charity, and my son Munashe Bright for allowing me time and resources to invest in the study. Without their love, constant support and patience I would not have managed to spend so many years of separation from them. v TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................................... II DECLARATION ................................................................................................................................. IV ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................................. V LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................................... IX LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................................... X LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ........................................................................... XI CHAPTER 1 ........................................................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY ................................................................................ 1 1.2 HOW THE IDEA EVOLVED FROM MY EXPERIENCE ................................................... 7 1.3 FOCUS OF THE STUDY .......................................................................................... 10 1.4 AIM OF THE STUDY .............................................................................................. 10 1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS ......................................................................................... 11 1.6 THESIS STATEMENT ............................................................................................. 12 1.7 STRUCTURE OF THE THESIS AND CHAPTER OUTLINE ............................................ 13 CHAPTER 2 THE CONTESTED TERRAIN OF QUALITY ASSURANCE: A THEORETICAL REVIEW ............................................................................................................................................... 18 2.1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................... 18 2.2 CONCEPTUALISATION OF QUALITY AND QUALITY ASSURANCE ............................ 20 2.3 THE INTERPLAY OF GLOBALISATION, INTERNATIONALISATION, THE STATE AND MARKET FORCES .................................................................................................. 25 2.4 THE STAKEHOLDER UNIVERSITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ..................................... 38 2.5 TRENDS IN QUALITY ASSURANCE ......................................................................... 52 2.6 THE SOUTHERN AFRICAN CONTEXT .................................................................... 53 2.7 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ................................................................................ 60 2.8 CONCLUSION ....................................................................................................... 64 CHAPTER 3 ......................................................................................................................................... 65 EXPLORING THE QUALITY DIMENSIONS OF DEVELOPING INSTITUTIONS ................ 65 3.1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................... 65 3.2 THE EPISTEMOLOGICAL ORIENTATION OF THE STUDY .......................................... 66 3.3 THE APPROACH TO THE STUDY ............................................................................ 67 3.4 THE CASE STUDY APPROACH ............................................................................... 69 3.5 DATA COLLECTION PLAN AND METHODS ............................................................

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