Quality Assurance in Higher Education: A Developing Country Perspective and Experience

Abstract

In developing countries, education resides primarily within the public domain and public policies are expected to play a catalytic role in quality assurance. In today’s world of interdependence, quality assurance policies and practices of developing countries are also markedly influenced by global trends. The Indian higher education system is characterized by a long history, large volume, and mind-boggling diversity. This chapter focuses on the features of education policy in India as related to quality assurance. In this background, the Indian experience of assessment and accreditation of higher education institutions is analyzed, to explore the features of a sustainable model for quality assurance in developing countries. The central theme of the chapter is to interrogate the experiences hitherto and to develop a perspective model for the future.