EXAMINING THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN QUALITY ASSURANCE AND ONLINE LEARNING IN GLOBAL HIGHER EDUCATION: IMPACT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Abstract

Quality assurance in global higher education is a top policy consideration for many nations. Since the 1980s, global universities, in response to government and societal pressure, have become more business-like and enterprising to take advantage of the opportunities presented by the so-called global knowledge economy. This corporatization of higher education is tied to increasing enrollments and intensification of educational quality assurance of online learning. But the pandemic brough rapid and substantial change to the use of online learning because it was the only service available to continue education. What now, has the COVID-19 pandemic changed the relationships between online learning and quality assurance?