Quality Enhancement Committee
Members
Prof Judyth Sachs (Chair), DVC (Provost)
Mr Paul Luttrell, General Counsel
Ms Deidre Anderson, Exec Director Campus
Experience
Prof Jim Piper, DVC (Research)
Ms Maxine Brodie, University Librarian
Mr Chris Searchfield, Academic Director , Macquarie City Campus
Prof Julie Fitness, Chair, Academic Senate
Prof John Simons, Exec Dean, Arts
Dr Neil Fraser, Information Director, Macquarie
Analytics
Mr Tim Sprague, Director HR
Prof Mark Gabbott, Exec Dean, Business &
Economics
Prof Stephen Thurgate, Exec Dean, Science
Prof Janet Greeley, Exec Dean, Human Sciences
Ms Caroline Trotman, DVC (International and Development)
Mr Colin Hawkins, Academic Registrar
Ms Zoe Williams, Manager Quality Assurance, M.I.
Ms Sonia Jeffares, Principal SIBT
http://www.mq.edu.au/quality/qec.htm
In Attendance
Ms Lyn Alderman, Manager Curriculum Review and Improvement, QUT
Ms Bronwyn Kosman, Project Manager
Ms Barb McLean, Executive Officer
A/Prof Leigh Wood, for Prof Mark Gabbott
Apologies
Ms Deidre Anderson, Exec Director Campus Experience
Prof Mark Gabbott, Exec Dean, Business and Economics
Ms Sonia Jeffares, Principal SIBT
Mr Paul Luttrell, General Counsel
Prof Jim Piper, DVC (Research)
Prof Judyth Sachs, DVC (Provost)
Ms Caroline Trotman, DVC (International and Development)
st
Minutes
11.00-1.00p.m. Wednesday 1 December 2010, Council Room, level 2, E11A
Prof Julie Fitness in the Chair
1.
Minutes of the Meeting 22nd October 2010 and Business Arising Adopted
1.1
Faculty Research Centres: policy, procedure and guidelines
Prof Piper wanted the Committee to note that the Policy required a review of
research centres every five years; and the Procedure lists Terms of Reference
for the review.
Noted
1.2
Review Panel membership training
Prof Greeley will supply a further two academic names for the Review Panel
training.
2.
Reviews
2.1
Reviews 2010-2012
Prof Simons will send the Faculty of Arts timetable for reviews to Ms
McLean. Prof Thurgate will re-order the Science timetable due to changed
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priorities. Ms Brodie requested that the Library be added to the 2012
timetable.
2.2
Report against Recommendations of the Review of COE
Professors Fitness and Greeley verified that the COE had been active in
applying the Recommendations of the Review of COE and recommended that
the Progress Report be adopted.
Adopted
2.3
Report of the Review of the Dept of Environment and Geography
Prof Thurgate recommended adoption of the Review Report of the Dept of
Environment and Geography. He commented that the Panel had been very
helpful and that the Chair had experience of amalgamating a new department
out of multiple units. The Review Report provides practical suggestions to
overcome barriers to change. Prof Thurgate and A/Prof Poulsen were pleased
to see that the new structure was endorsed by external disciplinary leaders, as
this will provide authority for the additional changes required.
The Review Report was endorsed by the meeting.
3.
Adopted
Any Other Business
3.1
A Risk-based approach to Course Quality Assurance Ms Lyn Alderman
Prof Fitness introduced Ms Bronwyn Kosman, Project Manager of the
Teaching Standards Framework Project, and asked her to introduce Ms
Alderman.
Ms Alderman explained that at QUT an annual Course Performance Report is
produced (‘course’ is defined as the award that will be designated on the
student’s testamur, to the level of major) with data being collected at the level
of the student. Data is cumulated and sent to Course Coordinators for them to
respond and input a response under the headings:

Actions from previous year

Observations, additional data and benchmarks

Actions for remainder of year
These are then reported to Academic Board and rolled up into a Consolidated
Course Performance Report (aggregated to faculty and institution level). All
courses are looked at annually at the same time and mapped to the University
Blueprint. This system of reporting has increased the visibility of Course
Coordinators.
Individual Course Reports have an overall score and a performance indicator
that identifies risk. As the data is linked to the individual student,
information in the Course Report can be provided on cohort and hence
information on service teaching is provided. Underperforming units are
allocated assistance from the Curriculum Review and Improvement Branch
for 6 months. The model is driven by Attrition (initial attrition and ongoing
attrition). QUT are planning to add an assessment profile in the next year.
Information is provided which can assist the decision to close down a nonperforming/uncommercial course.
QUT is developing a single portal with all the data in one place (data had
been sourced, cleansed and de-identified prior to integration into the data
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Quality Enhancement Committee
warehouse. The data is now trusted by staff). At the commencement of the
project an audit was undertaken of what data was available and where –
national metrics formed the basis and have been built on. Definitions and
business rules were adopted. These now guide the response to staff demand
for additional reports and the collection of additional data e.g. commercial
income.
Reports are developed for HDR students but these are developed for Field of
Education rather than the level of faculty.
Discussion included:
4.

At Macquarie, do we have a person ‘responsible’ for majors attached
to generic degrees – B.A., B.Sc? It was noted that FBE have course
coordinators for each major and degree.

Ms Alderman reported that QUT have a 35% response rate to their
internal student feedback surveys and have found that the most
successful means of increasing response rate is for academic staff to
report back to students on what they have changed as a response to
student feedback. JB Hi Fi vouchers appeared to have little effect on
response rate.

How will QUT (all universities) maintain their individuality under
Compact Metrics? QUT will collect data they are required to report
and will continue to collect and refine their Course Quality Assurance
data e.g. AUSSE works at the level of the institution but not at the
course level, and hence even though this data is not used for purposes
of performance funding, it is collected.

Information about the data warehouse should be directed to Dr Sam
Nielsen, Director Dept of Reporting and Analysis. Dr Nielsen is
hosting a national workshop at QUT in February 2011.
Next Meeting: 11.00-12.30p.m. Thursday 10th February 2011 in Function Room
E11A
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