How can UK universities continue to provide quality support and teaching to TNE students?
UK universities that offer programmes to students based overseas must follow rules, instructions and guidance issued by health authorities in the territory where the programmes are delivered, including moving to remote learning where appropriate. As awarding bodies, universities remain responsible for the quality and standards of the programmes, regardless of how and where they are delivered. Universities should especially consider the impact of any changes on vulnerable students, including students facing barriers to accessing remote learning, and ensure that all students are appropriately supported.
Some universities have adjusted regulations for assessments, progression, extenuating circumstances and degree classification. Some universities are introducing ‘no detriment policies’ or policies designed to help students progress and complete in the face of Covid-19 challenges, often setting alternative assessments in place of exams or professional practice.
Quality and standards
QAA has
a range of publications to provide guidance on how to safeguard academic quality and standards while responding to pressures resulting from the pandemic, including the safety and wellbeing of staff and students.
QAA published advice to degree-awarding bodies on mitigating the disruption of studies to students caused by the Covid-19 outbreak. Many aspects of the guidance apply to TNE provision as well. The guidance includes:
- preserving quality and standards through a time of rapid change
- building a taxonomy for digital learning
- questions to iinform a toolkit for enhancing quality in a digital environment
- complaints and appeals in the context of Covid-19
- how UK Higher Education providers managed the shift to digital delivery during the Covid-19 pandemic
QAA have compiled examples of practice and approaches to learning and teaching, assessment and feedback, and student support in view of the pandemic from institutions in different countries. The list of countries include a mix of TNE competitor (or exporting) and host (or importing) countries and host (or importing) countries. The page will be updated regularly as more examples become available.
The QAA regularly convenes different fora with UK and overseas Professional, Statutory and Regulatory Bodies (PSRBs) and publishes report of the meetings' proceedings. These reports provide useful indications on the position of UK and overseas authorities regarding transnational provision in different territories.
Student complaints
Transnational students should have access to and be informed of both the university internal complaints mechanisms and external ombudsmen schemes. The Office of the Independent Adjudicator for England and Wales (OIA) have published a
student FAQ website and a
briefing note setting up their approach to complaints in the new academic year. The note is applicable to students studying in TNE programmes delivered by English and Welsh providers. The note considers that providers have had time to prepare and plan for the longer-term effects of the pandemic. In this context, the OIA will pay special attention to accessibility issues, including in online delivery, and will closely scrutinise the application of force majeure clauses and tuition fee refund refusals. The regulator for England, the Office for Students (OfS), has indicated that where providers work in partnership with other providers, there needs to be clarity for students about which organisation the student can complain to.
Supporting TNE students' mental health
The OfS has published a briefing note on the steps universities and colleges are taking to support their students during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. This mentions best practice on how to adapt delivery of mental health and wellbeing support to international students who have returned to their home countries and may find it difficult to access mental health and wellbeing services.
Pearson has made freely available
Online Learning Units (OLU) to help students build their personal and academic skills and confidence, with the aim of supporting stronger engagement, higher retention and more successful outcomes, such as, transitioning to university, learning online, and wellbeing.
Are there new or adjusted regulatory requirements related to teaching and learning, assessment and student support that apply to TNE?
Professional, Statutory and Regulatory Bodies (PSRBs)
Programmes delivered through TNE are sometimes subject to accreditation requirements by bodies operating in the home and the host countries. We are working to identify issues related to accreditation by agencies and PSRBs in the UK and overseas. It is likely that any issues will affect a number of providers in the same situation. Collective and prompt action can ensure that suitable solutions are found in the interest of the sector.
Please contact UUKi's TNE team if you are aware of any such issues.
Consumer protection law
TNE operations are normally subject to the law applicable in the jurisdiction where the programme is taught and/or the student is located. In England, the OfS has published
guidance for providers about student and consumer protection during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, aspects of which are applicable to transnational students. In particular, the OfS expects providers to consider how their approaches affect those most vulnerable to disruption, including students unable or less able to access and effectively participate in remote learning.
For providers in England and Wales, the OIA has indicated that consumer protection legislation has not been suspended for students. This means that providers still need to deliver learning and other services that are consistent with students’ reasonable expectations. Where providers have not or decide they cannot deliver what was promised, they will need to consider how to rectify this. A blanket refusal to consider tuition fee refunds in any circumstances will not be considered reasonable. Clauses that attempt to exclude a provider’s liability for failing to deliver the educational service to the required standard, and those giving the provider a wide discretion to change significant aspects of the course of study, contrary to students’ expectations, are unlikely to stand up to scrutiny.
For English universities:
The Office for Students (OfS) has published guidance related to their regulatory approach in view of the Covid-19 outbreak. Universities and colleges in England are expected to report on significant changes to the delivery of higher education, including on any relevant matters relating to transnational educational activities, although they recognise that the specific actions taken by an awarding body to maintain quality and secure standards may need to vary for different delivery locations.
In particular, when universities decide that it is not possible to continue delivery, including for transnational students, they should refer to the OfS’s updated guidance on reporting requirements. In paragraph 25, the guidance indicates that reporting on significant changes to the delivery of higher education should include transnational educational activities. In those courses that are delivered through a sub-contractual arrangement, (such as franchise) the lead provider (normally the UK university) should report those changes to the OfS. For courses delivered through a validation arrangement, the provider with a direct contractual relationship with the students should make the report (paragraph 24).
The guidance exempts providers from the obligation of reporting any new partnerships, including validation or subcontractual arrangements, opening a new campus or intended campus, department, subject or provider closure (paragraph 26), and that they have moved teaching and assessment to an online or other delivery method or have temporarily closed a campus or the provider as a whole, as long as teaching continues to be delivered (paragraph 23).
OfS consulted on proposals for a new approach to
intervention related to student protection and to
regulation related to quality and standards. The proposals explicitly include TNE provision. For instance, with regards to the implementation of a student protection plan in cases of closure of international campuses and teaching locations overseas, the termination, or proposed termination, of partnership arrangements, including where partner organisations are closing, and the loss of accreditation or approval from third parties meaning courses can no longer be delivered (paragraph 9). In a context of rapid change due to coronavirus restrictions, English universities should make sure that any foreseen modification in their TNE arrangements are monitored and, where appropriate, communicated to the regulator.
OfS has produced a
briefing note on the steps universities and colleges are taking to support international students during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The note does not represent regulatory advice or guidance. Although primarily directed to international students in the UK, some information applies to students temporarily studying transnationally through online learning.
OfS produced a
briefing note on information, advice and guidance (IAG) that providers need to offer to prospective students to enable them to make informed choices. The note does not represent regulatory advice or guidance. The note applies to transnational students who are considering studying at programmes of English universities and colleges during the pandemic.
What support is there for universities and university staff moving to online delivery?
TNE providers need to make sure that the quality and integrity of teaching and assessments does not suffer as a result of moving to online learning, and that students are appropriately supported. They also need to factor in any accessibility constraints of students and staff, and keep an eye on regulations operating in the country for online distance learning. Some sector bodies such as Jisc are working to provide country-specific guidance on operating distance learning in key TNE host countries. In the UK, a number of online resources are being made available to support universities and university staff through this transition:
- Jisc has a number of Coronavirus-related resources, many of which are applicable to TNE provision.
- Jisc operate a Global Education Access Framework to support international students who have studied in the UK and returned home, are planning to start a UK course or are studying online transnationally, gain better access to UK learning materials and resources, and synchronous teaching for their studies.
- Jisc has created a
Microsoft Teams Planning for Coronavirus Community for Jisc members responsible for ensuring organisational continuity during the transition to online delivery. Members of this group have curated more than 100 links to
advice, guidance, hints, tips, tools, and techniques from across the web.
- QAA Scotland has made available
Technology Enhanced Learning curated resources to all QAA members.
- GÉANT, the pan-European data network for the research and education community has published
a list of remote educational tools by country.
- The Centre for Distance Education at the University of London has prepared
a web resource base for teaching and assessing online during the Covid-19 pandemic.
- The Centre for Distance Education at the University of London has prepared a
reflective tool for emergency response to teaching online to prompt thinking about the implications of the emergency teaching process for the next academic year and beyond.
- The Department for Education has made available a
skills toolkit made up of free online courses, tools and resources to help improve digital and numeracy skills. The toolkit includes a collection of resources from the UK’s leading educational experts and employers.
- The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has made available
a list of free or discounted resources for students, schools, universities and training providers, including UK universities.
- UNESCO has convened a
global Covid-19 education coalition platform for collaboration and exchange to protect the right to education during Covid-19.
- The European Association of Distance Teaching Universities (EADTU) has bundled online support resource banks of members and related stakeholders to help providers move to online teaching.
- The Open Virtual Mobility project (OpenVM) has created a learning hub that is an open, multilingual online learning environment for the development, assessment and recognition of virtual mobility skills in higher education. For more information on the concept of Open Virtual Mobility, download the OpenVM project brochure.
Collaborative provision
Communication and engagement are key for successful collaborative provision. In an environment where reciprocal visits are hindered by restrictions to mobility, universities can use digital collaborative tools to engage with overseas TNE partners.
Jisc have published a series of collaborative online tools including guidance to support interactions between partners (with a focus on education and business and community engagement).
Licensing and copyright issues
Should UK universities keep their committments to send their staff for face-to-face teaching overseas on TNE programmes?
The FCO has updated its global advisory. Under current UK Covid-19 restrictions, international travel is not permitted unless travellers have a legally permitted reason to do so. Different reasons apply in the different nations of the UK. In England, travel for work is allowed, or to provide voluntary or charitable services, for those who cannot reasonably do so from home.
From 4.00am on 18 January, inbound travel to England, Scotland, or Wales, including UK nationals returning home from travel abroad, requires evidence of a negative Covid-19 test result taken up to three days before departure. Travel corridors will be suspended and anyone arriving in the UK after 4.00am on Monday 18 January will need to self-isolate for 10 days.
Under current conditions, staff who would normally have travelled overseas to teach students on TNE programmes may decide to conduct their business remotely. Universities should ensure that those staff are appropriately supported and that the quality of teaching does not suffer as a result of the lack of face-to-face instruction, under the same conditions they apply to students and staff based in the UK.
Staff based overseas may decide to remain in the territory where the TNE programmes are delivered. It is up to each university to decide what support and advice they offer to staff who remain overseas, although they should ensure that staff are aware of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) travel advice and that appropriate communication and support measures are in place. Universities should make sure that insurance is valid in view of FCDO advice against travel. University staff teaching or working on TNE programmes overseas must also follow travel advice and guidance provided by local authorities, as well as observing the travel advice and guidance provided by their country of citizenship.
How can UK universities work with TNE partners to navigate this crisis?
Both TNE partners and students should be consulted on what support they need to ensure the continuity of provision. It is likely that TNE partners will be anxious about the knock-on effects of the pandemic. In some instances, their financial viability may depend on the partnership with UK institutions and local authorities may not be able or willing to provide financial relief.
TNE partners are also closer to the local conditions and can provide useful intelligence and guidance on the best measures to protect students and staff working on TNE programmes, and on safeguarding standards and quality when moving to online teaching.
We are working to get a better understanding of the scope and application of these measures. In the meantime, partners in host countries are well placed to provide the most up to date information.
Is transnational online learning being recognised in the countries where TNE is delivered?
Recognition of online learning varies by jurisdiction. Most TNE host countries are being flexible in their recognition policies, while the crisis prevents students from attending face-to-face teaching, either in the host country or in the UK. It is likely that exceptional recognition measures will not be extended beyond the application of restrictions to face-to-face teaching and/or international travel.
For instance, the Ministry of Education of the Popular Republic of China and CSCSE has confirmed that it will allow students who are enrolled on in-person courses, but unable to study abroad due to Covid-19, to have their qualifications recognised. This only applies to full-time registered students studying online as a result of their universities' Covid-19 mitigation measures. It should not be interpreted as a change in the policy for recognition of online delivery more broadly.
UK NARIC have published a guide to recognition issues in international distance learning, focusing on China, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Mauritius, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago, United Arab Emirates and the United States of America. This report is designed to complement the information on quality assurance and qualifications made available to UK NARIC members on its international comparisons database, along with specific information on the recognition and regulation of transnational education in over 50 countries.
UUKi is working with government and sector agencies to understand where there are gaps in our knowledge of the recognition of online learning applied, in response to COVID-19, that could prevent TNE students from progressing to further study or professional practice. If you encounter any barrier to recognition of distance learning,
please contact the TNE team.
