Bridging the Divide - Leveraging the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning for Quality Enhancement

Oct 15, 2026

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This paper argues that a divide exists between quality assurance (QA) processes and quality enhancement, and that the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) can bridge the gap through evidence-based improvements to teaching practice. QA activities can prompt systematic inquiry into how teaching and learning issues affect student outcomes. Document analysis of Canadian provincial QA policies identifies a mismatch between identifying challenges and studying and acting on them, framing QA reports as the start of change.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages18

Reading Time45 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Argument and rationale

Evidence-based SoTL approach

Findings from Canadian QA policy analysis

The Canadian Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning | Volume 8 | Issue 2 | Article 6 | | --- | --- | | March 2017
Bridging the Divide: Leveraging the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning for Quality Enhancement
Jason A. Openo
Medicine Hat College, [jopeno@mhc.ab.ca](jopeno@mhc.ab.ca)[ ](jopeno@mhc.ab.ca)Cory Laverty
Queen's University, [lavertyc@queensu.ca](lavertyc@queensu.ca)[ ](lavertyc@queensu.ca)Klodiana Kolomitro
Queen's University, [kk78@queensu.ca](kk78@queensu.ca)[ ](kk78@queensu.ca)Paola Borin
Ryerson University, [borin@ryerson.ca](borin@ryerson.ca)[ ](borin@ryerson.ca)Lori Goff
McMaster University, [lgoff@mcmaster.ca](lgoff@mcmaster.ca)[ ](lgoff@mcmaster.ca)Matthew Stranach
University of Ontario Institute of Technology, [matthew.stranach@uoit.ca](matthew.stranach@uoit.ca)[ ](matthew.stranach@uoit.ca)Nahla Gomaa
University of Alberta, [ngomaa@ualberta.ca](ngomaa@ualberta.ca)
Follow this and additional works at: [http://ir.lib.uwo.ca/cjsotl_rcacea](http://ir.lib.uwo.ca/cjsotl_rcacea) | | Recommended Citation Openo, J., Laverty, C., Kolomitro, K., Borin, P., Goff, L, Stranach, M., & Gomaa, N. (2017). Bridging the divide: Leveraging the scholarship of teaching and learning for quality enhancement. Bridging the Divide: Leveraging the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning for Quality Enhancement Abstract This paper argues a divide exists between quality assurance (QA) processes and quality enhancement, and that the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) can bridge this divide through an evidence-based approach to improving teaching practice. QA processes can trigger the examination of teaching and learning issues, providing faculty with an opportunity to systematically study their impact on student learning. This form of scholarship positions them to take a critical and empowered role in the continuous improvement of student learning experiences and to become full participants in the goal of QA structures. A document analysis of current provincial QA policies in Canada reveals a gap between how teaching and learning challenges are identified and how those challenges are studied and acted upon. A QA report is not the end result of an assurance process. It is the beginning of a change process that is intended to lead to improvements in the student learning experience. The authors consider how SoTL provides a research-minded approach to initiate continuous improvements within a QA framework, and provides considerations for how it might be integrated into evolving provincial frameworks. Dans cet article, les auteurs soutiennent qu’il existe un fossé entre les processus d’assurance de la qualité (AQ) et l’amélioration de la qualité et que l’avancement des connaissances en enseignement et en apprentissage (ACEA) peut combler ce fossé par le biais d’une approche basée sur l’évidence pour améliorer les pratiquesd’enseignement. Les processus d’AQpeuvent déclencher l’examen des problèmes relatifs à l’enseignement et à l’apprentissage et ce faisant, donner aux professeurs l’occasion d’étudier systématiquement leur impact sur l’apprentissage des étudiants. Cette forme de recherche savante leur permet de jouer un rôle important dans l’amélioration continue des expériences d’apprentissage des étudiants et de devenir des participants à partentière pour atteindre l’objectif des structures de l’AQ. Une analyse des documents relatifs aux politiques actuelles d’AQ au Canada révèle qu’il existe un écart entre la manière dont les défis relatifs à l’enseignement et à l’apprentissage sont identifiés et la manière dont ces défis sont étudiés et dont on y a remédié. Le rapport d’AQ n’est pas la conclusion du processus d’assurance de la qualité. C’est le début d’un processus de changement qui doit aboutir à des améliorations de l’expérience d’apprentissage des étudiants. Les auteurs examinent la manière dont l’ACEA fournit une approche de recherche pour entreprendre les améliorations c

FAQs

What divide does the paper identify in post-secondary education quality work?

The paper identifies a disconnect between quality assurance (QA) processes and quality enhancement, where QA is often not linked to genuine improvements in teaching quality.

How does the paper propose the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) bridge the gap?

SoTL is presented as an evidence-based research approach that helps faculty study teaching and learning issues and use findings to drive continuous improvement in student learning experiences.

What does the document analysis of Canadian provincial QA policies reveal?

The analysis reveals a gap between how teaching and learning challenges are identified and how those challenges are studied and acted upon, and it emphasizes that a QA report should initiate a change process rather than be the final outcome.

Oct 15, 2026

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