International Journal of Asian Social Science, 2013, 3(9):1952-1961

International Journal of Asian Social Science
Special Issue: International Conference on Teaching and Learning in Education, 2013 journal homepage: http://www.aessweb.com/journal-detail.php?id=5007

INNOVATIONS IN ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE AUDIT (APA) TO EMPOWER TEACHING & LEARNING: THE UNITEN EXPERIENCE Zainal Ariffin Ahmad
Graduate Business School, College of Graduate Studies, UNITEN, Kajang Malaysia

Norsalwati Binti Mohd Razalli
Quality Management Centre,UNITEN, Kajang Malaysia

ABSTRACT
Institutional audit is an integral part of the quality assurance process in the Malaysian higher education to determine whether the institution is achieving its mission and goals, to identify strengths and areas of concern, and to enhance quality. One form of institutional audit is the periodic academic performance audit to determine the continuation or maintenance of programme accreditation status. In 2011, UNITEN conducted an institutional audit (Academic Performance Audit) exercise to prepare for SETARA 2012 or the Rating System for Higher Education Institutions in Malaysia. UNITEN was conferred SETARA Tier 5 - Excellent in 2012 compared to Tier 4 in 2009. Based on action science approach, this paper discusses the lessons learned during the Academic Performance Audit (APA) conducted in 2011 and how they empowered the teachinglearning environment at UNITEN. It will also highlight the three innovations introduced in the APA process.

Keywords:Academic Performance Audit (APA), Rating system (SETARA), Action science, teaching-learning, Innovation.

1. INTRODUCTION
Institutional audit is an integral part of the quality assurance process in the Malaysian higher education. As mandated by the Malaysian Qualifications Agency, institutional audit is an external evaluation of an institution to determine