The status of physical education and quality assurance in accreditation: An analysis of self-assessment reports of 631 universities in the second accreditation phase.

In order to understand the position and quality assurance status of physical education in undergraduate education, I surveyed the contents of each university's "Self-assessment Report" submitted at the time of accreditation. The survey covered three criteria related to physical education: "faculty organization," "curricula," and "facilities and equipment." The survey was administered to universities that underwent the second phase of accreditation evaluation from AY2013 to AY2017. Altogether, 631 universities' "self-assessment reports" were available for inspection, and they were examined by one of the three accreditation organizations: the Japan University Accreditation Association (JUAA), the National Institution for Academic Degrees and Quality Enhancement of Higher Education (NIAD), and the Japan Institution for Higher Education Evaluation (JIHEE). Results show that 32.5% of the universities included descriptions regarding the organization in charge of physical education as the "faculty organization" and that 52.9% included descriptions regarding physical education as "curricula." These descriptions were only outlines, with few detailed descriptions. Additionally, 90.3% of the universities described their sports fields and gymnasiums as "facilities and equipment." From the above results, the "Self-assessment Report" was insufficient in terms of the inspection and evaluation of physical education, and it was not possible to obtain detailed information on the positioning and quality assurance status of physical education. Thus, it can be judged that the accreditation evaluation is not yet useful for such quality assurance. Utilizing the Faculty Development Promoting School Award System, conducted by the Japanese Association of University Physical Education and Sports (JAUPES), to externally evaluate physical education could provide a more thorough evaluation. Results also suggest that it is necessary to understand how the faculty members in charge of physical education are involved in the accreditation evaluation and how they are making use of this process for improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]