Digital quality indicators in higher education: A comparative web analysis of universities in Türkiye’s lakes region using the DQTM-6 model
Öz
This study comparatively analyzes the institutional websites of state universities located in Türkiye’s Lakes Region from the perspectives of quality assurance, governance, and digital accountability. Within the scope of the research, an original framework titled DQTM-6 (Digital Quality and Transparency Maturity Model) was developed to measure how institutional quality is produced and represented in the digital environment. Comprising six theoretical dimensions and sixty strategic criteria, the model goes beyond the mere presence of information and systematically evaluates its accessibility, timeliness, and content depth through structured filtering mechanisms. Based entirely on observable and verifiable indicators, DQTM-6 offers a systematic digital quality audit approach. The findings reveal a significant level of digital convergence in relatively static areas such as academic information and research outputs, while identifying structural vulnerabilities in dynamic governance domains, including evidence of the PDCA cycle, traceability of stakeholder engagement, and international digital synchronization. The study conceptualizes institutional websites as digital governance representations of quality culture and proposes an applicable and comparable model for assessing digital quality in higher education institutions.
Anahtar Kelimeler
Higher education quality assurance, indicator-based evaluation, digital quality communication, institutional digital maturity, DQTM-6 model
Etik Beyan
Kaynakça
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