Melnikova V.V.¹ (Khabarovsk, Russian Federation) – 010169@pnu.edu.ru

¹Pacific National University

Abstract. Student voice has received considerable attention in contemporary higher education institutions, as reflected in numerous studies emphasising the importance of student engagement, experience, ‘voice’ and satisfaction. However, despite recognising the significance of student feedback, the role of students in assessing the quality of education continues to be a debated topic, indicating a lack of consensus on this issue. The article analyses the place of the student in the system of education quality assessment of a modern higher education institution. The author concludes that students can act as subjects of education quality assessment and make a constructive contribution to this process, corresponding to their experience and level of competence. A detailed literature review was carried out, which allowed to detail the key concepts -subject, subjectivity, subjectivity, agency. The research allowed conceptualising the notion of ‘student as a subject of education quality assessment’ and identifying key characteristics of a student in this role, such as: self-determination, responsibility for their actions, purposefulness, ability to self-regulation and self-organisation, reflection, transformative activity and competence. The article emphasises that student subjectivity manifests itself in the context of their interaction with the educational environment and develops under the influence of intrinsic motivation in conditions that promote their autonomy, competence and sense of belonging to the educational community. One of the important conditions for this is the creation of a transparent educational environment that promotes cooperation and strengthens communication between students and other subjects of the educational process and allows students not only to participate in the assessment procedure, but also to realise their role and contribution to the assessment of the quality of education, which is key to increasing their motivation and involvement in the educational process. The article concludes by suggesting directions for further research.

Keywords: student as a subject of assessment, quality of education, subject, subjectivity, subjectivity, agency, student involvement, student as an expert.

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For citation: Melnikova V.V. Student agency in educational quality assessment: conceptualisation of the concept. CITISE, 2024, no. 2, pp. 279-294.