This thesis uses a phenomenographic research approach to find out the
different ways in which teaching practitioners from College Based Higher
Education (CBHE) understood their experiences of what they considered to
be Higher Education (HE) teaching excellence. The research outcomes
contribute to existing literature on HE teaching excellence and policy
developments within the Teaching Excellence Framework by providing
insights into how CBHE teaching excellence is understood by those most
involved in the delivery of CBHE pedagogic practices. Methodologically, this
research extends the phenomenographic approach to CBHE pedagogic
practices contexts.

The research outcomes were informed by data from structured interviews
involving a heterogenous group of 30 teaching practitioners. Data analysis
provided a hierarchically-inclusive outcome space illustrating four categories
of description representing the qualitatively different ways in which these
teaching practitioners understood their experiences of CBHE teaching
excellence. These categories were also evaluated against two key research
perspectives on HE teaching excellence to assess the extent to which they
aligned with and/or built upon these perspectives. Exploring the
understandings of such practitioners was important because they occupy
central roles within CBHE teaching practices and contribute significantly to
institutional enhancement of HE pedagogy.