澳大利亚维多利亚州大学中来自低社会经济背景的学生比例出现显著下滑。[1]根据数据统计，这一群体在本科名额中的占比从2018年的15.3%跌至2024年的12.2%。[1]这种下降由生活成本上升和学费增加等因素驱动。[1]
面对这一趋势，维多利亚大学推出了包括块模式教学在内的改革措施。[1]块模式要求学生一次集中学习单一科目四周。[1]实施该模式后，低社会经济背景学生的课程完成率从82.75%上升至90.82%。[1]同时，他们在STEM科目中的不及格率下降了46.4%，获得高级区分的学生增加了82.3%。[1]
维多利亚大学副校长Adam Shoemaker解释推行该教学模式的理由："来自各种背景的人没有足够快、足够好、足够强地成功。"[1]ACSES项目主任Tim Pitman则指出了低社会经济地位学生面临的系统性困难，表示"低社会经济地位学生总体上会最后加入、最先离开各部门"。[1]
The proportion of students from low socioeconomic backgrounds entering universities across Victoria, Australia has declined significantly in recent years.[1] Between 2018 and 2024, their share of undergraduate places fell from 15.3% to 12.2%, a concerning trend attributed to rising living costs and increased tuition fees.[1]
To address these challenges, Victoria University has implemented structural reforms aimed at improving outcomes for disadvantaged students. The institution introduced block-mode teaching, a model in which students focus on a single subject for four weeks at a time.[1] This approach has yielded measurable improvements: completion rates for low socioeconomic status students rose from 82.75% in 2018 to 90.82% in 2024, while their failure rates in STEM subjects dropped by 46.4% and high distinction grades increased by 82.3%.[1]
According to Tim Pitman, director of the ACSES program, disadvantaged students face systemic barriers to persistence in higher education, noting that "students from low socioeconomic backgrounds are typically last to join and first to leave departments."[1] Victoria University's Deputy Vice-Chancellor Adam Shoemaker emphasized the urgency of reform, stating that "people from various backgrounds have not been succeeding quickly enough, well enough or strongly enough," which prompted the university to introduce the block-mode system.[1]