SCU’s new teaching model boosts grades and student completion rates

Southern Cross University has hailed its new teaching model for boosting student grades and raising subject completion rates.

Southern Cross University’s new teaching model has boosted grades and student success rates.

Southern Cross University has hailed its new teaching model – based on short, six-week terms – as a success, with both student grades and subject completion rates improving since its introduction two years ago.

The university said the different mode of teaching, called the Southern Cross Model, had led to an 11 per cent improvement in student grades and a 16 per cent increase in subject completion rates in the 2019-22 period.

This year the university has moved completely to the model, under which students study only two units at a time across a six-week period instead of four units across 12 weeks.

The shorter teaching period is intended to help students to concentrate their focus.

Teaching methods have also changed under the new model, with students encouraged to explore, critique and apply their knowledge in real-world settings. Students work in a blended mode, first learning material online, then coming to class to discuss their learning and apply it to case studies and problem solving.

Paul Robinson, SCU’s senior manager of student management, said student numbers had increased and this year the university enrolled its largest cohort of new students, with enrolments nearly 10 per cent higher now than at the same time last year.

Mr Robinson said the most popular course for new students was the graduate diploma of education (early childhood), which had attracted both domestic and international students. “This postgraduate course has skyrocketed in popularity now that international borders are open and students can build on their bachelor degree to upskill and pursue their career,” he said.

Other SCU courses attracting new students include bachelor degrees in education, nursing and information technology.