A comparative case study of a foundation mathematics course for student mathematics teachers before and after the COVID-19 pandemic and implications for low-enrollment programs at regional universities

Australian regional universities have been offering many low-enrollment programs to students living in regional, rural, and remote (RRR) areas as part of their obligation to serve regional communities. However, making these programs sustainable has been a significant challenge due to the small population spread across the vast RRR territory in Australia. There is a lack of studies on the key factors contributing to the difficulty of running specific low-enrollment programs, and more importantly, on possible viable solutions to mitigate the negative impact of these factors on program sustainability. Based on the engagement levels of students in teaching and learning, as well as their performance in solving selected questions in basic trigonometry and triangles, I analyzed three independent groups of students enrolled in three offerings of a foundation mathematics course within a low-enrollment secondary mathematics teaching specialty at an Australian regional university before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Through statistical analysis, I found that: 1) Relaxing entry requirements for the secondary mathematics specialty did not increase student intake post-pandemic; 2) there was no significant difference in performance between active students before and after the pandemic in solving the selected questions under similar teaching and learning conditions; and 3) some students' unsatisfactory performances in solving the selected questions may have been influenced by learning habits inherited from their secondary education, characterized by 'shallow teaching and learning.' This case study also proposes two new ideas, one focused on a single institution and the other on multiple institutions to make this low-enrollment program sustainable at Australian regional universities.