基于系统动力学的大学“水课”产生原因及解决策略分析

Analysis of the Causes and Solutions of “Water Courses” in Universities Based on System Dynamics

摘要: 大学“水课”是高等教育质量提升面临的重大挑战，它稀释了本科教育的含金量，与人才培养目标相悖。本研究将“水课”现象视为一个复杂的、多主体反馈的系统，运用系统动力学方法构建了大学课程质量系统的因果回路图，对影响因素的相互作用机制进行了深入分析。研究发现，“水课”的产生主要由两个核心强化回路驱动：一是“劣币驱逐良币”的市场强化回路(R1)，即学生策略性选课与教师考核“放水”之间的恶性循环；二是“重科研轻教学”的制度强化回路(R2)，即大学声誉竞争对教师教学投入的系统性挤压。系统分析结果表明，R2机制导致的制度和激励错位，是削弱金课供给、催生水课需求的最根本原因。基于此，本文提出需采取系统性策略，包括重构教师激励机制、深化教学评价改革以及加强过程质量监管，才能从根本上消除水课、构建高质量的“金课”生态体系。

Abstract: The proliferation of “water courses” in universities is a major challenge to the improvement of higher education quality. It dilutes the value of undergraduate education and is contrary to the goal of talent cultivation. This study regards the “water course” phenomenon as a complex, multi-agent feedback system. By applying the system dynamics method, a causal loop diagram of the university course quality system is constructed, and an in-depth analysis of the interaction mechanism of influencing factors is conducted. Research has found that the emergence of “watered-down courses” is mainly driven by two core reinforcement loops: one is the market reinforcement loop (R1) where “bad money drives out good”, that is, the vicious cycle between students’ strategic course selection and teachers’ “watered-down” assessment. The second is the institutional reinforcement loop (R2) of “emphasizing research over teaching”, that is, the systematic squeeze on teachers’ teaching investment caused by the competition for university reputation. The results of the system analysis show that the mismatch of systems and incentives caused by the R2 mechanism is the most fundamental reason for weakening the supply of high-quality courses and stimulating the demand for low-quality courses. Based on this, this paper proposes that a systematic strategy should be adopted, including reconstructing the teacher incentive mechanism, deepening the reform of teaching evaluation, and strengthening the supervision of process quality, in order to fundamentally eliminate water courses and build a high-quality “golden course” ecosystem.