With there being talk about student numbers in live lectures dropping, perhaps we can increase attendance by flipping the learning and using lecture time for active learning tasks, such as problem-solving, or group discussions, to motivate students to come to the sessions? The literature states that flipped approaches may lead to more student engagement and motivation as class time will be spent on applying the knowledge gained in the flipped task, in other words they will have the opportunity to go into more depth with the content. Accessing the instructional content prior to the live session will also reduce cognitive load when students are in sessions as they will be able to engage in self-paced preparatory work, which means having the capacity to stop and start recordings, or re-read articles in a way that they prefer (Abeysekera and Dawson, 2015 and Simko et al, 2019). This too can be a more inclusive learning experience for diverse cohorts.

What is flipped learning?

The term ‘flipped learning’ has been used in different ways, more often than not as mentioned above, defining it as involving students doing something before they come to class with the purpose of maximising the limited class time (Bergmann and Sams, 2009). Educators can be physically present to support students in solving a problem or completing an assignment, which would traditionally be completed outside the class. This essentially provides richer opportunities for ‘just-in-time teaching’. Abeysekera and Dawson (2015) mention that finding a single agreed definition of ‘flipped learning’ is a challenge, but they propose that ‘the flipped classroom (is) a set of pedagogical processes that:

1. Move most information-transmission teaching out of class
2. Use class time for learning activities that are active and social and
3. Require students to complete pre- and /or post-class activities to fully benefit from in-class work.’ (Abeysekera and Dawson, 2015, p3)

It has to be noted that to move the ‘information- transmission’ out of class effectively, careful thought needs to be given to how the instructional content is presented. Watching an hour-long prior recording of a lecture will not work, there needs to be some interactive element where the students are required to watch a video or podcast, ideally no more than 15 minutes at a stretch, and then complete a quiz. The quiz questions could reflect the type students may expect to see in their summative assessments, which can lead to students being more motivated to complete them. The quiz results could then support the educator in understanding where the students’ knowledge is at, and they could provide some remedial teaching if needed. 

Flipped learning is thus not a quick change to how we deliver content and, as has been illustrated, would involve time and resources to do it effectively. There would also need to be  post-class work to consolidate the content. 

Does flipped learning work?

The literature is mixed, but there are cases of better engagement and improved outcomes, which makes it an approach worth considering. In their study Simko et al (2019) found that student engagement improved with attendance doubling towards the end of the semester. Of course, we can ask what happens if students do not engage with the flipped work, where is the learning? This is perhaps where there needs to be learner training where the expectations from students are made transparent. Students need to have a good level of self-regulation for flipped learning to work (Doo et al, 2020). And self-regulation is a valued skill in higher education that can promote lifelong learning. 

How can flipped learning work for my students?

Like with many approaches in education, to benefit from flipped learning, students need to be trained and guided into the how and why they are learning in this way. They need to be aware of their role in the learning process. Simko et al (2019 ) comment that in their study on flipped learning with engineering students, the lack of negative comments was probably due to their students being familiar with a flipped learning approach, which supports the need to make the learning process transparent.

By engaging in flipped learning, we can provide more opportunities for active learning in class / lecture time so that our students have opportunities to develop those soft skills of problem solving and critical thinking, so valued in the 21^stcentury (Trilling and Fadel, 2009).

Have you tried flipped learning with your students? We’d love to hear about how it went in the comment section below! (Once comments have been sent, a site admin will approve them before publishing).

References

Abeysekera, Lakmal, and Phillip Dawson. 2014. “Motivation and Cognitive Load in the Flipped Classroom: Definition, Rationale and a Call for Research.” Higher Education Research & Development 34 (1): 1–14. doi:10.1080/07294360.2014.934336.

Bergmann, J. and Sams, A., 2009. Remixing chemistry class: Two Colorado teachers make vodcasts of their lectures to free up class time for hands-on activities. Learning & Leading with Technology, 36(4), pp.22-27.

Doo, Min Young, Curtis J. Bonk, Chang Ho Shin, and Beo-Dle Woo. 2020. “Structural Relationships among Self-Regulation, Transactional Distance, and Learning Engagement in a Large University Class Using Flipped Learning.” Asia Pacific Journal of Education 41 (3): 609–25. doi:10.1080/02188791.2020.1832020.

Trilling, B. and Fadel, C., 2009. 21st century skills: Learning for life in our times. John Wiley & Sons.

Simko, T. et al. (2019) ‘Flipped learning – a case study of enhanced student success’, Australasian Journal of Engineering Education, 24(1), pp. 35–47. doi: 10.1080/22054952.2019.1617650.