Flipped Learning as a current learning and teaching strategy
Although many strategies are used at our university, here is an introduction about Flipped Learning as there seems to be interest in the faculty.
What are the key elements of the flipped classroom?
1. Provide an opportunity for students to gain first exposure prior to class.
The mechanism used for first exposure can vary, from simple textbook readings to lecture videos to podcasts or screencasts. For example, Grand Valley State University math professor Robert Talbert provides screencasts on class topics on his YouTube channel Links to an external site., while Vanderbilt computer science professor Doug Fisher provides his students video lectures prior to class (see an example here Links to an external site.). These videos can be created by the teacher or found online from YouTube, the Khan Academy, MIT’s OpenCourseWare, Coursera, or other similar sources. The pre-class exposure doesn’t have to be high-tech, however; in the Deslauriers, Schelew, and Wieman study described above, students simply completed pre-class reading assignments.
2. Provide an incentive for students to prepare for class.
In all the examples cited above, students completed a task associated with their preparation….and that task was associated with points. The assignment can vary; the examples above used tasks that ranged from online quizzes to worksheets to short writing assignments, but in each case the task provided an incentive for students to come to class prepared by speaking the common language of undergraduates: marks. In many cases, grading for completion rather than effort can be sufficient, particularly if class activities will provide students with the kind of feedback that grading for accuracy usually provides.
3. Provide a mechanism to assess student understanding.
The pre-class assignments that students complete as evidence of their preparation can also help both the instructor and the student assess understanding. Pre-class online quizzes can allow the instructor to practice Just-in-Time Teaching (JiTT; Novak et al., 1999), which basically means that the teacher tailors class activities to focus on the elements with which students are struggling. If automatically graded, the quizzes can also help students pinpoint areas where they need help. Pre-class worksheets can also help focus student attention on areas with which they’re struggling, and can be a departure point for class activities, while pre-class writing assignments help students clarify their thinking about a subject, thereby producing richer in-class discussions. Importantly, much of the feedback students need is provided in class, reducing the need for teaching staff to provide extensive commentary outside of class (Walvoord and Anderson, 1998). In addition, many of the activities used during class time (e.g. Kahoot questions or debates) can serve as informal checks of student understanding.
4. Provide in-class activities that focus on higher level cognitive activities.
If the students gained basic knowledge outside of class, then they need to spend class time to promote deeper learning. Again, the activity will depend on the learning goals of the class and the culture of the discipline. For example, Lage, Platt, and Treglia described experiments students did in class to illustrate economic principles (2000), while Mazur and colleagues focused on student discussion of conceptual “clicker” questions and quantitative problems focused on physical principles (2001). In other contexts, students may spend time in class engaged in debates, data analysis, or synthesis activities. The key is that students are using class time to deepen their understanding and increase their skills at using their new knowledge.
Adapted from: Brame, C., (2013). Flipping the classroom. Accessed from http://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/flipping-the-classroom/.
Resources from other universities