Too many papers are out there about Flipped learning. Sometimes it is being presented as panacea. Educators are making videos and expecting students to watch before the class. Any real data on the impact of this approach especially in the field of engineering?
I imagine that the use of 'active learning' is really where any impact is attributable, and flipped classrooms are just a formulaic approach to applying active learning techniques by outsourcing lecture to video, and then having students directly engage with the content in class. This is just a digital analog to the lecture-discussion section format, but sacrificing the dynamics of a real-time face-to-face lecture with the ability to rewatch a static video.
Article Improved Learning in a Large-Enrollment Physics Class
is a pretty well-received study in physics. I'd like to see a comparison in which the lecture was kept constant, adding the discussion section piece to mimic the classroom content of the flipped classroom—compared to the flipped variant.It seems intuitive that the 'magic' in flipped classrooms is due to (A) increased student contact with the material, and (B) a targeted approach to using active learning, rather than just lecture. However, the impact seems to be often falsely attributed to use of technology and/or adherence to that particular formula.
Oh! I also know there was a comparative study at The University of Texas at Austin when I was there that found favorable results with the Differential Calculus course. I don't know that they published the study. I'll see if I can dig it up.
I have a single data point. I flipped a graduate construction engineering class a few years ago and the class overall grade point average increased by nearly a full grade point from the previous traditionally delivered course. Amazingly, I also go perfect instructor evaluations. I continued in the flipped mode and class performance remained about the same though my instructor evals went back to normal :-)
"Real data" and "in engineering" are telling parts of this question. Do measures of student or faculty attitudes? If achievement outcomes are all that matters, are tests of information recall sufficient evidence? (I would think the ability to put information to work in problem solving would be of greater importance in engineering.) While "in engineering" seems like an admirable restriction on the question, I would expect that answers might differ internationally (due to licensing standards) and across sub-disciplines--is it reasonable to think that instructional methodologies that work in survey engineering apply equally well in electronics engineering? I honestly do not know.
To back up a bit, the level of schooling might also matter. Mariappan's question seems aimed at tertiary education, but readers interested in k-12 might find
Article A critical review of flipped classroom challenges in K-12 ed...
a useful starting point for thinking about the question.I can't effectively judge utility of research in engineering education but the pdf available at Article Lecture Material Retention: a First Trial Report on Flipped ...
might help.
Dear Mariappan Jawaharlal,
Flipped Learning or classroom:
Attached herewith the Real data article links on the impact of this approach especially in the field of engineering:
I hope I have answered your question.
With Best Wishes,
Samir G. Pandya
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