Flipped learning is a concept that has been gradually catching on with a number of schools and has become popular with educators due to its ability to improve the learning process and meet the needs of a tech savvy student base. The concept known as “flipped learning” acquired its name because it flips the conventional concept of the classroom lecture followed by homework exercises.
Instead of the traditional classroom setup, the classroom lecture becomes the homework assignment. The time in class is spent on the practice exercises and collaboration. Within the last year, the concept of flipped learning has been used by teachers to keep students engaged by creating a student-focused classroom where the learning responsibility is flipped from the teacher to the student.
So, what exactly is flipped learning and how does it work?
The flipped learning model reverses the traditional classroom learning concept by using videos in place of the classroom lecture. Teachers create an eight to ten minute video related to the lesson using a laptop or tablet PC. The PC is used to create a video using a whiteboard as the teacher explains the concept on the whiteboard and makes notations.
The video is then uploaded to a classroom website, YouTube, or other type of platform where the student can accessed the video using their home computer, smartphone, or tablet PC. If the student lacks access to the Internet outside of school hours, the teacher creates the video on a flash storage device or DVD to enable the student to watch the video on school computers or using their DVD player, if they have one at home.
Since the video is the homework assignment, the class time is dedicated to applying practical applications to the lesson. This allows creative exercises to be applied to the lesson which keeps student engaged in learning and deepens their understanding of lesson concepts. Students can also collaborate on the assignment using active problem solving which makes learning fun and interesting. A one-to-one tutoring session or small group tutoring with the teacher can also be made part of the learning experience.
For a visual explanation of flipped learning, see this fantastic infographic on the Knewton website.
What are some of the advantages of flipped learning?
Schools that have deployed the flipped learning model in their classrooms have experienced success in terms of student engagement and improved learning. The concept emerged several years ago when two chemistry teachers in a Colorado school district began to videotape their classroom lessons for students that were absent from class.
By videotaping the lesson, it was inadvertently discovered that the students found it to be a valuable experience. Not only did it allow the students to play the video as many times as necessary instead of the teacher explaining the lesson multiple times over, it also was found that students needed the interaction from teachers more than they needed teachers to disseminate the information.
As a result, the two chemistry teachers started distributing lessons in the form of short video sequences as homework assignments. During the first year of the experiment, the teachers were able to double the number of lab lessons the students were doing because of an improved learning model.
Another school in Detroit where three quarters of the student body are low income minority students experienced a 33 percent drop in the freshman failure rate during 2011 as the result of flipped learning. The school also had a number of discipline issues which dropped by as much as 60 percent in 2011 from the year before. Graduation rates, attendance, and test results all increased during that year with parental complaints dropping from more than 200 complaints to only seven.
The above scenarios are just a few of the benefits of how flipped learning has improved the classroom environment. Other advantages include:
- Immediate Feedback: Flipped learning provides teachers with the time to provide individual help to students and to explain complex lesson concepts. During this time the students receive immediate feedback which helps them to learn faster while increasing their confidence.
- Reduced Frustration: Using the traditional classroom model, students would often get frustrated with homework because they did not understand the information delivered in the classroom lecture. With the flipped learning model, they can replay the video and work on the exercises in class where teacher and peer assistance is readily available. This eliminates incomplete homework assignments that result from student frustration.
- Added Class Support: Students that may not have access to technology or parental support at home receive additional support in the classroom as the result of the flipped learning model. By working on exercises in class, the students receive more guidance and support from the teacher which typically does not occur in a conventional classroom environment.
- Focused Learning: With a flipped learning model, students watch the video and then write down any questions they have. When the exercises are done in class, this allows the teacher to address specific questions which immediately targets weaknesses in the understanding of lesson concepts. This provides a more personalized learning experience that specifically addresses the needs of each student.
- Increased Student Interaction: Flipped learning models increase student interaction because the role of the teacher changes to learning coach. Instead of the teacher delivering a lecture which the students may or may not absorb, the teacher is proactively answering questions, encouraging student interaction, and supporting the learning of each individual student.
- Improved Parent Communication: Instead of non-productive parent conferences where you typically discuss the student’s conduct in class, flipped learning changes the way teachers talk with parents. This is because the focus has been shifted from behavioral issues to interactive learning since the students are more engaged in a flipped learning environment.
Are there any challenges associated with flipped learning?
Like anything else, flipped learning can have its challenges and disadvantages. The good news is that many school districts have been able to work around a lot of the challenges to reap the rewards that a flipped learning model offers. Some of the challenges include:
- Meeting the needs of Every Individual Student: Some will challenge the fact that some students learn better in the traditional classroom environment. However, the workaround for this is the video presentations which allow students to view them as many times as necessary.
- Access to Technology and Internet Connectivity: Students from lower income communities and families may not have access to the technology and Internet connectivity to take advantage of a flipped learning model. Many school districts try to work around this problem by recording the videos on DVD to enable the student to view the videos on school computers, in the community library, or potentially on a DVD player at home.
- Sitting in Front of a Computer Screen: Some argue that child obesity is caused by the amount of time that is spent sitting in front of a computer. If homework time involves sitting in front of a computer for prolonged periods of time, this potentially can add to the amount of time they spend in front of a computer. This concern is circumvented by the use of smartphones and mobile devices where the student is not required to sit for any extended period of time.
Do schools continue to embrace flipped learning, or is it just a passing fad?
The fact that the up and coming students entering the classroom have grown up in a technology infused world means that something has to change with regard to learning models. Most of today’s students know no world without the Internet and mobile devices. Therefore, students nowadays do not perceive learning in the same way as student did one decade ago and most definitely several decades ago.
If educational institutions continue to cater to the traditional classroom, the odds are that we are going to lose a lot of students and likely turn them off to classroom learning altogether. Technology has changed the way we accomplish daily activities from a personal standpoint, in the workforce, and during our leisure time. Why wouldn’t it change learning models to meet the needs of tech savvy students?
It is important to emphasize that flipped learning is NOT about setting up a course online. Instead, the classroom interaction and personal contact still exists and is be being used in a more effective way. This is accomplished by adding a valued learning experience to the content instead of simply delivering the content in a lecture.
Flipped learning isn’t just about watching videos either. Instead, it is more about integrating the videos with interactive exercises and online toolkits that facilitate the learning process. All of this while still maintaining the teacher support a student needs. Except it is done in a more effective and productive way.
For the above reasons, education trends and statistics point to the fact that a flipped learning model is continuing to be embraced by more school districts and is likely not just a passing fad.
The new buzzword in the education world is “flipped learning” which makes it seem like it is just a passing fad. The reality is flipped learning appears to be fitting better into a world that now has unlimited access to all types of information. This allows students to explore the content as a homework assignment and then apply it during class periods.
In the past and before the explosion of the Internet, the traditional class lecture was the only means of delivering content such as facts, scientific processes, mathematical concepts, stories, and other information. With the Internet providing massive amounts of information, a single individual can no longer compete with this type of information availability. This changes the role of the teacher where the teacher assumes the role of a coach and helps the student to grasp and work with concepts, and master the information pertinent to the lesson.
Another reason for the rise in popularity of the flipped learning model is that it also significantly changes the role of the student. Students now become active participants, partners, and teachers in their classroom environment which means they are using 100 percent of their class time. Instead of the teacher doing the giving and the student doing the taking, flipped learning converts a classroom where student interact with one another, as well as the teacher.
For the reasons discussed here, it is highly unlikely that flipped learning is just a passing fad that will eventually fall by the wayside. This is especially true in a society where students cannot perceive learning without any type of technology or Internet connection.
Some useful resources:
7 things you should know about flipped classrooms - click here
Forbes infographic on flipped classrooms
A big thank you to Our School ICT Department for assisting with this article.
Kristine is a school teacher with over ten years’ experience in the classroom, with a deep emphasis on ICT and technology. Away from the classroom, Kristine likes to blog about her activities and share her knowledge with others.
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