Insights into the Flipped Classroom

1. Insights into the Flipped Classroom Mok Heng Ngee

2. What is it? • Flipped or “inverted” classroom • Motivation: • Classroom lectures are passive and boring • Would rather spend classroom time on active learning activities

3. …What is it? • Traditional: • Classroom time: lectures • Outside class: homework • Flipped: • Outside class: lectures (usually videos) • Classroom time: active learning activities

4. …What is it? • Implications: • Much more time for active learning activities • Does NOT mean more time required by students • Requires much more preparation by instructors • Students MUST attend the virtual lectures before class!

5. What I did • Context: • IS Year 1 Term 1: IS200 (programming I) • IS Year 1 Term 2: OOAD (programming II) • Both are core courses; IS200 is prereq to OOAD • 2 major components in OOAD: • Programming • Program design principles

6. …What I did • Term 3A this year: • 1 section of 44 students for OOAD • Half of them are repeat students • Half of them are doing it for the first time (they repeated IS200 in term 2) • Student makeup: not-so-talented programmers

7. Traditional OOAD Lesson • During class: • Lectures interspersed with short programming exercises • After class: • Longer programming exercises as homework, with model solutions (ungraded) • Additional exercises: • Individual programming project (ungraded) • Assessment: • Written quizzes, Lab tests, Written exam

8. My Strategy • Before class: • Watch video lectures • Complete self-check quiz (about 4-5 MCQ/short answer questions) in eLearn • During class: • Any questions? (15 mins) • Pair programming (1.5 hrs) • Debrief for pair programming (15 mins) • Other class activities: • Project presentations & critique • Short lecture on design principles + exercsies

9. …My Strategy • Assessment: • Similar: Written exam (30%). Lab Test (30%) • Additional: Team programming project (30%) • Additional: Participation (10%)

10. Preparation • Videos: • Prepared videos for 2/3 of the course lectures (programming topics)  YouTube (http://www.mokkie.com/flipped.htm) • Self-check Quizzes: • Prepared quizzes for each video clip in eLearn • Programming Exercises: • Compiled the in-class programming exercises + homework programming exercises

11. Implementation • First session: • Course admin • Briefed students on FC & PP • Traditional lecture (design topic) • Subsequent sessions: • Flipped classroom • Last few sessions: • Project work

12. Feedback

13. …Feedback

14. …Feedback

20. Limitations & Validity • Section comprising group of special students • Done during term 3A – with very intense schedule

21. Plus-Minus-Interest • My observations: • Students come to class prepared • Students become more responsible for their learning • Diligent students use the videos as an “equalizer” • Fewer students get lost in class • Students are really engaged during PP sessions • More time for active learning activities that really engage students • Reusable • Scalable • Inexpensive

22. Plus-Minus-Interest • Challenges: • How do you ensure that everyone • Really watches the video lectures? • And understands all the contents? • Preparatory time • Clarity of lectures in videos matters • Resistance to change

23. Plus-Minus-Interest • Videos could be supplemented with other materials • Particularly suitable for certain kinds of courses: • Fact-heavy & tedious content • Content that requires “digestion” (e.g. algorithms) • Search for videos that you can “reuse”?

24. Call for Action • Try incrementally instead of “big-bang” • Avoid perfectionism • Lots of ideas for active learning activities available • Get feedback from students and refine • Keep in contact :)