What is it?
In a flipped classroom, students first explore lecture material at home doing the relevant homework, then use class time (the synchronous sessions in online learning) to explore more in depth the material or ask questions to clear up their doubts.
As you can imagine, this approach suits the online environment perfectly as it allows teachers to focus on more practical activities during class time and also deliver more one-to-one assistance and personalised feedback.
The student is completely at the centre of this approach! Students are in charge of their learning. Time management also changes as they are able to learn at their own pace. If they still have doubts about a concept they stay with it. Otherwise, they move on.
Benefits of e-learning
- Students can manage their time and learn at their own pace.
- One-on-one teacher time.
- More time for students to interact.
- More time for discussion.
Tips for giving an effective flipped classroom
- Set specific topics to use in the flipped classroom and mention it in advance to your students. Also, explain to them what the flipped classroom is and how it works.
- Get your students excited about it! Make sure they understand that in order to have fun (and learn of course) they need to follow all the steps involved in the flipped classroom; viewing and reflecting on the material by themselves, taking notes of what they did not understand, doing the assigned homework, and finally participating in the live session to exchange ideas and clear up their doubts.
- Create short video lessons (under ten minutes) to keep your students engaged. You can also reuse instructional videos you found on the Web and make them interactive asking questions about the content. Many online instructional apps have the option of creating interactive videos.