Teacher using flipped classroom model

Today, innovative educational technology gives us opportunities to apply knowledge in the classroom rather than just disseminating information. Personally, I think that technology has finally caught up with what we’ve always known about teaching and learning. Nowhere is this more evident than with the concept of the flipped classroom. And although Campus Technology’s 2016 Teaching with Technology Survey revealed that 55 percent of instructors surveyed use the flipped classroom model, teachers and students have been concerned about the content that is “left out” to create time for activities such as:

The growing conversation about putting students at the centre of learning is not new and it is also not simple.

Many teachers agree that the opportunity to correct student misconceptions before a final assessment and giving them the opportunity to contextually apply new learning is worth it and let’s face it, current technical innovation gives us greater opportunities to provide basic content to students outside of the classroom so that we can focus on the application inside the classroom.

Although the term ‘Flipped Classroom’ usually applies to digital learning, this form of learning has been the ‘norm’ for students in fields such as humanities or law where the focus is on exploring ideas and therefore the readings must be done before class to enable participation in the discussion and questions. You had to complete the reading assignment if you wanted to participate in class.

In areas, such as the STEM fields, the traditional teaching method has been to present as much content as possible in a face to face class, often a lecture. Students would then “apply” the content in their homework assignments. But today, technology such as Echo360 allows professors to offer video and diagrammatic content alongside focused learning tools. Students can watch, review and grab content – that previously had to be white-boarded or demonstrated in class – just in time to apply it in face to face settings. The classroom can now be a place to explore the content in more depth, and the learning is deeper.

Echo360 Platform

Echo360 brings your course content into a single, unified view. Whether students are in class, watching a live-stream, or reviewing the class video, engagement tools make the learning experience active.

Although it can initially be a little more time consuming to flip your classroom, you save time when it comes to content review and in future courses. The content that has been captured can be reused and adapted for the next class. Teachers who flip their classrooms say that the improvement in student learning –  and therefore final grades – is well worth the effort.

There are many user stories (27 to be exact!) about how instructors around the world use Echo360 to flip their classrooms. You can read them all on the Echo360 blog by searching under the tag “Flipped Classroom.” Here are several examples that I find particularly interesting.

  • University of Nebraska at Kearney – While technically not a true flipped class, this financial economics professor uses Echo360 to record “mini-lectures” that he sends to his student prior to class. Students then discuss the information contained in the mini-lecture in class. The result is that his students keep pace with major financial events and are engaged 7 x 24.
  • Institutions such as Ara Institute of Canterbury and North Coast TAFE use Echo360 to provide practical hands on instruction in order to promote deeper learning.
  • The video below highlights a great example of how one instructor at the University of Toledo uses Echo360 to flip his math class. Class time is devoted to problem solving, peer learning, and it allows the instructor to interact one-on-one with students.

 

 

Learn more about how Echo360 can help your institution and look for Alison’s next blog on Flipped Classrooms vs. Flipped Learning.

Contact Us