1-Introduction
As an engineering teacher, my colleagues and I always believe that college engineering students’ academic performance is based on their Maths ability. The ideology has existed for quite a long time, and it has been believed to be that way. Anyway, the question that comes up is “how can someone do an engineering course without being good in Maths or having Math ability?”. The more students engage in their maths lessons more often, the better they perform not only in math assessments but also when it comes to mechanical and electronic assessments (ref 1). As a teacher in the engineering field teaching math to all engineering students attending the college from level 2 to level 4, it is essential to consider tools and techniques that would help enhance students’ engagement in math lessons (Appendix 1 shows that within STEM, the number of engaged students compared to number of enrolled students is still low compared to other departments).
Even though I have only taught for 16 months, which is about one year four months, now I have reasonably good feedback from students. However, not all my students enjoy math lessons, as the excellent ability students are performing well, but among the fewer ability students, some are trying to engage; however, most appear to be struggling and not enjoying the lessonsAppendix 2 and 3). The main problem here is to make maths attractive for the study that students show their interest and enthusiasm for it. This action research is going to look into a strategy that can make the study of maths for students a pleasing activity. In this regard, flipped classroom strategy has been focused on in this action research. My teaching techniques or methods appear to be working for some but not for everyone, and as a teacher, it is my responsibility that all students must understand and be aware of all the class targets. It is always the teachers’ pride that their students understand and get along with others during and after teaching a concept, especially in technical courses such as engineering courses.
Furthermore, due to the lack of experience and lack of free time to think, apply and evaluate alternative methods or new techniques that could help with increasing the engagement of my students, I am unable to perform my profession to the level that I would like.
Flipped learning technique or approach has been among the several ways or approaches that have been suggested in such learning environments. It is a technique or method that helps teachers prioritize active learning during class time by assigning students lecture presentations and materials to be viewed outside classrooms or at home. As well as assigning tasks for the students to complete in their home, each week I also allow one of my students to utilize the things that they have learnt in and out of the classroom and teach it to the rest of the class, by doing one student each week it ensures that no student is left out and all of them participate in this activity. Hence, flipped learning is one of the most exciting achievements and advancement in today’s classroom.
Therefore, this action research gives me the opportunity or chance to try a new technique and test its effectiveness, particularly among the group with challenges or difficulties engaging during the teaching process. The new technique is implementing flipped learning in my lessons and seeing if it can boost my students’ engagement in lessons and what the outcome would be in the end.
2-Strategy/Methods to Collect Evidence
2.1 Strategy to Be Used in Conducting the Study/Research
Before undertaking my own research, first I must know the strategies or methods that I would use to collect evidence or data from the various sources. The collected data or evidence will be used in trying to respond to the research questions, and to support or disapprove the hypothesis that flipped learning boosts student engagement in a math lesson, which is also important in engineering courses or lessons (ref 1). My teaching experience is only 16 months, but currently, I teach 20 classes that are between level two and level four students. However, for this new technique or methodology, my level three second year students are the target, who are only 16 students in total. The rationale for selecting my second-year students over the first-year students is because I know them from last year and I am more familiar with their abilities compared to other groups.
The number of participants in this study is manageable, as I have 16 students and I tend to understand each of their math abilities, which makes it easier to interact effectively with them at different levels during the study or research. My strategy involves selecting specific elements of the course to flip, for example given that they are my second-year students, I decided to consider an area that the students were taught during their first year of the course (such as Calculus) and built up in their second year. By doing so, it would enable students to have awareness of the flipped material and reviewing lessons prior should not be demanding for them. It is also the best way of ensuring that the students connect with the previous and build on the current content that they are being taught.
I intend to use a variety of data collection methods including questionnaires, interviews, observations, and focus groups. The questionnaires and interviews will be conducted to certain students’ awareness of the topics and relate to how the teaching process has been throughout their first year and second year.However, it can be complex to use all these three data collection methodologies therefore, the focus is on the questionnaire. The reason for using this methodology, which involves questionnaire for data collection,is to have focus and targeted resultsthat could be utilized to validate my research findings and enable me to be aware of the perceptions the students have over flipped lessons. The reason for using questionnaires only is so we can view something from responses to different questions in the research process; it makes whoever is researching, become aware of the research problem. It is believed that viewing a problem from a different perspective would lead to an understanding of the subject area, and this would result in awareness among the target audience. However, along with the questionnaire, the intention is to use qualitative data collection methods as well through interviews and assessment grades.
2.2 Consideration
For this study, I intend to use both qualitative and quantitative data. Qualitative data refers to data collected using interviews, observations, and assessment grades. On the other hand, the quantitative method is more associated with providing statistical evidence like graphs and charts. In this case, my quantitative data would originate from the use of questionnaires. I will provide them with questionnaires before and after I have flipped some of the course elements, to determine whether they noticed some difference when it comes to the new technique and how they have been taught from their first year.
On the other hand, for the qualitative data, I intend to observe students during the flipped classroom implementation, to see which is effective. It is also my aim to pursue flipped classrooms on a one-to-one basis with the students, especially during the observation stages. By doing so, it will allow me to ask more questions about how they feel or about their experience with flipped classrooms and how it affected their learning. The use of a variety of methods will allow me to gain an in-depth understanding of the effect or impact of flipped classrooms. Such a method would also add more data into my research and findings to the point where they will be considered valid and precise.
Therefore, I plan to use the technique for about 3 months, which started on October 11th and would go until next year, until the 10th of January 2022. At the end of each lesson, I will assign a task to a student to complete at home and then explain it and discuss a solution with everyone in the class. It is through this that I will come to understand how students interact with the flipped elements, which will help me identify how I could motivate my students.
3-Literature Review
Before performing or undertaking my research it is essential to have an in-depth understanding of what the flipped classroom philosophy means and its implementation process. Several pieces of literature exist, yet there is a limited amount of scholarly research that talks more about the flipped classroom. Some of the key aspects considered in the literature section or part are such as what is a flipped classroom, why flipped classrooms are becoming increasingly popular, and traditional and flipped classrooms in mathematics education.
3.1 What Is a Flipped Classroom?
A flipped classroom is blended learning where students are introduced to content at home and are required to practice working through it at school. It is the opposite of the common practice of introducing new content at school; thus, assigning projects and homework to be completed independently by the students at home. Flipped classrooms are built upon Kolb’s Experiential Learning Theory however, it has today been brought back during the technology (ref 1). The main idea behind flipped classrooms is that lectures are shared outside of class time for personal review as homework, and classroom time is reserved for discussions and interactive projects. The goals of flipping are making the classroom an active and engaging environment for learners, enabling students to learn at their pace or speed, and giving the instructor more time to engage with students individually and not as a class.
Unlike in a flipped classroom, in a traditional setting students receive lessons in class and complete homework reflecting on that lesson. However, for the flipped classroom students who view lessons before class and in-class, they complete group-based activities enabling them to have active and interactive class sessions. Thus, it is a shift away from teacher-led learning toward student-led learning. Flipped classroom model involves the use of technology such as, videos, PowerPoints, and internet.
The flipped classroom technique or methodology was founded by Jonathan Bergmann and Aaron Sams, both began their experiment with flipped classrooms when they started recording lessons for students who were absent from classes. The two found out that it is not only those who missed classes that watched the videos, but also those who attended the classes also watched the videos (Bergmann, Sams, & Gudenrath, 2015). Those who attended the classes found the videos very interesting and used the recordings for their reviews and revision. It was found that the students were interacting more in class and those who needed help most were given the necessary help. As research has studied the effectiveness of flipped classroom learning models in a classroom and has found favourable results. In this empirical research, researchers have confirmed that flipped classroom learning can effectively be applied in a secondary physics classroom setting (Prasetyo, Suprapto, & Pudyastomo, 2018).
Furthermore, since the invention of flipped classrooms, it has been noted that shifting passive lecture materials to an at-home setting has enabled students to review the materials during their own time and place that works best for students’ needs(Enfield, 2013).The students can also access all the important information in advance, so when they come to class, they are ready and prepared to engage in an interactive learning environment. It is important to note that during teacher-guided class activities, the students are required to put the lecture materials into action. With the materials, the classroom may be used for comprehension tests, group work, in-depth application of the subject matter, and open time for discussions and assignments.
3.2 Why Flipped Classrooms Are Becoming Increasingly Popular?
Flipped classrooms are becoming increasingly popular in modern classrooms, which has made several schools implement such an approach. With the advancements in technology, the implementation of flipped classrooms has become easier and has enabled an interactive environment among students. The technology or concept is relatively easier and cheaper to make videos for students to view and interact with before the lessons start. Also given that students can access the internet and interact socially through various social media platforms, it makes it an advantage for flipped classrooms to gain popularity. Students currently can use smartphones, computers, and laptops, and they have access to these tools, which makes it easier to access the recorded lessons.
Other platforms such as Khan academy, My Maths and YouTube contain a huge range of educational videos, which makes it simple for teachers especially those who feel they don’t have the confidence to make personal videos or have limited time to make the videos. Flipped classrooms are increasingly more popular following their benefits or advantages such as increased engagement, more personalized learning, availability of support when students need it most, and reduced time for homework. Based on a recent study, it is noted that about 75% of teachers or tutors surveyed witnessed high student engagement after the implementation of flipped learning (Pudin, 2017). Engagement has been considered an important part of learning; thus, this has been considered more effective.
Learning has become more personalized, as flipped learning offers increased flexibility, with students being in the position of accessing learning materials at a time that best suits their personal needs, which is important in any given learning setting. It also supports students when they need it most. It is evident that with flipped learning teachers are ready to respond or answer any question that has been posted by students when they are completing tasks that were initially thought of as homework. It is also noted that flipped classrooms help reduce the time required for homework, allowing students to have time for other activities important in their studies or educational achievement. Some students consider homework frustrating and would always not want to engage in homework.
3.3 Traditional and Flipped Classrooms in Mathematics Education
Traditional classrooms are classes consisting of a teacher-directed lecture, and in such a setting most student practice or activities occur outside of the classroom and are done at the individual level. It is also noted that in a traditional setting most group work, if any, takes place outside the classroom. Consistent with other studies, it is evident that mathematics instructors first introduce pupils or students to the available course materials inside the classroom, where active learning methods or techniques such as group discussion and pair work are occasional. Moreover, students are provided with some in-class learning tasks then homework to be completed.
On the other hand, students in maths flipped classrooms would be introduced to course materials before classes, then complete individual or group learning activities in class. It is clear that some scholars suggest that video lectures must be used as a pre-class instructional method in the flipped classroom setting. Therefore, it is believed that mathematics instructors must choose
the best flip learning technique for their course materials, which may not necessarily be video.
4-Intervention
It is the first time that I was going to implement a flipped classroom in my class of 16 students. However, through the available or existing literature, I was able to understand in detail how to implement and interact with the materials used in a flipped classroom. Throughout the research, I was very careful to ensure that I monitor the research’s progress, which is also an important aspect to help have an interactive environment. As defined earlier, flipped classrooms include recording of lessons for students to interact with in advance or before lessons. First, having little knowledge regarding flipped classrooms I had to access YouTube for more videos to enable me to prepare effectively for the classes.
I gathered several videos from ‘YouTube Tutors’ which provided my students to interact with after lessons so that they can improve their understanding of the concept taught in class. YouTube videos were effective, and I selected some of them throughout my first trial. However, I came to make my videos, which I distributed to the students after they came to terms with the flipped classroom approach or technique. In implementing flipped classrooms there are steps to be followed starting with planning, recording, sharing, changing, grouping, and regrouping.
The first step, which is planning, involves figuring out lessons or elements to flip. It requires the teacher to outline the learning outcomes and have a lesson plan. It is important as a teacher to ensure that a lesson plan reflects the activities to be implemented (ref 2). The second step is recording, whereby instead of teaching a given concept or lesson in person, I made a video through Teams platform. I also made sure the video contains all the important elements that would be mentioned in the classroom. It is advisable to make videos when you feel it is necessary and appropriate. The recording of a video depends majorly on the educational goals of the lesson.
The third step after recording is to share using the Teams group page. Before sharing the video or content, it must be clear and engaging to the students. Alongside the video, I explained that the content will be discussed in class for those who would want teacher-student interaction will also have time. The fourth step changes, which comes after the students have viewed the lessons and have requested more information or instructions. The fourth step is grouping, which involves students forming groups to discuss the topics or concepts they have learned from the video content. Finally, regrouping asking every student to write two questions with answers that are related to what was discussed in groups and ask them to each other. It gives them the freedom to ask more questions and dig deeper than ever before.
(Ref 2) Kennedy, Patrick. “How to combine multiple research methods: Practical triangulation.”
5-Analysis of Evidence
From the study or research, much evidence has been revealed regarding the implementation of flipped learning or classrooms. The questionnaires or surveys were undertaken regarding their experience during the implementation of flipped learning. The following are the results of the questionnaire filled up by 16 students in the class.
Figure 1: Student’s experience with flipped classroom
From the above figure, it is evident that 75% of the students reported that they had an excellent experience, 12.5% good, 12.5% not good, and lastly 0% worse. It is noted that most of the students had the best experience with the flipped classroom technology. Therefore, there is a need to implement it in the modern classroom. Students have responded favourably to the flipped classroom experience.
Figure 2: The experience of flipped classroom among engineering students
Most of the students strongly agreed that flipped classroom gives them more class time to practice engineering problems. Out of the 16 students, 81.25% strongly agreed, 12.5% agreed, 6.25% disagreed, and 0% strongly disagreed. It implies that during the research or study period majority of the students have improved their experience in class with engineering problems.They believe flipped classroom strategy is giving them more time for practice that is very necessary for complex engineering problems of empirical importance.
Figure 3: Student’s experience with watching video lessons
From the study, it is noted that the majority of the students, which is 63%, strongly agreed that they like watching lessons on video. 31% agreed, while 6% disagreed and 0% totally disagreed. From this point of view, it is evident that student engagement is effective through video lessons. (Appendix 4)
Figure 4: The three activities in class that helped students learn
The 3 activities in class that most helped students learn are group activities, teacher presentations, and discussions. My implementation of the flipped classroom involved making videos, which were then provided in group activities, teacher presentations (videos), and discussions. I first presented the videos before class sessions and after class to enable the students to have an in-depth understanding of the content. The students then engaged in discussion and collaborated effectively to enable them to gain more knowledge regarding the content.
My Strengths
I have been good at searching for alternatives and concepts to conduct research. The topic selected for this action research can be very effective for students as they can get education more effectively. One of the most important aspects of this action research is that it offers more independence and freedom to students to complete their tasks and meet requirements for education. I have tried my level best to come up with these expectations, and I consider it as my strength. Another aspect of my strength is that I have focused on the empirical point of this research. It means that I have focused on the application of flipped classroom strategy, and it is the true purpose of research that it has to be implemented practically.
My Areas of Improvement
Research is indeed a complex and challenging task, and I have to keep improving. This action research also needs more improvements, like it has to include more studies on variables. The literature review and its alignment with findings need to be further strengthened and improved. It means that research had to add and contribute to existing research in a way that is recognized by everyone. It has been good research, but it needs stronger and more valuable for existing literature in the field.
6-Conclusion
The implementation of a flipped classroom is considered the most advanced and relevant technique recently. In many fields, this methodology has teachers use it in their daily lesson planning at both lower and higher education levels. It provides accessible material 24/7, which made it easier for the students to go back and re-check the work due and taught; they could evaluate their own graded assignments on their own as well. And as the study mentioned above stated that 75% of students had an excellent experience with this, whereas 81.25% agreed that it gives them more quality time to work on practical’s during the class time instead of lecture and textbooks that they can now consult outside of the class and be prepared beforehand. This new methodology Is a great way for students to develop responsibility and skills regarding self-learning however a fraction of students may still find it difficult to get along with this new technique and some may also just not follow it as there doesn’t seem to be any proper check and balance on who is actually going through the online/flipped material. Conclusively, if the limitations of the flipped learning methodology could be overcome with effective regulations, then it can be a great success in the future of education. It is necessary to keep on marketing the usage of the Flipped Classroom technique within the mathematical branch as one of the primary lines of innovation at a educational stage. The idea of top practices in this experience, will provide ideas for instructors of all instructional degrees in the area of mathematics to adopt in their classrooms.
7-Recommendations
From the research, it would be noted that implementation of flipped learning boosts or improves student engagement in math lessons. It is noted that when it is implemented in the best way possible then the students and teachers are likely to find learning more interactive and effective. Especially among engineering students flipped mathematics and engineering problems are deeply understood by the students, flipped learning can be extremely beneficial. The following are some of the suggestions:
Give guidance to students for them to understand what they need to be aware of or be able to do when they get to class.
- Offer formative assessment opportunities for students to understand what they do and do not know. It is found from the research that students take flipped classroom learning strategy as a time management tool as well. Thus, they can plan what they are doing and what they can do.
- Be in the position of adjusting teaching and learning activities alongside discovering what did not contribute to effective learning and what did as well. Experts in education should work in this regard to know what exactly and effectively contributes to teaching and learning activities.
- Using instructional designers to identify what content should be offloaded and how in-class learning activities must be designed.It is very useful to get help from instructional designers because they can guide on how to design activities and it can make the instructional strategy more effective.
- Offer several personal and group-based faculty development opportunities to help faculty members to embrace change.It is also part of the flipped classroom strategy in which personal and group-level collaboration can help in instructional methods for students and educators.
- Link all pre-class and in-class activities for students to be in the position of completing both successfully. It is an essential and obvious outcome of flipped classroom strategy that students can connect with all activities in class. They can be prepared well before the start of the class and then they can participate actively in-class activities. it can affect their learning activities after the class as well. Therefore, education experts and academics need to focus on flipped learning strategies in a way that can provide a comprehensive learning experience for students.
8-Evaluation of Intervention
The intervention proved to be more effective given that second-year students had one-year interaction with the course elements. Thus, making it effective in the essence that flipped past course elements relating to the current course elements to allow students to have an in-depth understanding of the content. From the intervention, most students agreed and testified that they like watching lessons on video. The students find it more interactive when they interact with the flipped lessons before classes and after classes, which makes them more prepared and able to handle certain engineering problems.
Flipped learning boosts and encourages student engagement in classes, which is an important part of studying and learning. The flipped learning model is not only about watching pre-recorded videos and learning online, but it is all about making the classroom more active and engaging. The students at this point first understand the content before and after classes, and especially for engineering students, it helps in solving math problems. Flipped learning also provided the teachers with opportunities to teach via video and then make clarifications for the next lesson in person.
Moreover, flipped learning or the classroom model has also improved students’ access to content, which underlines much on the student’s engagement with the respective content. Students would always prosper in an engaging and interactive environment throughout their studies. Having an engaging teacher-student-led environment improves the student’s ability to engage in math activities, which are related to engineering. The notion that has been ongoing that students not good in math cannot do the engineering-related course is soon gone.
Students through a well-integrated flipped learning or classroom would be able to interact with the available content effectively and improve their understanding regarding the concepts learned in a classroom. Therefore, it is recommended that engineering teachers must ensure that flipped learning is implemented to enable students to have a better understanding of the course content and achieve both personal and course objectives.
Bibliography
(Ref 1) Bergmann, Jonathan, and Aaron Sams. Flip your classroom: Reach every student in every class every day
Bernard, H. Russell. “Qualitative data, quantitative analysis.” CAM Journal 8, no. 1 (2016): 9-11.
Bergmann, Jonathan, and Aaron Sams. Flip your classroom: Reach every student in every class every day. International society for technology in education, 2012.
Bergmann, J., Sams, A., & Gudenrath, A. (2015). Flipped learning for English instruction. International Society for Technology in Education.
Cabı, Emine. “The impact of the flipped classroom model on students’ academic achievement.” International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning 19, no. 3 (2018).
Enfield, J. (2013). Looking at the impact of the flipped classroom model of instruction on undergraduate multimedia students at CSUN. TechTrends, 57 (6), 14-27.
Keengwe, Jared, ed. Promoting active learning through the flipped classroom model. IGI Global, 2014.
Kennedy, Patrick. “How to combine multiple research methods: Practical triangulation.” Jonny Holland Magazine (2009).
Lo, Chung Kwan, and KheFoon Hew. “Developing a flipped learning approach to support student engagement: A design‐based research of secondary school mathematics teaching.” Journal of Computer Assisted Learning 37, no. 1 (2021): 142-157.
Nouri, Jalal. “The flipped classroom: for active, effective and increased learning–especially for low achievers.” International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education 13, no. 1 (2016): 1-10.
Prasetyo, B. D., Suprapto, N., & Pudyastomo, R. N. (2018). Those who attended the classes found the videos much interesting and used the recordings for their reviews and revision. It was found that the students were interacting more in class and those who needed help most were given the necessary help. Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 997 (1), 1-8.
Pudin, C. S. (2017). Exploring a flipped learning approach in teaching grammar for ESL students. Indonesian Journal of English Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics, 2 (1), 51-64.
