The Human Limitations of Flipped Science Instruction: Exploring Students Learning and Perceptions of Flipped Teaching

Abstract

Flipped instruction—the replacement of traditional in-class lecture with at-home, multimedia instruction—continues to grow in popularity. The existing evidence to support its effectiveness in K-12 science classrooms lacks substantial quantitative data to warrant such an enthusiastic embrace. The objective of this study was to clarify the relationship between flipped instruction and student learning in a high school classroom context, as well as to understand the interactions between students and technological tools that took place during flipped instruction. This quasi-experimental mixed-methods study compared learning outcomes in high school Biology students (N= 303) who experienced a flipped lesson to those of peers who experienced a control, traditional lecture-based lesson on the same topic. Average gains from pre-test to post-test were significantly higher for flipped students. Flipped students' completion of the out-of-class online learning activity was particularly important. Interview data suggest that the multimedia nature of the online activity, as well as its convenience, contributed the significant gains of flipped students.

Keywords

• Flipped classrooms
• flipped instruction
• blended learning

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