Abstract:

The flipped classroom appears as a pedagogical device that promotes the appropriation of theoretical frameworks, the application of knowledge or the development of tasks aimed at achieving a specific objective. However, It is important to emphasise that the relationship between the adoption of this pedagogical device and student performance based on the classifications obtained is inconclusive (e.g. Ryan & Reid, 2015). Moreover, in a context dominated by the importance of formative efficiency, the preference for this pedagogical device can be weakened. In other words, it is important first to understand how the device corresponds to an effective pedagogical re-contextualization (Bernstein, 2000) and, secondly, to identify what is beyond the formative efficiency when opting for the flipped class.

The present study analyses the effects of flipped classes in the process of appropriation of knowledge, skills and abilities by the students of three scientific areas, to understand the answers that the development of inverted classes generates in different cultures/academic identities. Three experiments of pedagogical re-contextualization, based on flipped classes, were developed in three course units of three applied sciences programs (Becher and Trowler, 2001), namely the Integrated Master of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Civil Engineering (hard-applied) and BSc in Educational Sciences (soft-applied).

The flipped classroom methodology adopted in the three experiments was based on the visualisation of recordings of lectures, followed by group discussions in the classroom, transforming the teaching/learning context in a more dynamic and interactive environment. The objectives of the flipped classroom were focused on promoting the appropriation and understanding of theoretical frameworks, application of knowledge and the development of tasks oriented to the accomplishment of a specific activity.

To assess the effectiveness of the flipped classes, the evaluation of the results in student learning took into account two aspects:
1) the validation process, which was based on a reflection by the teachers, on the concepts to be mobilized in the class and its application and articulation in the scope of the course unit content;
2) students’ evaluation of the results of the experiments through the completion of a questionnaire survey allowed to discuss students’ perceptions of the flipped classroom.

The results of the evaluation process, based on the reflection of the teachers, show the need to continuously articulate the objectives of the pedagogical experience with the learning outcomes that the device aims to develop. The results that take into consideration the evaluation of the experiences by the students are being analysed and will be presented in the communication. Besides, the data will be contextualized by the statistics of visualizations of the recorded classes.

References:
[1] Becher, T., & Trowler, P. R. (2001). Academic Tribes and Territories (2nd edition ed.). Buckingham: The Society for Research into Higher Education.
[2] Bernstein, B. (2000). Pedagogy, symbolic control and identity (Revised Edition ed.). Oxford: Rowman Littlefield.
[3] Ryan, M. D., & Reid, S. A. (2015). Impact of the flipped classroom on student performance and retention: A parallel controlled study in general chemistry. Journal of Chemical Education, 93(1), 13-23.

Keywords:

Flipped classroom, transdisciplinary, effectiveness.