Abstract:

Inclusive education is one of the modern trends in global and European policy and practice. It is based on the belief that students of all abilities have the right to a meaningful, appropriate and equal to that of their peers education. The national policies of a number of countries take real action to promote inclusive education and building an inclusive environment in universities that adequately responds to the diversity of student needs. Creating an inclusive educational and social environment is considered the most effective way to combat discrimination and exclusion, to ensure access to education for all. Universities have an obligation to create the necessary conditions and opportunities to ensure that all students can actively engage in the learning process and learn effectively (Thomas , 2016).

Taking into account the above, we can naturally place the flipped classroom, as one of the factors of the supportive environment in higher education that guarantees the better implementation of inclusive education. Flipped classroom methodology tends to make learning process significant and accessible to every student. It moves the traditional lecture out of class time through the use of a huge variety of media, apps, software to communicate course content or to get students to do practical activities and homework (interactive videos, that can be subtitled, videos and images, written texts, material manipulation) to teach learners the key concepts of a particular topic in advance as homework. These lectures are replaced in class by a set of interactive problem-solving activities designed to induce active learning thereby prompting students to apply and further comprehend the learned concepts. The flipped classroom learning style enables the teachers to teach content pre-class while providing adequate in-class active learning processes.

This paper discusses the effect of flipped classroom strategy in the context of inclusive education in higher institutions. This approach is well suited to teaching all students regardless of their differences. This is especially a good opportunity for inclusive education, especially for students with special educational needs (SEN). The focus is on three main groups of students - hearing impaired, dyslexic and visually impaired, as these are the most numerous groups in higher education. Detailed instructions on the steps to be taken by educators in designing a flipped classroom when students with such needs are present in the class are given on the paper. It is important for the lectures to know the specific needs and preferences of their SEN learners and apply a personalized approach when using the flipped classroom method.

Keywords:

Flipped classroom, students with special educational needs, higher education.