Marianopolis College students taking some Science and Language classes in the Winter 2016 semester are learning via a flipped classroom approach.
Academic Resources Professional Ryan Forster and Ane Jørgensen, with Associate Academic Dean, Programs Simon Sabik, helped train faculty on how to use the flipped classroom approach.
A pedagogical model in which the lecture and homework elements of a course are reversed, the flipped classroom is the latest of the many innovative pedagogical methods at the College, which is in its second century of educational excellence and pioneering approaches to learning.
"In the flipped classroom, factual knowledge is transmitted outside class and class time is used to help students assimilate this knowledge," says Marianopolis Academic Dean Christian Corno. "Research shows that this method yields higher levels of cognitive engagement and better long-term retention of learning. For example, two introductory physics classes taught with the traditional method at Harvard University showed lower learning gains than did classes where the flipped classroom method was used."
Whether it's physics at Harvard, video production at Algonquin College or Japanese architecture at Duke University, the flipped classroom draws on such concepts as active learning, student engagement and hybrid course design.
Students are first exposed to new material outside of class and subsequently use class time to do the harder work of assimilating that knowledge. Class time is repurposed into a workshop where students test their skills in applying knowledge and inquire about lecture content.
The faculty function as expert advisors or coaches, encouraging students in collaborative effort and individual inquiry. Research shows that devoting class time to the actual application of concepts gives faculty a better opportunity to detect and address errors in reasoning.
