Student perspectives on flipped classrooms in engineering education

We used focus group interviews and the student perspective in order to investigate student perceptions of flipped classroom in engineering education. The learning environment included web-based interactive video films, where students had to answer quizzes in order to continue seeing the films, and interactive in-class sessions with clickers. In general the students had experience of flipped classroom in many courses and subjects, and could compare different implementations in physics, mechanics and calculus. We studied perceived advantages, strengths, drawbacks, or difficulties, and students’ views on learning with flipped classroom. Overall, the students were positive, or in one case indifferent to flipped classroom. They saw many advantages, but they also pointed out difficulties and had many opinions about how a flipped learning environment was best implemented. In the interviews, they also expressed their views on learning and described how they studied. Many used rote learning and surface approaches to learning, but many also had a focus on understanding. Some declared an intention to focus on understanding but still used rote learning. Some students expressed a strategic approach to learning with focus on the examination. Heavy workload and a threatening examination system seem to favor surface approaches to learning also in a flipped classroom learning environment. One of our interviewees had dyslexia and described her experience and special conditions. We conclude by suggesting a list of five key elements for flipped classroom. We think that the interplay between these elements is important, and that they are considerably weaker without the support of the others