Get started with Flipped Classroom
Flipped Classroom is more than just using video in the learning platform. Even minor adjustments to the course design can be counted as a Flipped Classroom method. Here you can read about how to get started, what tools you can use and what you can think of.
Start discussions about the study material
Make sure that the students are actively using the study material you hand out, no matter the type of study material. The students should interact with the material and each other to benefit as much as possible from the Flipped Classroom method. To only read a text or watch a video is not enough. It is important to start discussions about the study material and make the students process the information they are recieving.
Tools supported by KTH
There exists many different tools for Flipped Classroom and KTH supports a few of them:
- KTH Play for videos.
- Discussion forums for discussions between students.
- Quizzes for self-correcting questions.
- Zoom for lessons.
Canvas is the gathering point for all these tools, to greater or less extent, and should be used to connect all different parts of the course. For instance you can add the Zoom link on the start page of your Canvas course and add videos from KTH Play to your assignments.
Embed video into your Canvas course via KTH Play
You can add videos to Canvas from KTH Play in the same way as everywhere in Canvas, aside from New Quizzes which require a different method. More information can be found in the guide Embed video into your Canvas course .
Encourage student discussions
The discussion forum in Canvas is good for making students comment and answering discussion questions. We recommend that you add the text or video in the discussion post together with introduction text, possible discussion questions or other relevant information you would like to include.
Ask the students to refer to where in the material they are when they ask a question or write a comment, for example with a time stamp of a page number. Then it is easier for you and other students to find what they want to address.
Encourage the students to ask their own questions and discuss other aspects than the ones you have given. For example by preparing a few questions such as "What did you find confusing or difficult to understand"? or "Do you agree or disagree with the arguments and conclusion?". The students will then lead their own learning and maintain their interest.
The Discussions function in Canvas
Quizzes about the material
Even if questions are posed and answered in the discussion forum it is difficult to get a view of how many students actually understood the content. Furthermore it is difficult to ask questions with only one correct answer in a discussion forum since the first correct answer offers a key to the rest. Quizzes in Canvas is a good complement to discussions, to get an overview of individual students understanding and problem areas.
Practice instead of tests
These quizzes should be compulsory but not decisive for the final grade. The best use is when they give students a feeling of how well they understand the content and what they need to focus on. The quizzes should also give you information about how students are doing overall. The quizzes should not be considered as tests but as practice which can be achieved by giving the students unlimited attempts.
Both videos and texts can be divided into smaller parts and be included in each question instead of placing the whole video or document in the instructions. It makes it clear when the students are supposed to answer questions. The students will also have less content to search through if they have to return to a specific point to answer the question. Another option is to write "Please answer question 1 now" in the text or video even if this option is less natural.
Zoom and hybrid teaching
Zoom can be used in several ways in teaching. The tool has functions that promote interactivity and different ways of designing the course content.
Synchronous and asynchronous
A synchronous occasion is when everyone in the class meet at the same time, through Zoom or in a classroom, whereas asynchronous learning happens at different times for all students. Both discussion threads and quizzes are asynchronous and can preferably be used before and after synchronous occasions.
Use the synchronous time for discussions and explanations of topics that the students find challenging. A good way of synchronously conducting discussions is by dividing the students in different breakout rooms in Zoom. With breakout rooms you can:
- Divide the students into randomized groups where they can discuss the whole assignment.
- Create groups based on themes/assignments/areas that the students can choose from and assign themselves to.
- Prepare groups that are supposed to discuss a topic. After some time the students split and form new groups with one student from each of the the first groups. Their aim is to describe their topics to the new group.
- Assign students into small groups for shorter discussions several times during a lesson. This can be done often, in the same way as when you ask students to discuss a question with the student sitting next to them.
Important social aspects
Flipped Classroom means much time spent on asynchronous learning for the students and more efficient use of time in class. But it can lead to students feeling disconnected from the course and feeling forced to interact with strangers when they are to discuss with other students. This is especially a problem for remote teaching, where the students perhaps never meet each other other than in Zoom. All inefficient, but important health-wise, socializing disappears and the contact between students or to you as a teacher is weakened.
How can I create a sense of belonging in the digital classroom?
There are several different methods for creating a sense of belonging among the students. It is often enough to show that you are human and that you give the students the option to create contacts. Here are some suggestions to consider and choose from:
- Upload a short video where you introduce yourself and ask the students to upload their own video presentation.
- Ask the students to introduce themselves to each other in breakout rooms before they start a discussion.
- Open the Zoom room 10 minutes before the lesson starts and keep it open 10 minutes after the lesson ends. You do not have to be active but it gives your students the option to socialize in a way they would have done in the classroom.
- Be present in Canvas. It can be enough to write a short greeting when you upload a PowerPoint presentation from today's lesson. Or to remind the students that you have a guest lecturer by using the Announcement function.
- Ask the students to send a short video or sound file where they inform you what they would like you to call them. This might not be the name in their profile. Practice that pronunciation if necessary and if you are going to meet the students face to face you can listen to their names beforehand to pronounce it correctly.
- Inform about your "office hours", meaning when the students can contact and reach you. It can be via Zoom, email, chat or other solution, what is important is that they know when to expect a reply from you. This also avoids you feeling forced to be constantly available.