Flipped fun: A reflection on five flipped classrooms with diverse student cohorts in STEM disciplines

Flipped learning approaches have had a significant impact on teaching practices more recently than the traditional teaching strategies in higher education and STEM disciplines. This paper describes how the concept of flipped learning, the role of the lecturer and practices around assessments are used in large and diverse online student cohorts. This paper presents the experience of academics from Nursing, Information Technology and Sports Science use of flipped classroom strategy and their designed flipped approaches for their units of teaching and student cohorts. The lessons learntarereported of the flipped learning innovations from a multidisciplinary, science-focused, scholarly community of practice referred to as ‘iScholar’ in a regional Australian university.

For the academics, sharing experiences in practice allowed appraisal of the differing flips and flops of the blended learning platform. Additionally, they were able to explore the role of the lecturer in these blended learning modes and evaluate learning experiences of different student cohorts. The lecturers embraced the challenges of technology and focused on the needs of their differing student cohorts; further, reflected on their practice and shared the experiences with the extended academic community in the University.

Preparation of students for these innovative learning modes was identified as a crucial step in flipped classroom strategies. The lecturers were explicit about the learning outcomes and the activities expected of the students, which supported the successful implementation of flipped classrooms. Student perceptions and attitudes towards the flipped model of learning changed with improved engagement in learning activities.