To flip or not to flip: An exploratory analysis into student attitudes towards the flipped classroom approach to learning Enhancement Themes conference, Thursday 9 June 2016 John McIntyre Conference Centre, Edinburgh Mulholland, G., Turner, J. & Mitova, M

Contextual background The aim of this research is to examine student attitudes towards the flipped classroom pedagogy as a teaching approach to enhance learning and the student experience on an undergraduate module within the Business School. The rationale to this research and teaching approach was based on: Feedback from students and prospective employers Low attendance rates An examination of modular performances of previous cohorts Reading and understanding of teaching and learning pedagogies Funded research into utilising the resources/assets of Abertay University for commercial purposes and income generation. Strong Scottish Institute of Enterprise programme

Teaching, Learning & Assessment Using a supportive e-book and associated materials to replace the traditional lecture approach students on the module were assessed through: Four individual class tests (each worth 10% of the overall module grade) based on chapters from the e- book to periodically test engagement with the module and learning of the subject. Four units of group assessment (a 3 minute elevator pitch and 500 word report, each worth 15% of the overall module grade) relating to commercialising University assets which involved 1. conducting an audit of commercially viable assets on campus; 2. generating two commercially viable events supported by marketing research and appropriate costing; 3. considering a marketing mix strategy for the chosen event and subsequent spin off events; 4. selling the respective events to potential customers via an ‘enterprise fair’. SIE Student enterprise event – funded by Abertay

Contextual background JanFebMarApril Online Student Text Class Tests Action Learning Sets Student Pitches Enterprise Event

Research Sample The survey questions developed by the research team were founded in the literature concerning the flipped classroom pedagogy. The sample size for the first survey was 152 with a response rate of 32 and was predominantly qualitative. The sample size for the second survey was 152 with a response rate of 126 which was a mix of quantitative and qualitative. The students were Stage 2 undergraduates from the programmes - Business Studies, Accounting with Finance, Food & Consumer Sciences, Marketing & Business, Food Nutrition & Health, Sport & Management.

Research output Key themes to emerge, firstly modular performance and secondly attitudes towards the flipped classroom: Flipped classroom Class testFlipped Classroom Pitch Mean Grade C, but reducing over test period (1(B)– 4 (D)) Mean Grade B (1 -4 consistent) Traditional Classroom (2014/15)Flipped Classroom (2015/16 Modular performance B: 4 students receiving an A grade, 85 students receiving a B grade, 45 students receiving a C grade, 5 receiving a D grade with no fail grades. Modular performance B: 1 student receiving an A grade, 93 students receiving a B grade, 58 students receiving a C grade with no D or fail grades.

Research output Key themes to emerge, firstly modular performance and secondly attitudes towards the flipped classroom: Satisfaction with Assessment Mid Term Feedback: Preference for traditional lectures over a supporting e-book and the amount of work involved reading chapter materials compared to PowerPoint presentations, typical responses were: “the chapters are in depth and long. For me it requires a lot of time and effort” and “I prefer lectures…I learn better through lectures”. PitchClass test 60.3% who agreed and strongly agreed they enjoyed the presentation and 44.5% who agreed and strongly agreed they enjoyed the report. 34.2% agreed and strongly agreed they enjoyed the class tests

Research output Key themes to emerge, firstly modular performance and secondly attitudes towards the flipped classroom: Teaching Approach Following completion of the Term, the majority of respondents (49.2% agreed and strongly agreed compared to 23% disagreeing and strongly disagreeing) preferred the traditional approach of lectures and tutorials compared to the flipped classroom approach. The majority of students preferred to learn through lectures, however it should be noted that attendance at lectures of previous cohorts was particularly low, decline from week 3 onwards and declining to 25% from week 7 onwards. The majority of respondents (60.3% agreed and strongly agreed compared to 5.6% disagreeing and strongly disagreeing) preferred lectures to be more visible on the module.

Research output Key themes to emerge, firstly modular performance and secondly attitudes towards the flipped classroom: Student Attitudes Students did enjoy being continually assessed with 60.1% agreeing and strongly agreeing with the statement in comparison to being assessed at the end of the module where only 23% agreed and strongly agreed with the statement. Student led learningStudent workload The majority of respondents (50.8% agreed and strongly agreed compared to 26.2% disagreeing and strongly disagreeing) did acknowledge that the flipped classroom approach encouraged them to explore materials on their own. The majority of students (52.4% agreeing and strongly agreeing compared to 19% disagreeing and strongly disagreeing) thought the workload was high when compared to the traditional approach, with the onus on them to learn outside the classroom.

Research output Key themes to emerge, firstly modular performance and secondly attitudes towards the flipped classroom: The majority of respondents (48.4% agreed and strongly agreed compared to 21.4% disagreeing and strongly disagreeing) agreed that they were active participants in the learning process. Usefulness of directed readingAccess to own materials The majority of respondents (65.9% agreed and strongly agreed compared to 4% disagreeing and strongly disagreeing) that they preferred to access materials convenient to them. A minority of respondents (38.1% agreed and strongly agreed compared to 25.4% disagreeing and strongly disagreeing) that they preferred to choose what they learn rather than be given materials.

Research output Key themes to emerge, firstly modular performance and secondly attitudes towards the flipped classroom: Learning styles Learning EffectivenessChange requires management The majority of respondents (53.1% agreed and strongly agreed compared to 26.1% disagreeing and strongly disagreeing) thought they learned more through the flipped classroom approach compared to the traditional approach of lecture and tutorials. What the research reveals is students are perhaps used to the traditional approach to teaching but appreciate the components of the flipped classroom pedagogy, underlined by a minority of respondents (25.9% agreeing and strongly agreeing) being satisfied with the module after 7 weeks compared to 46.3% agreeing and strongly agreeing they were satisfied after completion of the module in week 14.

Visuals from the ‘enterprise fair’, the culmination of the module and final unit of assessment

Recommendations The results indicate that the flipped classroom approach: Did not significantly impact on modular performance Took some time to be accepted by students when we compare perceptions in week 7 with week 14 Created increased workload for students Was not as popular as the traditional approach to teaching but that this probably has more to do with this being the students first experience with the approach, as illustrated by opinion improving as the Term progressed Assisted student understanding more when compared to traditional teaching in terms of learning about business May have been better received had the class test allowed students to test their knowledge with mock tests and not been so frequent through the module Significantly increased attendance and lifted lower grades.