HERREID, C. SCHILLER, N. (2013) Case Studies and the Flipped Classroom. Journal of College Science Teaching. p62-65

Kathleen Fulton (2012) came up with advantages for the flipped classroom ;

ü  Students are able to move at their own pace

ü  Teachers are able to gain better insight into the students style of working and the things that they are finding difficult

ü  The time within the classroom can be used more effectively

ü  The use of the technology is flexible and appropriate for ‘21^st Century Learning’

ü  More time can be used working with the students on authentic research.

ü  ‘promotes thinking inside and outside of the classroom’

ü  Students are able to be more actively involved in their own learning.

ü   

“Studies published in the peer reviewed literature on the impact of the flipped classroom on student learning in STEM classes appear to support the anecdotal evidence supplied by teachers” Strayer (2012)

Two major problems have been bought up regarding the flipped approach to learning.

ü  Students that have not familiar with the method could initially be resistant to the idea therefore causing them to come unprepared to the class, meaning that they would be behind and not able to join in with discussion.

ü  Teachers have said that they find it difficult to find good quality videos to provide their students with.  Also the act of creating the videos is time consuming, therefore teachers finding it hard to find the time.

Team learning, developed by Larry Michaelsen (1992) came up with the idea of giving students reading assignments before meeting in the class and then when they are in class they take part in individual quizzes and group quizzes, then leading onto case studies.

-          Herreid (2002) has described the successful use of Michaelsons method in STEM courses.

“ ‘Hybrid courses” and “blended courses” have students learning their subject matter via a combination of traditional classroom interactions and some form of internet based learning.”
All of the methods ‘allow instructors to cover principles, facts, and terms as part of out-of-class student preparation and to use classroom time to deliver the application side where students grapple with real-world problems and see the material in context.’

Within a poll that was carried out by Herreid and Schiller, the teachers explained that they preferred online videos over the use of reading materials to be able to achieve the goal of being able to prepare the students outside of class for in class active learning. They also said that their students preferred this method also.

                Lents (2012) examined the use of video tutorials within an undergraduate chemistry course. The way in which he examined this was by assessing students assignments and exam results. He also included using student’s oral and written feedback, before and after their exams. He also used data from previous classes taught by the same tutor.

“The flipped classroom, with its use of videos that enlarge and focus student learning, offers us a new model for case study teaching, combining active, student-centred learning with content mystery that can be applied to solving real-world problems.”