Students can get left out, get talked over, or struggle to keep up and fade out of the teacher’s attention in almost any intensive English class. Now, with 21st century technological developments, we have the tools to help reduce students’ capability of hiding in plain sight. This technology can free up time for teachers to teach all students.

The flipped class model or inverted learning makes use of video-making capabilities to enable teachers to “flip” their classes. Now, teachers can record a video lecture or find an appropriate one online and assign it for homework. In class, these teachers work with students on homework types of activities, collaborative activities, or projects. As they work with the students, they can provide quick, targeted feedback to individuals or groups and assess individual and class performance daily.

When newspapers and magazines publish stories on the flipped classroom, they tend to focus on the use of technology as the key element of the flipped classroom. Teachers who use the approach talk about the additional class time to engage students in learning. They get to know students better from interacting with them daily, often on a one-to-one basis.

Using video lectures outside the class to enhance instruction enables teachers to approximate a brief one-to-one tutorial for students, which Benjamin Bloom (1984) identified as the most effective instructional model. Using the class for “homework” empowers teachers to provide tutoring and feedback at the point of need (Nelson, 1991). A student struggling with noncount nouns in subject-verb agreement at home may become frustrated and give up. In class, the teacher can aid the student with this problem as it occurs and address the difficulties before they reach the level of frustration.

In the Classroom

What does a flipped classroom look like? It might look like the following in an ESL writing classroom. The teacher moves among the students while the students work on the day’s activity, a worksheet, a writing assignment, a pair or group activity, or a project. The teacher talks with the students individually, in pairs, or in groups and does over-the-shoulder assessments as she moves around the class. She may answer questions, provide feedback or give a nudge in another direction, supply an encouraging comment, or briefly talk with a student experiencing out-of-class difficulties. As she interacts with the students, she can make adjustments to the activity if needed.

Lessons can begin with a quick review or questions about the video or focus on the day’s activity. The day’s activity might be a worksheet, an analysis of a grammar point with several samples, proofreading or peer editing, or some other writing activity. This class can culminate in a review of questions that arose or feedback on the activity.

No one model exists for how to run a flipped class, which is both freeing and frightening. Freeing because it gives the teacher the power to imagine the class as he or she sees it best functioning and implementing it. Frightening because no recipe exists to tell us what to do class-by-class or if something doesn’t work. However, the fear can be eased because teachers do not have to flip every class. Indeed, some classes will not work using this approach. In other words, the approach can be used as much or as little as the teacher finds it appropriate.

Certain problems can occur. All the students may not have access to the video or media materials. Without the lecture, students may initially find the class strange or uncomfortable. They sometimes find the approach difficult because they have grown accustomed to the teacher explaining instead of working with the material themselves. Some students find the less structured class activities somewhat intimidating or frustrating because it doesn’t look like a “real” class. Some students may not watch all the videos before class.

However, with USB drives and DVDs, videos can be recorded, saved, and given to the students. With time, students adjust. They begin to come to class expecting to get to work and expecting an interesting challenge. Some teachers have embedded videos into web pages with questions about the video content or quizzes given at the beginning of class on the videos.

Reservations Addressed

We should have reservations about the flipped classroom, especially with its growing popularity. It may seem like a popular technology-driven fad. Just as in traditional classes, students may not do their homework; students may not watch the videos. It is not a study hall or lab. Teachers need to observe and detect problems and find ways to solve them on the spot if possible. Thus, it challenges teachers to sharpen their individual and small-group skills.

If the technology is emphasized, the flipped classroom can become frustrating. Making videos is time-consuming, can be frustrating as well as rewarding, and requires adding another set of skills as well as buying or finding equipment. However, many videos have already been made and published online. YouTube is the first place we usually think of to find videos, but other sites like educreations.com and showme.com host numerous whiteboard videos. Also, the flipped classroom site flippedlearning.educreations.tv has many videos. In the classroom, technology can take a backseat if the teacher doesn’t want to use it.

Some students may choose not to watch the explanatory videos. In an intensive English program setting, the students may have had the grammar instruction before and perhaps already know the material, or think they do. In class, they may have been the ones with all the answers during lectures or who tuned out the lecture. The grammar knowledgeable students can use the videos when and if they need them. Besides, some students may simply prefer to use a textbook or other resource for their instruction. In giving students the option of choosing their own learning tools, we hand over control of the learning to the students and give them responsibility for their learning.

When presenting grammar in the traditional classroom, teachers may have found themselves focusing on the strong students instead of the students with the blank looks. Focusing on the blank-looking students could slow the class down or stall it. With the flipped class, these struggling students can use the videos for individual learning and, by controlling the progress of the video and rewinding when needed, learn at their own pace. Just as the stronger students can take control of their learning, so can the students who need more help.

Without the lectures and grammar introductions, more class time is available. Teachers face the challenge of providing challenging and engaging activities because more time is freed up for students to read, write, and use the language. With over-the-shoulder assessments, teachers now have to sharpen their diagnostic skills. The very skills they use for groups need to be refocused on individuals and pairs. They need to give individual feedback as well as the nudges of encouragement or criticism that help the students improve.

Conclusion

Students who would normally get lost in the shuffle because they don’t ask questions and fall behind now have nowhere to hide. Teachers can interact with every student and can spot struggling students earlier and provide assistance. The flipped class model puts the teacher back into a more one-to-one relationship with the students, provides multiple opportunities for formative assessment, and makes the classroom a laboratory for learning. It can take much of the technology out of the classroom and keep it from getting between the learner and teacher. It isn’t an easier way to teach, but it can be an exciting and rewarding way to teach.

The flipped class model and how it can be used in EAP writing classes will be discussed at a TESOL Convention session on this topic on Friday, March 22, 2013, 7:30-8:15 am in the Dallas Convention Center, room D163.

References

Bloom, B. (1984). The sigma 2 problem: The search for methods of group instruction as effective as one-to-one tutoring. Educational Researcher, 13(6), 4–16.

Nelson, M. (1991). At the point of need: Teaching basic and ESL writers. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

John Graney is the ESL coordinator at Sante Fe Community College. He has been an ESL/EFL professional for more than 30 years and enjoys using technology in the classroom.