To Flip or Not to Flip? A Meta-Analysis of the Efficacy of Flipped Learning in Higher Education

Although flipped classroom pedagogies have been widely touted for their ability to foster diverse 21st-century learning objectives, previous syntheses of flipped learning have focused almost exclusively on outcomes related to academic achievement. Using data from 317 studies, our research addresses this deficit by providing a comprehensive meta-analysis of the effects of flipped versus lecture-based learning on academic, intra-/interpersonal, and satisfaction-related outcomes in higher education. Overall, flipped classroom interventions produced positive gains across all three learning domains, and we found significant advantages of flipped over lecture-based instruction for seven out of eight outcomes (gs = 0.20–0.53). At the same time, there was substantial heterogeneity in flipped learning effects, and we identified several variables that influenced the relative efficacy of flipped versus traditional courses. Of the three types of moderators examined (contextual, design-based, and methodological), educational context (e.g., discipline, location) accounted for the most variability in flipped learning outcomes.

IDEOLOGY AND ECONOMICS: POST-SOVIET PERSPECTIVE

As the fifteen former soviet economies progress in their political, economic, institutional, and state-building development, the role of the ideology among them is being neglected. It is assumed that as the USSR collapsed, the role of socialistic or communistic ideologies is no more in the mind of the politicians and decision-makers or even citizens. However, for 70 years these countries used ideology, and only ideology to guide their societies. Complete deviation from the traditional courses of the state, or institutions among the former Soviet Union countries should be hard to ignore even today. In this light, the connections between ideology as a non-scientific factor that impacts economics seems to be relevant in the case of the former Soviet Union countries. Consequently, a set of questions arise: are the post-Soviet countries post-Soviet, or the legacy of the USSR is still present? How exactly an ideology must be pinpointed among the former Soviet countries? What is the overall situation related to the connection between the economic development and ideological situation among the ex-Soviet countries? This paper discusses the concept of ideology in the context of the Soviet economies, by briefly considering country examples, referring to the permanent importance of the notion of ideology in daily life, politics, and economics.

Students’ Use of Resources in a Challenge-Based Learning Context Involving Mathematics

In this study we use a case study approach to investigate what kinds of resources were self-reported to have been selected by students working on their Challenge-Based bachelor end projects, and how they used and orchestrated these resources. In a previous study, we had explored students’ use of resources and their Actual Student Study Paths in Calculus and Linear Algebra courses (Pepin and Kock 2019); in this study we turned to students working on their Challenge-Based bachelor end projects. Results show that the students working on Challenge-Based projects used resources outside the realm of curriculum resources offered to them in traditional courses, and the Actual Student Study Paths were iterative. We contend that ‘linear’ study paths (found e.g. in traditionally taught Linear Algebra courses) appeared to have been beneficial for students for studying particular mathematical content, which they needed for solving open challenges. In the Challenge-Based projects, the crucial resource emerged to be the tutor. We claim that this has implications for the introduction of a more Challenge-Based curriculum, where such projects would be the norm, both in terms of the professionalization of university teachers (who coach students through such projects), and for the education of students who opt for such projects: teachers have to be supported to develop as appropriate coaches in such complex environments; students have to become self-directed learners, and need to be supported with challenged-based trained coaches and teachers, in addition to be provided with suitable curricular, technological, and social resources.

Simulation-Based Training: From a Traditional Course to Remote Learning - the COVID-19 Effect

The University of Bergamo switched from regular classes to online classes due to the COVID-19 pandemic during March 2020, without leaving to the students the chance to meet their teachers in the traditional setting even once. As such, this context represents a unique opportunity to compare the traditional courses, held in the years before, with remote learning. In this paper, we focus on the lessons learned from switching a project management course that combines traditional lectures with Simulation-Based Training (SBT) to an online course with the same structure, same curriculum and the same teaching team. Lessons learned are based on the opportunity to compare the two methods of teaching and their learning outcomes. Based on the analysis, conclusions about the future of this course and similar courses are presented.

Web-based and interactive Italian blended learning course: embedded apps and tools in a structured learning process

‘Web-based and Interactive Italian’ is a detailed and progressive programme developed by the author for the Maastricht University Language Centre. The course started in 2013, with the intention of catering for the variability in the number of students following the regular courses, as well as broadening the language offer using blended learning. The eight interactive tutor-led Skype sessions are preceded by 80 hours of self-study per level. Starting from a flipped classroom approach, it is structured in three consecutive learning steps. It makes use of existing language apps and tools, like Babbel2 and Quizlet3, and of a manual book used at the intermediate levels, as well as bespoke web-based and interactive learning materials as preparation for the oral sessions. The course is still running successfully and represents an effective alternative to traditional courses, offering distance learners the possibility of completing the whole study programme from A1 to B2.

The current status of Pathology education: A survey among Chinese medical students

BackgroundPathology education transfers knowledge of Pathology and guides students to become pathologists. Recently, Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China strongly advocated establishing the system of ‘Golden Online and Offline Courses’, which indicates online courses will play important roles in college education. Furthermore, the number of pathologists has fallen far behind the clinical needs. To solve this health issue and implement the policy from Ministry of Education, improving current Pathology education is necessary, and first is to know students’ opinions on the present courses and their professional choices.MethodsQuestionnaires covering the quality of traditional courses, the attitude towards the online courses, and the suggestions for optimizing courses were designed and applied via web link. Whether students want to become pathologists and the underlying reasons are also incorporated into this survey. Medical students from certain colleges in Nanjing were participants. The collected data were assessed by corresponding percentages.ResultsOf the 215 valid responses, half of undergraduate students show their interests in Pathology courses, and among them, 50% express that they may become pathologists. However, the percentage is only 18.03% in the group without interest. For optimizing curriculums, the top two suggestions are introducing more clinical cases (undergraduate students, 74.42%; graduate students, 79.09%) and making the classes lively and interesting (undergraduate students, 67.44%; graduate students, 62.79%). Around 80% of students consider online courses as good supplementary materials to traditional courses, and half prefer online-offline mixed learning model. Salary, interest, and employment status are main factors influencing students’ professional choices.ConclusionsStudents are generally satisfied with the traditional Pathology courses, and the online courses are good supplementary materials in their opinions. Clinical cases are suggested to be introduced in classes. It is more likely for the students who have interests in Pathology to become pathologists. The main obstacles students will not become pathologists are boring work and unsatisfactory salary.