The Flipped Classroom (4) Love to Lecture? You'll Love Flipping

Not that I want to promote lecturing, but the pre-class work in flipped teaching is an immediate game-changer for the lectured class.

Simply put, pre-class learning gives instructors extra time in the classroom. Love to lecture? Now you’ve got more time for it. Talk deeper, show more examples, give longer quizzes, all the good stuff to do with the class. Also, these pre-class materials are the best learning aid for the students when they review or prepare for exams.

Take math for example.  When lecturing a topic like Integration by Parts in Calculus 1, an instructor normally spends at least half of the time developing the formula and perhaps proving it, and the rest of the time going over a couple of examples. Then the students do homework exercises after class. And then the instructor goes over the homework at the next class meeting, or quizzes the students to check their comprehension.

However, with a pre-class learning arrangement, the instructor can make students watch a video of the theory, and a video of 1 or 2 basic examples of problem-solving.  When the class meets, with a group of prepared students and a lot of time (saved from lecturing on the basic stuff), the instructor can things like covering another 2 or 3 advanced examples, comparing all the examples, and letting student try more exercises. There is also plenty of time for the class to have a meaningful Q&A because the students have studied before class.

Next: (5) Forward Thinking, Backward Designed