How to promote student activity and engagement in learning? A design-based study of flipped classroom and video reflections in teacher education

Abstract

This article explores the use of a specific pedagogical learning design, flipped class­room, in a lecture in the fifth and final year of primary and lower secondary school teacher education. The purpose of using flipped classroom was to promote student-centered learning environments by “flipping” the teaching; the students acquired a selected subject matter using various preparations at home before coming to campus and entering into active learning environments with peer students and the subject teacher. However, an established challenge with flipped classroom in higher education has admittedly been that students do not complete the preparatory activities before they attend lectures on campus. The article therefore focuses in particular on the composition of the pre-activities and with the use of video reflections as an integrating and accountable element in these activities. Through a thematic analysis of students’ evaluations of the flipped classroom and the content of the video reflections, the study shows that the students generally report greater learning outcomes and that they perceive themselves as better prepared compared with traditional, teacher-centered lectures. The opportunity for collaboration and learning from peer students is given by the participants in the study as a special advantage of flipped classroom. An overall implication of these findings may be how flipped classroom and video reflections can be used to increase students’ involvement in their own learning processes. The study also offers more specific knowledge about how video reflections can be used as a responsible and integrating part of the preparations in the flipped classroom.