To what extent does flipped classroom teaching affect stu-dents' learning outcomes in 9th grade mathematics compared to traditional teaching?

Abstract

The mathematics knowledge of Norwegian students has received much attention in recent years due to the results in TIMSS- and PISA-examinations. Several studies indicate that flipped classroom-teaching provides increased learning outcomes in mathematics. In this study, a quasi-experiment (n = 269) was conducted to compare the learning outcomes of flipped classroom (n = 117) and traditional teaching (n = 152) over eight weeks. The students were tested in two sub-courses in mathematics for the ninth grade (1. surface area and volume and 2. similar shapes and pythagorean theorem). The students' mathematical knowledge was measured using a pretest-posttest design in two rounds where the student's post-pre difference (change) is used as the primary measure of the learning outcome. The students were further classified as high-, medium- or low-performing according to the final grade (respectively 5 and 6; 3 and 4 and 1 and 2 in the Norwegian grade system). A direct interpretation of the results suggests better learning outcomes from traditional teaching. A closer look at the data shows that the students who followed traditional teaching (especially middle- and high-performing students) started at a quite low level and consequently had more room for improvement. During the teaching period, these students improved more, but only up towards the level of the students who followed the flipped classroom. For both teaching programs the improvement was largest for the high-performing students and least for the low-performing ones. The results do not indicate that there is a detectable difference in the outcomes of the two teaching programs for the participants in this study.