I agree, which is why my post is about the benefits of a flipped classroom in honors and AP environments.

Andrew,

I agree with your concerns about technological equity and keeping time after school for kids to be kids. I think that the flipped classroom is best suited for honors and AP classes where students hopefully have a deeper interest in the course material. Flipped classroom can only really be the model for a few classes in a school building because it would be untenable for students to have large volumes of homework for every class. Of course, all of this only works in school districts that support a one-to-one technology plan.

In classes where a large volume of content must be covered, such as AP History courses where the course articulation alone is a book of 115 pages, the flipped classroom can be a godsend for teachers who wish to balance content and skills. Without a flipped classroom, it would perhaps feel necessary at times to switch to a completely lecture-based class, which often leads to confused and bored students. With a flipped classroom students take the time they need at home to learn the basic facts of the time period being studied, they can spend their time in class doing the real work of historians. Students become more engaged in the material because the material becomes a way for students to engage in investigation and debate. From personal experience, when I fully leaned in to the flipped classroom model, my AP pass rate doubled. Careful planning was required however for it to truly be a success. I have a dedicated Google Drive for students to download all of the resources they need if they have limited internet access at home, or simply do not know where they are sleeping that night (all of my students are issued a laptop by the school). I also have daily homework quizzes to keep students accountable as well as allowing me to gauge where students are in terms of mastery. The one drawback to flipped learning in my experience is that my students have a hard time connecting multiple nights of homework into one larger narrative, an essential in history class. I have bridged this divide in my classroom by doing one twenty-minute lecture a week to help them sum up what has happened in their learning throughout the week. I also keep office hours for students to come in and work with me on their homework if they are confused or need extra assistance. I also have a class GroupMe so I am reachable to students (and they can reach each other) if there are any problems with the day’s homework assignment). Although the move to flipped learning is a big step for students every year, they ultimately see the benefit and reap the rewards of the system. With appropriate supports, flipped learning can benefit students tremendously.

Margaret Carraway

ED.893.645.9A.SU18