Problem Statement
There are new methods of delivering knowledge and skills to learners nowadays. Nevertheless, scholars and researchers alike have raised concerns over some of the learning models that are practiced in institutions of higher learning nowadays. The advancement in technology, as pointed out earlier, has had a lot of impact on the education system as far as the delivery of knowledge and skills to learners is concerned. Flumerfelt and Green (2013) noted that such concerns result from the fact that traditional learning is no longer effective especially considering the changing technology. Therefore, the proposed study will investigate the concept of adopting and implementing flipped classes for foreign language teaching. McGee (2012) asserted that students are likely to get better learning opportunities through the enrichment of learning environments with technology. Bergmann and Sams (2012) pointed out that the availability of unique opportunities for teachers, and learners have led to the integration of technology into most of the lessons.
Nowadays, technology has become a major player in the improvement of education. According to Wells, De Lange, and Fieger (2008), the adoption of technology in the education system has had great changes as far as teaching and learning are concerned. In addition, teachers from different parts of the world can relate to the pressure that they face concerning the demand for the integration of technology in teaching. Despite running away from this call, there is a need for teachers to adopt technology in their lessons to ensure that they achieve their teaching objectives (Flumerfelt & Green, 2013). This is attributable to the fact that technology presents limitless opportunities to the education systems. For this reason, instructors are searching for suitable methods of incorporating technology in teaching and learning for the creation of better learning opportunities for every learner. The adoption of technologies in education helps teachers to have better teaching approaches to their learners, as well as ensure that there is effective engagement and motivation of learners during teaching and learning.
There are several technological mediums used nowadays in the educational setting. However, Enfield (2013) noted that the use of the video approach in teaching is highly efficient in the support of teachers’ instructions. The use of video lectures is not a new concept though its popularity is increasing nowadays. For this reason, the flipped learning approach is considered to be an appropriate model that has the capacity for improving the learner’s experience.
Teaching a foreign language requires the participation of both the learners and the teachers in an interactive setting (Bergmann & Sams, 2012; Im, 2014). For this reason, there is a need for learners to have the necessary environment that enhances effective collaboration between them and their teachers. According to the traditional approach to teaching, the amount of time set for foreign language lessons is barely enough given the need for learners to grasp every aspect taught (Im, 2014). Such assertion provides a rationale for the adoption of flipped learning model in teaching foreign languages. For this reason, the use of this learning model can be instrumental in meeting the present needs and demands of learners of foreign languages.
The fact that the flipped classroom model of teaching is not common presents some significant challenges to learners and teachers. Despite this, studies examining the efficiency of flipped classes indicate that it takes little time for learners and teachers to adjust to this approach of teaching (Flumerfelt & Green, 2013). As such, the efficiency of this model, as far as being a better learning approach is concerned can be assessed from the level of satisfaction among learners, the extent of challenges learners and teachers face, as well as the general academic outcomes of learners.
According to Lee (2013), the flipped learning method is better than the traditional approach that is used to teach foreign languages in that learners benefit from learning materials such as videos, and that they can access them anytime whenever in need. With such an approach, it makes it possible for students to gain knowledge and skills from online databases, carry out subject analysis, as well as hold discussions in class for a better understanding of the specific foreign language.
The adoption and implementation of flipped learning approach are likely to solve several problems. The review of the traditional approaches to teaching indicates that students in conventional classrooms do not have the opportunity to engage with one another or even with their teachers. Primarily, the flipped class model is learner-centered, implying that adopting flipped learning model in schools could improve the academic outcomes of learners by giving them the necessary platform to practically engage with the received abstract knowledge (Seery, 2015).
The experimental approach of teaching and learning applied in the flipped learning model, will address the problem of learners’ lack of engagement by allowing learners the chance to spend most of their classroom time in the experiential learning model, as this is what the Flipped Classroom teaching technique is all about (Lee, 2013). The reason for this is that due to its close association with the domain of hi-tech, the FC technique allows teachers to channel academic information to students via the internet so that the latter could spend more time participating in lab sessions.
The Significance of the Study for IT
By the virtue that this research will focus on the importance of adopting technology in the education sector, the results and findings from the study will be of great significance to the IT literature. According to the proposed objectives of the study, the results will revolve around the importance of new technology in the delivery of knowledge and skills in the education sector. As pointed out earlier, technology has been highly instrumental in revolutionizing the education sector in terms of the ways teachers can use it to improve the learning experience and academic outcomes of students.
The Purpose Statement
The purpose of this study will be to carry out an in-depth analysis of the subject of flipped classrooms as used in teaching foreign languages. To achieve the purpose of the study, a lot of emphases will be put on the identification of the challenges of adopting as well as implementing flipped classrooms in the teaching of foreign languages, establishing whether or not there is a significant impact between the use of flipped classroom and the academic outcomes of learners, as well as identify any advantages or disadvantages learners and teachers get from the adoption of flipped classroom approach in teaching foreign languages.
Preliminary Research Questions
Research questions describe the guidelines used by a researcher to help them collect the required information about a given research phenomenon. In the case of the proposed study, the emphasis is on the examination of the adoption and implementation of flipped classrooms in teaching foreign languages. Therefore, several research questions would be suitable to guide the study’s course. Therefore, the study will be based on the following research questions:
- What are the challenges of adopting as well as implementing flipped classrooms in the teaching of foreign languages?
- What are the attitudes of learners and the perception of teachers regarding the use of flipped classrooms and its ability to improve the academic outcomes of learners in foreign languages tests?
- Are there any benefits learners and teachers get from the adoption of flipped classroom approach in teaching foreign languages?
Theoretical Construct
The flipped class model of learning is considered to be an innovative teaching model that allows learners to gain knowledge and skills anywhere through video-based instructional lectures, as well as allowing active engagement between learners and their instructors within the setting of a conventional classroom (Lee, 2013; Seery, 2015). The theoretical model behind the flipped learning approach can be traced around the constructivist paradigm of education as well as the mastery learning theory. According to the constructivist paradigm of education, there is a significant relationship between efficiency in any learning process and the measure of its student-centeredness, as well as interactiveness (Bergmann & Sams, 2012). In the case of the flipped classroom model of teaching, learners are presented with an opportunity to interact amongst themselves and their instructors (Seery, 2015). As such, it can be considered that this type of teaching shifts the approach of learning from teacher-centered to learner-centered (McGee, 2012).
On the other hand, the model of mastery learning is based on the need to advance the potential of learning of an individual (Bergmann & Sams, 2012). The implication is that most traditional approaches to teaching do not take the consideration of the learning potentials of students while in various environments. As such, the mastery learning theory seeks to ensure that the academic outcomes of learners improve. Such improvement can be achieved by ensuring that the students get the necessary help, attention, as well as sufficient time (McGee, 2012; Bergmann & Sams, 2012).
Empirical evidence provides that the act of ensuring that the learners achieve enough mastery of content about the difference in intervals, as well as allowing them to interact through discussions, increases the learning outcome of learners (Bergmann & Sams, 2012; Seery, 2015). As such, the flipped classroom approach can be considered to be an effective learning strategy that focuses on the acquisition of maximum knowledge by allowing effective collaboration between learners and teachers (McGee, 2012). The main learning problem that the application of FC is expected to solve is that students spend most of their classroom time in the experiential learning model (Flumerfelt & Green, 2013; Bergmann & Sams, 2012). According to the assertion of McGee (2012), that the academic outcomes of learners can be improved through the enrichment of learning environments with technology, it is evident that flipped classroom approach capitalizes on the significance of technology in enhancing the learning intervals of learners. Flumerfelt and Green (2013) attributed this to the fact that learners have access to learning materials whenever in need of them. As such, flipped classroom helps instructors and learners to interact successfully during teaching and learning.
Design Outline of the Study
The descriptive and case study designs will be used. The choice of the descriptive research design is informed by the fact it indexes research variables under examination, as well as helps in the provision of answers to any given research questions (Mitchell & Jolly, 2010). As such, the descriptive design will be suitable for this study since there will be a need to provide tangible evidence about the adoption of flipped learning model and its impact on learners’ outcomes; as well as provide answers to the research questions identified above. On the other hand, the case study design will be used to complement the use of descriptive design.
Research Methods
Instruments
The mixed methods research will be used in this study, where the descriptive and cross-case study designs will be adopted. The proposed research focuses on what is known and achieved as far as the use of flipped classroom model of teaching foreign languages is concerned. For this reason, the study requires comprehensive data about the research topic.
According to Creswell (2009), the collection of reliable data through the descriptive approach necessitates the use of another design because descriptive is highly dependent on instrumentation and observation. Therefore, the case study will provide a ground to analyze the impact of flipped classes on learners’ academic outcomes.
Several data collection instruments can be used for any study. Often, the data collection instrument used in any study is determined by the scope of the study, the available resources, the point of collection, as well as the required data. However, in the case of the proposed study, the survey method will be used to collect the required data. In this case, questionnaires will be designed and distributed to the target population to provide their response regarding their feeling on the use of flipped classes in teaching foreign languages. All the collected data will be recorded for analysis. According to Gill (2008), the questionnaire method ensures the collection of in-depth data based on respondents’ opinions, experiences, and outcomes about a given study phenomenon. This explains the preference to use the questionnaire method. After all the required data is collected, various methods of data analysis will be used to synthesize the information for a chance to find answers to the research questions.
References
Bergmann, J., & Sams, A. (2012). Flip your classroom: Reach every student in every class every day. Eugene, OR: International Society for Technology in Education.
Creswell, J. (2009). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative and Mixed methods approaches. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Enfield, J. (2013). Looking at the impact of the flipped classroom model of instruction on undergraduate multimedia students at CSUN. Techtrends, 57(6), 14-27.
Flumerfelt, S., & Green, G. (2013). Using lean in the flipped classroom for at risk students. Educational Technology & Society, 16(1), 356-366.
Gill, T. (2008). Methods of data collection in qualitative research: Interviews and focus groups. British Dental Journal, 204(6), 291-295.
Im, J. (2014). A new paradigm for education: Is flipped learning a threat or an opportunity? Korean Medical Education Review, 16(3), 132-140.
Lee, D. (2013). Research on developing instructional design models for flipped learning. The Journal of Digital Policy and Management, 11(12), 83-92.
McGee, R. (2012). Blended course design: A synthesis of best practices. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 16(4), 7-22.
Mitchell, M., & Jolly, J. (2010). Research design explained. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Seery, M. (2015). Flipped learning in higher education chemistry: Emerging trends and potential directions. Chemistry Education Research and Practice, 16(4), 758-768.
Wells, P., de Lange, P. A., & Fieger, P. (2008). Integrating a virtual learning environment into a second-year accounting course: Determinants of overall student perception. Accounting & Finance, 48(3), 503-518.
Appendix
Questionnaire
