Facilitating student engagement through the flipped learning approach in K-12: A systematic review

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2020.103819Get rights and content

Highlights

  • 93% of studies found at least one engagement dimension & 50% at least one disengagement dimension.

  • Most found indicators: Increased interaction, enjoyment, participation & confidence.

  • Collaborative LMS/tools particularly improve engagement in flipped learning.

  • Teacher-created videos are more likely to lead to task completion & overall engagement.

  • More research needed on parent, school leader & teacher perceptions.

Abstract

The flipped learning approach has been growing in popularity in both higher education and K-12, especially for its potential to increase active learning and student engagement. However, further research is needed to understand exactly how the flipped approach enhances student engagement. This narrative systematic review synthesises literature published between 2012 and 2018, focused on the flipped learning approach in K-12 contexts, and indexed in 7 international databases. 107 articles, book chapters, dissertations, conference papers and grey literature were included for review, and the results are discussed against a bioecological model of student engagement. The results indicate that the majority of research has been undertaken in North American and Asian high schools, heavily focused on student perceptions of flipped learning and achievement within STEM subjects, especially Mathematics, with a slight preference for quantitative methods. Studies in this review found the approach to overwhelmingly support student engagement, with 93% of studies citing at least one dimension of behavioural, affective or cognitive engagement, whereas 50% of studies reported facets of disengagement. Collaborative technologies such as Google Docs, Google Classroom and Edmodo were particularly linked to engagement, with videos not created by teachers more likely to lead to disengagement. Only 12% included a definition of student engagement, and less than half used a theoretical framework. Future empirical research should ensure that all contextual information is included, including year level of student participants, that multiple methods of both quantitative and qualitative data collection are included, and close attention is paid to grounding research in theory. Further research is needed on parent, teacher and school leader perceptions, as well as longitudinal and multiple-class studies.

Introduction

Developing and maintaining student engagement, and increasing opportunities for students to develop 21st century and educational technology skills, are vital considerations for K-12 educators (Claro & Ananiadou, 2009). The degree to which this is achieved can have a profound effect on students' cognitive development and learning outcomes (Ma, Han, Yang, & Cheng, 2015), with disengagement in learning a predictor of dropout (Finn & Zimmer, 2012). Flipped learning is an approach that has “great promise” (OECD, 2018, p. 77) to bring technology more into the classroom, help develop students' digital competencies (Kostaris, Sergis, Sampson, Giannakos, & Pelliccione, 2017), increase higher order thinking skills and active learning time (Gough, DeJong, Grundmayer, & Baron, 2017), promote problem solving, teamwork and collaboration skills (Lo & Hew, 2017), and has the potential to enhance both parent and student engagement (Aycicek & Yelken, 2018; Bond, 2019).

With theoretical foundations in collaborative learning theory and constructivism (Bishop & Verleger, 2013), flipped learning is a student-centred approach that inverts traditional lessons, by providing content to students outside of the classroom that would usually be taught by the teacher at school (Song & Kapur, 2017), such as lectures or teacher explanations. By students learning and reviewing concepts at home, class time can then be freed up for active, collaborative activities within the group space, and increased time with the teacher (Lo & Hew, 2017). Whilst disagreement continues on its exact definition and design (see Van Alten, Phielix, Janssen, & Kester, 2019), and in particular whether it includes an out-of-class video component (e.g., Cheng, Ritzhaupt, & Antonenko, 2018) or not (e.g., Bergmann & Sams, 2012; Gough et al., 2017), many researchers agree that flipped learning includes “interactive group learning activities inside the classroom, and direct computer-based individual instruction outside the classroom” (Bishop & Verleger, 2013, p. 4).

Whilst the approach has been gaining popularity, particularly since 2013 (Karabulut-Ilgu, Jaramillo Cherrez, & Jahren, 2018), following the release of early pioneers Bergmann and Sams' book in 2012 (Bergmann & Sams, 2012), and there is a growing body of literature and systematic reviews endeavouring to synthesise this body of evidence (see Appendix A), there remains a paucity of research undertaken within K-12 contexts (Lundin, Bergviken Rensfeldt, Hillman, Lantz-Andersson, & Peterson, 2018), with only 16% of 71 flipped learning studies published between 2000 and 2016, and indexed within the Web of Science, focused on K-12 learners (Akçayır & Akçayır, 2018). Seven reviews or meta-analyses were identified that include K-12 studies across any subject area (Akçayır & Akçayır, 2018; Cheng et al., 2018; Lo & Hew, 2017; Lo, Hew, & Chen, 2017; Lundin et al., 2018; Tütüncü & Aksu, 2018; Van Alten et al., 2019), however all seven included small sample sizes, with 11, 12, 15, nine, four, eight and 11 studies respectively, and the review by Tütüncü and Aksu (2018) was focused on Turkish research only. Furthermore, whilst these reviews did focus on the advantages and challenges of flipped learning in schools, their treatment of its effect on student engagement was limited. For example, whilst ‘engagement’ was considered as a positive learning outcome within the study by Akçayır and Akçayır (2018), the term itself was not defined, as understood by the review authors or by the article authors included in the review. Whilst student engagement is a complex and multifaceted construct (Appleton, Christenson, & Furlong, 2008; Reschly & Christenson, 2012), which has resulted in inconsistent definitions across the field (Henrie, Halverson, & Graham, 2015), greater understanding of the role that educational technology plays in student engagement, and stronger evidence of the outcomes that flipped learning promotes, is vital to ensure improved outcomes for students (O'Flaherty, Phillips, Karanicolas, Snelling, & Winning, 2015). Therefore, this systematic review is an important addition to the literature by identifying and synthesising research, investigating how flipped learning affects student engagement in K-12, across all three dimensions of student engagement (Fredricks, Blumenfeld, & Paris, 2004; Fredricks, Filsecker, & Lawson, 2016).

Section snippets

Student engagement

Enhancing and maintaining student engagement is an important goal of educators, given its link to improved persistence, achievement and retention (Finn, 2006; Kuh, Cruce, Shoup, Kinzie, & Gonyea, 2008). Whilst there are ongoing conversations about the nature and composition of student engagement (e.g. Eccles, 2016), and space in the present article does not allow a lengthy consideration of the concept (see Bond & Bedenlier, 2019; Bond, Buntins, Bedenlier, Zawacki-Richter, & Kerres, 2020), it is

Method

With the intent to uncover how flipped learning affects student engagement in K-12, a systematic review was conducted, using an explicit and replicable search strategy, with studies then excluded or included, based on pre-determined criteria (Gough, Oliver, & Thomas, 2012), and following the PRISMA reporting guidelines (Brunton, Stansfield, & Thomas, 2012; Moher, Liberati, Tetzlaff, & Altman, 2009). The PRISMA guidelines were developed to help improve the reporting of systematic reviews and

Study characteristics

The 62 journal articles included in this sample were published in 42 different journals (see Appendix D); 12 (29%) general education journals, 15 (36%) educational technology journals, 14 (33%) discipline specific (e.g., engineering education), one methodology journal and one interdisciplinary journal. However, of the journals where multiple articles have been published (n = 10), seven of them are educational technology journals, with the top three journals being Educational Technology & Society

Flipped learning and student engagement

By using a comprehensive definition and understanding of engagement (Bond & Bedenlier, 2019), this study found that the flipped learning approach positively affected at least one dimension of student engagement in 93% (n = 99) of studies. Positive collaboration, as well as peer teaching and learning, were particularly encouraged through the approach, as were increased enjoyment, participation, and improved student-teacher relationships. However, 50% (n = 54) of studies did show at least one

Limitations

This review was limited to English-language research, published between 2012 and 2018, and indexed in seven databases. Whilst the search included a substantial number of databases, as opposed to similar reviews undertaken (e.g., Lundin et al., 2018), a number of other valuable research published elsewhere, or in languages other than English, might have been missed. An example of this is the Norwegian study by Østerlie (2018), which was initially missed due to the inclusion criteria. Further,

Conclusion

This article reviewed 107 publications on the flipped learning approach within K-12 and, in particular, focused on which indicators of student engagement and disengagement were affected, leading to a revised bioecological model of student engagement. This review identified that at least one dimension of positive engagement was found in an overwhelming majority of studies, with peer collaborative learning and teaching, enhanced enjoyment of learning, and positive peer and student-teacher

Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank Dr. Svenja Bedenlier for providing comments on a previous draft, as well as the editor and anonymous peer reviewers, whose insightful and thoughtful comments helped enormously.

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