Flipped learning–a case study of enhanced student success

This study presents the benefits of changing the delivery of a second-year engineering course from the traditional lecture-based format to the flipped approach that is becoming increasingly embraced by universities. The new format involved replacing theoretical lectures with online recordings and devoting the class time to working through problems (workshops). These workshops were complemented by pre- and post-class activities. The success of this change is measured by comparing the outcomes of the flipped and traditional offerings of the same course. This comparison reveals the following benefits from flipping the course: higher marks; improved engagement; and widespread student satisfaction with the flipped format based on student feedback. These outcomes are compared with those reported in the literature for similar teaching approaches. This paper differs from most previous studies by considering all of these outcomes together for one course. The detailed explanation of how the course was flipped provides a model that can be applied to successfully flip other courses. This paper concludes by provocatively raising several key issues that are surprisingly absent or glossed over in the literature. Further studies of these issues are proposed to make a firm case for flipped learning. © 2019, © 2019 Engineers Australia.