Flipped teaching transition to online teaching by STEM educators during the COVID-19 pandemic.

COVID-19 necessitated online teaching (OT) during the second half of the spring 2020 semester. The perceptions of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) faculty of OT at a two-year (2-YI) and a four-year (4-YI) institution were examined during this sudden switchover. One group of educators had received flipped teaching (FT) training (FTEs, n = 23), whereas the other group was practicing traditional teaching (TTEs, n = 18). There were two cohorts of FTEs: cohort 1 were implementing FT for the third time in their classrooms, and cohort 2 had started for the first time. The survey results suggested that FTEs were more confident with OT than TTEs (P < 0.05). It was interesting to note that 62.5% of the FTEs, whether they were from cohort 1 or cohort 2, chose an asynchronous approach, whereas 37.5% delivered synchronous OT during the sudden transition. It was found that FT experience helped cohort 1 adjust to OT compared with cohort 2. Overall, these results suggest that FTEs were confident and their resources for FT eased the transition to OT.NEW & NOTEWORTHY COVID-19 necessitated online teaching (OT). The perceptions of STEM faculty of OT at two-year and four-year institutions were examined. One group had received flipped teaching (FT) training (FTEs), whereas the others practiced traditional teaching (TTEs). Among two cohorts of FTEs, cohort 1 had been practicing FT but not cohort 2. FTEs were more confident with OT than TTEs. FT experience helped cohort 1 adjust to OT more than cohort 2. Overall, FT eased the transition to OT.

Virtual flipped teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced teaching to be shifted to an online platform. Since the flipped teaching (FT) model has been shown to engage students through active learning strategies and adapt both synchronous and asynchronous components, it was a convenient choice for educators familiar with this instructional method. This study tested the effectiveness of a virtual FT method during the pandemic in a graduate-level physiology course. Besides assessing knowledge gained in the virtual FT format, student surveys were used to measure student perception of their adjustment to the new FT format, their confidence in completing the course successfully, and the usefulness of assessments and assignments in the remote FT. Students reported that they adjusted well to the remote FT method (P < 0.001), and their confidence in completing the course in this teaching mode successfully improved from the beginning to the end of the semester (P < 0.05). Students expressed a positive response to the synchronous computerized exams (90.32%) and the formative group (93.51%) and individual (80.65%) assessments. Both collaborative activities (93.55%) and in-class discussions (96.77%) were found to be effective. The course evaluations and the overall semester scores were comparable to the previous semesters of face-to-face FT. Overall, students' perceptions and performance suggested that they embraced the virtual FT method and the tested teaching method maintained the same strong outcome as before. Thus, this study presents a promising new instructional method in the teaching of future physiology courses.

Flipped Teaching Eased the Transition of Students to Online Learning During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Flipped teaching (FT) has gained attention due to its method of teaching that allows students to learn basic concepts on their own using instructor-provided resources before their scheduled class time. The class time is used in rehearsing and applying the knowledge using active learning approaches. The COVID-19 pandemic caused an unexpected shift from face-to-face to remote learning during the middle of the spring 2020 semester challenging both students and faculty. This study examined the transition of students from the flipped classroom method to rapid online learning and whether the transition was dependent on the faculty experience with FT. The perception of the transition of students in the classrooms of faculty (n=12) with extensive experience in FT (cohort 1) was compared with that of a second cohort (n=11) who were in their first semester of FT implementation. Both qualitative and quantitative survey data were collected from 23 classrooms (n=256 students). It was found that the students in the courses taught by cohort 1 who had received intensive FT training and implemented FT in semesters prior to the COVID-19 pandemic were able to facilitate a smoother transition and adjustment to fully online learning for their students compared to the students in the courses taught by cohort 2 (p< 0.01). The qualitative data analysis suggested that the students participating in the FT courses in the first half of the semester, before the pandemic, had an easier transition to fully online learning. Students also expressed concerns that online learning was affected by the lack of interaction with faculty and peers, lack of motivation, issues with time management, and personal and technological demands. In conclusion, this study found that faculty experience with FT helped ease the transition of students from the face-to-face FT to the online format during the COVID-19 pandemic.