Improved Zoom engagement by adopting flipped class strategies to the curriculum of a Biology of Aging course during the Covid-19 pandemic.

ABSTRACT

During the pandemic, a 4th year course Biology of Aging was modified with extensive flipped classroom strategies to promote better student engagement. By utilizing the strength of the Zoom video conferencing platform students were able to have meaningful in-class experiences that promoted engagement and learning. This was further enhanced by shifting traditional lectures to a pre-recorded format to act as resources and promoting forum discussions outside of class times using the course management system (Brightspace). These changes influenced the satisfaction and benefited the student experience. Shifting to active student-centered learning and facilitation led to a dynamic well received teaching environment. The one trade off being that students needed to produce content every week, which was perceived as a heavy but manageable workload by many in the course. These changes can be used as a format for other online courses.