“How the Flipped Classroom Is Radically Transforming Learning,” a blog post by educators Jonathan Bergmann and Aaron Sams reflects on their use of the flipped classroom model. They discuss the benefits of using the model and explain why they could never return to the traditional method of teaching.

Bergmann and Sams, who have received national attention for their chemistry video podcasts, say that, “Flipping the classroom has transformed our teaching practice. We no longer stand in front of our students and talk at them for thirty to sixty minutes at a time. This radical change has allowed us to take on a different role with our students. Both of us taught for many years (a combined thirty-seven years) using this model.”

Upon reflection of the past, Bergmann and Sams believe they could “never go back to teaching in the traditional manner.” They report that “One of the greatest benefits of flipping is that overall interaction increases: teacher to student and student to student. Since the role of the teacher has changed from presenter of content to learning coach, we spend our time talking to kids. We are answering questions, working with small groups, and guiding the learning of each student individually.”

They propose the crux of the flipped classroom model is more individualized attention for students, and ultimately, more individualized teaching strategies. By requiring students to watch their lectures at home and come to class prepared to work, the instructor is present during the work process and is available as a coach. Bergmann and Sams argue this model is a far more effective use of an educator’s knowledge than simply lecturing:

When students are working on an assignment and we notice a group of students who are struggling with the same thing, we automatically organize the students into a tutorial group. We often conduct mini-lectures with groups of students who are struggling with the same content. The beauty of these mini-lectures is we are delivering just-in-time instruction when the students are ready for learning.

Bergmann and Sams elaborate on this changing role of the educator within the classroom and how this change can alter the learning environment entirely. Their theory introduces the notion that the education system is not using its educators to their fullest potential by severely limiting their true instruction time. They have found that by using the flipped classroom model, “the role of the teacher has changed to more of a tutor than a deliverer of content.”

Using the flipped classroom model also allows teachers the privilege of watching students interact with one another. Bergmann and Sams report, “As we roam around the class, we notice the students developing their own collaborative groups. Students are helping each other learn instead of relying on the teacher as the sole disseminator of knowledge. It truly is magical to observe. We are often in awe of how well our students work together and learn from each other.”

However, not everyone is convinced this methodology is a better alternative to the traditional classroom model, and doubts have been cast on the “innovation” of the flipped classroom. Hope Gillette writes in “Is the Flipped Classroom a Better Version of a Bad Thing?” that while many educators are not entirely sold on the flipped classroom idea, it maybe a useful way to reinvent lecturing.

Andrew Miller, an educational consultant who works with the Virginia-based professional development group ASCD and the California-based Buck Institute of Education, says “My concern is that if you’re still relying on lecture as your primary mode of getting content across, [then] you haven’t done anything to shift the type of learning that’s occurring.” The concern surrounds how a broken system was fixed simply by an inversion.

Gillette identifies a potential fatal flaw in the flipped classroom. She writes “Miller adds that flipping a classroom does not mean that students will watch videos at home.” He asks, “How are you engaging your kids?” The argument suggests this system is no better, and indeed no different, than traditional classrooms, but has far more risks for students. The potential to leave students “behind” is far greater in the flipped classroom because the learning strategy leaves the depth of understanding of fundamentals up to the students. 

Quoting Ramsey Musallam, Science Department Chair at Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory and adjunct faculty member in the School of Education at the University of San Francisco, Gillette says, “flipped classrooms are deceptive because they focus on the idea that children dislike homework; however, when evaluated from a step back, the process ‘is grounded in the same didactic, lecture-based philosophy, [making it] a better version of a bad thing.’” Other concerns about the model include that students can fall behind in significant ways if they do not watch the lectures at home, as well as the fact that while some students embrace the opportunity to learn at a faster pace, many do not.

Additionally, Deb Wolf, a high school instructional coach for the 24,000-student Sioux Falls district in South Dakota, expresses her concern that the flipped classroom model has potential to let many students fall behind. She says, while the model offers the opportunity for some students to take the time they needed to move slower, for others, “self-paced became no pace.” Even if instructors are available for more intensive coaching, the system can still hinder students by allowing them to learn at a pace that is too slow for the course.

As technology becomes more deeply intertwined with educational practice, we face more questions than answers. In what ways does classroom inversion alleviate or exacerbate problems that have been talked about for years? By allowing all learners to work at their own pace, does a technology-driven experience threaten cohesion of learning communities? Does this system create freedom for educators to use more of their expertise, or does it simply give the illusion of more classroom freedom? Perhaps most importantly, if the flipped classroom model does improve education, what role does the traditional classroom play in the future of education?

Jonathan Bergmann, Aaron Sams, Ramsey Musallam, and Deb Wolf are all included in Techsmith’s “Top 20 Educators to Watch.”