The Flipped Spanish Classroom: Student Engagement, Satisfaction and Autonomy
Abstract
This dissertation investigates how the implementation of a pedagogical innovation in the foreign language (FL) classroom enabled me to explore student engagement, autonomy and course satisfaction and understand preferred practices for FL development. The ‘flipped classroom,’ formally known as the ‘inverted classroom,’ has become ‘the’ new phenomenon in pedagogical innovations in the last few years (Jensen, et al., 2015). In a Flipped Classroom, direct instruction is moved out of the classroom and takes place at home, by means of reading text or viewing a video or a digital presentation. This appears, at least superficially, positive in that it maximizes class-time for practice and, subsequently, encourages student engagement (Bergmann & Sams, 2014).
This thesis takes an integrated article format and addresses unresolved issues in the implementation of a Flipped Classroom Approach (FCA) in the FL university classroom. Drawing on questionnaire data (N= 233), a pilot study compared the FCA to a traditional approach to examine student learning gains, engagement and attitudes in Spanish FL university courses in both conditions. Results from this first study informed the two subsequent studies implemented in two levels (Beginners and Intermediate) of Spanish FL university courses that followed a FCA. Drawing on online questionnaire data (N= 399 students, and N=12 instructors), and focus group interview data (N=12 students, and N=5 instructors), student academic achievement/performance, autonomy and engagement were explored, as were student and instructor perceptions of, and beliefs about, the FCA.
The focus of my study is the flipped classroom approach. This approach delivers course content that prioritizes both digital technology and active learning. Implications of the implementation of the FCA in a Spanish FL university course are discussed in terms of 1) engagement, 2) autonomy, 3) course satisfaction, and 4) students and instructors’ perceptions of the approach.