Education + Training

THE IMPACT OF FLIPPED-CLASSROOM IN MBAS EVALUATION

Isabel Scafuto, Fernando Serra, Eduardo Mangini, Emerson Antonio Maccari, Roberto Ruas,
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Isabel Scafuto, Fernando Serra, Eduardo Mangini, Emerson Antonio Maccari, Roberto Ruas, "THE IMPACT OF FLIPPED-
CLASSROOM IN MBAS EVALUATION", Education + Training , https://doi.org/10.1108/ET-06-2016-0097
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 THE IMPACT OF FLIPPED-CLASSROOM IN MBAS EVALUATION

ABSTRACT

Purpose - This article, through a survey of MBA students, was intended to evaluate the
perceived quality of the service environment, regarding the use of the flipped-classroom.
Design/methodology/approach - Four hypotheses were developed from the literature in
marketing and quality services in higher education. The hypotheses were tested using linear
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regressions. The data were collected using a structured questionnaire. The sample had 981
effective responses.
Findings - The results of the statistical analysis show that the evaluation of the perceived
quality of the educator and course is positively affected by the use of the flipped classroom.
Originality/value - This article contributes to studies of higher education services and
quality, as it shows the influence of the process on the educator. In higher education, the
educator is usually considered independent, having a strong influence on perceived quality.
The study contributes to the theme by showing the flipped classroom as an effective teaching
strategy that requires further empirical study.
Research limitations Only one higher education organization was studied. The variables
analysed have no mediation and moderation, which is a suggestion for future studies.
Keywords executive education, higher education, flipped classroom.
Research paper

1. INTRODUCTION
In business schools, as in all kinds of higher education, quality is linked to student
satisfaction (Chenicheri et al., 2011; Ketunen, 2008). This is the result of students
interactions with the business school environment, bridging the gap between their
expectations and experiences in terms of programs, course content and learning (Stukalina,
2012).
Higher education has come under growing pressure from a number of sources,
affecting the way institutions compete (Wissema, 2009; McRoy & Gibbs, 2009;). The need to
recognize new forms of competition, with strategies that consider the new generation of
students, technological innovations and economic factors (Kazeroony, 2012). This pressure
implies the determination and evaluation of capabilities that enable higher education
organizations (Koch & Fisher, 1998; Cruickeshank, 2003; Kopanidis & Shaw, 2017) to create
competitive advantages on different fronts (Hafeez, Zhang, & Malak, 2002). Teaching is also
central to the business of higher education (Shattock, 2003). The development and learning of
capabilities require the adequate execution of daily activities (Winter, 2003), especially the
delivery of teaching services that focus on the student (Hafeez, Zhang, & Malak, 2002; Lee,
Lau & Yip, 2016). Determining the delivery of higher education services with the expected
level of quality has been linked to student satisfaction (Chenicheri et al, 2011; Tho, 2017).
The MBA education market in particular is an experience-quality service market (Tho,
2017, p. 301).
 To add value to their services, schools have sought to use teaching strategies focusing
on the functional needs of students. A teaching strategy that stands out is the flipped
classroom (Baker, 2000; Lage et al., 2000). The flipped classroom is a form of blended
education that involves the integration of student-centred activitiesi and distance learning
content (Ocak, 2011; Dryscale et al., 2013). Academic studies on the flipped classroom
method (FCM) remain scarce and limited in terms of their perceived effectiveness (Butt,
2014). They are focused mostly on graduate courses and disciplines, both in management and
other fields such as biology (Ambruster et al., 2009), statistics (Garfield, 1995; Smith, 1998),
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economics (Lage et al., 2000) and physics (Bates & Gallaway, 2012). In other words, despite
the criticisms and many experiences (Rojanu, Badea & Frncu, 2015), the number of studies
on the FCM that focus on executive learning remain few in number, especially post-graduate
courses in Management (such as MBA courses), even though students clearly expect a
relationship between the course and real life situations (Harrisson, Leitch & Chia, 2007).
The aim of this study is to gauge the impact of the flipped classroom, with the use of
student-centred techniques and prior exposure to content and concepts to allow students to
evaluate the educator and educational service. To achieve this goal, a quantitative study was
conducted with a sample of 981 students (effective respondents) from lato sensu post-
graduate courses related to management. The environment and infrastructure were planned
and composed to ensure greater effectiveness of the FCM, due to previous criticism (Bishop
& Verleger, 2013). The classes were taught by educators who were evaluated while using
classroom techniques recommended for the method. These include activities, practical
attributes and helping students to understand (Davis et al., 2013). Before the classes, as a
warm-up activity, the students had to view the content in the form of texts and videos, as the
method requires (Zuber, 2016). The variables were clustered using factor analysis by linear
regression to gauge the perception of educational service provision techniques through an
evaluation of the educator and the course.
2. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE AND HYPOTHESES
2.1. Flipped classroom
One of the changes in providing teaching services is the use of processes and
techniques that are more focused on the student. This not only has a direct effect on the
learning process, but also affects the students perception of the service provided. The
changes focus directly on the functional needs of students, and this affects how the student
evaluates the service provided by the educator and the institution. The FCM has been hailed
(Baker, 2000; Lage et al., 2000) as a form of blended education (Arbaugh, 2014). This
teaching method promotes new forms of service provision through an integrated combination
of classroom activities and distance learning (Ocak, 2011; Dryscale et al., 2013).
The FCM has been identified as a trend for delivering educational services that are
more centred on the needs and expectations of students. The Horizon Report 2014 Higher
Education Edition (Johnson et al., 2014), which identifies and discusses the trends in higher
education, views the flipped class as one of the key educational strategies for providing
education services for almost immediate implementation. The FCM is a relatively new

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 concept (Butt, 2014; Halverson, 2012), presented simultaneously by Baker (2000) and Lage et
al. (2000), and popularized by the likes of the Kahn Academy (Butt, 2014).
Although it is a new concept and much remains to be studied, the works that have
been conducted have recorded positive results in terms of student satisfaction and learning.
Meyer (2013) as well as Hua, Goodwin and Weiss (2013) reported higher quality teaching
when studying the theme on a course in the field of pharmacy. Bishop and Verleger (2013)
studied the perception of students with positive responses in 11 situations. Lage et al. (2000)
gathered positive evidence on the use of the FCM in a microeconomics course. Gannod et al.
(2008) also found positive evidence from students of software engineering, as did Shchulery
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et al. (2011) with management students.

The FCM has been viewed as a trend (Guzer & Caner, 2014), a solution centred on the
needs of students, which enables the use of student-centred learning, as active learningii
techniques, without negatively affecting course content (Baker, 2000; Lage et al., 2000). It is
considered a form of blended education (Arbaugh, 2014). Blended education can be defined
as an integrated and coherent combination of student-centred classroom learning and distance
learning (Ocak, 2011; Dryscale et al., 2013). In the flipped classroom, materials are presented
outside the classroom in an online environment, normally so that during the class it is possible
to work with collaborative and interactive activities. Students consider these activities as
valuable in terms of educational service provision (Owlia & Aspinwal, 1998). The more
passive activities, such as written content and concepts, are filmed and made available for use
outside the classroom. This enables more stimulating and creative active learning in the
classroom, with activities including problem solving, brainstorming and collaborative work
(Butt, 2014).
A traditional class is generally educator-centred. Educators give their classes and
assign their students extra activities to do at home. In the flipped classroom, the traditional
homework activities are presented in the classroom and students are given other materials to
view before coming to the classroom. During the lesson, students focus on activities that
allow them to give meaning to the course content and apply it. In other words, the passive
learning occurs before the class and the activities occur during the class (Mok, 2014).

2.3. Conceptual model and hypotheses

We present the relationships that are expected to result from the use of the FCM, with
classroom activities and content previously presented through distance learning, and their
impact on the performance of the educator and course. Traditional studies have long evaluated
the experience of students in relation to various aspects of higher education courses and the
impact of activities directly linked to the educator (Cuthbert, 1996; Hill, 1995; Owlia &
Aspinwal, 1998; DiDomenico & Bonnici, 1996). Of these directly linked aspects regarding
educators and their impact on service provision, the authors highlight knowledge and skills
(DiDomenico & Bonnici, 1996), behaviour (Cuthbert, 1996), the teaching process affecting
expectations (Hill, 1995; DiDomenico & Bonnici, 1996) and theoretical and practical
relevance (Owlia & Aspinwal, 1998).

3
 The use of the FCM provides the educator with an opportunity to have a relevant
impact on students, not only regarding the functional aspects of providing services, but also in
terms of relationship. In the FCM, the materials are presented outside the classroom in an
online environment. This is done to allow collaborative and interactive work in the classroom.
Passive activities, like written content and concepts, are filmed and made available for the
students to work on outside the classroom. This means more stimulating and relevant active
learning for the student in the classroom, with activities such as problem solving,
brainstorming and collaborative activities (Butt, 2014).
The fundamental factors of an environment that makes a positive impact on student
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perception (Sternberg, 2003; Martinez, 1994) include the educator and the use of adequate
teaching techniques (Alfraih & Alanezi, 2016; Kopanidis & Shaw, 2017; Nakano, 2009). For
educators to give meaning to their teaching, they need to have access to the teaching
procedures that can be used in the classroom. Nakano (2009) argues that educators are given a
good evaluation in terms of student perception because what they teach is relevant and
because they encourage the students to participate and be creative. Their behavioural traits
include: a) encouraging students to learn on their own without depending on the educator, b)
encouraging the use of a cooperative teaching model, with students and educators feeling
responsible, c) motivating students to have many ideas, encouraging the use of activities that
allow them to think differently to solve problems, d) promoting the self-assessment of
students and helping them set goals, e) being open to students suggestions, f) offering
students opportunities to work with a variety of materials in different conditions in
environments other than the classroom, and g) creating a climate of tolerance in the classroom
by providing a space for questions, answers and suggestions.
An example of the student-centred learning is the use of multi-media materials with
structured activities. As videos are considered more attractive elements for students (Prensky,
2005) and give more meaning by stimulating the activation of verbal and cognitive processes
simultaneously (Mayer, 2009), authors have argued that they have become preferred over
texts (Hedge, Sean, & Martinez, 2011; Holtzblatt & Tschakert, 2011; Tyler, Anderson, &
Tyler, 2007), as they lead to greater engagement and encourage more discussion (Gioia &
Bras, 1985; Champoux, 2001). In this case, as recommended by DiDomenico and Bonnici
(1996) and Cuthbert (1996), they enable a better perception of service quality. Thus, in light
of the above, the following hypotheses emerged:

H1a: Classroom activities have a positive impact on the evaluation of the service provided by
the educator.

H1b: Classroom activities have a positive impact on the quality of the service in relation to
the course.

As mentioned above, as they enable stimulating and relevant activities in the

classroom, providing a better delivery of services, the use of the flipped classroom was
recommended. In this situation, the written content or other forms of material are accessed
outside the classroom by the student (Butt, 2014). This allows us to establish that:

4
 H2a: Prior exposure to content and concepts through distance learning has a positive impact
on the evaluation of the service provided by the educator.
H2b: Prior exposure to content and concepts through distance learning has a positive impact
on the quality of the service in terms of the course.

3. METHOD
The organization was chosen because it uses differentiated student-centered
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learning with the FCM in several different school locations in partnership with Brazilian
higher education institutions. This work uses the student perception to evaluate the educator
and the course. This indicator is extensively used to evaluate teaching and course
effectiveness, especially in higher education (Alfraih & Alanezi, 2016; Tho, 2017). The use of
other performance measurements, as grades for example (Beatty & Albert, 2016), was not
considered due to the type of educational program and empirical difficulties to the
implementation of an adequate test standard.

3.1. The context, preparation for research and the sample

An aspect that we considered fundamental for the study was the preparation of the
research context. A lato sensu post-graduation project at a private Brazilian business school
created for use in the flipped classroom was chosen. Many studies have been conducted with
students on graduate courses (Bishop & Verleger, 2013), but few have focused on students on
post-graduate courses. This was a pilot project in business education that took place between
2011 and 2014. It was part of a partnership with important universities in Brazil (see Table 1),
where the FCM was applied using the same model. It also included an institutionalized model
for the FCM that would become more standardized through use in the different courses and
locations.
Four elements were considered for the application and reproduction of the FCM in the
field: (1) focus on the participants (the focus of the teaching is the participants, who brought
their own experiences into the classroom); (2) educators (irrespective of previous experience,
all the educators underwent approximately forty hours of preparation, with 10 to 12 hours in
the classroom and 28 hours for distance learning, involving specific preparation for the FCM
and supervised prepared lesson plans); (3) materials (a virtual book was prepared for each
discipline, with the necessary content for video and written material. Students had to read and
prepare before entering the classroom to facilitate discussion. This pre-reading and access to
the content was controlled via Learning Management Systems (LMS) and reading
comprehension tests); (4) infrastructure (comfortable and suitable for learning in the
classroom, facilitating interaction and sharing, e.g., all classrooms had projection and sound
equipment and Wi-Fi, white boards on all the walls and room for group work).
Although planning for the FCM is paramount to the effectiveness of its
implementation (Flores, 2015), the institutionalization of the method for an entire program is

5
 not usual, especially in executive education. Prior planning considering the four elements is
not only a condition for the successful implementation of the course, but it also is a standard
condition to have all the courses, professors, materials and infrastructure in place to enable
quantitative studies (Lee, Lau & Yip, 2016).
In this FCM application, the educators did not have the flexibility to use techniques
other than those specified. All educators teaching plans were discussed with a specialist
before the class. They had to use specific videos, cases and activities in each course. The
eventual customizations did not change the techniques. This was the how the system was
created, serving as a kind of boundary condition for application by different educators in
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different locations for a proper evaluation of its impact. The physical and technological
infrastructure, classroom layout and services were also standardized in all locations. A
previous investment in construction work was made before the method was applied.
The questionnaire (Table 2) considered previous exposure to content (videos and
materials) and classroom activities. This separation was directly related to the definition of the
method (Butt, 2014). The questionnaire also considered the students perception of the
educator and course. The questionnaire was analysed beforehand by educators and pretested
with a group of students. Some pre-tests eliminated a group of questions. All students from
the sample were presented with the questionnaire when entering the program (see Balan,
Clark and Restall (2015) for student preparation for FCM).
3.2 Sample
The sample was made up of the 1,133 students that experienced the project, with evaluations
completed at the end of each discipline of the management courses. Incomplete evaluations
were not considered, and were therefore removed from the sample. The final sample included
981 effective responses. The sample was by access and convenience. The data in Table 1
show a description of the sample.
Table 1 Descriptive data
[Insert Table 1 here]

The dependent variables were related to the students perception of educator and
course performance (Chenicheri et al, 2011). Educator performance was assessed by a series
of variables, including some specific to the FCM. Part of the educator variables were directly
related to specific personal skills and behaviour: EP1 educators traditional communication
skills; EP2 educators content mastering; EP4 personal relationship with the students; EP9
educators rigour. Other questions were asked regarding the proper use of the previous
activities: EP3 adaptation to course content; EP8 adequate use of the material (videos and
written content). Specific questions considered the educators performance regarding class
activities: EP5 attention to students doubts; EP6 encouraging student collaboration and
participation; EP7 mastery of active learning techniques. The final question was on overall
educator performance (EP10).

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 Course performance included four questions: CP1 personal importance; CP2
relatedness to program goals; CP3 general satisfaction; CP4 impact of the infrastructure
and services.
The independent variables were related to the previous content, or distant learning
activities, and class activities (Ocak, 2011; Dryscale et al., 2013). The previous content
considered four variables: PC1 quality and clarity of the material; PC2 asynchronous
interaction regarding the content; PC3 relatedness of the materials with the class; PC4 - easy
access to the materials. The class activities also considered four variables: CA1 the use of
materials in class; CA2 activities related to the materials; CA3 class collaboration; CA4
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specific collaborative activities.

To compute the independent and dependent variables we awarded a single factor score
to each one. We conducted a factor analysis to condense the study variables regarding the
survey questions into a smaller group of factor scores to gain a generalized view of each. The
independent variables (class activities and content) were condensed into one statistic variable
each (factor score). The dependent variables were also condensed into one statistic factor
score each (educator and course performance).
3.2. Research instrument
The data were collected using an evaluation of reactions on a five-point Likert scale,
ranging from 1 (I strongly disagree) to 5 (I strongly agree). Four macro fields were analysed:
evaluation of active learning techniques, evaluation of prior exposure to content through
distance learning, evaluation of the educator and evaluation of the course. Each macro theme
had subdivisions, as shown in detail in Table 2. The questionnaire directly evaluated the
aspects concerning the class activities and content mentioned in 3.1), and the expectations of
the students in relation to the educator and the course.
Table 2. Questionnaire
[Insert Table 2 here]

3.3 Procedures
The students were not compelled to complete the questionnaire. The sample is not a
random sample, but one selected by access and convenience. In the first part of the study,
regarding factor analysis, the responses of 981 students were considered.
The study was divided into factor analysis and subsequent linear regression. Both were
conducted using IBM SPSS 22 statistical software to transcribe how the method and content
were evaluated and clustered by the students, reflecting their evaluation of the services
provided by the educator and the course. The factor analysis was used to generate new
aggregated dependent variables that represented the flipped classroom as a service provision
strategy (prior exposure of the content through distance learning and class activities), and new
aggregated independent variables for the perceived performance of the educator and course.

7
 The resulting factor score was aggregated using the means of factor scores following a
similar procedure in other studies (e.g., Jong & Bogsman, 2011). The aggregated factors
identified were used as independent variables for later regression.

4. RESULTS
In the factor analysis, we used the principal component analysis method and Varimax
rotation. All item communalities were over 0.5. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) had a value
higher than 0.7, and Bartletts sphericity test lower than 0.05. These values are adequate,
according to Hair et al. (2009).
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Table 3 shows the factor analysis results. Factor #4 agglutinated and confirmed the
questions that check the students perceptions and access to previous content that correspond
to the usual external activities in the FCM. As explained above, the average of the sum of
these questions became the new variable. The same reasoning was used for the remaining
independent and dependent variables.
Factor #2 agglutinated and confirmed students perceptions of class activities. It also
corresponds to the usual classroom activities in the FCM. Factor #1 and #3 correspond to the
dependent variables, educator and course perception, respectively. The new variables derived
from the average of the sum of the results of the questions were used as dependent and
independent variables for the subsequent regression analysis.

Table 3 Factor Analysis

[Insert Table 3 here]

Table 4 shows the correlation matrix. The significant correlations did not show
alarming high correlation values that could raise multicollinearity concerns. To confirm this,
we ran Variance Inflation Factor (VIF) tests, which showed values below the acceptable limit
of three (Neter, Wasserman & Kutner, 1990).
Table 4 - Correlation Matrix
[Insert Table 4 here]

Note: ** Correlation is significant at the level of 0.01.

The results of the regressions are shown in Table 4. We have two simple regression
models. The first tested the impact of the previous content outside the classroom and the
activities in the classroom on the perceived educator performance. The results confirmed H2a,
showing a positive and significant effect (=0.228, p<0.001). This implies that the prior
structured and controlled exposure to the content of videos, written content, forum discussions

8
 and reading tests in this situation led to a positive perception of educator performance. The
results also confirmed H1a, showing a positive and significant effect (=0.352, p<0.001). The
results show that the in-class activities, considering in this situation the use of structured video
activities, case studies and some other predetermined collaborative activities, also had a
positive impact on perceived educator performance.
The second model also tested the impact of the previous content and classroom
activities but on perceived course performance. The results confirmed H2b, showing a
positive and significant effect (=0.331, p<0.001). The results also confirmed H1b, showing a
positive and significant effect (=0,321, p<0.001). In a similar reasoning for the educator, the
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external and internal FCM activities had a positive impact on course performance.

Table 5 - Results of the regressions

[Insert Table 5 here]
Note: ** Correlation is significant at the level of 0.001.
The results showed the individual impact of each of the steps, out-of-class and in-class
activities, on the perceived performance of the educator and course by the participants.
However, we did not test any mediation or relatedness between out-of-class and in-class
activities.

5. DISCUSSION AND FINAL CONSIDERATIONS

In this study, we analysed the individual impact of out-of-class and in-class activities
of the FCM on the perceived performance of educators and courses. The out-of-class impact
is related to the use of videos, written materials, forum activities and pre-assessment content
tests, in an expanded form of the method. The in-class activities are also related to the use of
structured activities with videos, case studies and other student-centred collaborative
activities. We tested a planned, structured and institutionalized form of the FCM applied to
MBA program courses.
The teaching techniques used in the post-graduate classes (MBA) for company
managers directly and positively affect the perception of the quality of the work of the
educator and the evaluation of the course. This is because these are means that enable students
to learn independently, autonomously and, often, in collaboration (Nakano, 2009). The
educator, as a key element of educational service quality has a significant impact on student
satisfaction (Preble et al., 2004; Tan & Kek, 2004). When it comes to teaching activities in
general, there is a consensus that results regarding quality and the provision of services
(Cuthbert, 1996; Hill, 1995; Owlia & Aspinwal, 1998) depend on the knowledge and skills of
the educator (DiDomenico & Bonnici, 1996) and the behaviour of the educator (Cuthbert,
1996). To a certain extent, this dependency on the educators talent means that the educator,
rather than the institution, is the central focus. However, the teaching process has an impact
on the evaluation of the service (Hill, 1995; DiDomenico & Bonnici, 1996). As shown in the
results of this study, it can enhance the evaluation of the educator as a service provider, but

9
 also as a source of competitive advantage for the learning institution, which may be less
dependent on the talent of the educator. The use of the FCM proved to be a possibility for this
purpose, attesting to it being considered as a strong trend for the coming years (Waters, 2012).
The results of the study show the advantages of using the FCM as an orientation for
service provision, directly affecting the evaluation of the educator. This confirms the
predominantly positive results of its use in graduate courses (Bishop & Verleger, 2013; Bates
& Galloway, 2012). Nevertheless, the study did not evaluate how the passive and active
activities were organized and projected. This indicates the need for future studies to evaluate
how these activities are effectively projected and organized. Furthermore, in light of the
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content of the previous paragraph, it would be interesting to gauge the impact of the use of the
FCM in relation to the characteristics of the educator himself. In other words, how the results
can be enhanced even when the characteristics and skills are not excellent, given that the
students can participate in the process and have greater control over their learning experience
and the course (Osguthorpe & Graham, 2003; Biggs & Tang, 2007).
The use of the FCM as a teaching method that orients the formatting of the service had
a positive impact on the course. We consider this an important aspect, as mentioned
previously, since it can be controlled by the business school and reduce dependency on the
educator. In a certain way, providing services with processes designed like this may prove to
be a source of competitive advantage, starting with the provision of fundamental services
(Moldovan, 2012). However, although the direct impact of the FCM on the evaluation of the
course has been verified, from a practical viewpoint it is mediated by the evaluation of the
educator. It would be interesting to evaluate this relationship in future studies to evaluate this
relationship. Moreover, other factors, such as the services provided by the learning institution
or even customer services in general, could moderate the relationship in question in this study.
Other services may influence the students perception (Roberts & Dunworth, 2012) in relation
to the service provided by the educator and the course. This possible moderation, in addition
to being identified, should be evaluated in terms of impact on immediate services, such as
customer services, the secretarys office and access.
Likewise, considering the premise and definition of the FCM, a relation between the
access to the out-of-class content and in-class student-centred activities would be expected.
This also suggests, despite the direct effect of the out-of-class activities on educator and
course performance, that it may have a mediating effect between the previous access to
content and classroom activities in terms of performance.
In this work, not only do we provide evidence that the FCM has a positive effect on
perceived educator and course performance with a quantitative relevant sample statistically
tested in bounded standardized conditions, but that previous structured and planned materials,
activities and educator preparation may be institutionalized with positive impacts.
This article also contributed to service quality in higher education by presenting the
characteristics of the process that can have a positive influence on how students perceive a
service, by also considering their needs. Studies that focus on service quality perception in
higher learning have been conducted descriptively and for the evaluation of perception rather
to evaluate the impact of solutions (see Keo & Li, 2014; Stuklina, 2014). There are few

10
 empirical studies on the evaluation of teaching strategies and processes. Another contribution
is the study involving the flipped classroom, suggesting an evaluation of a new strategy that
has been the focus of few empirical studies, especially in relation to service provision in
higher learning (Halverson et al., 2012; Goodwin & Miller, 2013).
There are some limitations to this article. It is idiosyncratic in nature as it concentrated
on only one higher learning institution. The study should be expanded to other institutions
with different teaching models. Another limitation is that it did not evaluate the relationships
between the dependent and independent variables and possible mediating and moderating
variables that were suggested. However, the study evaluated executive education, which is
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normally difficult to access for research purposes, and presented stimulating results for in-
depth study in the future.
Some aspects were not evaluated by the methodology used in this work, but deserve to
be included in future studies. For instance, some authors argue that the FCM, and the teaching
techniques, do not always function adequately. However, in our referential framework, when
it came to negative evaluations of the FCM, we found few studies that evaluated exact
disciplines such as statistics (Strayer, 2012) and algebra (Jaster, 2013). Apparently, there
remains a challenge to seek solutions for this type of subject. In future studies, we suggest
gauging how the type of subject, e.g., exact or human, moderates the result between the tests
that were positively evaluated here in relation to the educator. Another suggestion would be to
understand the effect of age and gender on the results, given that some authors recommend
that more active teaching techniques that stimulate creativity would be more attractive to a
younger audience (Prensky, 2005).
To round off, it would be interesting to continue this study and conduct similar studies
to gain a better understanding of how blended education, especially the FCM, could help to
prepare graduates better, stimulating their creative capacity for the job market.

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i
Student-centred learning uses teaching techniques focusing on instructions from the teacher to
the student (Serra & Vieira, 2006).
ii
In this work, active learning is defined as one type of student-centered process. It does not focus on
simple information transfer. The students play an active role in their learning (Serra & Serra Vieira,
2006).

17
 Table 1. Descriptive data

Respondents 981 100%

So Paulo (SP) 845 86.14%
Porto Alegre (RS) 47 4.79%
Curitiba(PR) 46 4.69%
Location
So Caetano do Sul
(SP) 28 2.85%
Rio de Janeiro (RJ) 15 1.53%
Female 340 65.34%
Gender
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Male 641 34.66%

Average (years) 37.52
Median 36.61
Maximum 68.58
Age
Minimum 18.73
Standard Deviation 8.97
Variance 80.56

Table 2. Questionnaire

Questions FCM field system References

Class activities
CA2 Were there specific
activities for discussing the
videos?
CA1 - Does the educator use
videos in class activities?
CA3 - Does the educator
encourage collaborative
activities in class?
CA4 - Does the educator use
cases and other activities for
class discussion?
Previous content
PC4 - Was it easy for you to
access the LMS and content
during your study?
PC1 - Did previous access to
the content help you during
the class?
PC2 - Did the discussion
characteristic
Check the use of the pre-
selected activities related to the
videos (part of the system).
Check if the videos were used.
Check if the class was student
centred.
Check if the pre-selected case
study was used as well as other
complementary activities of
the teaching plan.
Access to the LMS is required
to access previous content and
do the pre-reading test.
Evaluate the usefulness of the
virtual book containing the
video and written content.
Evaluate the use of
For the positive impact of videos in
class activities: Kenworthy-Uren and
Erickson (2009); Comer and Holbrook
(2012); Hedge, Sean and Martinez
(2011); Holtzblatt and Tschakert
(2011).
For the use of videos stimulating
discussion and other: Bumpas (2005);
Holbrook (2007); Tyler, Anderson and
Tyler (2007); Mayer (2009).
For the use of case studies and other
activities: Christensen, Garvin and
Sweet (1991); Herreid (2000); Serra
and Serra Vieira (2006); Walker and
Leary (2009); Hristache, Paicu and
Dobrescu (2015); Armbruster, Patel,
Johnson and Weiss (2009).
For the proper use of distant learning
tools and previous content in FCM:
Baker (2000); Johnson, Adams Becker,
Estrada and Freeman (2014); Hamidi et
al. (2011).
 forum in the LMS asynchronous activities to
environment help your enhance the effectiveness of
content comprehension? the impact of out-of-class prior
activities.
PC3 - Were the class
activities related to the Check the relatedness of the
content of your previous study content of the previous
(texts and videos)? activities to the class content
(teaching plan fulfilment)
Educator
EP3 - Does the educator Check the skills of the For the impact of educators on service
present the course content educator. delivery: Vasquez and Ruas (2012);
clearly? Chenicheri et al. (2010); Cuthbert
(1996); DiDOmenico and Bonnici
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EP9 - Does the educator work

on the course with a sufficient Check the rigour of the (1996); Hill (1995); Kazerrony (2012).
level of demand? educator.
EP1 -Does the educator teach Check the skills of the
the content with quality? educator.
EP10 - Would you like to
have another discipline with Check the overall performance
this educator? of the educator.
EP5 - Does the educator Check attention to students.
clear up participants doubts?
EP8 - Does the educator use Check the use of the specified
the course material material.
adequately?
Check the qualification of the
EP2 - Does the educator educator.
master the content?
EP6 - Does the educator Check attention to students and
propose activities that collaboration.
encourage participation and
debate in class?
EP4 - Does the educator Check educator empathy.
establish a cordial
relationship with the
participants?
EP7 - Does the educator use Check educators alignment
the teaching technologies with the method.
adequately?
Course
CP1 - Is the course important
Check student perception of For impact of service on higher
to your professional
the usefulness of the course. education courses, the references used
qualification?
for educators also apply.
CP4 - Did the physical Avoid negative moderation.
structure and services live up
to your expectations?
CP3 - Would you recommend Check overall perception.
this course to your network?
CP2 - Does the course help to Check students perception of
achieve the goals of the delivery.
program?
 Table 3. Factor Analysis

Questions Factor #1 Factor #2 Factor #3 Factor #4

Class activities
CA2 Were there specific
activities for discussing the .879
videos?
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CA1 - Does the educator use .875

videos in class activities?
CA3 - Does the educator
encourage collaborative .605
activities in class?
CA4 - Does the educator use
cases and other activities for
.539
class discussion?
Previous content
PC4 - Was it easy for you to
access the LMS and content
.785
during your study?
PC1 - Did previous access to
the content help you during
the class? .677
PC2 - Did the discussion
forum in the LMS .656
environment help your
content comprehension?
PC3 - Were the class
activities related to the
content of your previous .540
study (texts and videos)?
Educator
EP3 - Does the educator
present the content of the .867
course clearly?
EP9 - Does the educator work
.862
on the course with a sufficient
level of demand?
EP1 -Does the educator teach
the content with quality? .860
EP10 - Would you like to have
another discipline with this .844
educator?
EP5 - Does the educator clear
up participants doubts? .834
EP8 - Does the educator use
 the course material
adequately?
.807
EP2 - Does the educator
master the content?
EP6 - Does the educator
propose activities that .807
encourage participation and
debate in class?
.801
EP4 - Does the educator
establish a cordial
relationship with the
participants?
EP7 - Does the educator use .765
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the teaching technologies

adequately?
.762

Course
CP1 - Is the course important
to your professional .807
qualification?
CP4 - Did the physical
.735
structure and services live up
to your expectations?
CP3 - Would you recommend
this course to your network? .618
CP2 - Does the course help to
achieve the goals of the
program? .582

Note: KMO = 0.950; Bartlet p <0.000 with Chi-square of 21261.13 and df = 231.

Table 4. Correlation Matrix

Previous Class Course Educator
content activities
Previous content
1
Class activities
.241** 1
Course
.531** .248** 1
Educator
.475** .343** .815** 1
Note: ** Correlation is significant at the level of 0.01.

Table 5 - Results of the regressions

 Variables Educator Course
Previous content .228** .331**
Class activities .352** .321**
N 981 981
F 141.296 148.186
2
R .367 0.378
Adjusted R2 .364 0.375
Note: ** Correlation is significant at the level of 0.001.
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