Running Head: EVALUATING THE FLIPPED CLASSROOM METHOD 1

Evaluating the Flipped Classroom Method on ELL Students’ Participation and Engagement

Kirby Calcagno, Merica Ivey, Alissa Richards, Winchester Robinson

Liberty University

EDUC 639
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Abstract

This study tested the flipped classroom method and how it affects English language

learner’s ability to participate and engage in the classroom. The research conducted looked at the

high school population in the Alameda County District in California and focused on ELL

students.

Keywords: flipped classroom, ELL, participation, engagement

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Background and Rationale

Flipped Classroom Method

There were two teachers, wanting to teach all their students in rural Colorado; even those

that were out sick or unable to get to school (Trach, 2018). Determined to ensure their students

could access the same content as their peers, the teachers devised a way to “video” the lessons

and “pre-broadcast” the learning. This strategy soon caught on and teachers everywhere began

experimenting with multiple versions of flipping the learning, all of them evolving from the discs

needing burned to quickly accessible You Tube Videos.

Twenty years later the term “flipped” classroom stands strongly in all classrooms and

instructional formats as a meaningful method of moving information to the student while

allowing them an opportunity to make meaning of the content. Teachers are able to meet

individual student needs in differentiated methods not possible (Winter, 2018).

In 21st century learning, social student-focused learning moved to a priority for many

teachers (Abeysekara, 2014). Learning should occur through collaborative knowledge

construction rather than students simply “getting” the knowledge handed to them in a transitional

phase. The learning through experiences and hands-on activities help students of any age best

understand the information. In classrooms, regardless of level, this is encouraged through active

and problem-based learning where the student is able to take content and engage with it to gain a

deeper understanding.

In the flipped classroom, the initial content is taught ahead of time. Then the student

brings this content and background knowledge to the learning space and can apply and/ or

evaluate those concepts to broaden and deepen their understanding (Jensen, et al., 2015). By
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flipping the order of the learning, this will shift the attainment of content from a teachers’

responsibility to the student.

Additionally, the flipped classroom focuses on the social constructivist thought. The

“passive learning” of just gaining background knowledge and content is front loaded from the

teacher through various technology avenues (Drew, 2019). Then the students are expected to

socially engage with the learning under the facilitation of the teacher. Because of this, engaging

in the learning becomes centered around interaction and experiencing the information to

construct their own understanding.

English Language Learners

Lee and Wallace (2018) conducted an “action research” study, where they evaluated their

own teaching practices as English instructors at a university in South Korea. The university

utilized a “Test of English Proficiency (TEPS)” to gauge which of the four English courses

offered a student was best suited for (Lee and Wallace, 2018). The study had seventy-nine

participants broken into two groups: those that participated in the flipped classroom method and

those that did not (Lee and Wallace, 2018). It is important to note that the students at this

university “studied English for about 10 years” prior to college but were still not very proficient

(Lee and Wallace, 2018). During the study, both groups utilized the same materials, but those in

the flipped classroom watched videos and completed worksheets before class and during class

did collaborative, hands-on, group work surrounding the topic, whereas those in the traditional

classroom sat through the lecture and had to watch videos during class time, meaning they were

left to navigate doing their worksheets at home on their own (Lee and Wallace, 2018). After

conducting three interviews, grading three assignments, and reviewing instructor feedback on

individual students’ classroom participation, the results showed that those in the flipped
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classroom setting were more engaged and scored much higher on the final exam than those in the

traditional classroom setting (Lee and Wallace, 2018).

Similarly, to Lee and Wallce (2018), Wu., Chen Hsieh, and Yang (2017) describe similar

difficulty with finding previous research on the flipped classroom method being utilized for

those with language barriers. In their study, Wu, Chen Hseigh, and Yang (2017) set out to

understand the flipped classroom method for EFL online students in Asia. Little research has

been done on the use of the flipped classroom method in the online learning format as well, so

this study was evaluating uncharted territory in the world of flipped classroom research.

Researchers utilized both qualitative and quantitative methods and found that, similar to Lee and

Wallace’s (2018) findings, students were more engaged and reported positive feedback regarding

the flipped classroom methods (Wu et al., 2017).

English language learners can be difficult to teach at times, as teachers, you want to get

through to each of your students in whatever ways you can. This study, conducted by Kim, Park,

Jang, and Nam (2017), looks at how second language learners perform in a flipped classroom

versus a traditional classroom at the university level. Second language learners were found to

respond better in a flipped classroom than they did in a traditional classroom. The data showed

that the flipped classroom group were able to participate in a better discussion in class that

promoted higher order thinking skills than the traditional classroom students were able to do.

The common theme in all of these studies shows that the flipped classroom method may be very

beneficial to ELL students, but not enough evidence exists to validate that statement. Therefore,

the purpose of this study, should the hypothesis be supported, will be to increase the validation of

this topic and furthermore, provide educators with research that can positively influence their

teaching practices.
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Research Question

The research questions for this study are: (a) Is there a difference between ELL students’

performance that use the flipped classroom method and those who use traditional learning

methods? and (b) Does the flipped classroom method increase student motivation in ways

traditional learning methods do not?

Research Hypothesis

The following are the research hypotheses:

H1: English Language Learning (ELL) students who participate in a flipped classroom

model vs. a traditional classroom learning model comparatively achieve higher rates of academic

success.

H2: English Language Learning (ELL) students who participate in a flipped classroom

model vs. a traditional classroom learning model will show higher levels of motivation compared

to those participating in a traditional classroom setting.

Null Hypothesis

Alternatively, the following are the null hypotheses:

H1: English Language Learning (ELL) students who participate in a flipped classroom

model vs. a traditional classroom learning model comparatively do not achieve higher rates of

academic success.

H2: English Language Learning (ELL) students who participate in a flipped classroom

model vs. a traditional classroom learning model will not show higher levels of motivation

compared to those participating in a traditional classroom setting.

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Research Design

Two data collection tools will be used in this study. The first one will be a cumulative

average at the end of the science course to indicate performance. The grades will include all

assignments, tests, projects, and final course grades. This will establish performance groups

which the students will be separated in (top, middle, low) according to the cumulative score.

Secondly, learners will respond to 20 items on a five-point Likert-type scale survey

measuring their motivation and feelings of engagement. The survey will include statements of

motivation, effort, and self-confidence. Statistically significant differences between the

performance groups will be determined through a one-way ANOVA.

Participants and Sampling

The study will be conducted in an urban high school in an urban county in California

with English as a Second Language (ESL) learners as the participants. The school has n students

enrolled with n% classified as ESL. The socio-economic status of the school is n% on free and

reduced lunch. There are n% Caucasian students, n% African American and n% Hispanic

attending the high school with n% male and n% female.

Data will be collected during one semester (a freshman level science course). The course

is a standard course taken by all students. ESL students would traditionally receive similar

instruction as other non-ESL students. Four sections were randomly selected among the list of

available classes. Two classes would be conducted as a flipped classroom (n=?), whereas the

other two sections will be taught in the traditional setting (n=?).

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The students in the sections are predominantly Spanish speaking with students from

Mexico, Honduras, Bolivia, and the United States. All students and their parents will give

completed consent to indicate consent of them as well with options to opt out of the study. The

consent will be given in multiple languages as well as available orally to ensure language is not a

barrier to giving consent.

Methods

The traditional classes will consist of 60 minutes of instruction in science. The classes

generally begin with daily warm up and then move into instruction. Teachers use a variety of

instructional materials to introduce topics and concepts to students. Vocabulary is introduced

within the “class instructional” time. Some activities allow for discourse between students

however the majority of the instructional time is spent learning the content rather than

constructing meaning. Students are assigned work to allow time for practice and constructing

meaning. Due to timing, this is often done as homework and independently with checks for

understanding occurring in class the next day or when the assignment is graded.

The “flipped learning” pushes the learning out to the students prior to class. Due to

students having access to technology and WIFI, they encounter no barrier or limitation to the

content. They are exposed to the content including critical vocabulary words ahead of the lesson.

When they arrive to class, they will engage with other students and the teacher to construct

meaning through projects, discourse, activities, and labs. Generally, it is expected the students

arrive with a base amount of content knowledge prior to class. The teaching methodology of the

teachers is very similar as all are following the same curriculum pacing map and common

formative assessments.
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Data Analysis

Students will be divided into three groups (low, middle, high) based on their course

grade. The mean course grade will be determined to divide the students into the three groups

with the low including three deviations to the left of the mean, the middle including three

deviations within the mean and the high including the three deviations to the right of the mean. A

similar grouping technique using means of grades was used in research on flipped learning with

middle grade students in Hawai’i (Winter, 2018). The mean of the high performers is N and

median of N, middle performer’s mean was N with a median of N, and low performer’s median

of N with N as the median. Significant differences will be measured using the survey items in

comparison to the flipped learning as well as various academic bands in comparison to the

flipped learning.

Limitations

There are some limitations that may interfere with the implementation of this particular

research model. Of these, the most influential may be that of time. A study conducted by Lee &

Wallace (2018), only, “compared the effects of flipped learning among the three groups only

after having provided three lessons over a 6-week period”. This amount of time is not suitable to

build a solid research foundation off of. Methodologically, there should be a semester to full year

student completed with adequate testing conducted to measure the students’ achievement and

progress. An additional limitation would also be the target population of students. Alameda

County, CA ESL and ELL students have spent years using their native language and have grown

accustomed to the traditional model of classroom learning. Additionally, as many of these

students are in the higher grade of high school, the amount of exposure to the flipped learning
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classroom model would be minimal. An insufficient amount of time participating in the model

would not allow for core concepts to take hold.

One common concern that has plagued the education system regarding ELL students in

the United States is the lack of consistency in teaching practices. Lee and Wallace (2018) talk

about the struggle’s students face due to being placed in a classroom with students that are at

very different levels of proficiency in English as it poses many gaps in the teaching process.

Unfortunately, many schools in the United States do not have the resources available to offer

multiple different ELL classes that are divided by a students’ proficiency in that language.

Furthermore, ELL students in K-12 face many challenges to grasping the English language that

are outside of the teachers control such as using their native language at home and only

practicing English at school, which poses a challenge that even a flipped classroom method

could not fix (Lee and Wallace, 2018).

Ethical Considerations

For this research model, it would be the prerogative of the research team, teacher, and

school district to inform students and parents of the research taking place. With this, there would

be ethical considerations in terms of confidentiality of student academic achievement and

informed consent to the release of said information. “The informed consent principle arises from

the right of subjects to freedom, self-determination and to refuse to participate (Cohen et al.,

2000).” (Abed, 2015). There may be students who refuse to participate in such the study and will

then need to be moved to another class not participating in the flipped classroom model. This can

be easily fixed though at the time of course selection for students. This way, students may choose

to participate in the course knowing fully the parameters of the study. Consent to the release of
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information can be obtained from the parents of each participating student in the study via a

signed waiver of release of information.

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References

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Abeysekera, L. & Dawson, P. (2015) Motivation and cognitive load in the flipped classroom:

definition, rationale and a call for research. Higher Education Research & Development,

34:1, 1-14, DOI: 10.1080/07294360.2014.934336

Jensen, J. L., Kummer, T. A., & d M Godoy, P. D. (2015). Improvements from a flipped

classroom may simply be the fruits of active learning. CBE life sciences

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284. doi:10.1111/flan.12260

Lee, G., & Wallace, A. (2018). Flipped Learning in the English as a Foreign Language

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Trach, E. (2018). A beginners guide to a flipped classroom. Schoology Exchange. Retrieved

from: https://www.schoology.com/blog/flipped-classroom.

Winter, J.W. Performance and Motivation in a Middle School Flipped Learning Course.

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Wu, W.-C. V., Chen Hsieh, J. S., & Yang J. C. (2017). Creating an online learning community in

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