A flipped classroom to inform the design of a geometrical optics course in physics

Abstract

The performance of learners in the science subjects, remain low and a challenge to the Department of Basic Education. Therefore, the education system calls for science teachers to be equipped with effective teaching approaches in physical sciences in order to meet the technological needs of the country. The aim of this study was to design and implement an intervention based on flipped classroom framework, for teaching a geometrical optics course. Geometrical optics is a topic that has many technological developments, such as optical fibres, that are driving economic developments in the communication industry of any country. Flipped classroom approach is a pedagogical approach in which direct instruction is left to the individual student out of the classroom space, and the classroom space is reserved for interactive discussions under the guidance of the instructor. It is an instructional approach that is gaining attention because of its potential to improve the way science content is taught in educational institutions, by incorporating technological tools in the instructional approach. The main focus of this study was on instructional design in the following key areas: (1) the components needed to design a teaching intervention based on a flipped classroom approach framework, (ii) how these components may be used to inform the design of a geometrical optics course, and (iii) how the design intervention would impact students’ performance. A Design Based Research methodological framework was used to collect quantitative data, supported by qualitative data, from five student cohorts, in a period of five years. All students were in their third-year level, registered for a Bachelor of Education degree programme. Data were collected in the first semester of each year when the course was being offered. The study findings revealed ten components of a flipped classroom instructional approach, which were derived from the analysis of data obtained during the implementation of the intervention on the five groups of student cohorts. It was also found that the intervention had a significant positive influence on students’ performance in geometrical optics. What these findings implied then, is that there exist alternative possibilities of how educators may teach the science subjects in the South African context, with higher possibilities of improving performance of learners. By redesigning new instructional methods based on the flipped classroom framework, using these components as principles of designing instruction, more learners may end up performing better in the science subjects. The contribution made by the study is to theory, about instructional design knowledge, for use by other researchers in the topic of geometrical optics.