Flipping Your Classroom May Be Easier Than You Think

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Take a moment to complete this true-or-false quiz:

1. The flipped classroom means that direct instruction, such as lecture, is moved online for pre-class completion, and homework is moved into the scheduled face-to-face instructional time.
2. The flipped classroom model is new, originating only about a decade ago.
3. Effective flipped classroom instruction involves the production of videos for students to watch before class.

If you answered “true” to most or all of these questions, then you likely see the flipped classroom as something that is radically different from college teaching as it was practiced more than a decade ago, requires use of technology, and expects considerable commitment by faculty (and perhaps, support staff) to generate videos, animations, or other technology tools for online delivery.  Does that view motivate you to flip your instruction or does it seem intimidating and not a teaching approach that you feel that you have time to implement or confidence to commit to?

I will make an argument for answering “false” to each of these three statements in order to show that “flipping” has a track record longer than the popularity of the term and can be implemented without dedication of extensive time or money to the use of technology.