Effectiveness of flipped classroom format in quantitative and non-quantitative business courses – A meta-analysis

Abstract

The current meta-analysis investigates two student outcomes of the flipped or inverted classroom format in quantitative and non-quantitative business courses: knowledge acquisition and student satisfaction. Data was collected through a search of nine databases, ResearchGate, and Google Scholar to identify empirical studies which compared student outcomes in flipped classrooms to lecture classrooms. A total of 38 studies were identified for inclusion in the study. Results show that flipped format had a positive effect on knowledge acquisition for both quantitative and non-quantitative courses as compared to lecture courses. The impact in non-quantitative courses on knowledge acquisition was larger than the effect in quantitative courses, but was not statistically significant. In contrast, student satisfaction in flipped classrooms as compared to lecture classes was higher in quantitative courses, but not statistically significant. The implications for business education is to not use flipped classroom approach as a universal format for instruction. As educators we need to balance knowledge acquisition and student satisfaction such that students can benefit from in-class learning experiences and perceive the increased workload as directly related to gains in learning. Students need to be engaged in both pre-work and in-class work in order to elicit the maximum benefit from flipped classes.