Explorations to Overcome Socio-Economic Barriers in Learning and Thinking: A Flipped Classroom Study

Abstract

The present study aims to examine the effect of the flipped classroom model on the academic achievement and critical-analytic thinking skills of students from different socio-economic backgrounds. For this purpose, two schools in the same province, attended by children from families with varying socio-economic levels, were included in the study. The study sample consisted of a total of 82 students: 30 from a secondary school with students from a low socio-economic background and 52 from another secondary school with students from a high socio-economic background in the 2021-2022 academic year. The study was designed based on the quasi-experimental design with pretest-posttest control groups. Experimental and control groups consisting of one class each, and four classes in total, were selected from the schools using the random assignment method. The total application period was 9 weeks while the duration of the experimental applications was 7 weeks (28 class hours). In the present study utilizing Edpuzzle, an online platform, interactive videos were developed in accordance with the learning outcomes of the course. Data were collected using the 25-item “Sun, Earth and Moon Achievement Test” applied to determine the learning levels of the students and the 72-item “Cornell Conditional Reasoning Test” applied to measure critical-analytic thinking skills. In conclusion, it was revealed that although there was no significant change in critical-analytic thinking skills, the flipped classroom model provided a significant increase in the academic achievement and critical-analytic thinking skills of students from both socio-economic backgrounds.