Teaching a Hazardous Waste Management Course using an Inverted Classroom

Abstract

In engineering, the use of class time for active learning by students rather than traditional lectures is gaining popularity. There is a growing body of compelling evidence that active learning enhances student learning. However, there are a number of different models to integrate active learning into the classroom. This research explored the re-design of a senior and graduate level hazardous waste management course to use an inverted classroom model during the first half of the semester. The standard 75-minute lecture was segmented into videos that the students were tasked with watching before class. During class the primary focus was for the students to work in small self-selected groups of two to three to solve a series of example problems. The graded activities for students remained the same as in previous semesters: homework assignments that were primarily quantitative; a team project related to remediation that required two written reports and two oral presentations based on a site risk assessment and a remedial design feasibility evaluation; and a midterm and final exam. Assessment methods used to determine the effectiveness of the revised course model included: student logs showing video resource use from the Blackboard software; student feedback on an informal in-class survey and the final course evaluations; a comparison of student knowledge from the traditional class model and inverted model based on performance on the final exam. The primary limitation to success of the inverted course model was inconsistent buy-in from the students to watch the videos before class. About 40-60% of the class watched the appropriate online lecture prior to the relevant class time, but by the midterm exam about 90% of the students had viewed the majority of the online lectures. Student performance was better with the inverted classroom on two of four related homework assignments. The average student performance on the midterm exam was similar, although the “bottom” of the curve was improved during the inverted class (increased from ~44-53% traditional to 68% inverted). Improvements in student learning were primarily evident on the more difficult quantitative concepts. Plans for future use of the inverted course model and recommendations for others are provided.