The Flipped Experience for Chinese University Students Studying English as a Foreign Language

Abstract

Many educators worldwide are aware that traditional teacher‐fronted instruction and lecture‐based learning often lead students to become passive in the classroom. In the language classroom, particularly in classrooms for English as a second or foreign language, the flipped model of education drives students to become more responsive and more engaged in lessons. Current literature on the flipped model suggests that providing more lecture‐based lessons outside of the classroom via video recordings and creating more student‐centered activities inside the classroom may help enhance students' attitudes and learner autonomy. By collecting data during a large‐scale experiment at the University of Macau, this study provides insight into learner attitudes in the areas of teaching orientation; use of technology; and social, cognitive, and learner presence. Findings show that students in the flipped sections had more positive attitudes to the language learning experience than students in the non‐flipped sections.