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Introduction
The rapid growth of information flows requires the abandonment of reproductive learning based on knowledge transfer. The main goal of education is to develop students’ self-learning and goal-setting ability, the ability to learn independently and achieve set goals, to creatively use existing knowledge and skills to solve new non-trivial both professional and personal tasks.
So, there is a need to shift to learning models that shape and develop students’ ability and readiness for lifelong learning (Gok et al., 2023).
Blended learning is currently widespread. This is a pedagogical approach that combines elements of traditional education and education with the use of information and communication technologies. There are several generally accepted options for implementing blended learning. For example, Staker & Horn (2012) proposed a classification of blended learning based on the role of technology and the time students spend in different learning environments. These are the Lab Rotation Model, the Rotation Model, the Flex Model, the A La Carte Model, and the Enriched Virtual Model.
The term “flipped classroom” was introduced into educational practice in the early 2000’s and arose as a reaction to the growing availability and use of video materials and online resources in education. The concept of flipped classroom became popular thanks to the researchers and educators Bergmann &Sams (2012), who actively developed and popularized this pedagogical approach.
The idea behind the flipped classroom is to change the traditional learning model. The flipped classroom approach aims for more interactive and engaged learning, where students actively interact with the material and with each other, and the teacher acts as a facilitator. This approach became popular in education and made it possible to revise traditional teaching methods.
However, the issue of empirical research of the effectiveness of this method remains open despite significant studies of the effectiveness of this type of blended learning, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of the flipped classroom model in academic discourse.
Therefore, the aim of this research is to study the effectiveness of using the flipped classroom model in learning a foreign language.
The aim involved the fulfilment of the following research objectives:
study the effectiveness of the learning of educational material after the implementation of the flipped classroom model and compare it with the traditional method;
determine the level of students’ satisfaction with the learning process based on the flipped classroom model and support in online learning;
evaluate students’ satisfaction with educational video materials who studied with the use of the flipped classroom model.
Literature review
The analysis of recent publications made it possible to single out a number of English-language terms associated with the concept of mixed learning: blended learning, hybrid learning, flipped learning.
Blended or hybrid learning should not be confused with flipped classroom. In a blended learning, the teacher replaces part of the classroom sessions with remote ones, but the method of conducting the lesson and the distribution of didactic roles may remain unchanged (Yajie & Jumaat, 2023). Flipped classroom is only one of the models of the implementation of blended learning, in which classroom sessions focus on exercises, laboratory, and practical research, while new material is learnt offline with the help of online technologies and the use of opportunities of the digital educational environment (Gilyazeva et al., 2020). According to Valizadeh & Soltanpour (2020), the flipped model of blended learning is an approach based on active learning.
The flipped classroom can be more beneficial compared to the traditional methods that are mostly used in higher education (Vitta & Al-Hoorie, 2023). However, it will not be more useful in other educational stages where traditional approaches are not usually used, for example in primary education (Galindo-Dominguez, 2021). Jdaitawi (2019) notes that the flipped classroom strategy can be used to promote self-regulated learning and strengthen students’ social connections.
Turan &Akdag-Cimen (2020) note that the flipped classroom method in learning English for professional purposes has gained popularity among researchers after 2014, and the number of studies in this field has increased rapidly in recent years.
A literature review on the effectiveness of the introduction of blended learning into the educational process of foreign language teaching (Al-Harbi & Alshumaimeri, 2016; Afzali & Izadpanah, 2021) gave grounds to identify the main pros and cons of this methodology. In the last 15 years, blended learning has become more innovative, modern, and productive compared to classroom education and pure online learning (Konotop et al., 2023; Tang et al., 2023). Students got the opportunity to study where, how and how much they want. Today, universities around the world offer 3 learning options: online, classroom, or blended. And as experimental research in this field shows, the latter type takes the lead (Halasa et al., 2020). Surveys confirm the students’ desire to study in a mixed format, which makes it possible to combine studies with their interests, work, obtaining additional education, and also brings a number of financial benefits (Košir et al., 2022). An enhanced motivation and autonomy is also noted among the positive sides, which is especially important when learning foreign languages, along with the development of critical thinking (Colomo-Magaña et al., 2020; Laura-De La Cruz et al., 2022). According to Strelan et.al. (2020), a major positive factor influencing the effect of the flipped classroom is the opportunity it provides for structured active learning and problem solving. The results of a study by Mandasari & Wahyudin (2021) showed that the flipped classroom learning model has proven itself well in teaching grammar.
Among the disadvantages, many methodologists point to the fact that this format of learning is not suitable for all students because of the low level of competent planning and time allocation skills, which is characteristic of junior students (Velde et al., 2020).
In addition, the disadvantages include an increased load on the teacher caused by the need for a detailed development of the pedagogical design of blended learning: the selection of content, teaching methods, forms of control, the distribution of activities in classroom sessions and in the electronic educational environment, as well as taking into account factors that contribute to the formation of sustainable motivation in students (Kawinkoonlasate, 2019). The main challenges of this method common to all subjects relate to the length of the video/digital materials and the time required for teachers to prepare the learning materials and for students to learn them (Al-Samarraie et al., 2020), and that teachers and students should be technologically literate or ICT literate (Ngo & Yunus, 2021).
Methods and materials
Research design
The research was conducted in several stages: preparatory, implementation stage, and the stage of analysis of the obtained results.
At the preparatory stage, we studied the theoretical prerequisites for creating a blended learning model. The following factors were taken into account when creating the pedagogical design: the readiness of the educational institution to implement blended learning; goals of introducing the course; the possibility of students to work remotely (availability of a computer, high-speed Internet); the number of academic hours that will be realized in the online format; days and number of hours for classroom sessions; selection of educational platforms to be used for online assignments.
The implementation stage (January 2023 to June 2023) involved conducting a pedagogical experiment at the experimental institutions. The experimental research was carried out during the study of the academic subject English for Professional Purposes. The educational load for the classes in the experimental group based on the flipped classroom model (48 academic hours of the semester) was divided into two components: 16 hours of online classes and 32 hours of classroom (offline), of which 16 hours are contact work with the teacher and 16 hours - in groups on projects.
The following methodical equipment was used for the implementation of the flipped classroom: a textbook (Hughes, J., Naunton, J. Business Result. Intermediate Student's Book with Online practice); computer workbook (Business Result Intermediate Interactive Workbook); the educational platform Microsoft Teams, which hosted educational videos for independent study of theoretical material; Google Forms for testing; BBC Learning English site; Google Slides for online project tasks.
The stage of analysis of the obtained results involved collection, processing of research data, and their interpretation.
Sample
The following universities were the experimental base of the study: Shevchenko National University “Chernihiv Colehium”, South Ukrainian National Pedagogical University named after K. D. Ushinsky.
The experimental study involved a total of 81 students of the second year of study. During the research, 2 groups were selected: experimental (n = 40) and control (n = 41). The participants of the experimental group (EG) were taught using the flipped classroom model. Participants of the control group (CG) were taught using traditional educational methods.
Methods
Testing was used to diagnose the effectiveness of learning the educational material, which included the following types of tasks: choosing multiple responses (Multiple Response), correcting errors, finding correspondences, filling in the blanks (Fill in the Blanks), tasks with open-ended answers (Open-ended). The total number of tasks is 25 (5 for each type). The maximum possible number of points for the test is 25. Evaluation criteria: “excellent” - the number of correct answers is 25-22; “good” - the number of correct answers is 21-18; “satisfactory” - the number of correct answers is 17-13; “unsatisfactory” - the number of correct answers is ≤ 12.
A questionnaire consisting of 6 questions with multiple answers was developed in order to identify advantages in the use of information technologies in educational activities. The survey was conducted using Google Forms.
A survey of EG participants was conducted in order to determine the level of satisfaction with educational video materials. Satisfaction with the educational course was evaluated using a numerical scale from 1 to 5.
Instruments
The non-parametric Pearson’s chi-squared test was used to compare the frequencies of quality indicators in independent groups. The value of the χ2 criterion was compared with the critical values (r - 1) × (c - 1) of the number of degrees of freedom. If the empirical value of the χ2 criterion exceeded the critical one, it was concluded that there is a statistical relationship between the risk factor being studied and the result at the appropriate level of significance. The critical level of statistical significance when testing the null hypothesis was taken as equal to 0.05. Two-sided variants of the criteria were used in all cases. The data were processed using STATISTICA 13.3 developed by StatSoft.Inc and Microsoft Office Excel 2010.
Ethical criteria
The respondents’ participation in the study was voluntary, the principles of protecting the rights of research participants, ensuring their safety and data privacy were observed in the process of data collection. The research was based on the principles of impartiality and objectivity.
Results and discussions
Results
Before and after the experiment, the participants were asked to answer the questions of the questionnaires developed by the authors of the study (Table 1).
Table 1 - The results of a student survey regarding the experience of using online learning and support in the flipped classroom format.
| Item No. | Questions of the questionnaire | Answers | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Before the experiment | After the experiment | ||
| 1. | To communicate with the teacher on educational matters in extracurricular hours, you… | ||
| Use a personal account in a social network | 83% | 77% | |
| Contact the teacher personally at the educational institution | 31% | 20% | |
| Call the teacher | 25% | 13% | |
| Use messengers Viber, WhatsApp, etc. | 13% | 35% | |
| Use e-mail | 13% | 25% | |
| 2. | What kind of support would you like to receive during the online course? | ||
| Group conversation in social networks | 33% | 30% | |
| Teacher’s consultation in messengers/social networks | 58% | 70% | |
| Discussion on the course forum | 46% | 65% | |
| Face-to-face consultation with the teacher | 83% | 55% | |
| 3. | Mark the statements that are correct about you. | ||
| I discuss educational issues with my friends, including in the conversations of our study group | 85% | 88% | |
| I ask questions about independent work to the teacher | 88% | 87% | |
| 4. | What kind of teacher’s help do you need when performing independent work? | ||
| Explanation of the task | 73% | 70% | |
| Consulting and adjustments | 60% | 75% | |
| Regular control of task completion | 13% | 20% | |
| Verification and analysis of results | 44% | 60% | |
| 5. | Mark the statements that are correct about you. | ||
| I work in the distance learning system of the institute in extracurricular hours (not during classes) | 88% | 90% | |
| I am doing additional work on the subjects (not at the teacher’s task) | 44% | 56% | |
| I’m engaged in independent learning on the subjects being studied at the external online courses | 8% | 15% | |
| I would agree to take a short-term (up to 4 weeks) online course instead of preparing a thematic presentation | 85% | 75% | |
| I think that taking an online course is easier than studying offline | 90% | 65% | |
| I get into work faster if the time to complete the task is limited | 48% | 40% | |
| When choosing an online course, I would prefer a course without time limits (deadlines) | 56% | 54% | |
| 6. | Doing independent work is a challenge for me…. | ||
| as I don’t understand the purpose of the work | 60% | 63% | |
| as I don’t understand the task | 75% | 77% | |
| as I don’t know how to complete the task | 58% | 50% | |
| as I cannot determine for myself whether the completed task is complete and correct | 29% | 35% | |
| as it is difficult for me to allocate time correctly | 13% | 55% | |
Source: Own elaboration
After the implementation of the flipped classroom model, the number of students who use personal accounts in social networks to communicate with the teacher has significantly decreased (from 83% to 77%). The number of students who contact the teacher personally at the institute has also decreased (from 31% to 20%). Instead, more students started using messengers like Viber, WhatsApp, etc. (from 13% to 35%).
After the implementation of the flipped classroom model, the popularity of consultations in messengers/social networks increased from 58% to 70%, and discussions on the course forum - from 46% to 65%. Group chat on social networks remained a popular support option. There is also a slight increase in the number of students who discuss academic issues with their peers (from 85% to 88%). At the same time, students who ask questions to the teacher remained at approximately the same level (88% to and 87%).
After the implementation of the flipped classroom model, the number of students in need of counselling and correction (from 60% to 75%), as well as verification and analysis of results (from 44% to 60%), increased. Students’ answers to the question about the difficulty of independent work remained at almost the same level, but after the implementation of the flipped classroom model, it became more difficult for students to correctly allocate time (from 13% to 55%).
The general trend is that students are more active in using messengers and social networks to communicate with the teacher and receive support during the online course. The learners’ activity also increased in their requests for teacher support during independent work.
Table 2 presents the results of the comparison of the groups among themselves according to the Input Testing and Final Testing indicators.
Table 2 - Comparison of independent groups according to the Input Testing and Final Testing indicators.
| Indicator | Experimental group | Control group | Statistical significance of differences | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| χ2 | Р | ||||
| ENTRY TESTING | excellent | 8 (20%) | 7 (17%) | 0.418 | 0.937 |
| good | 12 (30%) | 11 (27%) | |||
| satisfactory | 14 (35%) | 15 (37%) | |||
| unsatisfactory | 6 (15%) | 8(19%) | |||
| FINAL TESTING | excellent | 16 (40%) | 8 (20%) | 8.095 | 0.045 |
| good | 14 (35%) | 12 (29%) | |||
| satisfactory | 10 (25%) | 18 (44%) | |||
| unsatisfactory | 0 (0%) | 3(7%) | |||
Source: Own elaboration
Note: χ2 - chi-squared test, р - statistical significance of differences.
Statistical analysis of the data for the Input Testing indicator showed that with the number of degrees of freedom k = 3, χ2 = 0.418. The critical value of χ2 at the significance level of p < 0.05 is 7.815. The relationship between the factor and result features is not statistically significant, the level of significance is p = 0.937 > 0.05. So, no statistically significant differences between the frequency distributions of the two groups were found at the stage of input testing.
Statistical analysis of the data for the Final Testing showed that with k = 3, the value of χ2 is 8.095, which is greater than the critical value of χ2 = 7.815 at the significance level of p = 0.05. The relationship between the factor and the resulting features is statistically significant, the level of significance is p = 0.045 < 0.05. Therefore, the results obtained after the pedagogical influence give grounds to conclude that the method used in the experimental group has an advantage in its effectiveness.
We also conducted a survey on the students’ satisfaction with educational video materials who studied using the flipped classroom model (Table 3).
Table 3 - The results of students’ satisfaction with educational video materials who studied using the flipped classroom model.
| Item No. | Quality criteria of educational video materials |
|
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Clarity and accessibility | 4.9±0.12 | 4.7±0.37 |
| 2. | Consistency and structure of the educational material | 4.7±0.23 | 4.75±0.4 |
| 3. | Practical focus | 4.8±0.25 | 4.75±0.23 |
| 4. | Image and sound quality | 4.77±0.36 | 4.5±0.5 |
| 5. | Duration and tempo | 4.80±0.32 | 4.7±0.43 |
| 6. | Relevance of questions and tasks | 4.85±0.25 | 4.41±0.54 |
| 7. | Availability on different devices | 4.8±0.23 | 4.83±0.27 |
| 8. | The ratio of time spent and knowledge gained | 5.0±0.00 | 4.3±0.67 |
| 9. | General impression | 4.85±0.23 | 4.7±0.25 |
Source: Own elaboration.
Note: Here m - mathematical expectation; S - standard deviation.
Therefore, students who studied under the flipped classroom model showed a high level of satisfaction with educational video materials. Most aspects such as clarity, accessibility, consistency and structure, practical orientation, and availability on different devices received high marks. However, the image and sound quality may require improvement, recording such videos requires special technical equipment. There is also a difference in estimates of the ratio of time spent and knowledge gained, which also needs to be refined.
Discussion
Despite the fact that blended learning appeared in the early 2000’s, its use in teaching foreign languages in general and business English to students of secondary vocational education in particular does not have a long tradition. Moreover, the issue of the effectiveness of the application of this educational model remains open (Hotle & Garrow, 2016).
The conducted experiment shows that unlike the traditional teaching method, where the teacher presents all the content and students often become passive listeners, the implementation of flipped learning contributes to the improvement of students’ language skills, transforming them into active agents, which is confirmed by previous studies (Hotle & Garrow, 2016; Afrilyasanti et al., 2016). At the same time, the practice has shown that it is possible to avoid increasing the teacher’s load with the help of preliminary preparation for the introduction of a new teaching format (Kawinkoonlasate, 2019).
The study confirms the conclusions of a number of researchers (Phoeun & Sengsri, 2021; Abdullah et al., 2019; Safiyeh & Farrah, 2020) about the validity of the flipped classroom model in mixed education of students of non-linguistic majors. By the end of the semester, the EG students showed higher results of the lexico-grammatical skills on the studied communicative topics provided by the programme of the subject Foreign Language in Business Communication compared to the CG, who were taught in a traditional way, which allowed us to confirm our hypothesis about the effectiveness of the selected training model. This is also confirmed by the research of Al-Naabi (2020).
The most likely reasons for this result include students’ interest in a new learning format: modern youth perceive information technologies as an integral attribute of their lives, so tasks performed using Microsoft Teams or YouTube aroused their genuine interest (Košir et al., 2022). Besides, new grammatical material was explained to the EG students online: special educational videos were posted in Microsoft Teams, which they could watch them at any convenient time and an unlimited number of times. This format gave them an advantage over the students of the control group, who got acquainted with the new grammar material in the classroom once, and if they were not in class, they had to study the questions on their own, and helped to easily and quickly repeat any topic. The ability to work in project teams remotely from home saved time that could be spent directly on the project rather than commuting, and had a positive effect on the performance of such tasks (Di Marco et al., 2020).
It is also worth noting that by the end of the semester, the level of linguistic competence has increased in both the EG and CG. This, of course, shows that traditional methods of teaching a foreign language have not lost their significance, and contact work with the teacher is necessary for a foreign language, but the introduction of modern technologies of blended learning, in particular the flipped classroom model, allows improving the educational process (Gilyazeva et al., 2020).
Conclusions
The flipped classroom model has become a relevant and vividly discussed topic in the current educational environment, as it modernizes the traditional approach to learning. This model gives students more control over their learning, promotes active involvement in the learning process, and can improve learning. The study of the flipped classroom model is important for the development of innovative teaching methods and optimization of the educational process.
Despite the importance of using blended learning and online learning in general, educational programmes face many challenges related to the application and implementation of a blended learning model in the curriculum. These problems can be technical (the students’ and teachers’ ability to successfully use technology) and/or organizational (adaptation of the educational programme, change of curricula). It is necessary to carefully plan the ratio of online and offline lessons, the choice of teaching methods and forms of control to achieve the desired results of English language learning, as well as to record higher quality lecture materials.
This study found that flipped classroom blended learning model helps students to realize an individualized learning trajectory that contributes to improved academic performance.
The prospects for further research include the application of a blended learning model for students of the 1st-2nd year and the comparison of the obtained results with the results of the senior students’ performance in connection with the lack of an unequivocal opinion regarding the age restrictions of the implementation of this technology in the educational process. A study of the impact of using the flipped classroom model on students’ learning motivation is also promising.
