The Possibilities and Challenges of Flipped Instruction at Bronx Community College: Four Case Studies

Presenter:

Monique Antoinette Guishard, Associate Professor, Psychology; Moronke Oshin-Martin, Assistant Professor, Communications; Vicki Flaris, Professor, Chemistry; Sophie Francis, Assistant Professor, Business and Information Systems, Bronx Community College

Abstract:

In this panel the presenters will share critical reflections on their attempts to incorporate flipped instruction into the teaching of: Psychology, Communication, Chemistry, and Business courses. They began their journey together, in the Summer of 2017, within a three-day long Flipped Instruction and Podcasting miniinstitute. Two panel members co-facilitated the training, while the others were faculty participants. They started the institute with different pedagogical proficiencies but worked to develop shared understandings of the: theoretical frameworks, practical applications, language of inverted instruction, various software and hardware. By the conclusion of the session one panelist was able to create several lectures about the naming of compounds for General Chemistry (using a Lightboard), and another created a series of podcasts on business communication strategies (using PlayPosit and Screencast-O-Matic). Two of the panelists have been using rich-media for instruction for many years. Developing pre-recorded computer-based lectures and cooperative learning in-class activities aimed at reinserting marginalized and social-cultural perspectives in Social Psychology and Introduction to Communication, that are often excluded from mainstream textbooks in these fields. Presenters have experienced: difficulties balancing our attention to onerous departmentally designed curricula—with much welcomed, yet time-consuming, collaborative in-class activities, respecting student workload demands, ephemeral use of iClickers, and delays in students obtaining access to Blackboard, immersive learning platforms, etc due to financial aid and registrar issues. Despite these hurdles, embracing flipped instructional modalities has irrevocably transformed their approaches to teaching and learning. Presenters conclude each of their case studies with examples of the promises of inverted teaching methods in their disciplines.