Exploring Student Perceptions of Engagement and Learning in a Flipped Forensic Chemistry Course

A flipped classroom is an instructional method whereby students learn course content prior to attending class through various instructional resources. Class time is focused on problem-solving and active learning activities. Flipping the classroom allows instructors to utilize active learning strategies during class time to improve student engagement, promote peer-to-peer interactions, and develop a better perception of the students’ learning. Although a large body of work has been published related to the flipped classroom and active learning in STEM, thus far, very little research has been completed on the use of flipped classroom learning for forensic chemistry. This study explores student perceptions of their own learning and course engagement across two semesters of a Team-Based Learning flipped forensic chemistry course. This paper addresses one specific component of the Team-Based Learning course structure: the flipped classroom. A survey was given to students at the end of the semester that included Likert and open-ended questions. The responses indicate overall positive student perceptions regarding the flipped classroom in terms of their learning (45% of students agreed that the flipped classroom improved their learning outcomes in the course) and course engagement (62% of students agreed that the flipped classroom was more engaging than a traditional classroom). The themes from the open-ended questions, which are the focus of this study, provide insight into student perceptions of the flipped classroom. The most common student responses related to their perceived learning relate to the course setup. The most common student responses related to their perceived engagement relate to groupwork during class time.