The flipped classroom: The good, the bad, and the surprising

Three different implementations of the flipped class paradigm were used to teach Chemical Engineering students at Imperial College London (ICL) in the 2023-24 academic year: (1) The 3rd year elective course Introduction to Numerical Methods (INM) taught in its entirety in flipped format (the �good�); (2) The 2nd year core course on Process Dynamics and Control (PDC), with the first half of the course on process dynamics taught in traditional lecture format, and the second half on process control taught in flipped format (the �bad�); and (3) a one-week workshop on heat integration, taught as part of a 3rd year core course on Process Design (PD), taught in flipped format (the �surprising�). This paper describes these three implementations in detail and presents and analyzes the responses from student surveys intended to ascertain students� perceptions about the level of their satisfaction with the flipped class approach and the degree to which they achieved mastery of the taught materials. The actual learning outcomes are also analysed, that is, the exam results in the case of the first two courses, and the performance of the students on their design project, for the last course. The paper ends with conclusions and recommendations concerning how the flipped class paradigm should be implemented, depending on the classroom situation for which it is intended.