The Flipped Classroom’s impact on students’ motivation and engagement

In recent years, most of the research on the Flipped Classroom (FC) has primarily focused on examining students’ learning outcomes and their perceptions of this approach. However, the present study aims to explore the impact of the FC on students’ motivation and engagement by combining both quantitative and qualitative data in a single research effort, addressing the limited existing research in this area. The data for this investigation were collected from student teachers (STs) in the field of English as a foreign language (EFL) in a Norwegian teacher education program. The data collection instruments employed in this study involved a paper-based survey and focus group interviews. An explanatory sequential mixed methods research approach was adopted involving two phases. During Phase 1, a quasi-experimental design was employed, and quantitative data were obtained from two sub-groups: the control group (the non-flipped group) and the experimental group (the FC group). The data was collected through a paper-based survey using the Motivation and Engagement Scale- University/College (MES-UC) instrument. Phase 2 of this study involved the collection of qualitative data from the experimental group through focus group interviews. Based on the findings obtained from the two phases, no statistically significant difference was observed between the two sub-groups regarding motivation and engagement. However, participants from the experimental group expressed in the focus group interviews that the FC approach promoted their motivation and engagement when compared to the lecture-based approach.