Flipping the Classroom in Introductory Sociology: Lesson from One Attempt

• In Event: 3532 - Innovative Techniques for Teaching Introductory Courses in Sociology

Abstract

In the summer of 2018, we set out to create an Intro to Sociology course that would “flip” the traditional classroom experience. Typically in a flipped classroom, students listen to a lecture outside of class so that when they come to class, they can participate in group work. We thought the idea of students learning together in class through various activities and discussions would work well in an Intro to Sociology class. We hoped that by flipping this course, students would learn to carefully listen, understand, and engage with others on range of topics both inside and outside the classroom. So, with the help of Brandeis University's Center For Teaching and Learning, we set out to adapt the flipped classroom approach for an Intro to Sociology course. We spent the summer months planning and strategizing how to balance the amount of reading, outside course work, and in class activities while still meeting the course learning goals. In the fall of 2018, we taught the course and continued to adapt and change as the semester progressed, learning along the way what worked well and what did not. During the session, we plan to share the materials we created with the hope that it will help others think about how they could implement a flipped classroom. We also plan to explain our process of building the course. We will show examples of in class activities, outside course material, assignments, and rubrics we used. In this symposium, we hope to be in conversation with other sociologists who are interested in implementing a flipped classroom. Using what we learned from our experimental and preliminary attempt at flipping an Intro to Sociology class, we think there is a lot to be explored regarding how sociologists can use this pedagogical tool to enhance student learning.

Authors

• Wendy Cadge, Brandeis University

• Ann Gavin Ward, Brandeis