Flipping the Classroom to Create a Student-Centered Learning Environment in Three Undergraduate Civil Engineering Courses

A flipped classroom is no longer a novel idea, but engineering education has lagged in implementing this non-traditional course delivery method. Traditional engineering courses are typically offered in an instructor-centered environment which impacts everything from content delivery to student engagement and learning. A decade ago, we initiated a major project in curriculum reform that included flipping three second-year civil engineering courses: Statics, Dynamics, and Deformable Solids. These courses are foundational for all civil engineering students but, up to that point, had only been offered using traditional textbooks and lecture-based instruction. Flipping the classroom was driven by a desire to acknowledge what is known about active learning to push the courses to better fit today's engineering needs. The result of flipping the classroom had an effect far beyond simply switching the use of the student's time inside and outside of class. The traditional approach to course delivery falls short on engaging the students and in understanding where students struggle and what they know. To address the first two issues, the flipped classroom approach was selected and executed across all three courses. Implementation required adjustments at the university level to course scheduling, including finding classroom spaces suitable for group work. The schedule and workflows of each individual course were redesigned. The majority of class time was reserved for recitation periods where students work on problems in groups with the help of an instructional team. While we initially held one lecture per two-week module, eventually all reading, lecture, and passive activities were moved outside of class time. Establishing the class time as the place to do the work and emphasize problem solving strategies improved student's time on task and reinforced the main learning goals of each course. This paper will layout the logistics of flipping these courses along with the changes made to the content. The redesign process offered an opportunity to rethink what content was important, what students could do, and the skills that the students should have at the end of each course. The material from the traditional lectures had to be condensed down to include only the main ideas of a topic that could fit in a video lecture ranging between 10 to 30 minutes, but the problem selection became much more critical to highlight the details of each topic. The alignment of the course environment with the learning goals was instrumental, and included the condensed lecture content, better problem selection, improved assessment strategies, enhanced student engagement, and more direct individualized instruction for all students. The flipped classroom has provided significantly more facetime with each student to understand and address their misconceptions and to fill in gaps in their background knowledge. We have also developed a mastery-based grading strategy that not only improves on traditional assessment strategies but also complements the learning environment by helping to direct student effort and motivation. The overall student experience has improved, and the new learning environment provides more flexibility for both the instructor and the student to achieve the learning goals of the classes.