Flipped learning and affect in mathematics: Results of an initial narrative analysis

Abstract

Flipped learning is a constructivist methodology that uses various active learning strategies, drawing on the potential of digital technologies whenever possible. Several research studies have shown the many benefits that flipped learning can bring to students’ learning process and their affective sphere, but studies in the specific area of mathematics are still limited. The present article aims to examine the possible impact of this methodology on affective factors in mathematics. To achieve this goal, it was designed a 20-hour experiment involving about 300 secondary school students, during which conic sections were studied using a flipped approach. At the end of the experiment, textual material was collected on which a narrative analysis was conducted. The analysis took a content-categorical approach, and the reference theory for interpreting the data was the three-dimensional model for attitude toward mathematics by Di Martino and Zan (2010, 2011). The results show that a positive, rather than a negative, emotional disposition prevails, as does a view of mathematics as useful, rather than useless. Students’ perceptions of their own competence are equally distributed between low and high. Initial findings suggest that flipped learning is a methodology that can create a learning environment that has a positive influence on affective factors.