A Homework System to Flip Almost Any Class

Abstract

In this paper, I present a homework system that supports a flipped classroom environment using only a textbook for students’ first contact with the material. Motivated by David Pengelley’s homework system, each unit of material has four key components: Core Assignments, Conceptual Assignments, In-class Worksheets, and Follow-up Assignments. The Core Assignment gives the student some initial structure for their first reading of the textbook and is discussed in class. The Conceptual Assignment requires a second, deeper, reading of the textbook, and the instructor uses students’ responses to initiate a discussion of the subtleties of the unit. In-class Worksheets and Follow-up Assignments allow for final synthesis of the unit. The staggering of the key components ensures that students engage with each unit of material at least five times throughout the course of a week. All of these key components can be built out of preexisting course materials. This paper, then, provides an accessible way to experiment with flipping an individual lesson, or indeed, one’s entire course.