What’s a flipped classroom?

In a flipped classroom, students learn the material on their own via videos and readings, and use the time in class to ask questions, practice, and apply their knowledge. In a flipped classroom there is little to no lecturing in class and you, as a student, have more control and full responsibility over your learning.

Why flip it?

We don’t get a lot of time together so why use that precious time to tell you things you can hear and read on your own? I rather use the little time we have together to answer your questions and help you get unstuck while working on assignments.

How do I thrive in this setting?

At home:

You must complete the material before class and come in to class with questions if you have them (and you should have them). The more questions you have, the more help I can be! Take good notes as you read– you’ll thank yourself later!

As a firm believer in Universal Design for Learning (UDL), I will try my best for “reading” material to be varied across both readings and videos. That being said, a lot of the material will seem repetitive— while you are more than welcome to read and watch every single item, you won’t need to in order to be able to answer the essential questions for any given unit. The goal is for you to have the same information presented in different forms, so you are able to become comfortable with the key concepts and have a thorough grasp of the essential questions, in whatever medium best suits you. Furthermore, if you are reading this, email me your favorite 2020 meme by the end of the second week of classes to receive a custom, limited edition, and soon to be highly-coveted certificate of recognition.

In class:

Ask questions! Learning happens when you engage with the material and that means asking clarifying questions, application questions, and extension questions. There’s no such thing as a dumb question.

So what’s your role as an instructor?

You’ll notice I don’t record lectures much; instead, I curate the best resources (videos and readings) I can find (because why re-invent the wheel) and spend a lot of time designing activities and assignments for you to practice. Computer Science is not something that can be learned just by reading or watching material– you need to practice and apply it! That’s where I come in– to give you and guide you through the practice and application of what you’re reading and watching.