Enhancing SPOC-Flipped Classroom Learning by Using Student-Centred Mobile Learning Tools

The aim of the study was to investigate the effectiveness of using student-centred online/in-class activities to enhance the learning performance of a group of teaching assistants (n = 51) in a Small Private Online Course-Flipped (SPOC-Flipped) classroom approach. A leading liberal arts university in Hong Kong has taken an initiative to develop a SPOC as a pilot for one of the training courses designed for teaching assistants. This six-week SPOC-Flipped classroom team teaching included a three-week online course that made use of the available online learning features like article, video, quiz, graded test, interactive discussion forum, etc. to incorporate key concepts of the course curriculum. A “3-stage SPOC-Flipped Classroom with Evidence” model was designed as a framework to enrich learners’ online learning experience in the study. To better enhance learners’ online learning concepts, various student-centred mobile learning (mLearning) tools like personal response systems and scenarios driven augmented reality mLearning technology were adopted for classroom activities in a gamified environment with timely feedback given by teachers. Marks of learners’ online and classroom participation were recorded and analysed against their overall grade (i.e. learning performance) of the course. Results from both quantitative and qualitative data analyses indicated that: (i) there was positive correlation of learners’ online/in-class participation marks against their overall learning performance, (ii) learners’ in-class engagement increased by using mLearning technologies to reinforce their online learning concepts in a gamified environment and (iii) few learners preferred traditional classroom teaching due to the unfamiliarity of flipped classroom pedagogy.