European Journal of English Language Teaching ISSN: 2501-7136 ISSN-L: 2501-7136 Available on-line at: www.oapub.org/edu Volume 3 │ Issue 1 │ 2017 doi: 10.5281/zenodo.1045310 DELVING INTO FLIPPING EFL CLASSROOM: A MIXED METHOD STUDY Orhan Iyitoğlu1i, Yavuz Erişen2 Instructor at Gebze Technical University, 1 Department of Foreign Languages, Kocaeli, Turkey Professor at Yildiz Technical University, 2 College of Education, Curriculum and Instruction Department, Istanbul, Turkey Abstract: This pre-test post-test quasi-experimental study was grounded in a mixed method embedded design to delve into the quality and efficiency of flipped classroom model in enhancing university prep students’ overall academic performance in EFL and that in its sub-skills in addition to the durability of that performance. The study has also pioneered to reveal the impact of gender on flipped classroom EFL learners’ post-test scores. Quantitative data was gathered through the administration of EFL Achievement Test to 41 EFL students enrolled at Foreign Language School, Gebze Technical University in two different classrooms randomly assigned as experimental (N= 21) and control group (N=20). The intervention lasted during the whole 2016-2017 fall term. On the other hand, qualitative data was collected through follow-up semi-controlled interviews with 9 experiment group students from different achievement groups. All the quantitative data was analyzed using Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) 21 for Windows and ITEMAN4 while qualitative data was analyzed manually by employing content analysis procedures. The results of the study revealed flipped classroom model as a significant facilitator of EFL performance and long-term retention of this performance at universities in Turkey. More specifically, students in flipped classroom significantly outperformed those in the traditional lecture based classroom in all skill areas except for listening. Furthermore, qualitative results supported this impact of flipped classroom model on EFL performance. As a unique aspect of the Copyright © The Author(s). All Rights Reserved. © 2015 – 2017 Open Access Publishing Group 120 Orhan Iyitoğlu, Yavuz Erişen DELVING INTO FLIPPING EFL CLASSROOM: A MIXED METHOD STUDY study, EFL students’ performance in the flipped classroom was explored to be independent of their gender. To conclude, he present study has promised a bulk of valuable results that set flipping EFL classrooms as an efficient way of dealing with failure in EFL in Turkey. Keywords: academic achievement in EFL, blended learning, flipped classroom model 1. Introduction In today's post-modern and globalizing world, rapid development of technology has shaped many facets of life ranging from commerce, policy, science, security, culture to social and personal relationships. This process brought an inevitable impact on the practices and organization of the educational processes. In this new process, learners began to be regarded as individuals as a whole construct of physical, cognitive and affective variables were put into the heart of educational processes and procedures (Akbari, Hosseini, 2008). This new tendency has left its mark on the practices and perceptions of education itself. Within this perspective, the factors related to individual differences began to take up the most of the literature on teaching/learning and the professional literature was obsessed with terms and phrases which try to capture the elusive concepts that distinguish one person from another (Crozier, 1997). In such an age of individualizing education, English as a Foreign Language Teaching (EFL) carries important functions and roles and cannot resist those changes and developments triggered by the recent tendencies in education. One of the most important reasons behind this fact is that today's conditions have incapacitated those who are able to communicate in only their native language in different aspects of their lives. Different reasons may prompt such an obligation to be competent in a second language. Yet, out of them, it seems that the necessity to adapt to the pace of the rapidly changing world and get integrated to the rest of the world attract most of the attention. In this multilingual and multicultural world, this communication bridge is constructed with an international language, English. This is mostly because English is accepted as the most widely used foreign language (Crystal, 1997). Scientific, social, economic and technological developments accompanied by the use of English, adopting it as the official language by some organizations such as European Union and international relationships in various dimensions among the countries have also added to the crucial role of the language since the second half of 21st century (Guilherme, 2007). In today's globally breathing world, it is clear that most of the life is driven by the technology related tools. According to the uncodified laws of the world, it is also certain that this technological globe is run through English. The use of English spreads European Journal of English Language Teaching - Volume 3 │ Issue 1 │ 2017 121 Orhan Iyitoğlu, Yavuz Erişen DELVING INTO FLIPPING EFL CLASSROOM: A MIXED METHOD STUDY at such a rate that it gets easier to witness its use in various places and fields such as international airports, sports, international mailing and conferences, commerce, international aid. According to Crystal (1997), there are approximately, except for EFL students trying to learn the language, 1,2 billion non-native English speakers while the number of the people speaking it as their native language is 330 million. Stressing the number of the people, native or non-native scattered all around the world, Smith (2015) defines it as the language of the industrial revolution, science and technology. Supporting this claim, the results of the Research Trends (2012) study, which was conducted on 21,000 articles from 239 different countries indexed in SCOPUS, indicated that all non-English journals required the researchers to write their abstracts in English and % 80 of all were written completely in English. Much more surprisingly, the study also explored that in such countries as Germany, France, and Spain, papers written in English are more than those in the country’s own language. When the reality that the communication among non-native speakers is generally held in English in international setting is taken into account, it will be better understood that being able to communicate in English equals with being literate today. Therefore, in addition to its official status in more than 70 countries and being taught as EFL in more than 100 countries (Crystal, 1997); English is clearly accepted to be much more global language than ever. In turn, it becomes more associated with students' academic performance in a number of different fields than ever. As a result, this makes it really crucial for the members of this global society to keep updated in English. That current situation makes English as a means of survival for teenagers who are explored to spend most of their time on their technological tools and the internet. Therefore, in this globalised world where it is accepted that English is the international language, using that language communicatively turns out to be first condition of being literate. Taking these crucial multilingual and multicultural aspects of EFL into account, a great deal of effort has been internationally performed to explore the sub-skills and the processes involved as the determinants of the success in learning it (Baker, Boonkit, 2004; Block, 1986; Brantmeirer, 2007; Clément, Dörnyei, Noels, 1994; Haley, 2004; Hosenfeld, 1997; Iyitoglu, Aydin, 2015; Javier, 1997; Keshavarz, Ashtarian, 2008; Kim, Wang, Ahn, Bong, 2015; Khajavy, Ghonsooly, Fatemi, 2017; Marefat, 2003; Oxford, Burry-Stock, 1995). In addition to the aforementioned international studies, there have also been a number of studies conducted in Turkey focusing on the factors influencing the success and failure in EFL learning and teaching “kdoğan, “kyel, ; “yhan, G(lmez, ; Oğuz, ; ”aşaran, Cabaroğlu, ; Kabaharnup, ; 5zen, ; “kkuş, ; Çatal, ; Kanadlı, ”ağçeci, ; “k(zel, ; ; Gömleksiz, ; ; Kazazoğlu, 3; Kiziltepe, . While some of the reasons for failure in EFL were attributed to learning and teaching oriented atmosphere including the teachers, some of European Journal of English Language Teaching - Volume 3 │ Issue 1 │ 2017 122 Orhan Iyitoğlu, Yavuz Erişen DELVING INTO FLIPPING EFL CLASSROOM: A MIXED METHOD STUDY them were found to be related to those associated with the learners themselves. Out of them, commonly specified factors were found to be lack of positive attitudes towards and self-efficacy beliefs in EFL on the parts of the learners. On the parts of the teachers, they were specified as overcrowded classrooms lack of intelligent ways to integrate technology into teaching. In other words, the results indicated by Şahin indicate that most of the reasons behind failure of EFL in Turkey is explained with the factors related to learning & teaching atmosphere and those related to students' perceptions about themselves as EFL learners. More specifically, while they explained 80, 2 % of those reasons behind unsuccessful EFL in secondary schools, they stood for 71, 2 % of the factors leading to failure in EFL in primary schools. To make the situation more visible, the participant teachers of the studies stressed the inadequacy of teaching materials, heavily reliance on traditional teaching methods (Kabaharnup, 2010). The results have also indicated that the participant teachers related the failure in EFL to mostly overcrowded classrooms and lack of modern technologies “kkuş, ; “kyel, 2003; Özen, 1979). They also clarify the problem by linking the overcrowded classrooms to lack of necessary teaching time allocated to each of the students. This detection as one of the reasons behind most of the failure in EFL is significant since "all the learners need enough time to practice all the learned points to direct the brain to solve the codes of the new language" (Engin, Seven, 2007, p. 12). Within this perspective, when the crucial roles and functions EFL carries in today's technology-driven globalizing world are taken into account, it seems as a must to take the steps to apply new teaching procedures. Those procedures need to be supplied with the technology and let the teachers increase the time they spend on teaching. Additionally, such a new model must be a context-specific remedy for the problems of EFL learning and teaching in Turkey. On the other hand, increasing tuition costs and fees, online and technology-embedded course offerings trigger the researchers to revise the wisdom of traditional teaching methods and to consider appropriate alternatives (Bishop, Verleger, 2013). The Flipped Classroom Teaching Model developed "out of a history of experimentation with the concept of hybrid, or blended learning and problem based learning, using active learning techniques and new technologies to engage students" stands as a response to the call of recent teaching model compatible with the needs of the age (Arnold-Garza, 2014, p. 8). Also known as inverted classrooms, the flipped classroomteaching model is simply defined as "events that have traditionally taken place inside the classroom now take place outside the classroom and vice versa Lage, Platt, Treglia, , p. 32). In other words, the flipped classroom model implies re-design of in and out of classroom activities. While the students get the instruction at home through some formerly delivered means ranging from simple slides, podcasts, audio or narrated European Journal of English Language Teaching - Volume 3 │ Issue 1 │ 2017 123 Orhan Iyitoğlu, Yavuz Erişen DELVING INTO FLIPPING EFL CLASSROOM: A MIXED METHOD STUDY presentations to video casts including animations, screen captures, and other multimedia content, the classroom time is allocated to enhancing the related skills through problem-based teaching and engagement techniques (Educause, 2012). The Flipped Classroom Teaching Model, cited mostly in the literature as based on student-centered theories, embraces interactive group learning activities inside the classroom, and direct computer-based online individual instruction outside the classroom (Bishop, Verleger, 2013). A number of international studies have indicated that the flipped model helps teachers in many ways. Thanks to it, teachers manage class time more efficiently by addressing multiple learning styles of the learners, donate them with more active learning opportunities getting them take responsibilities for their own learning, increase the time of interaction student and teacher spend on teaching and learning (Bergmann, Sams, 2012; Cole, Kritzer, 2009; Gallagher, 2009; Gannod, Berg, Helmick, 2008; Lage, Platt, Treglia, 2000; Overmyer, 2012; Siegle, 2014). As a result of these highlighted advantages of the application of the model in teaching, as stated by Arnold-Garza (2014), it is being applied in many disciplines ranging "from engineering to life sciences to business to statistics" (p. 11). Understanding the role of media, internet and technology in teenagers' lives it becomes more important to enlighten those concerned about them including parents, the varying members of the world of education, policymakers (Rideout, Foehr, Roberts, 2010) Therefore, to deal more effectively with their problems, it is important to notice the digital gap between students’ in and out of school lives Downes, ”ishop, . This gap is formed because of teenagers' life routines. While they spend most of their times on the internet, playing computer games, listening to music, engaging with mobile phones or social networking out of classroom, they are exposed to traditional boring lessons lack of technology (Banitt, Theis, Leeuwe, 2013). Correspondingly, the flipped classroom model offers students online instructional videos out of the school and allocates class time for the expansion of the skills through problem-solving tasks. Right on this point, this model promises to tap into learners' interests by drawing on the sources they spend most of their time on. Within this perspective, it seems that cited strengths of the flipped classroom model overlaps with the cited reasons behind the failure in EFL learning and teaching in Turkey. This study, therefore, incorporates the flipped classroom model and EFL teaching to answer the instructional needs and expectations of EFL learners and teachers in Turkey. In other words, by applying a flipped model rooted in blending distance learning with open-ended problem-solving experiences, the study takes the form of proposing a solution in response to main explored reasons of learners' being unsuccessful in EFL in Turkey. In this way, problem-solving group work and task based learning activities in the classrooms. Therefore, this study investigating the European Journal of English Language Teaching - Volume 3 │ Issue 1 │ 2017 124 Orhan Iyitoğlu, Yavuz Erişen DELVING INTO FLIPPING EFL CLASSROOM: A MIXED METHOD STUDY impact of flipped classroom model on EFL learners' performance as compared to that of traditional teaching promise to produce valuable outcomes for a large number of people ranging from teachers, parents to curriculum developers and policy makers. Despite the flow of technology into every aspect of modern life that will suggest a classroom model compatible with the needs of the 21st century, very little research is said to be conducted on flipped classroom (Abeysekera, Dawson, 2015). Since the flipped classroom stands for a recent topic in educational research, there seems to be lack of qualified research on its educational effectiveness (Bishop, Verleger, 2013). Supporting this, Abeysekera, Dawson (2015) claim to come up with, in contrast to its Google popularity, only eight articles in ERIC database including the phrase of the model in their titles, abstracts or keywords. They (2015) also stated only two of them were peer reviewed. In March, 2016, a similar search was carried out by the researcher of the current study himself in Web of Science database. On the database, 354 documents were found to include flipped classroom or inverted classroom in their titles. However, 119 of them were in the format of article written in English. Refining the research areas to educational sciences, the researcher explored only 82 of these articles written in English included flipped classroom or inverted classroom in their titles. The rest of those articles were in the areas ranging from chemistry, nursing and computer science to government law, surgery and agriculture. Moreover, the publication dates of the articles ranged from 2012 to 2016, which indicates flipped classroom as a recent research area of interest. In addition to students’ attitudes towards flipped implementation, the studies were found to cover its effectiveness in a lot of different academic disciplines. However, as a result of search of the words foreign and English within the results, only 7 of them, published in 2015 to 2016, focused on flipped classroom model in English classrooms. The rare effort to study flipped classroom model in the context of Turkey is also indicated by the researcher. In March, 2016, a similar search was undergone in Turkish Journal Park Academic and only 4 articles were explored to be published between 2015 and 2016. Yet, two of these were found to focus on students' opinions about the flipped classroom implementation while one of them was in the form of a theoretical review of the model and the other was a case study. In the same way, the search for the phrase in the database of Council of Higher Education thesis center found out only 11 thesis carried out on flipped classroom by March, ; ”oyraz, Yavuz, ; Ekmekçi, ; Yiğit, ; Gençer, “kg(n, ; Kara, ; “ydın, ; Sırakaya, ; ”alıkçı, ; Turan, ; . While three of them were master thesis, the other three were submitted for the Philosophy of Doctorate (PhD) degree. However, to the interest of the present study, only two of them were carried out in EFL. While one of the PhD study aimed to search the impact of the model on the success in writing in EFL (Ekmekçi, European Journal of English Language Teaching - Volume 3 │ Issue 1 │ 2017 125 Orhan Iyitoğlu, Yavuz Erişen DELVING INTO FLIPPING EFL CLASSROOM: A MIXED METHOD STUDY 2014), the other study was a master thesis designed to explore its impact on learners' performance in only two grammar structures (Boyraz, 2014). However, education is a long process (Ertürk, 1972) and as recommended by Boyraz (2014) the impact of an intervention must be traced in that long run. Therefore, the current study is significant since it aims to foster the understanding of this recent model on EFL learners’ academic performance in the whole process of 2016-2017 fall term. Thanks to its commonly cited benefit for enhancing lecture delivery, it is explored that the model is largely studied in disciplines such as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (Hung, 2015). On the other hand, flip classroom model is theoretically claimed to be applicable in any subject area with students from different levels (Bergmann, Sams, 2012). However, it is currently applied with K-L2 education (Horn, 2013). Therefore, there seems a need in the related literature to gain insights about the impact of flipped classroom on non-STEM higher education settings (Abeysekera, Dawson, 2015; Hung, 2015). Hence, this study will take a pioneering step to combine flipped classroom model and EFL in higher education in Turkey. In brief, the present study embraces two important points in Turkey: Failure in EFL and the flipped classroom model. Drawing on key functions of English in today's world and young people's heavily reliance on technology and internet, the study aims to form a base from which concerned bodies ranging from parents, teachers to curriculum developers and policy makers examine the impact of the model on the determinants of the success in EFL in Turkey. For viewing / downloading the full article, please access the following link: https://oapub.org/edu/index.php/ejel/article/view/1178 . European Journal of English Language Teaching - Volume 3 │ Issue 1 │ 2017 126