Flipped Classroom Models for Advanced Electrodynamics in Higher Education: A Systematic Review of Pedagogical Frameworks, Learning Outcomes, and Evidence Gaps
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47945/create.v1i1.3353Keywords:
Flipped Classroom, Advanced Electrodynamics, Electricity And Magnetism, Upper-Division Physics, Cognitive Load Theory, Self-Regulated Learning, Systematic ReviewAbstract
Flipped classroom models are widely promoted as a way to free class time for problem solving in mathematically demanding physics courses, yet it is unclear what evidence supports their use in advanced electrodynamics. This systematic review, reported with reference to PRISMA 2020, asked (1) which pedagogical and theoretical frameworks underpin flipped designs relevant to advanced electrodynamics and how they address its conceptual and mathematical abstraction, and (2) what is known about the effects of flipping on conceptual understanding, problem solving, and self-regulated learning in university electromagnetism. Studies were screened against a tiered eligibility frame (direct, proximal, and contextual evidence), appraised with the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool, and synthesised thematically. None of the ten records included in the initial draft met the eligibility criteria, as all were school-level studies or non-empirical reviews. No peer-reviewed study of flipping in an advanced or upper-division electrodynamics course was identified. Four proximal studies of flipped designs in university electricity and magnetism or electrical courses reported positive but heterogeneous results. These included higher examination scores in a flipped problem-based course on electromagnetic induction (d = 0.87, non-causal design), gains on a standard electricity and magnetism assessment that differed by academic level and gender, and improved final-examination scores alongside student resistance to pre-recorded videos. Meta-analyses in higher education and STEM support small-to-moderate average benefits, but these benefits depend on design features such as pre-class accountability and on the active learning that flipping enables. Social constructivism, cognitive load theory, self-regulated learning, and the revised Bloom taxonomy were invoked mainly at a descriptive level. The review proposes a flipped design for advanced electrodynamics that aligns these frameworks with documented mathematical difficulties, and it sets out a research agenda that prioritises controlled studies using validated upper-division instruments.
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