Learning happens informally. People lean through what happens in their personal lives, ‘in the course of working’, and through social interaction, observe Helyer and Corkill (2015: 124). ‘Non-formal, non-classroom and self-driven learning’ challenge the conventional model of university education.
‘The concept of flipping is not new’, remark Helyer and Corkill (2015: 129). The university being turned upside down in that gradually learning is taking place through work and life experiences. Universities are increasingly being expected to acknowledge and recognise learning derived through diverse other ways. The ‘flipped classroom’ notion, suggest learning is taking place elsewhere. Lifelong or life-wide learning is derived from work-based learning and problem solving. Flipping is disruptive and potentially democratising, in that linearity or the usual order of things is challenged.
Problems in the workplace are often unpredictable, whereas the nature of work-integrated learning placements insinuate ‘that there are correct answers which could have been taught, whereas a problem arising from work might have no answer, or many answers, and be very complex’ (Helyer & Corkill, 2015: 132). Experiential education suggests 'carefully chosen experiences'.
Mature students often enter higher education with ‘a good deal of knowledge and expertise’, meaning ‘they don't sit in the classroom like empty vessels’. What is needed is ‘articulation, and if appropriate, accreditation of this learning’. Flipping might entail, rather than teaching theory, to send learners to explore the relevant bodies of knowledge (Helyer & Corkill, 2015: 130).
Conventional cooperative and work-integrated learning that pursues ‘work placements, sandwich years, and internships’ as part of the qualification penetrated relatively few qualifications; because of the difficulty experienced to engage sufficient partners for ‘genuine workplace learning experience’ (Helyer & Corkill, 2015: 123). However, there ‘is a growing acknowledgement that there are other routes through higher level study, such as higher and degree apprenticeships in England and Wales, which can now provide a paid work-based pathway through to gaining a university degree, right up to Master’s degree level’ (Helyer & Corkill, 2015: 124). There is further both ‘an increased demand from industry for higher education for existing employees’ and for provision of alternative routes that would ‘take more account of learning inside and outside the workplace, including the use of online learning to lessen the need for costly personal attendance’. These suggest a serious need for flipping.
The conventional notion is that universities are the primary places of higher learning, and that ‘this learning may subsequently be taken out into the wider world or workplace and applied’. However, there is a growing ‘recognition of the value of experiential learning’ and an acknowledgement that learning ‘occurs via social learning, communities of practice and action learning’ (Helyer & Corkill, 2015: 125).
Helyer and Corkill (2015: 127-8) explored through research the question ‘what is experiential learning?’ Most of the responses to their question ‘firmly connected experiential learning to actively doing, reinforcing the term’s association with work-based learning and the flipping style of delivery’. The ‘strong associations with learning by experiencing through work activities’ is reflected by the second largest response, ‘work-place experience’.
Helyer, R. and Corkill, H. 2015. Flipping the academy: Is learning from outside the classroom turning the university inside out? Asia-Pacific Journal of Cooperative Education, 16(2), 121-135.
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