Blending Inverted Lectures and Laboratory Experiments to Improve Learning in an Introductory Course in Digital Systems

Contribution: An improved inverted lecturing (IIL) framework based on blending flipped lectures and handson experiments provides instructional benefits, compared to traditional teaching (TT) and inverted lecturing (IL), in an introductory course in digital systems. Background: IL has proven more effective than TT in improving student learning in engineering courses, but has mostly been used for theory sessions. The impact of combining inverted lectures and hands-on experiments on student learning has not still been thoroughly assessed in engineering courses. Intended Outcomes: Attendance, marks, and satisfaction should improve for students in IL-based theory lectures, compared with those receiving TT, and should improve still further for students receiving the IIL-based method. Workload both for student and instructor should not increase significantly. Application Design: The three methods were compared in six consecutive offerings of the course. In the first two, TT was used for both theory and laboratory classes; in the next two, IL was used for theory lectures; and in the final two offerings the IIL-based scheme was used. The instructor, intended learning outcomes (ILOs), course syllabus, and student grading scheme were constant over the six semesters. A total of 184 students with similar backgrounds participated. Findings: Students under the ILand IIL-based frameworks were more engaged than those receiving TT, and were more satisfied with their learning process. The IIL-based learners achieved the deepest conceptual understanding. Finally, the ILand IILbased methods did not significantly increase workload for either the students or the instructor.