The flipped classroom is an increasingly popular active learning approach in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics courses. This study investigated the implementation and student outcomes of early adopters of the flipped classroom approach. We used the Diffusion of Innovations framework to compare the implementation and outcomes in traditional and flipped courses of five early adopters of the flipped classroom approach. Data included classroom observations, student grades, and student evaluations of teaching. Results indicated that students in flipped courses spent less class time listening to lectures and more time engaged in active learning during class than did students in traditional courses. However, these changes in instruction did not result in significantly improved student performance or student evaluations of teaching. These results demonstrate the positive outcomes frequently observed in previous studies may take more time to replicate in early adopters’ courses. This work reinforces the need to continue studying the implementation and outcomes of educational innovations throughout their adoption.

翻转课堂是科学、技术、工程和数学课程中越来越流行的主动学习方法。本研究调查了翻转课堂方法早期采用者的实施情况和学生成果。我们使用创新扩散框架来比较翻转课堂方法的五个早期采用者在传统课程和翻转课程中的实施和结果。数据包括课堂观察、学生成绩和学生对教学的评价。结果表明，与传统课程的学生相比，翻转课程的学生听课的时间更少，主动学习的时间更多。然而，这些教学变化并没有显着提高学生的表现或学生对教学的评价。这些结果表明，先前研究中经常观察到的积极成果可能需要更多时间才能在早期采用者的课程中复制。这项工作强调了继续研究教育创新在整个采用过程中的实施和成果的必要性。