Organic Chemistry Upside Down:The Flipped Classroom

 The “flipped” classroom is an approach to teaching that involves active learning while increasing student responsibility and improving comprehension.  The flipped, or inverted, model takes traditional lecture from in-class to outside the classroom in the form of online lectures or tutorials.   Work traditionally completed as homework is carried out through engaging group activities and instructor-guided problems during class.  Techniques used to flip an undergraduate organic chemistry course, including “vodcast” lectures, electronic homework, and “warm-ups”, are discussed.  In-class discussion and problem-solving are also investigated as means to facilitate deeper learning of organic chemistry.  Student learning outcomes in a flipped organic chemistry course are predicted to include efficient problem solving skills and the ability to verbally explain the material to one’s peers.  When an inverted classroom model is applied to organic chemistry, we anticipate increased comprehension and retention of the material, as well as improved performance on summative assessments (exams).