Innovation Mathematics Project, Blended Education in Practice

Abstract

All first-year students at Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) are required to take mathematics courses, but their motivation to participate in these courses is generally lower than their motivation for courses that belong to their main field of study. These lower levels of commitment often lead to lower results and weaker understanding of mathematical concepts, which in turn affect the rest of their studies. Two years ago, TU Delft introduced blended learning in the first-year interfaculty mathematics courses, in order to improve results, make more efficient use of teaching staff, facilitate the transfer of maths knowledge to other subjects and better connect with today’s students. In this paper we provide an insight into the project, based on student and educator interviews, observations and surveys. Furthermore, we examine the impact of the flipped classroom model used in the project. Our findings suggest that the model could be a promising way of enhancing students’ learning performance. The main results show that students have a more active learning experience, compared to the traditional setup of these courses, leading to more engagement and interaction. Furthermore, the project structure of the flipped maths courses, provides opportunities for more scalable education. Based on our findings we provide recommendations, not just for this project but also for other course teams who are setting up similar projects in order to help them develop a model that best serves their education.