Traditional and debate-focused flipped methodology in the teaching of “English Narrative”

Abstract

Introduction: This research presents a practice of flipped learning for the subject of “English Narrative”, taught in the degree of Modern Languages at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. Methodology: A group of 25 students has received two variants of this methodology: traditional and debate-focused flipped classroom to study two recognised writers of English literature: Charles Dickens and E. M. Forster. Results: Dickens’s lesson has followed a traditional flipped classroom, where the group has seen a presentation about the novelist and his work made by the teacher outside class. The time spent in the face-to-face session has been devoted to doing specific exercises and deepening into the author’s style. Forster’s lesson has applied a debate-focused flipped learning, where the group has also seen a similar presentation. The questions are oriented towards the contrast of ideas to generate a discussion in class that favours the exchange of opinions. Discussion: The evaluation of this experience has been performed by means of questionnaires in which the methodology of flipped learning has been preferred over the more traditional one, even though the latter is largely valued. Conclusions: The students’ suggestions will be considered when applying this methodology to most authors of “English Narrative”.