Critical Review of Empirical Studies on the Flipped Classroom in English Education in Korea

Flipped classroom is an innovative instructional approach to enhance interactive and participatory learning through inverting lectures and learning activities. With growing interests in the flipped approach, research and educational practices are increasing across school ages and teaching subjects in Korea. Thus, it is beneficial to review up-to-date findings of research on the flipped classroom in English education to provide implications for further studies and practices. This study examines empirical studies published in peer-reviewed journals for reliable and valid research data. To search qualified studies, the research accessed the research database, RISS, and used the ‘Snowball’ approach for additional search. After review of all accessible studies on the flipped classroom in English education in Korea, nine empirical studies were identified for this study. The collected studies were analyzed in terms of three types of data: instructional designs and learning activities, the quantitative data on the effects of the flipped classroom, and qualitative comments of students. The analysis of the data yielded major types of learning activities, problems of the studies with reporting and interpreting quantitative data, and students’ perceptions towards the flipped classroom. Discussions and suggestions were presented for future studies and instructional applications.