Page 203 - Contributed Paper Session (CPS) - Volume 6

CPS1883 Christina A. et al.

Flipping the online classroom in a multivariate
data analysis course
2
Christina Andersson , Gerald Kroisandt
1
1 Dept. of Computer Science and Engineering, Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences,
Germany
2 School of Engineering, htw saar, Germany

Abstract
Teaching statistics to non-statistics students at university level, we often face
a lot of problems, e.g. lack of motivation to study statistics, anxiety of the
subject and insufficient preknowledge in mathematics. To reduce the impact
of such obstacles, one approach is to incorporate active learning components
in the course, e.g. the flipped classroom strategy. In this paper, we present
how the classroom was flipped in an advanced multivariate data analysis
course, which is taught completely as an online course, i.e. without any on-site
sessions at the university. We describe the teaching framework of the course
and discuss the lessons learned from the first teaching experience.

Keywords
Flipped classroom; active learning; multivariate data analysis; e-learning

1. Introduction
A statistics course for non-statistics students can be a real challenge for
both lecturers and students: The students often show a low motivation for
learning the subject, not seldom combined with anxiety and lack of
prerequisite knowledge, e.g. poor mathematical skills (Gal and Ginsburg, 1994;
Dillon, 1982; Forte, 1995; Schutz et al., 1998, Townsend et al., 1998; Yilmaz,
1996; Väisanen et al., 2004; Onwuegbuzie, 2003). One way to overcome such
obstacles and to improve the existing statistics courses can be to focus on
student-centered learning (Roseth et al, 2008; Prins, 2009; Sciutto, 1995). To
encourage the students to act as active learners and to engage them in the
learning process can be an important component for enhancement of the
courses and the students‘ learning environment (Prince, 2004; Freeman et al.,
2014; Bonwell and Eison, 1991; Chickering and Gamson, 1987). This seems also
to be the case for the application of active learning in statistics courses
(Carlson and Winquist, 2011; Dolinksy, 2001; Gnanadesikan et al., 1997;
Knypstra, 2009; Kvam, 2000; Dierker et al., 2018). One approach to use active
learning is to flip the classroom. A short definition of the flipped classroom
would be to say that those activities that in traditional teaching took place
within the classroom now take place outside the classroom and vice versa
(Lage et al., 2000). However, the flipped classroom strategy is more than an

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