Effectiveness of flipped classroom vs traditional lectures in radiology education: A meta-analysis

With the convert of educational concept, flipped classroom has been adopted gradually in radiology courses as a new teaching mode. Considering no evidence has been concluded to illustrate the effectiveness of of flipped classroom over traditional instructor-centered lectures in radiology education, this meta-analysis was conducted to provide empirical evidence for the reform of pedagogical.

Studies were retrieved from six databases, including Pubmed, Embase, Web of Science, Wanfang Data, CNKI, and VIP, from their inception to 16 February 2020. Literature selection and data extraction were completed by two reviewers independently. The effect size of each index was expressed as the odds ratio (OR) for a categorical variable and standard mean difference (SMD) for a continuous variable, each with corresponding 95% confidence interval (95% CI).

A total of 19 studies with 2114 participants were deemed to be eligible for inclusion. The results of this meta-analysis indicated that: the newly emerged flipped classroom represented significant advantage versus traditional lecture in improving theoretical performance (SMD 1.12, 95% CI 0.61-1.63, P < .001), as well as in cultivating students' practical skills (SMD 2.59, 95% CI 1.69-3.59, P < .001). In the subjective findings of investigation, more positive responses were attained in students who took radiology subjects in flipped classroom, covering course satisfaction (OR 1.70, 95% CI 1.35-2.14, P < .001), improvement of teamwork ability (OR 1.80, 95% CI 1.21-2.67, P = .004), self-directed learning and reflection (OR 1.98, 95% CI 1.31-2.97, P = .001), and subjective cognition on consolidation of knowledge mastery (OR 1.38, 95% CI 1.19-1.60, P < .001).

Flipped classroom displays multiple advantages versus traditional lecture-based teaching mode, which is well worth further promoting and applying in the process of radiology education.