Can active learning techniques simultaneously develop students' hard and soft skills? Evidence from an international...

Area of Science:

• Educational Psychology
• Higher Education Pedagogy

Background:

• Universities increasingly focus on developing both hard skills (grades) and soft skills (interpersonal, communication).
• Active learning techniques are widely adopted, but their impact on soft skills is under-researched.
• Few studies examine the interplay between hard and soft skill development in active learning environments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the impact of the Flipped Classroom (FC) on students' hard and soft skills.
• To compare the FC approach with traditional teaching methods incorporating active learning.
• To investigate the convergence or divergence of hard and soft skills within the FC format.

Main Methods:

• Comparative analysis of Flipped Classroom (FC) versus traditional classes with active learning techniques.
• Utilized Pearson correlations to assess the relationship between hard skills (grades) and soft skills (critical thinking, self-efficacy, teamwork, perception of learning).
• Employed canonical correlations to examine skill convergence/divergence in FC versus traditional settings.

Main Results:

• The Flipped Classroom (FC) format, in isolation, demonstrated no significant effect on improving or diminishing students' hard skills (grades).
• Similarly, the FC format did not significantly enhance or reduce students' soft skills, including critical thinking and teamwork.
• No significant convergence or divergence between hard and soft skills was observed specifically due to the FC format.

Conclusions:

• The Flipped Classroom (FC) approach, by itself, does not offer a distinct advantage or disadvantage for developing students' hard and soft skills compared to traditional methods.
• Further research is needed to understand how to optimize the FC model or combine it with other strategies to effectively foster both skill sets.
• Educators should consider pedagogical design beyond the basic FC structure to achieve measurable improvements in student competencies.