This may seem like an entirely new concept, but in truth, it is already practiced in the classroom every day. Humanities classes already take on an inverted form.  For example, students in an English class normally read the required material at home and then discuss it in class the following day.  This is just like learning math by watching videos online; students learn the concept at home and are then guided in how to apply their new knowledge in the classroom under the supervision of an expert.  Some people may believe that a flipped classroom threatens the traditional role of “brick and mortar” schoolhouses.  However, it is important to remember that this is a flipped classroom, not an online course. Teachers still play a critical role in learning when they help students work in class the day after they learn the assignment at home.  As a future educator, I am not worried about being replaced by a computer.  They are very useful tools when they are used properly. 

Thompson also writes: “One U.S. federal study found that students learn best in classrooms with . . . ‘blended’ learning—traditional teachers augmented with online instruction”(178).  I have seen this type of thing work in the high school of my hometown.  Some students have begun to take math classes through a program called APEX, which allows them to work at their own pace and offers that same type of one-on-one attention.  The program teaches lessons and then gives quizzes to make sure the students have absorbed the material.  If they get too many questions wrong, the computer redirects them to focus on the part of the lesson they did not understand and then allows them to take the test again.  The majority of students at the high school participate in traditional math classes, so APEX caters to those who are either retaking a class they previously failed or taking advanced classes. The classes take place in a computer lab, with each student working at their own workstation on a different lesson while supervised by a math teacher.  If the students have questions, the teacher can pull up a copy of what the student is looking at to help them work through the problem. Since each student works on their own individualized program via computer, it allows the instructor to teach multiple classes at the same time. This type of “flipped classroom” has been very successful in helping students either catch up or spring ahead in their studies.