Elsa Desi Putri<\/strong> Bambang Yudi Cahyono<\/strong> Nanang Zubaidi<\/strong> Many believe that flipped learning can open valuable class time for higher-level activities. However, the findings of previous studies on the effects of flipped learning on the teaching of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) are sometimes mixed. Hence, this study investigates the effect of flipped learning on EFL tertiary students’ ability to write opinion essays and their perceptions. It employed a quasi-experimental design that examined the difference in EFL tertiary students’ writing ability with flipped learning and those taught without it. Data were taken from the opinion essay writing tests and questionnaires of 58 third-semester Indonesian university students. The students in both classes showed significant improvement (p < .01, \u03b72 = .52), but a significant interaction between teaching style and overall improvement was not found (p = .12, \u03b72 = .01). However, interaction was found between teaching style and sub-category scores (i.e., sentence structure and mechanics). Students who were taught using flipped learning mostly had positive perceptions of it. However, there was no association between the students\u2019 positive feelings and writing improvement. The findings suggest that flipped learning should be used more widely to benefit from its impacts on learning but that more research is required to maximize its benefits in the future.<\/p>\n Keywords<\/em><\/strong>: Flipped learning model, English as a Foreign Language (EFL), Opinion essay, Quasi-experimental design, Writing ability<\/p>\n Writing plays a vital role in English as a Foreign Language (EFL), but it can be difficult for learners. Writing is a significant mode of communication and one of the most commonly used modes by foreign language learners in the workforce after graduating (Schmidgall & Powers, 2021). It has even been suggested that EFL learners regularly use some form of writing to communicate daily (Zhang, 2022). However, improving writing skills can be difficult because it involves a lengthy process of developing ideas and discovering meaning. EFL learners, specifically, also need more exposure to authentic English (Zamel, 1982; Zhang, 2022). These problems are further affected by students\u2019 English proficiency level, knowledge of writing in general, the classroom activities they are provided with, limited classroom hours, and outdated learning models that cannot facilitate the enhancement of writing ability or knowledge (Alostath, 2019; Baltaci, 2022; Bulqiyah et al., 2021; Ekmekci, 2017; Pineteh, 2014). Therefore, EFL teachers must vigilantly adapt their teaching methodologies to aim for more efficient and effective writing classes.<\/p>\n One teaching methodology that is believed to overcome many of the challenges mentioned above is flipped learning, a teaching style in which students learn basic information outside of the classroom and then spend classroom time applying the knowledge (Alvarez, 2011; Birgili et al., 2021; Leis, 2021). This method can be helpful because it opens classroom time to more active learning activities (Ay\u00e7i\u00e7ek et al., 2018; He et al., 2016; Zou et al., 2022) compared to teacher-centered activities wherein the teacher spends a large amount of class time lecturing about the materials. Teacher-centric activities such as lecturing lead to a passive classroom environment where the students mostly just listen to the teacher\u2019s explanation. Furthermore, when lectures are used as the primary mode of information transmission, the students barely have any personalized learning because they learn as a group (Davies et al., 2013). On the other hand, flipped learning is promising as an effective way to activate students’ learning autonomy, create student-centered learning environments, and facilitate students to learn at their own pace (Cobena & Surjono, 2022; Egbert et al., 2014). However, most studies on flipped learning in the EFL context show more enthusiasm than the empirical evidence prescribes (Webb & Doman, 2016). In addition, there has been relatively little research on how flipped learning enhances students\u2019 learning outcomes (Kerr, 2020).<\/p>\n Furthermore, Setren et al. (2019) have suggested that the learning gains from flipped learning are relatively short-term, and the difference between better and less students widen. Due to a lack of empirical evidence and inconsistency in the results of previous studies on flipped learning, this study seeks to investigate to what extent students\u2019 writing abilities improved with the flipped learning model as opposed to those taught without it, what perceptions students had after implementing flipped learning, and whether or not there is any correlation between students\u2019 perceptions and their improvement in writing ability. It also provides an example of a practical implementation of flipped learning in teaching opinion essay writing by integrating learning videos.<\/p>\n The flipped learning model has been said to bring considerable changes in creating a constructivist learning environment compared to \u201cconventional teaching,” where the teacher explains the concepts of the lesson in the classroom (Baltaci, 2022). In language learning, students need to take an active role in the learning process, and the teacher needs to provide meaningful content and activities to create communicative language learning. Specifically, when referring to Bloom\u2019s revised taxonomy (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001), flipped learning suggests the lower levels of cognitive work (i.e., remembering and understanding) should be moved out of the classroom, and the higher levels of cognitive work (i.e., applying, analyzing, evaluating, and creating) should be conducted in the classroom. Of course, students still need to be exposed to prior knowledge before entering the classroom to apply the concepts discussed in the in-class time. However, with the advancement of technology, the ability of teachers to provide this knowledge-level learning outside of the classroom has been dramatically expanded. Therefore, the implementation of the flipped learning model has become ever more advisable (Mulyanto & Sujiatmoko, 2022).<\/p>\n Bishop and Verleger (2013) pointed out that the flipped learning model consists of two major elements: out-of-classroom and classroom activities. The out-of-classroom activities are divided into two major phases, namely the pre-class and the after-class activities, both aimed to push students’ autonomous learning and provide opportunities for them to construct their knowledge based on their self-paced learning. Meanwhile, the classroom activities are used to encourage interactive discussion and a collaborative relationship between the teacher and the students and among the students. The classroom activities are known as in-class activities. The implementation of flipped learning model in a writing class is illustrated in Figure 1.<\/p>\n Studies such as Afrilyasanti et al. (2016), Afrilyasanti (2015), and Al-Sharah et al. (2021) have noted that learners from a range of English proficiencies struggle to improve their EFL writing due to several challenges such as cohesiveness, coherence, fine-grained grammatical structures, word choice, and the appropriateness in using articles. Furthermore, Lambe et al. (2023) suggest that expressing an idea through spoken language is much easier than cohesively expressing it in well-organized writing. Thus, no matter what level of writing ability students possess, they often have various challenges in writing classes. Furthermore, Sulistyo et al. (2019a) revealed that less autonomous students rely more on their teachers\u2019 explanations. As a result, teacher-centric teaching methods (i.e., lecturing) are still prominent in many EFL classes. However, this teaching style does not match the needs of 21st<\/sup>-century students living in the digital era, where information can be easily accessed anywhere and at any time. Hence, there is a growing need to implement learning models that can accommodate the diversity of the student’s writing abilities while integrating technology into the teaching and learning process (Chang & Salas, 2020).<\/p>\n In addition to the studies focusing on the effect of flipped learning on learning outcomes, several studies have been conducted on students\u2019 perceptions of flipped learning. For example, Afrilyasanti et al. (2017) showed that most students who learn via flipped learning in argumentative essay writing classes agreed that it contributed to better learning outcomes. Similarly, Maharani et al. (2020) found that students perceived flipped learning positively because it creates meaningful instruction and improves student competence. Furthermore, Yujing (2015) found that students had positive perceptions of the meaningfulness, competence, and impact of flipped learning. However, it should also be noted that some studies found that not all students were positive toward flipped learning. Afrilyasanti et al. (2017) revealed that some students preferred to have the teacher explain the material during classroom time.<\/p>\n Similarly, Hewitt (2017) found that older students preferred conventional teaching methods with a teacher\u2019s explanation of flipped learning. Webb et al. (2014) also found that students perceived conventional teaching as better than flipped learning at the beginning of the instruction. However, their perceptions changed to hold flipped learning in higher esteem as the class continued.<\/p>\n Many researchers have noted positive effects when implementing flipped learning in EFL teaching in general and EFL writing specifically. For example, Egbert et al. (2014) pointed out that implementing flipped learning can activate a student-centered learning environment, enable students to learn the target language, and minimize foreign language anxiety among the students. However, Egbert et al. (2014) also mentioned that students preferred direct explanations from the teacher instead of watching learning videos or reading learning materials themselves. Abdelshaheed (2017) and Mashhadi (2022) provided examples of flipped learning in EFL writing courses in the Arabian context. They found that the implementation of flipped learning affirmed to improve the student’s learning outcomes, specifically their writing, the students\u2019 learning autonomy, and the students\u2019 involvement in the classroom. Shooli et al. (2022) also found that flipped learning significantly enhances the students’ attitudes toward writing, the students’ understanding of writing, and the students’ writing performances.<\/p>\n Similarly, Leis et al. (2015) showed that students in the Japanese EFL context who learned via flipped learning spend more time preparing for class and writing more words in a post-test than their counterparts who did not learn via flipped learning. Leis et al. (2015) attributed these differences to the opportunities to review the materials repeatedly outside of class time and receive direct feedback from peers and the teacher during class. Furthermore, Su Ping et al. (2019) interviewed students in the context of Malaysian EFL who were provided with flipped learning. They found that they felt better prepared for class, had greater involvement and interaction, and received more encouragement and direct feedback due to the increase in classroom exercises. However, Su Ping et al. (2019) study did not directly compare students in flipped classrooms to those in more traditional teacher-centric classes and relied on qualitative analysis. Finally, Afrilyasanti et al. (2016) and Mubarok et al. (2019) compared the effect of flipped learning on argumentative essay writing skills in the Indonesian EFL context across students with different learning styles, finding that flipped learning provided better student improvement than teacher-centric methods, regardless of student learning styles or field dependency.<\/p>\n According to the previous studies introduced above, flipped learning is often well-received by students and can positively impact EFL writing classes. However, there are still inconsistencies in the results of previous studies regarding the impact of flipped learning on learning outcomes. This inconsistency might be caused in part by the variation in the educational backgrounds of the participants involved in the studies (Abdelshaheed, 2017; Leis, 2021; Mashhadi, 2022; Shooli et al., 2022; Su Ping et al., 2019). Therefore, this study aims to add to the growing body of research investigating the benefits of teaching with flipped learning by investigating EFL students learning writing who all have the same major, take the same course, and have similar prior modes of teaching. It also seeks to investigate the link between perceptions and improvement. Specifically, this research aims to answer the following questions:<\/p>\n (1) Is there any significant difference in EFL students\u2019 improvement in writing ability when taught via flipped learning as opposed to teacher-centric classes?<\/p>\n (2) What are EFL students\u2019 perceptions of using flipped learning to learn opinion essay writing?<\/p>\n (3) Is there any correlation between writing ability improvement and favourability towards flipped learning?<\/p>\n This study employed a quasi-experimental research design, following Abbot and McKinney (2013), to examine the cause-effect relation between two teaching methods: flipped learning and teacher-centric lectures. A total of 58 Indonesian EFL learners at the State University of Malang (Universitas Negeri Malang) in East Java, Indonesia, participated in the present study. They were in their third semester (second year) at university and were between 18 to 20 years old. Due to the nature of how classes are conducted in the university, convenience sampling was used, with roughly half of the participants being in one of two classes., one of which was randomly designated as the experimental group (N<\/em> = 32) and the other as the control group (N<\/em> = 26). Subsequently, students\u2019 self-reported English proficiency level was intermediate, which maps to a roughly CEFR A2 level (CEFR, 2020). At this level, students can produce simple connected text on topics that are familiar or of personal interest, briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans, write descriptions and comments about common topics, and express their thoughts using basic English grammatical rules (CEFR, 2020). The demographic data of the participants are presented in Table 1.<\/p>\n Table 1. The demography data of the research subjects<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nUniversitas Negeri Malang
\n<elsadesiputri77841![\"atmark\"](\"http:\/\/www.tesl-ej.org\/atmark.png\")
gmail.com><\/p>\n
\nUniversitas Negeri Malang
\n<bambang.yudi.fsum.ac.id><\/p>\n
\nUniversitas Negeri Malang
\n<nanang.zubaidi.fsum.ac.id><\/p>\nAbstract<\/h3>\n
Literature Review<\/h3>\n
The Advantages of Flipped Learning<\/h4>\n
![](\"https:\/\/tesl-ej.org\/ej110\/a7pix\/image1.png\")
\nFigure 1. The implementation of flipped learning model.<\/strong><\/p>\nBenefits of Flipped Learning on EFL Teaching<\/h4>\n
Research Questions<\/h4>\n
Method<\/h3>\n
Participants<\/h4>\n
![](\"https:\/\/tesl-ej.org\/ej110\/a7pix\/image2.png\")