At the St. Thomas Aquinas School in Indianapolis, Troy Cockrum’s students don’t come to class to hear him lecture. They come to work. Lessons for the middle school English class are pre-recorded for students to watch on their own time. Class time is for asking questions, completing assignments and holding group discussions.

This method of teaching is called flipping the classroom and Cockrum has been doing it for about a year and a half now. “Originally it was to gain better use of the class time I had and to use the time more efficiently,” Cockrum said. “It’s completely revolutionized the way I teach.”

What is a Flipped Classroom

In a flipped classroom, the traditional teaching model is turned on it’s head. Students watch a video lesson for homework. In class the next day they complete an assignment related to the