Integration of E-Portfolio into an Iranian Flipped Classroom: Does the Flip Type Make a Difference in Listening Comprehension?

Abstract

The present study aimed to investigate the effects of a flipped learning model on English as Foreign Language (EFL) learners’ L2 listening comprehension. E-portfolio writing was treated as the pre-class activity in the flipped classroom. To this end, 36 intermediate students from an English institute were chosen based on an Oxford Quick Placement Test (OQPT) and they were assigned to a flipped classroom (experimental group) and a traditional classroom (control group). After running a pretest of listening comprehension, the listening materials were presented to the participants in the flipped classroom through WhatsApp. In contrast, the participants in the control group received the same listening materials inside the class. Socrative was selected as the online platform to assess the experimental group participants. After ten sessions, to elicit data, a post-test on listening comprehension was administered to the participants in both groups to measure their listening comprehension. The independent samples t-test revealed significant differences in learning listening comprehension between both groups in favor of the experimental group. In fact, participants in the flipped classroom group outperformed the control group. Additional research is needed to generalize the findings of this approach across different contexts.