In recent years, universities have intensified their use of technologies and implemented various modes of flexible teaching. This study sought to demonstrate that students prefer flipped learning with combined forms of synchronous and asynchronous learning that foster constructivist learning practices. To this aim, two case studies (N = 221) for online teaching at two face-to-face universities during the 2020–2021 academic year are presented. Results show that students appreciate flipped models of learning that foster social constructivist practices, autonomous access and consultation of resources, self-regulation of time management and consciousness of learning needs. Such virtual self-paced learning results in more productive and interactive real-time classes. This combination of autonomous learning and synchronous instruction is preferred by students attending online and hybrid modes of teaching. Overall, this study demonstrates that the flipped classroom adapts well to online and hybrid modes of teaching with first-year undergraduate students. To effectively foster social constructivism through the flipped classroom in university contexts, course design should consider both synchronous and asynchronous learning spaces, amplifying opportunities to learn autonomously and to collaborate and get feedback in synchronous contexts. Implications for practice or policy Student satisfaction with teaching may increase in online education if characteristics for flexibility are incorporated. Teachers can foster social constructivist practices through flipped classroom by designing synchronous and asynchronous instruction to be self-regulated, student-centred, collaborative and flexible. Institutional rules may limit teacher abilities to apply flexible modes of learning.

This article investigates the pedagogical and digital practices of vocational education and training teachers, offering comparative insights from both teacher and student perspectives. To this end, two questionnaires were constructed for teachers and students and then validated by means of inter-judge procedures and expert review. The questionnaires were administered to representative samples of 158 teachers and 309 students in intermediate and higher vocational education and training programs in the Spanish region of Catalonia. Thanks to institutional collaboration, it was possible to obtain both samples by a non-probability sampling technique. The results obtained from the quantitative analyses performed show that while most vocational education and training teachers utilize a combination of active and lecture-based methods, less than a third incorporate online tools, prioritizing institutional platforms. Although both teachers and students acknowledge a diversity of teaching strategies, the latter, particularly female students and those in advanced years or on dual programs, tend to be more critical of the effectiveness of the teaching strategies employed compared to their teachers. The findings underscore the need for vocational education and training programs to enhance digital tool integration and address the varying perceptions of teaching effectiveness to better meet students’ expectations and needs.

The flipped classroom is a methodology recognised for its positive impact on the self-regulation of learning and academic performance. There is extensive literature that demonstrates its potential for educational flexibility, including the adaptation to online and blended modes of delivery that utilize digital technology successfully. There is, however, little evidence which proves that a unique flipped classroom design can be adjusted to different teaching modes without affecting student satisfaction and learning outcomes. In this research, we analyse eight cases of flipped classroom implementation during the 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 academic years in the Faculty of Education Sciences at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. According to the findings, students who seem to have a stronger perception of self-regulated learning development and technology appropriation also have higher perception of academic performance, although they do not achieve better results. There are no significant variations in pedagogical design satisfaction or learning outcomes depending on teaching modality. However, the study did find that the most flexible teaching modes, such as intermittent face-to-face and hybrid teaching, offered more benefits to students in terms of academic performance and self-regulated learning. The main conclusion is that flipped classroom is a flexible methodology that can be adapted to different teaching modes while maintaining student satisfaction and learning outcomes.

Esta investigación busca compartir la metodología de análisis desarrollada para identificar las lecciones aprendidas durante el período de confinamiento y recomendaciones para reflexionar sobre las adaptaciones pedagógicas y digitales para una educación más flexible. Participaron profesores y estudiantes de grado y máster de la Facultad de Educación. Los resultados revelan que el inicio del confinamiento solo permitió transferir el contenido digitalmente y ofreció poco tiempo para repensar la enseñanza y el aprendizaje. Sin embargo, demuestran que sí hay flexibilidad para elegir metodologías, según las necesidades y circunstancias del alumnado. Los participantes están predispuestos a seguir aprendiendo sobre el uso de las tecnologías digitales y métodos de enseñanza innovadores, también existe la necesidad de incorporar dichas competencias en los programas educativos de los futuros educadores. Se evidencia que la flexibilidad será clave para la calidad educativa, por ello el compromiso actual del profesorado inicia con revisar sus adaptaciones pedagógicas y tecnológicas.