ºìÐÓÊÓƵ

When the COVID-19 pandemic pushed higher education fully online, I, like many educators, had to quickly reimagine how I taught and how students learned. What started as a crisis response soon turned into an opportunity to rethink the way I engage students in digital spaces.

This experience led me to explore the e-flipped classroom, a fully online version of the flipped learning model. In this e-flipped classroom, students access learning materials such as pre-recorded video lectures, formative activities, and discussions on their own time (asynchronously) before participating in live online sessions (synchronously) for interactive activities and deeper discussions. Unlike traditional lectures, this model encourages students to take a more active role in managing their own learning.
With the university now embracing blended learning as a core teaching strategy, the flipped classroom model has become even more relevant. It supports flexibility and deeper learning, but it also shifts more responsibility to the student to promote students’ independent learning. That raised a key question for me: what drives student success in this type of learning environment?

My Study: Understanding Motivation in the E-Flipped Classroom Setting
To explore this, I conducted a study with my second-year accounting students in my course to examine how students’ motivation influenced their learning behaviours.

Specifically, I looked at four motivational components: 1. Intrinsic goal orientation, learning for the sake of curiosity, mastery, and challenge; 2. Task value, the importance or usefulness of the material; 3. Control of learning beliefs, the belief that effort influences learning outcomes; and 4. Self-efficacy for learning and performance, confidence in one’s ability to succeed. I also examined how these motivational strategies influenced students’ use of metacognitive self-regulated learning strategies, such as planning, monitoring, and adjusting how they learn.

What I Discovered: Confidence and Curiosity Matter Most
The results showed that self-efficacy was the strongest factor in helping students manage their learning. Students who believed in their ability to learn were more likely to stay organised, track their understanding, and adjust their strategies when needed. Intrinsic goal orientation also played a significant role. Students who were genuinely curious and eager to master the learning material, not just aiming for grades, were more engaged in their learning.

While task value and control of learning beliefs also showed some influence, they were less impactful. Even if students believed the learning material was useful or that effort would help them succeed, they were less likely to take initiative if they lacked confidence or interest.

What This Means for Teaching
These insights made me reflect on how I designed my e-flipped classroom. Tools like pre-class quizzes with feedback, live Q&A sessions, and short reflective writing tasks not only supported content understanding but they helped students build confidence and feel more in control. I also realised that sparking curiosity is just as important. Making content meaningful and relevant gives students a reason to engage deeply. It is not about doing more; it is about creating space for exploration and ownership.

The Bigger Picture: Supporting Students in a Blended Future
As we move forward with blended learning, the flipped classroom offers a powerful model, but only if we focus on what really drives student engagement. This classroom action research shows that confidence and curiosity are essential. When students believe they can learn and are genuinely interested in the subject, they are far more likely to take responsibility for their learning. Technology alone does not make learning effective; it is how we design experiences that nurture motivation and build learning habits. Whether online or in person, our goal should be to create environments where students feel empowered and supported to succeed.

Final Thoughts
This classroom action research reminded me that successful digital learning is not just about tools or platforms, it is about people. The e-flipped classroom gave me new insight into what motivates students and how we, as educators, can help them thrive. By focusing on intrinsic motivation and self-efficacy, we can help students become confident, independent learners who are ready not only to succeed in class but to carry those skills into the future.

Evelyn Wong Mei Ling
ºìÐÓÊÓƵ Business School
Email: @email