Comparison of knowledge acquisition and retention following traditional didactic vs. flipped classroom education utilizing a standardized national curriculum: a randomized controlled trial

Objective Measure the effectiveness of and preference for a standardized, national curriculum utilizing flipped classrooms (FC) in neonatal-perinatal medicine (NPM) fellowships. Study design Multicentered equivalence, cluster randomized controlled trial of NPM fellowship programs randomized to receive standardized physiology education as in-class lectures (traditional didactic, TD arm) or as pre-class online videos followed by in-class discussions (FC arm). Four multiple-choice question quizzes and three surveys were administered to measure knowledge acquisition, retention, and educational preferences. Results 530 fellows from 61 NPM fellowships participated. Quiz performance was comparable between groups at all time points ( p = NS, TD vs FC at 4 time points). Post intervention, more fellows in both groups preferred group discussions (pre/post FC 42% vs. 58%, P = 0.002; pre/post TD 43% vs. 60%, P = < 0.001). FC fellows were more likely to rate classroom effectiveness positively (FC/TD, 70% vs. 36%, P < 0.001). Conclusions FCs promote knowledge acquisition and retention equivalent to TD and FC modalities are preferred by fellows.