Abstract
This chapter explores the use of Flipgrid for student engagement in a gradual three-level process of technology integration. The three levels of integration, or “immersion,” are acclimation, movement, and submersion, and this is demonstrated by comparing Flipgrid integration to a day at the beach. Flipgrid is a comprehensive tool that provides opportunities for educators to integrate it into their face-to-face, hybrid, and online courses to a limited extent or to fully use all of the features available to them at no cost. The background of Flipgrid, as well as the benefits of using video as an educational tool, was thoroughly researched to provide evidence to support the use of Flipgrid for student engagement and assessment. The chapter concludes by including the limitations of Flipgrid and future research directions.
TopBackground
Flipgrid, originally named “Vidku,” was the tech startup brainchild of a college professor, Charles Miller, and his graduate students at the University of Minnesota in 2014 (Chang, 2017). This startup had originally planned to launch the product for business but adjusted the strategy in 2016, changed the name to Flipgrid, and redirected their efforts to all levels of the education market (Grayson, 2018). Jim Leslie, CEO of Flipgrid, said in a 2015 interview with the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, “We didn’t invent video and we didn’t invent video sharing…what’s unique is we’re allowing people to have meaningful interaction on their own schedule and own convenience.” (Grayson, 2015). Part of Flipgrid’s success in the education market place is their commitment to educators: listening to and engaging teachers of all levels to create a useful product. In 2018, Microsoft acquired Flipgrid and made the platform free for all educators. Founder Charlie Miller said the joining of Flipgrid to the Microsoft community is “not just making Flipgrid free but bringing student voice to everyone and empowering every learner to share their voice” (Flipgrid, 2018e). Flipgrid’s vice president of engagement, Joey Taralson, acknowledged in a tweet and on a blog that the success of Flipgrid is due to many educators using Flipgrid in unique and unimaginable ways: “We are here because of you. YOU ARE FLIPGRID” (Taralson, 2018).
According to Flipgrid’s website (https://flipgrid.com), Flipgrid is used by millions of Pre-K to PhD educators, students, and families in more than 180 countries. Flipgrid regularly updates its features and has a strong social media presence of educator advocates called “Flipgrid Ambassadors.” Flipgrid holds monthly webinars, monthly Twitter chats, and has an active Slack channel and Microsoft Teams workspace exclusively for Flipgrid Ambassadors. All the latest features are released through this network of educators. Once a simple platform, Flipgrid has evolved into a complete educational technology tool for all levels of educators, with many innovative features available at no cost to the user.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Student Engagement: Methods to motivate students to achieve the intended outcomes.
MixTapes: A compilation of student-video responses created by the instructor in Flipgrid.
Grid: The term used by Flipgrid for the category that houses videos assignments such as course name or course number.
Teacher-Generated Videos: Videos created by teachers for learning purposes.
Topic: The term Flipgrid uses for the assignments within a grid.
Flipgrid: A video-response educational technology tool available through Microsoft’s suite of learning tools.
Gridpals: The network created among Flipgrid users to find other Flipgrid-using classes for collaboration and learning (created by Bonnie McClelland).
Appsmashing: When two or more technologies are combined for added benefits.
Student-Generated Videos: Videos created by students for learning purposes.
Fliphunt: A type of digital scavenger hunt using Flipgrid video responses (created by Kathi Kersznowski).