The COVID-19 pandemic has tested not only educators’ resilience, but also their ingenuity. Adapting to a sudden shift to online and hybrid changes led many teachers needing to find web-based tools that could be used in an online learning environment (Cowie, 2021; Hasnine et al., 2020). Now, as the classes have returned to face-to-face format, some of the online tools have found their way into the physical classroom setting. One such online tool is Flippity (https://www.flippity.net): a web-based platform that can be used for designing learning materials and activities. This article outlines several tools available on Flippity and explores how these tools can be used to create student-centered and collaborative activities.
Overview
Flippity is a website that was designed by Steve Fortna. It contains 28 tools for activity creation that can all be used free of charge. This website can be used to generate vocabulary games, board games, flashcards, randomizers, and leaderboards. The generation process does not require any registration and is done via text input for simple tools and via Google Sheets for more complex ones.
The intuitive interface makes Flippity accessible to both teachers and students. As a result, this platform can be used as a tool for empowering learners by including them in the activity creation. Such inclusion and collaboration between learners during the activity-making process can lead to higher engagement levels and better retention of material (Bier, 2015; Chen, 2018). Teachers can introduce Flippity in the classroom, scaffold the activity-development process, and then ask students to collaborate in groups to make activities for each other. The examples below demonstrate several Flippity-based activities that I tried with my students and show how these activities can be used to improve collaboration and make the language classroom a bit more student-centered.
Activity Examples
The sample activities given below illustrate only a fraction of the tools available on the Flippity website among which are board games, matching games, word searches, and word scrambles.
Randomizer
Randomizer is a Flippity tool that can be used for the creation of several randomized wheels. One activity using a Flippity randomizer tool was connected to the unit about food. In this unit, students learned the names of ingredients, cooking verbs, and sequence words. The randomizer activity was introduced to practice these points. In the activity, students used Google Sheets to collaboratively create lists of ingredients and cooking verbs. Then they used a randomizer tool to generate a random recipe based on their lists. Next, they were asked to name their recipes and share them with the class using sequence words. The recipes featured completely random mixes of ingredients, which added fun to the activity (see Figure 1). Finally, students were asked to discuss what recipes they would actually like to try.
This simple yet engaging game allowed students to practice target grammar in a participatory and learner-centered way. Naturally, this game could have been made using pens and paper, but the Flippity randomizer enabled a more collaborative and smoother activity, saving some paper in the process.
Figure 1.
Sample Recipe Activity From the Randomizer Tool
Word Master
Word Master is a clone of the well-known puzzle game Wordle. The goal of Wordle is to guess a 5-letter word: Players do it by typing different words and revealing the correct letters. I first tried using the original Wordle in class, but in doing so I encountered several significant limitations. Players are limited to playing the original Wordle once per day with words changing every day, so it is impossible to customize the game. Additionally, the original game was designed for native speakers, so some words were too difficult for my students.
Word Master, on the other hand, is customizable and does not impose limitations on the number or length of words. As a result, the difficulty of the words and the number of letters can be adjusted depending on the students’ levels. However, there is one caveat that should be mentioned. Unlike Wordle, Word Master does not do a dictionary check, so students can type a random string of letters instead of a word. Therefore, it might be a good idea to set a rule for using only existing words.
In my class, we played Word Master for vocabulary revision and as a warm-up game. After students had grasped the rules of the game, I relegated the game-making process to them, so different groups would make games for each other and play these games to practice vocabulary. Despite its simplicity, Word Master was very popular among students, so eventually we played it every week.
Bingo
The bingo game found on the Flippity website is not very different from the original game. However, the online version simplifies both the game-making and playing processes, while also removing the necessity to print bingo sheets. The game can be created and played on a phone, so both creating and playing the game can be done in the span of one class. In my class, we used bingo to revise tenses using yes/no questions. Instead of writing questions myself, I asked groups of students to create their own bingo questions. After that, students would play the game walking around the class and asking questions to each other. As with the previous examples, there is nothing revolutionary about the Flippity version of Bingo. However, the online version makes this well-known game more accessible and reduces paper usage.
Possible Challenges
Teachers should be aware of some potential challenges related to Flippity. First, different tools use different activity generation procedures. As mentioned earlier, complex tools, such as Flippity Randomizer, require inputting data in Google Sheets, so using these tools in class might require some prior scaffolding. Also, some tools such as the Memory Game allow the usage of images, but they cannot be directly uploaded to Flippity. Instead, the images need to be found on the Internet and embedded using links. This process is not very complex, but it can be rather frustrating, as not all file formats are supported. It would also be advisable to double-check the activities that use pictures to make sure that all the images are displayed properly.
Conclusion
Flippity does not revolutionize the activity-making process, but it provides an easy and intuitive set of tools that can be used by both teachers and students. The simplicity of Flippity allows the inclusion of students in the activity-creating process that, in turn, might enhance student collaboration and improve learner engagement.
References
Bier, A. (2015). An exploration of the link between language and cognition: From Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory to CLIL. EL.LE, 4(1). 71–83. https://doi.org/10.14277/2280-6792/124
Chen, Y. (2018). Perceptions of EFL college students toward collaborative learning. English Language Teaching, 11(2), 1–4. https://dx.doi.org/10.5539/elt.v11n2p1
Cowie, N. (2021). The development of an ecology of resources for online English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers in a Japanese university during the COVID-19 pandemic. International Journal of Educational Research and Innovation, 15, 419–430. https://dx.doi.org/10.46661/ijeri.5356
Hasnine, M. N., Hussien Ahmed, M. M., & Ueda, H. (2020, November 2). Towards post-pandemic active learning design by connecting strategies with technologies [Paper]. World Conference on Mobile, Blended and Seamless Learning. https://www.learntechlib.org/p/218896/
