STACK Assessment supported flipped learning model of undergraduate Mathematics in African Universities: a theoretical exploration

Globally there is growing interest in transforming teaching of mathematics at institutions of higher learning from the traditional lecture method to pedagogical practices that center the learning process on students. This interest is predicated on what has been observed as poor learning results in many of the STEM related fields such as mathematics which have been traditionally taught through the lecture approach. Using a social constructivist lens of teaching of mathematics at university level an explorative theoretical analysis of research on flipped learning and use of STACK for assessment was employed to reflect on the shaping of a STACK assessment supported flipped learning of mathematics at African universities. The paper presents a theoretical position that a STACK assessment supported model of flipped learning of mathematics may help improve the traditional flipped learning model. Specifically, its features such as mastery quizzes at the pre-class session foregrounds increases the opportunities for productive failure in the learning process. Similarly, its features such as the decision trees allow for more responsive teaching informed by real time analysis of key mistakes and misconceptions by the lecturer before the in-class session.