Technology-enhanced differentiation in public administration education: A flipped classroom approach to student heterogeneity

Student heterogeneity—particularly differences in prior academic preparation—poses fundamental challenges for higher education institutions serving increasingly diverse populations. This study examines whether technology-supported flipped classroom designs can address disparities in prior knowledge by enabling differentiated learning. Using learning analytics data from 304 students across two cohorts in an introductory economics course of a bachelor in Public Administration, we tracked timely engagement with pre-recorded materials and formative assessments alongside survey measures of learning characteristics. Results demonstrate that active participation in the flipped design substantially improves academic performance: students with low prior knowledge who engaged promptly with materials performed comparably to high prior-knowledge students who participated less actively, effectively offsetting several years of missing secondary education. However, when comparing students with similar participation levels, prior knowledge remained a significant predictor of performance. Regression analyses confirm that timeliness of video engagement was the strongest behavioural predictor of exam grades, while learning regulation was the only motivational characteristic with consistent effects. These findings suggest that flipped classrooms function as accelerators rather than equalizers—enhancing outcomes for all students without fully eliminating advantages held by those with stronger prior preparation. The study highlights the critical importance of supporting students’ self-regulatory capacity and timely engagement to maximize the equity potential of technology-enhanced flipped instruction in heterogeneous higher education cohorts. For public administration educators, results indicate that while technology-enhanced flipped designs can support heterogeneous cohorts, complementary scaffolding remains essential to fully address equity challenges in interdisciplinary public administration programs.