Improving student learning in laboratory sections
Science and engineering education are moving away from “cookbook” labs and towards laboratory experiences that result in increased student engagement and learning. Change the student’s focus from “getting the right answer” to investigation and critical thinking.Strategies
Prepare students for labs with online materials and quizzes
Digital photos and video on a course web site can help prepare students before the lab. To encourage students to prepare, assign an online quiz in Blackboard before the lab; students can get immediate feedback and/or scored for a grade.
Make data collection easier and more accurate
Lab equipment can collect data automatically to be shared via the network. Students can then focus on data interpretation, rather than the logistics of data collection, and collect more accurate data. Speeding data recording may allow students to repeat experimental trials for a more authentic laboratory experience.
Improve visualization of results and interpretations
Use display technologies to show students potential results and pitfalls during the lab. For example, new digital microscopes can display images on computer screens, or examples of results can be collected online and shared for the students to interpret.
Provide more realistic data collection environments
Using a lab notebook application, similar to those used in technical industries, can give students experience with up-to-date scientific technologies.
Expand opportunities to understand science principles and techniques
Use virtual labs for experiments that would normally require equipment that is too expensive, unsafe or unavailable. Virtual labs also allow students to repeat an experiment multiple times, giving them the opportunity to see how changed parameters affect the outcome. Virtual labs can be used to train students to use equipment prior to hands-on experiences.
Require that students generate their own questions and interpretations
Create opportunities for students to generate testable hypotheses. Student teams can brainstorm and critique each other’s ideas using wikis within Blackboard, or develop ideas using a blog. Teams can investigate research questions and prepare a paper or presentation using online collaborative tools.
Incorporate actual scientific laboratory research
Access open notebook scientific research to illustrate and spur discussion of actual experimental design and results.
Encourage discussion and analysis
Find relevant blog entries that discuss results, interpretations and/or ethics. Require students to comment on these discussions either online or in their own writings. Or, post a set of results and require students to present their interpretations in a blog.
Incorporate current scientific literature
Using the library databases and open databases like PubMed or Google Scholar, either require the students to search the primary research literature or assign relevant reports.
Peer review of the lab writing
Collaboration tools allow students to review each other's lab reports and provide feedback. Calibrated peer review facilitates student review of each others writings.
Examples
Use of Web-based instruction in the organic and advanced chemistry laboratories
Christopher Roy and other faculty and staff in Duke University’s Chemistry department are producing digital video and web software to help students better understand concepts in lecture and laboratory courses in organic and advanced chemistry.
Electronic Laboratory Notebooks Aid Students in Experiments
Duke chemistry lecturer Todd Woerner has students use electronic laboratory notebooks in physical chemistry as they run instrumentation, collect and analyze experimental data, keep a complete laboratory notebook of the experimental work, do literature searches through online databases and prepare formal reports.
Tools
Physlets, Physics Applets, are small flexible Java applets for physics education.
WebElements periodic table gives the name, atomic weight, appearance, isolation and other useful information for each element.
Jean-Claude Bradley's laboratory at Drexel University is a leader in open notebook science, where the details of research in his laboratory are available to everyone. This is also a good example of using a wiki as a laboratory notebook.
Virtual Laboratories
Howard Hughs Medical Institute provides online virtual labs in genetics, bacteriology, cardiology, neurophysiology and immunology.
Biology Labs On-Line (fee required) offers a series of interactive, inquiry-based biology simulations and exercises designed for college and AP high school biology students.
The Virtual Genetics Laboratory allows students to perform genetic experiments with fruitflies to determine their genes.
The ChemCollective hosts an online virtual lab and other activities to help students learn. The Journal of Chemical Education provides videos of some exciting chemistry experiments.
Collaboration tools
Students can work together to propose hypotheses, design experiments and interpret results and draft their final laboratory reports.
Blackboard has several features that allow students to collaborate, by sharing files, using a discussion board, collaborating in a wiki or writing a blog. For suggestions with any of these features, please contact CIT.
A wiki is available to Duke users. Freely available wikis include pbwiki and wikispaces. An excellent example of using a wiki as a laboratory notebook is Useful Chem.
Students can collaboratively edit documents and data in spreadsheets using Google Docs and Spreadsheets.
Calibrated peer review facilitates anonymous peer review of student writing.
