By Susan Smith Nash, Ph.D.
Virtual chemistry labs have been around for a long time, mainly as simulations in CD-ROMs and video demos, but also in various forms online. Generally speaking, the virtual labs cover the basics. However, educators still hotly debate whether or not they are effective. They argue that without the hands-on experience of a lab, learning about physical sciences is a pretty jejune endeavor.
My impulse is to agree. My early background is in the physical sciences, with a bachelor’s degree in geology, and frankly, I can’t imagine thinking I could understand anything about geological processes without going out into the field and observing what happens. Likewise, I can’t imagine being able to say anything at all about rocks and minerals without having had hands-on experiences. In fact, each course I took in geology had a separate lab component. It was stressful to take four courses, but have eight finals, thanks to the separate labs, but I believe it was effective.
At the same time, though, I’m a huge proponent of online education. How do I reconcile this disconnect? Before just blithely jumping on the “bashing the online labs” bandwagon, I’d like to take a step back and look at what we actually learn in a lab experience.
Here’s what a lab experience teaches us …
--Learn how to carefully design and conduct an experiment. If you are sloppy, your experiment won’t work. This is a good life lesson.
--Develop techniques of observation. Note-taking, measuring, describing, building cognitive skills
--Learn to use equipment. The lab prepares one to be able to use equipment in other reaches of life, too. Students may feel intimidated by the equipment, and well they should.
I remember my first summer job away from home when I was twenty years old. I worked for Amoco Production (now BP-Amoco) in their research labs in Tulsa, Oklahoma. My job was to measure permeability and porosity in tight gas sands from wells throughout the world. It was interesting, but potentially scary. One wrong flip of a switch, and there would be a mercury spill. I never made that mistake, but the guy who followed me did. The spill was pretty bad. The hazmat guys came in. I don’t remember what we did during cleanup and how we spent those two days we could not come into the lab.
Despite the terrible lab accident, his experience helped me gain confidence. I knew that if I made sure to follow procedures, I would reduce the likelihood of a mistake. I also realized the need to put guards and safety mechanisms in equipment.
--Understand cause and effect in a profound, hands-on way. The lab helps the student situate knowledge and learning. It also makes knowledge more easily transferable.
--Motivating. Students gain a great deal of confidence by watching each other do the same experiment and by asking questions. The need for affiliation can be satisfied, as well as a need for recognition.
--Learning a new “language.” As students seek to describe what they have learned, they find that math is really the ideal language for describing physical phenomena. Instead of being pure code and signs, math becomes a language that people can use to communicate with each other about concrete, tangible events in the world.
--A new way of seeing. The experiments in the lab help students see and perceive the outside world in a richer, fuller way. Create an oxidation / reduction process in the lab? Move outside and look at rust. Make the connection.
I would argue that the best approach to online physical sciences is to combine simulations with real-world activities, and to utilize mobile learning (smartphones with cameras, plus GPS).
Perhaps the ideal course would contain the following elements:
1. A home chemistry kit. Experiments tie with the online simulations and chemistry equation tutorials. For example, one could learn to make one’s own litmus paper, and then test the pH of things.
2. Online simulations. Equations, explanations, and modeling. The simulations would help provide a grounding for what the student has experienced / seen in the lab kit. The online tutorials could help explain how and where one makes computational mistakes.
3. Collaborative learning. Students would be asked to go to a cemetery that has marble headstones, or a place where there is marble statuary. They could take pictures of the results of chemical dissolution. They could take pictures with their cell phones or digital cameras and then post them on the discussion board or blog. Students could share ideas about the rate of dissolution and how / why pH matters in the real world.
Of course, this is not quite the same as being in the lab with other groups and sharing techniques and tips. The camaraderie factor is definitely different. It’s also not the same as creating a real-life mercury spill (thank goodness), but I believe a combination of online, hands-on, real-world examples, and online collaboration could be highly effective, particularly because it incorporates more learning styles and strategies.
Useful Resources
Science and Math Gizmos** (my favorite - covers high school and some college, great for review while taking courses in college)
http://www.explorelearning.com/
These include more of the math and the actual problems. There are quizzes, supplemental activities, etc.
Chemistry Lab Simulations
http://modelscience.com/
Model Chemlab Standard and Model Chemlab Pro
Reeko’s Mad Scientist Lab
http://www.spartechsoftware.com/reeko/
Biology Labs
http://www.biologylab.awlonline.com/
Chemistry Lab
http://www.chemcollective.org/
Open Learning Initiative: Chemistry // Stoichiometry
http://www.cmu.edu/oli/courses/enter_chemistry.html
Swiss Federal Institute of Technology
201 Chemistry Experiments – Online Labs
http://www.cci.ethz.ch/en/exchoice.html
W. H. Freeman Textbooks
http://www.whfreeman.com/
[Listen to the companion podcast at:
http://community.elearners.com/blogs/inside_elearning/attachment/1605.ashx - 4.62 MB]