Strategies for delivering science laboratory teaching in a fully online mode during COVID
Dr Gee Chong Ling , Dr Si Hui ( Tammy ) Tang School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences , Faculty of Science
Due to the circumstances that arose with the development of a global pandemic , the School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences was forced to deliver laboratory teaching using a fully online model ( which ironically included lessons on the propagation of viruses ). To maintain a high-quality student learning experience , the technical teaching professionals worked collaboratively with academics to develop new online teaching resources and effective engagement strategies in the online environment .
To provide students with an opportunity to experience the real laboratory environment , a 3D model of the laboratory was generated to create a virtual lesson that facilitated health and safety training via an immersive experience ( Hernández-de-Menéndez , M ., et al ., 2019 ; Pirker J ., et al 2020 ). The students ’ learning was further supported through carefully designed instructional videos on how to perform scientific techniques in the disciplines of Microbiology , Biochemistry , Molecular Biology and others . Many other laboratory materials were also digitised to inspire and nurture students ’ critical thinking in the relevant disciplines . The above strategies offered sustainable solutions to both our immediate and future teaching needs . These new interactive resources offer a novel and flexible platform for the remote self-directed exploration of scientific laboratory environments and practices .
In addition to the development of the above teaching resources , a variety of student engagement strategies were employed to create a more dynamic learning environment during the online laboratory teaching sessions . For example , the facilitation of at-home scientific experimentation empowered students to conduct authentic experiments and then analyse their findings with their online peer learning group ( Smith , S ., & Hewston , R ., 2020 ). In a different approach , students were encouraged to record their laboratory observations and outcomes using an electronic laboratory notebook instead of a traditional printed manual . This helped students to develop good documentation practices - an essential attribute for science graduates - and provided a valuable collaboration space for them to engage with their peers and demonstrators . The students ’ involvement in the online sessions was also enhanced by participatory design strategies that employed polling and Q & A tools such as Polly ( MS Teams ), Zeetings , Slido , Jamboard ( Google ) and others .
We found that the newly developed online teaching resources and strategies offer great flexibility and functionality in supporting student learning . The high quality of the overall learning experience has been widely acknowledged and appreciated by the students , with feedback describing the resources as being insightful and the online class activities as highly engaging and enjoyable .
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