Faculty are piloting virtual science labs to enhance online science education in physics, biology and physical science at George Brown. Available to students on-demand from BeyondLabz, these virtual labs enable students to participate in online experiments covering topics like circular motion and DNA.
“With this pilot, we’re exploring meaningful ways to incorporate virtual labs into science-related courses at the college,” said Elena Chudaeva, a professor in the Centre for Preparatory & Liberal Studies (CPLS). “We will continue using these virtual labs for physics courses in spring/summer 2021 to further investigate the value for students.”
New ways of teaching, learning and service delivery is one of our Strategy 2022 commitments. Faculty who used the virtual labs said one major benefit is that students can participate from anywhere at any time. What’s more – they can repeat experiments as many times as they like to test for different outcomes and deepen their learning.
Marcos Salinas Gonzalez, a student in our Architectural Technician Program commented:
“In my opinion, the virtual labs are a valuable experience because they allow us to visualize physical laws and put them to the test.”
Each lab supports hundreds of experiments and helps students to learn science by doing science.
“As an instructor, I observed a lot of engagement and enthusiasm in class during the virtual lab session and the students were curious to explore the experiments,” said CPLS professor Kavitha Siva.
BeyondLabz is a paid resource sponsored by eCampusOntario. For more information, contact science.resources@georgebrown.ca.
