Creating a Virtual Science Lab (VSL): the adoption of virtual labs in Saudi schools

Khulood Aljuhani,Mashail Althabiti,Marwa Sonbul,Maram Meccawy

doi:10.1186/s40561-018-0067-9

Khulood Aljuhani, Mashail Althabiti + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s40561-018-0067-9

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Abstract

Laboratory activities are playing a substantial role in supporting scientific learning fields by enabling students to obtain practical skills through experiments and by giving them the chance to have a more profound understanding of the content. Although laboratory activities are expensive and time-consuming, virtual laboratory activities can save money, time, and effort. The Virtual Science Lab (VSL) is a web-based platform designed to improve learning approaches by introducing a safe and interactive lab environment for students in middle schools in Saudi Arabia. VSL was found to be an exciting, useful, and enjoyable learning environment during user trials. It allowed users to conduct experiments individually and to repeat them multiple times if needed.

Highlights

We live in an era of rapidly developing technology due to the widespread use of computer science and information technology, which have entered almost all areas of life
The teaching of science in Saudi Arabia has many barriers that affect teaching activities and reduce students’ inventive skills, such as the limited time of science lessons, teachers’ schedules and the large number of students in the laboratory, which leads to their inability to follow up on the experiment
The results from the second section of the questionnaire indicated that 88.3% of schools in Saudi Arabia have a science lab, with 41.9% of those labs having space and conditions that are only slightly appropriate for the number of students and 29.1% having space and conditions that were not appropriate at all for the number of students

Summary

Introduction

We live in an era of rapidly developing technology due to the widespread use of computer science and information technology, which have entered almost all areas of life. The researchers examine the need for virtual science labs in middle schools in Saudi Arabia and propose a learning environment that enables students to conduct experiments and communicate with and access other relevant resources. All these studies, exposed several complications in performing the scientific experiments flexibly; so the authors come up with the following questions: How to facilitate the education of science in Saudi Arabia and make it more enjoyable? According to their answers, using the VSL was an exciting and satisfactory experience for the students

Findings

Discussion

Conclusions and future work