Investigating The Academic Experience of Science Education Students with Virtual Laboratory Classes: A Convergent Parallel Approach

Abstract

Virtual laboratories are operative platforms utilised by science education students during the pandemic. The study was designed to determine the virtual laboratory experiences of science education students in terms of usability, quality of service, and sense of reality with an exploration of the contributing factors that affect their experiences. The outcomes were supported by John Dewey’s Social Constructivist Learning Theory, Dave Kolb’s Experiential Learning, and Edgar Dale’s Cone of Experience. This study used a convergent parallel design to understand the subject thoroughly. In the quantitative approach, 100 respondents met the inclusion through a purposive sampling technique. In the qualitative approach, six participants are purposely selected by the snowball sampling technique. Quantitative data in the study were analysed through statistical analysis of Frequency, Mean, Independent T-test, and ANOVA. Moreover, qualitative data were analysed using Thematic Analysis performed through Colaizzi’s Method. Quantitative and qualitative data were integrated using Joint Display Analysis. In quantitative key findings, virtual laboratories for science education students are helpful. The results also revealed that there is no significant difference in the level of assessment of science education students on their academic experience with virtual laboratories when grouped according to gender and year level. On the other hand, qualitative results revealed that science education students have eight contributing factors affecting their assessment of their academic experience with virtual laboratories. The results of this mixed method research design can be a basis for future researchers to undertake either pure qualitative or quantitative research design.