Online and In-person Science Laboratory Instructional Practices: Input to a Science Instructional Guide

Abstract

This study assessed the teaching practices in the online and in-person science laboratory as input to developing a science instructional guide. It explored the instructional materials used in online and in-person laboratory instruction. It also surveyed the safety measures, pre-lab and in-lab activities implemented by the instructors, teaching methods used, and the challenges the respondents met. The study employed the descriptive method and the developmental research method. A survey questionnaire was used to collect data from 5 science laboratory teachers and 225 students who took science laboratory courses. The findings revealed different teaching approaches and instructional materials were used in in-person and online science laboratory courses. Safety measures in both online and physical laboratories were extensively reviewed. Instructors employed a variety of teaching methods in online and in-person labs. Pictures with captions are dominantly used in the online lab while hands-on activities are mainly implemented for the in-person lab. Students and faculty revealed social presence as a major challenge in online mode while the top-ranked answer for in-person lab is students having different competencies. The data collected were applied to develop an instructional guide recommended to be reviewed before being used accordingly.