Learning gains and attitudes of students performing chemistry experiments in an immersive virtual world

Learning gains and attitudes of students performing chemistry experiments in an immersive virtual world

Virtual worlds are increasingly popular in educational settings. In order to further usefulness in providing a laboratory education, almost 300 students participated in a study to determine the relative learning gains and attitudes related to performing two chemistry experiments in either the virtua...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Interactive learning environments Vol. 28; no. 5; pp. 620 - 634
Main Authors: Winkelmann, Kurt, Keeney-Kennicutt, Wendy, Fowler, Debra, Lazo Macik, Maria, Perez Guarda, Paola, Joan Ahlborn, Connor
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Abingdon Routledge 03-07-2020
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects:
Achievement Gains
Attitudes
Chemistry
College Freshmen
College Science
College Students
Colleges & universities
Computer Simulation
Control Groups
Equivalence
Experimental Groups
Experiments
first-year students
Gender Differences
higher education
Laboratories
Laboratory Experiments
Learner Engagement
Learning
Organic Chemistry
Science Achievement
Science Experiments
Science Laboratories
Student Attitudes
Students
Virtual communities
Virtual reality
virtual world
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Summary:Virtual worlds are increasingly popular in educational settings. In order to further usefulness in providing a laboratory education, almost 300 students participated in a study to determine the relative learning gains and attitudes related to performing two chemistry experiments in either the virtual world of Second Life (SL) or a real world laboratory. The participants were traditional college students enrolled in a General Chemistry 2 course at a large public university. Student grades, responses to multiple surveys, and written comments were collected over two spring semesters that the experiments were implemented. Students performing the Second Life experiments performed as well or better than students conducting equivalent experiments in a real world laboratory based on quiz and lab report grades. Students held a favourable view of the experiences in Second Life, noting that the SL setting minimized distractions and made certain aspects of the experiments easier to perform. A large majority of students performing the SL experiments enjoyed and recommended them. Male and female students performed equally well and showed equivalent attitudes in all aspects of this study.
ISSN:1049-4820
1744-5191
DOI:10.1080/10494820.2019.1696844