Virtual Labs in the Online Biology Course: Student Perceptions and Implications for Policy and Practice

Abstract

The purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate student perceptions of virtual biology labs used in two online introductory biology courses. Students completed an online survey about their experiences using several CD-ROM-based virtual laboratories. The authors present preliminary results of this survey, a brief synthesis of extant literature in this area, and suggestions for future research on examining student learning outcomes and effectiveness of virtual biology laboratories.