VIRTUAL LABS AND STUDENT SUCCESS - AN ANALYTICAL STUDY

Laboratory activities are an integral part of the science curriculum. Laboratory activities give better understanding of the core concepts in science subjects. The hands on activities give skill level as well as cognitive experience. This study was conducted among first semester engineering students for analyzing the success of students taught through virtual labs. The discipline under consideration was Applied Physics. A pretest post test experimental design was used for the study. A pre test was conducted using a standardized achievement test and the scores were consolidated. The post test was conducted among the same students after the two groups of students were exposed to two different types of teaching strategies viz: the traditional lecture discussion way of teaching and the virtual labs. The analysis showed that the experimental group was showing clear understanding of the concepts evident from the significantly high scores in the post achievement test.