Figure 1: The Virtual Laboratory (V-Lab) homepage incorporating
the use of Quicktime VR Movie technology.
| Australian Journal of Educational Technology 1999, 15(2), 188-206. |
AJET 15 |
In this paper, we describe the development and evaluation of a "virtual laboratory" (V-Lab) for introductory practical studies of human structure and function in the movement sciences. Our purpose is to identify what we found to be some of the key elements of the development process for our first V-Lab and to introduce some of the technology used. Student and staff responses to its initial implementation are presented, based on a systematic evaluation using quantitative and qualitative methods.
However, there have been fewer developments relating specifically to human movement. Projects undertaken in Australia in the last few years include the Sarcomotion project, described by Fyfe, Fyfe and Phillips (1995) as an IMM tutorial using animations and background information to assist students' understanding of the microscopic process of skeletal muscle contraction. Browne and Ellis (1997) describe a project which uses IMM to present seven morphometry practical exercises previously presented in paper format, while Olds and Norton (1997) created a CD-ROM containing a virtual testing environment that simulates a range of physiological tests for students studying exercise science. The Motion Toolbox described by Kirtley and Smith (1997) was developed to facilitate students' study of motion by linking abstract concepts with real muscle movement. Kirtley and Smith (1997) note that the human movement sciences are not well suited to didactic, traditional approaches that use static images on printed pages. Rather, as has been demonstrated by developments mentioned above, and as will be evident from this paper, the use of multimedia lends itself very well to the teaching of human movement concepts.
Most of the developments outlined above have produced stand alone multimedia programs with some providing links to web based resources. V-Lab has added functionality through the web based dynamic database connectivity.
Situated learning places learning in the context in which it will be later applied. One of the principal effects claimed for the theory of situated learning is that it facilitates transfer of learning to new situations.V-Lab is designed to provide initial experiences within a 'virtual laboratory' so that the knowledge can be transferred more readily to real laboratory situations. In particular, the program adheres to the first two critical guidelines cited by Herrington and Oliver, (1997, p. 128). It has 'a physical environment reflecting the way the knowledge will ultimately be used', and 'a non-linear design to preserve the complexity of the real-life setting'. Being web based, it also has links to other resources. V-Lab is one element of an integrated package of learning experiences, which in totality provides 'a large number of resources to enable sustained examination from a number of different perspectives'. (Herrington and Oliver, 1997, p. 128)
It can reasonably be assumed that a multimedia based situated learning environment that simulates a real life experience is one that will strongly encourage active learning. However, multimedia of itself does not promote active learning, it is the strategies and activities that are incorporated into the medium that are the critical elements. As Brooks (1997) notes, 'interactivity has become the really critical design issue. Interactivity implies that active learning will be encouraged'.
Meyers and Jones (1993, p.19) contend there is 'no generally agreed upon definition of active learning'. It is often defined as something that contrasts to traditional didactic approaches where students are passive recipients of information. In other words, it is more often defined in terms of what it is not. Nonetheless, Brookes (1997, p. 14) argues that where curriculum resources 'force students to respond, to make choices, to perform, to organise, to think deeply about the material', active rather than passive learning is generally the outcome. Active learning is generally regarded as student centred rather than teacher centred: it demands active participation on the part of the learner, participation beyond the level of a point and click activity.
To facilitate development of resources, discussions ensued between relevant school based staff, the Deakin Centre for Academic Development, and Learning Resources Services. The initial discussions focused on a re-assessment of the content of the School's main level one unit. This included considerations of past student satisfaction with the unit, student numbers, access to equipment, time constraints on lecturers and tutors, financial restraints, availability of content experts, and the level of enthusiasm for ongoing implementation of flexible teaching and learning. All areas of the unit were examined to ascertain how technology could enhance the teaching and learning experience for lecturers and students. It was noted that the Physiology Laboratory component of the unit was suffering because large numbers of students were trying to work in overcrowded laboratories. This resulted in students having insufficient hands on experience with the equipment. There was also the problem of trying to teach complex fitness testing procedures and data processing within relatively short time frames.
Figure 1: The Virtual Laboratory (V-Lab) homepage incorporating
the use of Quicktime VR Movie technology.
To address these concerns the decision was made to deliver this procedural content on the WWW as both a pre- and post-laboratory experience. This led to the development of a Virtual Laboratory (V-Lab)[2]. As the web environment had already been chosen to deliver much of the unit content, it became clear that this mode of delivery would be appropriate for the school and the specific needs of the particular units. The viability of the V-Lab concept was considered to be sound, as the V-Lab template could be utilised within other units, ultimately saving time and money.
V-Lab was developed as an online laboratory that could be accessed via the School of Human Movement website. It is an interactive program that provides opportunities for students to carry out fitness testing online in each of the following areas: Anthropometry, Muscular Strength, Aerobic Power, Anaerobic Power, Lung Function, and Flexibility. For each fitness component, there are four sections through which students work:
| Introduction | provides background information about the particular fitness area and the nature of the test. |
| Equipment | describes the equipment used to conduct the test and provides photographs of each piece of equipment. |
| Procedure | outlines instructions on how to conduct the fitness test and includes photographs and/or video clips to demonstrate each step. |
| Data processing | contains a calculator icon which enables students to calculate and save results, then submit them to the database. |
Figure 2: Outlines instructions on how to conduct the aerobic fitness
test and includes photographs and/or video clips to demonstrate each step.
Figure 3: V-Lab Data Processing html page showing interactive (Macromedia Director) process for calculating Technical Error of Measurement in the Anthropometry section.
In reporting the data, percentages are used to provide some indication of users' perceptions. It is recognised that more detailed data about students' engagement with the program will be need to be gathered in the future. Nonetheless, as Scanlon and colleagues (1997) point out, students' perceptions are important in determining whether they are likely to repeat an experience such as using a web based learning environment. If V-Lab is going to be accepted as an integral part of their curriculum, students must perceive it to be of value.
Most students accessed the software on computers in the campus laboratories, although 12% successfully accessed it from home or from another remote site. The majority of students (74%) found the software easy to use after attending the familiarisation session, and over 75% found the written instructions helpful. Students with less computer experience would have liked instructions written in simpler language; they found it difficult to understand some of the computer terms used.
V-Lab was seen as being only a small component of the overall unit, albeit an important one. The majority of students (81%) spent between 1 and 5 hours using the V-Lab program, with a further 12% using it for 5 to 10 hours. This is consistent with the expectation that most students would complete the required work in 4 to 6 hours, but represents a relatively small proportion of the time needed for study in the unit overall. If technology is to make a difference to students' learning outcomes, it needs to be central to the course and an important aspect of learning in most units (Bates, 1995). This points to the need to further develop the V-Lab technology and to do so in conjunction with a comprehensive staff development program. As Laurillard (1993) points out, working with technology requires a significant culture change on the part of teachers and students.
Approximately three-quarters of the students agreed that the interactive features of V-Lab (such as the data processing and database functions) made the topic more interesting, while just over half (56%) thought the electronic medium enhanced their enjoyment of learning.
Figure 4: Macromedia Director interface for student
results submission to the database.
Most students (79%) believed that the photographs in V-Lab helped their learning and the content was pitched at an appropriate level, though a few thought it assumed too much knowledge. In particular, focus group students mentioned the value of the photos of different skinfold sites. Generally, students thought the V-Lab web site compared favourably with other web sites.
In respect to students' perceptions, the above findings are consistent with results from similar studies outlined previously. (Fyfe, Fyfe and Phillips, 1995; Kirtley and Smith, 1997; Olds and Norton, 1997). Students are clearly responsive to the visual and interactive elements of IMM.
Of the 150 students who provided qualitative comments, 75% were positive. Many were brief summative remarks such as:
Four-fifths of the students believed that, as a result of using V-Lab, they understood more clearly how to carry out fitness testing for each of the six fitness components. Similarly, three-quarters of the students believed that V-Lab helped them to better understand how to calculate the appropriate data for each of the fitness components. Typical comments from students included:
When students are expected to use new technology in their courses, it is common for a number of them to experience access problems. V-Lab was no exception: 26% found it difficult to access computers in campus laboratories. Data from university surveys have indicated that most students try to access the laboratories between 11am and 3pm. Students who try early in the morning or later in the day generally have no problems. While the data are not specific to students using V-Lab, it is possible that they followed the access patterns found elsewhere.
As the data indicate, students' initial perceptions of V-Lab were positive. This suggests strongly that they were accepting of the software and will be likely to use it again. (Scanlon et al 1997)
Because tutors interacted with students on an individual basis, they were more familiar with V-Lab than were most of the lecturers. They were very supportive of it and were well prepared for its implementation. Tutors were aware that when implementing technology, some problems inevitably arise, so they were less frustrated when certain aspects of the calculator didn't work and the data processing could not be completed. They prepared students for such eventualities by having them work out their calculations and write down results in case they could not process them. Tutors found that some students did not thoroughly read the information in their notebooks and did not read all the instructions in the laboratories; they relied too much on tutors telling them what they had to do. Furthermore, the lack of computer experience of some students meant that they required much more support from tutors than would normally be the case. Laurillard (1993) argues that academic staff have to be aware of the integrative task required when implementing new technology and need to provide additional support. This was clearly forthcoming in respect to V-Lab.
Overall, tutors believed V-Lab to be an excellent resource for students who are self motivated. Less interested students tended to move through the lab work quite quickly and did not do as much preparation work. As a result, they probably did not engage fully in the active learning strategies and therefore did not receive the full benefits of the program.
For most students, the objectives of developing V-Lab appear to have been achieved. In particular, the use of V-Lab has helped to reduce the amount of time that students spend in the actual laboratories and has ensured that they are better prepared for their real laboratory work. It has also ensured that students and staff use online technology as part of the teaching and learning experience. Nonetheless, it appears that both students and staff could make more use of the web site and its resources as a means of improving learning outcomes. This change in work culture may be achieved gradually through a series of staff development sessions and particularly when more V-Labs are developed. Harasim et al (1995) highlight the need to provide training, support and encouragement before and during implementation of online learning environments.
The development of V-Lab has increased flexibility for students who, within the parameters of unit requirements, can complete the work in their own time and at their own pace. The small percentage of students who successfully accessed V-Lab at home enjoyed even greater flexibility. As more students begin to do this, the advantages will become more evident.
Being a pilot implementation, some technical problems were to be expected, but contingency plans and strong technical and educational support helped to minimise the fall out from the few problems that did occur. Staff and students were well prepared for the new technology implementation. They did not panic when problems arose and consequently, most students were not distressed by the problems. By ensuring that staff and students had some understanding of the nature of technology development and implementation, levels of frustration were minimised as far as possible. The Human Movement program at Deakin University has now established a strong basis on which to proceed with further development of the web site and online laboratories, a move that would appear to have the strong support of the student cohort.
The student, staff and laboratory tutor feedback that we obtained presents V-Lab in a positive light. Our routine quality assurance reports, ongoing assessments and final examination data show no evidence of decrements in student learning associated with the significant reductions in hands-on laboratory time associated with our use of V-Lab.
As is the case for many educational innovations, we have identified significant ethical and practical difficulties in designing ways to carry out systematic concurrent comparisons of our traditional laboratory teaching versus V-Lab. Ideally, matching or randomly allocating students to these two forms of delivery and comparing outcomes would allow a more rigorous evaluation to be carried out. Another option might be to compare a more basic form of V-Lab delivery with the full, interactive version. In either case, putting aside ethical considerations, the practical difficulties remain formidable, particularly those associated with inevitable communication between students in the two different programs.
Our strategy for future V-Lab evaluations will be to track student experiences and ratings of the V-Lab program, using brief online survey forms to be completed by all students at the end of several V-Lab sessions throughout the unit. Student perceptions of key dimensions (for example, interactivity, satisfaction simplicity of use) and assessments of meeting learning objectives will be included.
Careful, detailed, critical analysis of key elements of student learning through continuous assessment seems to us to be the most productive evaluation strategy, one where the technology itself can be used to good effect (particularly using online survey forms linked to a database). It seems to us that the uses we have made of information technology and interactive multimedia capacities in V-Lab certainly creates efficiencies in delivery of unit material and probably does enhance student learning and motivation. However, meticulous ongoing assessment and the careful interpretation of quantitative and qualitative data will be required before we can be more confident that these new learning enhancement methods achieve what we hope they do.
Flexible delivery of programs is a priority for Deakin University as a whole. This includes the appropriate use of web based interactive multimedia to enhance student learning. For both off campus and on campus students, screen based literacy and numeracy plus skills and confidence in using interactive multimedia are important educational objectives. Today's students will pursue their future careers in a society where information technology capacities evolve ever more rapidly and new applications will proliferate (Broderick, 1998; Turkle, 1995). The ability of students not only to use this technology but to appreciate its potential and creatively exploit it as an integral part of lifelong learning, can be potentially significantly enhanced through learning experiences like those we have described.
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| Mary Rice[1], David Owies[2], Adrienne Campbell[1], Rod Snow[2], Neville Owen[2] and Dale Holt[1]
[1] Deakin University, Centre for Academic Development Contact author: Mary Rice, Centre for Academic Development, Deakin University, 1 Gheringhap Street. Geelong Victoria 3217. mrice@deakin.edu.au Please cite as: Rice, M., Owies, D., Campbell, A., Snow, R., Owen, N. and Holt, D (1999). V-Lab: A virtual laboratory for teaching introductory concepts and methods of physical fitness and function. Australian Journal of Educational Technology, 15(2), 188-206. http://www.ascilite.org.au/ajet/ajet15/rice.html |