Measuring the impact of introductory physics labs on learning and critical thinking

Abstract

Abstract. Our recent study showed that two lab courses, whose goals were exclusively to reinforce material developed in the lecture courses, do not have any impact on exam performance at the 2% level. In this study, we replicated this analysis with a modified version of one of these lab courses whose goals also included modeling, designing experiments, and analyzing and visualizing data. This modified course used the same sets of apparatus as the previous version, but changed the pre-lab and in-lab activities to focus on developing and testing models with data. The study evaluated the impact of these additional goals and activities, comparing performance with students in the same course who did not take the lab. We found that students taking the lab still performed no better or worse on the final exam than students who did not take the lab. We also observe the critical thinking behaviors that were the new goals of the lab.

Design of a low cost remote electronic laboratory suitable for low bandwidth connection

“…Practical classes in the laboratory are a fundamental part of the undergraduate engineering curriculum where students have to develop technical and practical skills to reinforce their conceptual knowledge [1,2]. To achieve this goal, students must design, assemble a system, use appropriate and specific equipment, implement procedures, collect data, visualize, interpret, and compare these data with theoretical models.…”

Examining and contrasting the cognitive activities engaged in undergraduate research experiences and lab courses

“…The goals of lab courses have been highly debated and without consensus for many years [17][18][19]. There is suggestive evidence, however, that traditionally taught lab courses provide little added value for developing or improving content understanding beyond lectures or tutorials [18,[20][21][22]. The hands-on experimentation in lab courses provides a unique opportunity, however, for developing students' scientific and experimentation skills.…”