Physiology labs during a pandemic: What did we learn?

Abstract

This article captures a collective reflection on the successes and challenges we experienced when teaching physiology laboratories online during the COVID-19 pandemic. Physiology instructors from six institutions discussed their own efforts to redesign meaningful physiology laboratories that could be taught remotely, as the nation scrambled to respond to the sudden shift out of the classroom. Despite the complexity of this task, clear themes emerged as our courses transitioned to an online format in spring 2020 and were solidified in the fall of 2020. This article reflects on the history, features, benefits, and challenges of current laboratory teaching when applying a scientific teaching approach to facilitate the redesign process. We believe online networks like ours can facilitate information sharing, promote innovations, and provide support for instructors. The insights we gained through this collaboration will influence our thinking about the future of the physiology lab, whether online or in person.

Moving from tangibility toward digitalization: investigating team dynamics and facilitator support among medical students in conventional and digital small-group tutorials

“…Interestingly, we showed that teamwork dynamics independently correlated with teamwork satisfaction, an association consistently shown across different SGT settings (Tables 4 and 5 ). A prior study indicated that in online SGT, team dynamics were a potentially vital element for providing students with a sense of interdependence and mutual collaboration [ 28 ]. Better practices in team dynamics enhances student engagement with online course content and potentially promotes satisfaction [ 28 ].…”

“…A prior study indicated that in online SGT, team dynamics were a potentially vital element for providing students with a sense of interdependence and mutual collaboration [ 28 ]. Better practices in team dynamics enhances student engagement with online course content and potentially promotes satisfaction [ 28 ]. This is in line with theories pertaining to online education indicating that learner motivation, curricular design, shared community building, and reflective practices are essential for maximizing learners’ gain [ 29 ].…”

What a Difference in Pressure Makes! A Framework Describing Undergraduate Students’ Reasoning about Bulk Flow Down Pressure Gradients

“…An effective way to uncover the different ways students reason about a topic is through thoughtful and timely formative assessments ( Chen et al. , 2021 ).…”