Using Virtual Labs to Enhance Students' Thinking Abilities, Skills, and Scientific Attitudes

Abstract

Educational problems are very complex problems, so it takes a solution to overcome those problems, especially in the 21st century. Educators are expected to disseminate learning by utilizing the development of 21st century technology, educators must also be able to develop technology-based learning media with reference to the school curriculum. The transformation of technology in the digital era provides a wide range of beneficial effects on the science learning process. One important impact of the development in digital era that can be utilized in science education is virtual laboratory. Virtual laboratory is a media that can provide direct experimental visualizations, interactive virtual environment, practical experimentation, to de experiments more efficiently, and be able to save on purchasing experimental tools. Learning by using a virtual laboratory can also be done anywhere and anytime without taking the class lessons. This study is aimed to determine the effect of virtual laboratory based learning model on students’ thinking abilities, skills, and scientific attitudes. This research used qualitative descriptive research method. The data analysis techniques used refers to the data analysis model by Miles & Huberman (1994), including components: reduce data, display data, draw conclusions, and verify. This paper reviews the 23 articles on students' thinking abilities, skills, and scientific attitudes toward virtual laboratory. This paper has been published in Indonesia and several journals have a scopus index reputation from 2010 to 2016. The results showed that the virtual laboratory is able to enhance students’ problem solving, critical thinking, creativity, conceptual understanding, science process skills, lab skills, motivation, interest, perception, and learning outcomes. Therefore, educators need to use virtual laboratories to improve teaching quality and student learning outcomes.

Challenges and Opportunities in the Study of Cell using Virtual Online Laboratory

“…Virtual laboratory enhanced students' problem solving, critical thinking, creativity, conceptual understanding, science process skills, lab. Skills, motivation, intense, perception and learning outcome [11].…”

Virtual Laboratory and Its Effect on Student Learning Outcomes in Physics Education

“…Virtual Laboratories have the potential to provide significantly enhanced learning and a more effective learning experience. The use of this Virtual Laboratory is expected to be able to solve learning problems experienced by students and overcome cost problems in procuring tools and materials used to carry out practical activities for schools that have constraints on the procurement of facilities and infrastructure, so as to optimize the physics learning process for students (Irwanto, 2018).…”

Pengembangan Lembar Kerja Praktikum Digital Berbantuan Virtual Laboratorium pada Materi Pencemaran Air

“…Pada penelitian lain, penggunaan virtual laboratorium dapat meningkatkan kemampuan pemecahan masalah, berpikir kritis, kreativitas, pemahaman konseptual, keterampilan sains, keterampilan laboratorium, motivasi, minat, persepsi, dan hasil belajar. Hal ini menunjukkan bahwa penggunaan virtual laboratorium dapat meningkatkan kualitas pembelajaran (Ramadhan, 2017).…”