Choate, J, Aguilar-Roca, N, Beckett, E et al. (7 more authors) (2021) International educators’ attitudes, experiences, and recommendations after an abrupt transition to remote physiology laboratories. Advances in Physiology Education, 45 (2). pp. 310-321. ISSN 1043-4046
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic triggered university lockdowns, forcing physiology educators to rapidly pivot laboratories into a remote delivery format. This study documents the experiences of an international group of 10 physiology educators surrounding this transition. They wrote reflective narratives, framed by guiding questions, to answer the research question: “What were the changes to physiology laboratories in response to the COVID-19 pandemic?” These narratives probed educators’ attitudes toward virtual laboratories before, during, and after the transition to remote delivery. Thematic analysis of the reflections found that before COVID-19 only a few respondents had utilized virtual laboratories and most felt that virtual laboratories could not replace the in-person laboratory experience. In response to university lockdowns, most respondents transitioned from traditional labs to remote formats within a week or less. The most common remote delivery formats were commercially available online physiology laboratories, homemade videos, and sample experimental data. The main challenges associated with the rapid remote transition included workload and expertise constraints, disparities in online access and workspaces, issues with academic integrity, educator and student stress, changes in learning outcomes, and reduced engagement. However, the experience generated opportunities including exploration of unfamiliar technologies, new collaborations, and revisiting the physiology laboratory curriculum and structure. Most of the respondents reported planning on retaining some aspects of the remote laboratories postpandemic, particularly with a blended model of remote and on-campus laboratories. This study concludes with recommendations for physiology educators as to how they can successfully develop and deliver remote laboratories.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2021 the American Physiological Society. This is an author produced version of a journal article published in Advances in Physiology Education. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | COVID-19; laboratory; remote; virtual |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Biological Sciences (Leeds) > School of Biomedical Sciences (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 15 Jun 2021 14:25 |
Last Modified: | 16 Apr 2022 00:38 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | American Physiological Society |
Identification Number: | 10.1152/advan.00241.2020 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:175165 |