5 reasons to opt for a virtual labs for online learning
In an era of accelerating change, where the latest technology developments are changing the ways of learning, virtual reality is simply not a new trend but is becoming a very prevalent source of online learning. It is no surprise that virtual reality offers unique opportunities for students and teachers to improve their ways of learning to a whole new level.
Virtual Labs for student learning are considered an important e-learning tool as it gives students the freedom to learn and practice without any hindrances, among many other benefits.
- Teach futuristic skills for careers that are budding
It is essential for students to have a realistic understanding of what happens on the job. Virtual reality helps create an immersive environment for students to learn and practice new skills. Virtual lab learning experiences can play an influential role in developing foundational employability skills in students. The opportunity to experience the real world helps them understand different careers. With the help of AR and VR, students can measure their compatibility with various career fields and hone skills to make better and more informed decisions for a successful career.
2. Build confidence with regular practice
Virtual labs for student learning help students bridge the gap between classroom learning and real-world experiences which boosts their confidence to take up tasks and challenges in the real world. It pushes students to use their critical thinking skills as they make decisions on their own and regular practice of the same makes them more assertive in their decision-making skills. VR, AR, and simulations solidify their understanding of difficult concepts by creating a comfortable environment for students to learn in.
3. A cost-effective way to conduct STEM learning
STEM education is considered an expense with the kind of costs the equipment brings to experimental learning. But, with the shift to digital learning and especially, the recent development in the fields of AR and VR, the cost of different equipment for every experiment is heavily reduced as these virtual labs for online learning not only let students practice and learn from a variety of topics individually but also save the institutions from bearing huge budget costs.
4. Virtual labs are getting accessible and measurable
One of the major benefits of online learning is the flexibility and accessibility of it being available to anyone who owns a device. This also applies to virtual labs for student learning as they can easily access and practice at their own pace without any time or place constraints they may face in a physical lab. They also give educators access to measure each student’s progress as their previous experiments are readily available for teachers to access and plan the learning course accordingly.
5. Long-term benefits from short-term cost investments
Virtual Labs’ long-term value cannot be ignored in comparison to the one-time upfront cost one has to pay to acquire such advanced sources of learning. Unlike a physical lab that would require daily expense to provide support materials to conduct experiments, virtual labs comes with no extra cost as the longevity of a technical device will be much longer than its counterpart. Students can also access and practice from their digital devices at home or anywhere else. Though the initial costs could be perceived as a concern the benefits that virtual learning will reap in the long run are worth the investment.
The education space is constantly looking for new technology to improve their learning methods and virtual labs for online learning are a great source to enhance student productivity and provide a more immersive and effective experience.
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Virtual laboratories (or virtual labs for short) are a great way for learners to practice in a safe, online environment. Through virtual science lab games and engineering simulation software, learners can interact with elements, machines, and interfaces before or instead of trying them out in real life.
Virtual training labs have many applications in educational as well as business environments. In this article, we will shed light on them and help you determine when and how to use virtual laboratories in your eLearning courses.
What is a virtual training lab?
A virtual laboratory is an on-screen simulator or calculator that helps test ideas and observe results. Learners use advanced technology to perform a series of experiments that yield authentic results.
For example, they can “tinker” with laboratory equipment that behaves in almost the same way as it would in a real environment. Or, they can run code, and, based on results, they can deduce a learning objective. This way, a virtual laboratory becomes a meaningful addition to your virtual class.
Virtual learning labs are not just about science
When we’re thinking about virtual labs, our minds usually picture some type of a virtual chemistry lab game. But virtual laboratories are not limited to science and chemical reactions. They can be valuable tools in many industries.
How do you use a virtual training lab?
Programming courses often use simulation tools to teach learners how to code. In this case, virtual training labs have compilers and code editors embedded in HTML pages, which enable learners to write, edit, and run code easily, all within an eLearning course.
Web designers and developers can also benefit from such tools. They can apply major changes or create new features in a safe web environment, test them out, share feedback, and then move to the live version of their product or website. This way, they avoid disruptions to clients and product performance.
Other industries that use virtual labs for training are the mechanical engineering and construction fields. Simulations are particularly useful for junior employees, who might need additional training or new employees who need some onboarding until they’re comfortable enough to take on actual projects.
15 advantages of virtual laboratory in education
1- Virtual labs enable students to perform many experiments that are difficult to perform in real laboratories because of the risks.
2- Virtual labs help teachers and students save time and effort because they don’t need to adhere to certain times to enter the lab, or to move from one place to another.
3- Virtual labs enable students and teachers to use the latest technologies.
4- Virtual Labs help users keep up with the technological development of the digital age.
5- Virtual labs allow students to perform the practical experiments related to the theoretical courses, which helps them absorb the courses.
6- The virtual lab provides enjoyment during experiments.
7- Virtual labs help students perform the experiment more than once.
8- Online Virtual labs protect students and teachers from hazards, given there is no direct contact with toxic or radioactive chemicals and there is no handling of explosive devices or electricity.
9- Virtual labs provide the convenience of changing the inputs and transactions used in the experiment without worrying about any dangerous effects of these changes.
10- Virtual labs allow students to stay in touch with the Internet, which helps them search and gather information during the experiment.
11- Virtual Labs enable students to record results electronically and share them with others to exchange experiences.
12- Virtual Labs provide teachers with the opportunity to follow up and evaluate students electronically.
13- Virtual labs provide flexibility in performing experiments.
14- Virtual labs provide a complete Learning Management System (LMS) around the virtual labs where students can avail the various tools for learning including additional web resources, videos, animated demonstrations, and self-evaluation.
15- Virtual labs help students learn basic technology techniques and practice methods used by lab technicians and researchers with keeping the advantages of biology laboratory and advantages of chemistry laboratory
Benefits of Virtual Labs in Higher Education –
From Passive learning to Active Learning
Lab sessions in colleges are mostly conducted in groups, where a professor or a lab assistant performs the experiment and most of the students are passive recipients of knowledge. A very few students, who take initiative themselves get some hands-on experience. It is even more difficult in lab sessions that involve complex machinery, rare materials, or cadavers. Not only does this hamper the conceptual understanding of the students but also diminishes their research temperament.
A VR-based virtual lab is based on the principles of David Kolb’s experiential learning theory. In a virtual lab, students experience the simulations. Then, analyze the experience and create multiple perspectives. Next, link the new knowledge with their own and finally test the learning in real life.
A virtual lab gives students the ability to conduct rare science experiments actively by eliciting iterations of experiments. Since students are learning by doing, it helps them to remember the information for a long time and improve their higher order thinking skills.
Endless Repetitions and Multiple Parameters
In a real-life lab setup in colleges, an experiment is run once with a set procedure. The student is not able to experience how the results would vary by varying different parameters. The student may not be able to experience edge cases that can provide wildly varying results. The number of parameters that can be varied is limited as well.
In virtual labs, students can not only perform multiple repetitions but can also vary multiple parameters in each repetition. The student can experience extreme edge cases which may be difficult to recreate in real-life settings.
Reduce infrastructure, operation and maintenance cost
Certain science or engineering classes require top-notch, modern equipment to prepare students to be industry-ready. However, building a laboratory and acquiring the latest machinery can be a costly affair for various universities around the world. For instance, a small material testing lab for mechanical engineering students may cost around INR 35–40 lakhs to set up and involves recurring costs for maintenance and operation to the tune of INR 15 Lakhs a year. Additionally, the inclusion of the latest equipments’ and salaries of lab technicians can further increase the cost of developing and maintaining a lab.
Virtual labs, on the other hand, can reduce the cost by up to 80% and at the same time provide multifold benefits.
Providing a safe working environment
A virtual lab provides students with a safe environment to experiment in. It helps them to identify associated risks and hazards that they might encounter in a real-life laboratory or during a task. A virtual lab creates a ‘no-fear learning’ environment where students can visualize the outcomes of various dependent and independent variables safely, make mistakes and then make correct conclusions.
For instance, there is a very high chance that chemicals that can react adversely during certain chemistry experiments. This could have severe repercussions for the student or the equipment. A virtual scenario of such experiments can give students the confidence of conducting experiments smoothly and accurately.
