Presented at the Best Practices in Online Science Education Symposium - University of Alaska, Anchorage, March 29, 2013

1. Best Practices in Online
Lab Science Education
Peter Jeschofnig, Ph.D.
Institute for Excellence in Distance Science Education
Best Practices in Online Science Education Symposium
University of Alaska, Anchorage, March 29, 2013

2. Why Teach Science Online?
Because
That’s
Where
The
Students
Are!
To Teach Science to Today’s Students,
We MUST Teach Science Online
Over 6 million students take online courses today
31% of college students are now taking an online course
69.1% of college administrators say Online is critical to
their long-term growth strategy

3. Assumptions I’m Making …
You believe in the importance of science education
as foundational to a science-literate society
You believe lab experimentation, in one form or
another, is essential to science learning
You believe online courses must meet the same
articulation and accreditation requirements as F2F
You are currently a classroom instructor,
administrator, or course designer

4. Online Status Poll
• How many of you are currently teaching an
online science class?
• Of those not currently teaching online,
– How many are planning to do so
in the near future?

5. Social Media Poll
Do you have a:
–Facebook account?
–LinkedIn?
–Twitter?
–Other?

6. Setting the Stage for Engagement
For Engaged Deep Learning to Occur:
 You must get to know your students,
 Your students must get to know you, and
 The students must get to know their
classmates

7. The Skills Both Online Students And
Teachers Must Have
1. Be Highly Communicative: Focus on the student, not the
content.
2. Move From a Teacher-Centered (one to many) to a Student-
Centered Approach (being a coach): Focus on helping
students problem solve
3. Be Very Flexible: Online students work outside of normal 9-5
school hours and so must their instructors
4. Provide Continuous Feedback: Timely feedback helps students
stay on-track and connected and is a critical success factor for
online students.
5. Develop Supportive Forums: Optimize introductions, create a
friendly environment, and build a sense of community so
students feel supported and encouraged.

8. Pre-Planned Interactions
For Effective Student Engagement
Ideal Balance Current Imbalance

9. Designing Course Content

10. Backward Design Implementation
Identify desired results
Outline learning goals
Determine needed evidence of learning
– how learning outcomes will be assessed
Plan learning experiences and instruction
– activities that engage students, maximize
deep learning, and promote their success

11. Keeping Students’ Attention

12. Bloom’s Taxonomy
Old New

13. 5-E Model for Science Instruction
1. ENGAGE: Stimulate student curiosity, generate
interest and involvement in the content, and pre-
assess prior understanding of scientific inquiry
2. EXPLORE: Get students involved in the topic;
providing them with a chance to build their own
understanding
3. EXPLAIN: Provide students opportunities to
communicate what they’ve learned and figure out
what it means
4. ELABORATE: Allow students to use new knowledge and
continue to explore its implications;
5. EVALUATE: Determine how much learning and
understanding has taken place;

14. Adding Course Content
Don’t Re-invent the Wheel
• Annenberg Media
• MERLOT
• iTunes University
• YouTube
• TED
• MIT – Prof. Levin
• Khan Academy

15. Open Access Images, Videos,
and Audios

16. MERLOT
Reusable Learning Objects Repositories:

17. HippoCampus
Reusable Learning Objects Repositories

18. Open Culture

19. DocumentaryHeaven

20. BigThink

21. VIMEO - Open Access Videos

22. YouTube and TeacherTube
Measure the Speed of Light - With Chocolate!

23. Tacoma Narrows Bridge

24. Tacoma Narrows Bridge

25. Congestive Heart Failure
by Patricia Rand, Aims CC
Congestive Heart Failure
The Stories of Ruth and Oscar

26. Congestive Heart Failure
by Patricia Rand, Aims CC

27. Annenberg Media

28. iTunes University
Complete Courses, Videos, and Podcasts

29. Berkely on iTunes U.

30. MIT on iTunes U

31. MIT – Prof. Walter Levin

32. Directory of Open Access Journals

33. Tag Galaxy
Search flickr Images by Tags

34. Evernote.com

35. Softchalk.com
Course/Lesson Design Software

36. eXe
Open-Source Course/Lesson Design Software

37. eXe: Sample Design Page

38. Open Source
Screen Capture Software
Jing CamStudio

39. Exam Creation Software:
Respondus
For Creating and Managing Exams and Publishing
Them to Learning Management Systems

40. Open Source Grading Software:
Automatic Grading Software (via Google Forms)

41. Ustream
Provides a Platform for Lifecasting and
Live Video Streaming

42. Gocomics.com
Search for Controversial Topics,
Editorials, and Cartoons

43. 5 TED Talks on Science
That Will Blow Your Mind
Beyond Evolution - Engineering Biology

44. Khan Academy Tutorials

45. Impromptu Course Content
Camtasia – CamStudio

46. Textbook Selection

47. Smart or Interactive Texts

48. Interactivity
Reinforcing Through Short Questions with Feedback

49. Detailed Explanations

50. Textbook-Free Classes?
Open-Education Company Helps Develop
Textbook-Free Associate Degree
by Jake New (3/11/13)

51. Online Biology Text

52. Online Physics Text
The Physics Classroom

53. Environmental Science
in the 21st Century

54. Environmental Science
http://www.learner.org/courses/envsci/

55. Open-Source Chemistry Text
• http://askthenerd.com/chemistryonline/index.html
• http://www.chem1.com/acad/webtext/virtualtextbook.html
• http://www2.chemistry.msu.edu/faculty/reusch/VirtTxtJml/intro1.htm
• https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/BookDetail.aspx?bookId=69
• http://preparatorychemistry.com/
• http://chemed.chem.wisc.edu/chempaths/GenChem-
Textbook/Introduction-679.html

56. Open-Source Physics Texts
• http://www.learner.org/courses/physics/unit/
• index.html
• http://motionmountain.net/
• http://physics.quantumwizard.com/Intro/
• http://www.lightandmatter.com/books.html
• http://www.wright.edu/~guy.vandegrift/Physic
sEquations/Reviews.htm

57. We Have Reached a Fork in the Road …
Will Online = On Campus Lab Experiences?
OPTIONS FOR ONLINELAB COURSES:
Hybrid with On-Campus Labs
Simulations/Virtual
Kitchen Labs
Lab Kits: Instructor-Made
vs. Commercial Lab Kits
Remote-Access Labs

58. Philosophical Considerations
Simulations vs. Tactile Labs
Seeing vs. Doing
College Level Experiments
vs. Basic Concepts
Kitchen Chemistry
String and Sticky Tape

59. The “Perfect” Campus Lab

60. This is Often What We Get…

61. Simulated Labs in Textbook CD-ROMs
Example from Houghton Mifflin’s Ebbing Text

62. Late Nite Labs

63. PhET Simulations

64. Virtual ChemLab - BYU

65. Pig Dissection - Whitman College
Through the peritoneal membrane

66. Optical Bench Simulation

67. APPLETS/PHYSLETS
• Wolfgang Christian – Davidson College
• PhET – Univ. of Colorado

68. Flight Simulator Analogy

69. Kitchen Labs
Anytime, anywhere chemistry experience

70. History of Lab Kit Usage

71. VLADIMIR PRELOG –
CHEMISTRY NOBEL prize 1975

72. History of Lab Kit Usage
by Colleges
• Open University, UK:
• Athabasca University, Canada:
• Monash University, Australia:

73. The Open University - UK
Since early 1970’s
Very large science kit – storage problem
$ 1.6 million/8000 students
Very high annual costs for warehousing,
shipping, replacement parts, etc.
Developing a new kit that will be small non-
returnable

74. Titration Methods
via Home Lab Kit:

75. Home Lab Kit - Colorimeter

76. Analysis of Phosphate in Water

77. BOILING POINT OF A LIQUID

78. Student Performing
Optical Bench Experiment

79. Student Performing Pig Dissection

80. Remote Access Experiments
 DIXIE: Double-crystal small-angle
neutron scattering experiment at the
ORNL High Flux Isotope Reactor
(HFIR) - Oak Ridge Nat’l Lab
 Materials Microcharacterization
Collaboratory (MMC): Microscopy -
Argonne National Laboratory
 Iowa State University – WebSEM
 Western Washington University ILN –
Chromatography, Spectroscopy,
Microscopy
 North Island College - Remote Web-
based Science Lab

81. Remote Controlled Lab - Munich
University of the Bundeswehr of Bavaria
Diffraction of Electrons Photo Effect

82. iLabCentral
•

83. North American Network of Science
Labs Online (NANSLO)

84. MIT’s iLAB –
FORCE ON A MAGNETIC DIPOLE

85. Remote Access Labs
Integrated Laboratory Network (WWU)
Furnace Atomic Absorption
Spectrometer
Scanning Electron
Microscope

86. Remote Observatories

87. Video Experiments
Radioactive Half-life Experiment - Part 1 - Equipment Overview

88. Commercially Assembled Lab Kits

89. Physics LabPaq

90. Home Lab Safety and Liability Issues
Safety Videos

91. Student   Instructor
Interactions

92. Communicate Before Class Starts
• Welcome letter
• Communication via course structure & syllabus:
– Give students a clear overall understanding of the
course structure
– Post course syllabus, policies,
expectations, and objectives.
– Include FAQ section
– Frequent due date reminder

93. Pre-Course Questionnaire
Questionnaire:
To help you be successful in this class, I need to know as much as possible about you,
your past learning and work experiences, your familiarity with technology, etc.
Please take time to provide as many answers as you can to the following questions.
This information will me provide you with a quality learning experience.
Name:____________________________________________________
Day Phone: _____________________Night Phone:_________________________
email______________________________________________________
Course-related work experience ________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Current job ________________________________________________
Average work hours per week:
Number of credit hours this semester:

94. Introduction Video
Prof. Don Reed – San Jose State Univ. – Online Oceanography
Software Used:
Camtasia Studio –
Debut Video capture
Visual Communicator 3
Editing: Windows
Movie Maker

95. Introduction: Narrated PPT

96. True Colors
Personality & Learning Styles

97. Discover your Learning Styles - Graphically!
Learning-styles-online.com provides free information and tools to help you
understand and use learning styles effectively.
Learning styles are a way to help improve your quality of learning. By
understanding your own personal styles, you can adapt the learning process
and techniques you use. This site is dedicated to helping you better understand
learning styles, as well as providing an easy way to discover your own styles.
Learning Style Indicator Quiz

98. Communicate During The Semester
 Post your virtual office hours
 Have a Response time policy
 Email, blogs, Facebook, Twitter, discussion
boards, announcements, group emails
 Use multiple means for important communication: -
don’t trust that they will see just one announcement
 Email, announcement, calendar entry, discussion board
 I let my student know that I do not answer content-
focused e-mails they belong in the discussion board
 Email are for personal & confidential communication

99. Communicate During the Semester
• Grading Feedback
• Positive re-enforcement
• Encouragement when student falls
behind

100. Communicating w/ Millennials (Gen Y)
• Email obsolete
• Text & tweet
• Facebook
• In CANVAS students select preferred
mode of communication – Twitter, FB,
etc.

101. Designing Meaningful,
Student-to-Student
Collaboration Experiences

102. Student to Student Communication
• Discussion Board
• Cyber Café
• Group Projects (wikis, blogs, group
assignments, Google docs, voice thread)

103. Discussion Boards

104. Discussion Board Activities
Facilitate relationship building, idea
sharing, collaboration, personal presence
in the class.
Components:
Question and answer
Problem solving, analysis or idea sharing
Social (Cyber Café)

105. Discussion Board Hints
Make discussions relevant and worthwhile
Assessment? – Post your rubric
Ensure students are technically competent
Define an acceptable tone of language
Large or small group discussions

106. Best Discussion Board Practices
Establish criteria
Set a clear deadline
Moderate and lead by example
Stay positive
Praise students who participate well
Summarize the conversation periodically
Don’t dominate the discussion
Deal with any issues privately

107. Using Multiple Discussion Boards

108. Discussion Board Grading Rubric

109. Wikis
Hawaiian word meaning "fast" or "quick"

110. Blog = Web Log

111. Storify
Storify lets students curate social networks to
build stories, bringing together media scattered
across the Web into a coherent narrative.
This is the
storify page for
number10gov

112. Storify:
Texas Tornadoes In Photos, Tweets

113. ePortfolios

114. Voice Thread

115. Learning and Teaching in
“Second Life”

116. Science Learning Opportunities in
Second Life

117. Collaboration in 2nd Life
Contact People in Same Field of Interest
From Around the World
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H863W9G7t-Y&feature=relmfu

118. Second Life at UAA

119. Student-Generated Animated Videos
http://www.xtranormal.com/

120. Student-Generated Animated Videos
goanimate.com

121. Get students involved!
 “Analyze problem in detail – share with class”
 “Edit a wiki page” – Create a “blog”
 Present a relevant current (chemical) event (relevant to
the topic of the module)
 Use real-time, web-based data such as recent earthquake
data, climate data
 Case studies
 Let them be creative – design a game

122. Assessment with Academic Integrity
in Mind - Chemistry

123. Engaging Assessment with Academic
Integrity in Mind: Chemistry

124. Alternative Assessment: Dissection

125. Alternative Assessment: Dissection

126. Student Video - A & P
Dr. Penny Perkins-Johnston, CSU – San Marcus

127. student video - A & P
Dr. Penny Perkins-Johnston, CSU – San Marcus

128. Citizen Science Projects

129. Citizen Science Projects

130. Providing a “Field Trip” Experience

131. Geology of N. Cascade National Park

132. Capstone field experience
Dr. James Brown –Ocean County College

133. Important Considerations

134. Online Teaching Resources

135. Online Teaching Resouces

136. Make Your Online Class Better
• Expect things to go wrong
• Be prepared to help students
• Anticipate common problems
• Give lots of feedback
• Give assignments that let
students be creative

137. Q & A Session

138. Peter Jeschofnig, Ph.D.
peter.jeschofnig@iedse.org
720-279-7532