LAB Theory, HLAB Pedagogy, and Review of Laboratory Learning in Chemistry during the COVID-19 Pandemic

• Published in: Journal of chemical education Vol. 98; no. 8; pp. 2496 - 2517
• Main Author: Kelley, Elizabeth W
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Chemical Society and Division of Chemical Education, Inc 10.08.2021; Division of Chemical Education, Inc; American Chemical Society
• Subjects: Chemical Education Research; Chemistry; College Students; Colleges & universities; COVID-19; Curricula; Distance Education; Education; Hands on Science; Individualized Instruction; Instructional Effectiveness; Laboratories; Learning theories; Learning theory; Pandemics; Science education; Science Experiments; Students; Teachers; First-Year Undergraduate/General; Hands-On Learning/Manipulatives; Upper-Division Undergraduate; Laboratory Instruction; Second-Year Undergraduate; Distance Learning/Self Instruction; High School/Introductory Chemistry; Internet/Web-Based Learning; Chemical Education Research; General Public
• ISSN: 0021-9584; 1938-1328
• DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.1c00457

The role and efficacy of the laboratory in chemical education have recently been a subject of renewed discussion as researchers are called upon to address the question of whether laboratory education lives up to expectations. The COVID-19 pandemic, which forced most of the global student population to temporarily adopt remote learning, offers an unparalleled case study to investigate types of outcomes resulting from a variety of adjustments made to laboratory education. This scoping review article focuses on the reports of laboratory learning in chemistry and closely related disciplines during COVID-19 to analyze the types of adjustments made to laboratory curricula and the immediate effect of these adjustments on students. The aggregated findings suggest that a lack of hands-on laboratory experience was detrimental to certain types of learning and engagement but that other types of learning were successfully achieved remotely. For researchers, departments, and university administrators, the differentiation in these findings could help inform the ongoing discussion about the future of laboratory education. For instructors and student support staff, the findings indicate potential areas of deficiency and strength for the COVID-19 student cohort going forward. Finally, a laboratory learning theory and pedagogy are proposed to guide the use of the laboratory in chemical education and potentially in other laboratory-based sciences as well.