The Effects of Mixed-Reality Labs on Students’ Conceptual Understanding

• In Event: Curriculum Innovation and Enactment

Abstract

Hands-on science laboratory experiences enable students to interact with scientific phenomena in the real world, yet students often fail to connect labs to other instruction. Virtual labs allow students to interact with scientific phenomena that cannot be directly observed, and students frequently fail to connect these experiences to the real world. Physical and virtual laboratories have seldom been integrated into a singular experience. This study leverages the independent affordances of physical and virtual labs within a singular, connected mixed-reality experience. This paper presents pilot results from middle school classrooms (n=72) using mixed-reality labs with science instruction. Results demonstrate that mixed-reality labs can increase students’ understanding and development of scientifically normative ideas about the Ideal Gas Law and Kinetic Molecular Theory.

Author

• Crystal J. DeJaegher, University of Notre Dame