Virtual and hands-on laboratory environments in the chemistry classroom: the effect of prior chemistry knowledge

Abstract

With rapid technological advancements and the creation of innovative digital tools, virtual laboratory (VTL) experiences are being integrated into undergraduate chemistry curricula. Using a four-week counterbalanced design with 70 first-year college students, this study aimed to demonstrate how prior chemistry knowledge, assessed by a general chemistry exam, predicted student performance in traditional hands-on laboratory (HOL) and VTL experiments. The results of t-test analyses revealed similar overall performance between the HOL and VTL environments. However, the results of a MANOVA showed a differential effect: VTLs were more effective for students demonstrating a high level of prior chemistry knowledge, whereas no significant difference was observed for students with a low level of prior knowledge. Furthermore, prior knowledge explained 35% of the variance in high level knowledge students’ VTL performance, indicating its strong predictive power for their laboratory success. These results suggest that although VTLs may not harm science achievement, they could inadvertently widen the performance gap between high-achieving and low-achieving students. Accordingly, this study underscores the importance of utilizing predictor variables, such as prior chemistry knowledge, to better understand and optimize the effectiveness of HOL and VTL experiments.