Abstract
The advancement of information technology has an enormous impact on education. The main concern of Hellenic Open University is to update its didactic models by adapting the suitable developments and innovations of this technology to all the aspects of its educational processes. This is a large challenge for the scientific staff of the Natural Sciences module whose last attempt is the embodiment of a virtual simulation lab in its educational scenarios. In this thesis we will try to assess a 3D game-like virtual biology laboratory, called OnLabs, in the aspect of communicating basic knowledge and laboratorial skills to students who have completed an undergraduate Biology course.
This virtual lab will be evaluated based on educational outcomes. The main goal of this thesis is to present innovative braining methodological approaches that assesse the performance of those students who include OnLabs as a supplement in their preparation procedure for the conventional laboratory-the real challenge, compared to the performance of those who aren’t interested in using the virtual educational model for their preparation. Depend on students’ performance outcomes, research questions such as whether the incorporation of such a virtual tool in the educational process, will ameliorate the quality of education, are about to be answered.
Advisory Committee
Supervisor: Argyro Sgourou – Assistant Professor, School of Science and Technology, Hellenic Open University
Co-Supervisors:
1. Dimitrios Kalles, Associate Professor, School of Science and Technology, Hellenic Open University
2. Chris Panagiotakopoulos, Professor, Department of Primary Education, University of Patras, Greece