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The Impact of Internet Virtual Physics Laboratory Instruction on the Achievement in Physics, Science Process Skills and Computer Attitudes of 10th-Grade Students

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate and compare the impact of Internet Virtual Physics Laboratory (IVPL) instruction with traditional laboratory instruction in physics academic achievement, performance of science process skills, and computer attitudes of tenth grade students. One-hundred and fifty students from four classes at one private senior high school in Taoyuan Country, Taiwan, R.O.C. were sampled. All four classes contained 75 students who were equally divided into an experimental group and a control group. The pre-test results indicated that the students’ entry-level physics academic achievement, science process skills, and computer attitudes were equal for both groups. On the post-test, the experimental group achieved significantly higher mean scores in physics academic achievement and science process skills. There was no significant difference in computer attitudes between the groups. We concluded that the IVPL had potential to help tenth graders improve their physics academic achievement and science process skills.

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Acknowledgements

This study was funded by the National Science Council [NSC] under granted numbers: NSC88-2511-S-033-004 and NSC89-2520-S-033-001. Many thanks to the NSC for financial support and to all students and teachers for their participation.

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  1. Graduate School of Education and Center for Teacher Education, Chung Yuan Christian University, 200, Chung Pei Rd., Chung Li, 32023, Taiwan, ROC

    Kun-Yuan Yang

  2. Department of Information and Computer Engineering, Chung Yuan Christian University, 200, Chung Pei Rd., Chung Li, 32023, Taiwan, ROC

    Jia-Sheng Heh

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  1. Kun-Yuan Yang
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Correspondence to Kun-Yuan Yang.

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Yang, KY., Heh, JS. The Impact of Internet Virtual Physics Laboratory Instruction on the Achievement in Physics, Science Process Skills and Computer Attitudes of 10th-Grade Students. J Sci Educ Technol 16, 451–461 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10956-007-9062-6

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