Open AccessPhysiology labs during a pandemic: What did we learn?
Author(s) -
Xinnian Chen,
Catherine B. KirnSafran,
Talitha van der Meulen,
Karen L. Myhr,
Alan H. Savitzky,
Melissa A. Fleegal-DeMotta
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
advances in physiology education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.501
H-Index - 60
eISSN - 1522-1229
pISSN - 1043-4046
DOI - 10.1152/advan.00022.2021
Subject(s) - covid-19 , pandemic , task (project management) , process (computing) , online teaching , engineering ethics , computer science , psychology , physiology , mathematics education , medicine , engineering , disease , systems engineering , pathology , virology , outbreak , infectious disease (medical specialty) , operating system
This article captures a collective reflection on the successes and challenges we experienced when teaching physiology laboratories online during the COVID-19 pandemic. Physiology instructors from six institutions discussed their own efforts to redesign meaningful physiology laboratories that could be taught remotely, as the nation scrambled to respond to the sudden shift out of the classroom. Despite the complexity of this task, clear themes emerged as our courses transitioned to an online format in spring 2020 and were solidified in the fall of 2020. This article reflects on the history, features, benefits, and challenges of current laboratory teaching when applying a scientific teaching approach to facilitate the redesign process. We believe online networks like ours can facilitate information sharing, promote innovations, and provide support for instructors. The insights we gained through this collaboration will influence our thinking about the future of the physiology lab, whether online or in person.