The impact of virtual classroom laboratories in CSE

  • Authors:

  • Matt Bower;Debbie Richards

  • Affiliations:

  • Macquarie University, Australia;Macquarie University, Australia

  • Venue:
  • Proceedings of the 36th SIGCSE technical symposium on Computer science education
  • Year:
  • 2005

Quantified Score

Hi-index 0.00

Visualization

Abstract

In order to gauge the pedagogical implications of conducting Computer Science practical sessions remotely, the Division of ICS at Macquarie University conducted a formal experiment using a virtual classroom environment called Macromedia Breeze Live. Research results indicated that students who completed their practical in the virtual classroom: i) felt they performed significantly more collaboration, ii) expressed a preference for this mode of practical session over regular laboratory sessions, iii) felt that they learnt significantly more from their classmates and iv) felt that they learnt significantly more from the practical supervisor than students in the standard classroom. Reasons for these results are proposed in the pedagogical context of offering Computer Science practical sessions online.