Learning Science Online: Student Motivation and Experiences

Laboratory experiences are considered a key component of the science curriculum; a significant challenge is presenting meaningful laboratory experiences in the online environment. We developed a core of six fully online undergraduate science courses with a strong laboratory component consisting of two semesters each of biology, chemistry, and physics. Findings show that scientific experiments can be effectively incorporated in an online course and also used to strengthen student understanding of science concepts. We also assessed online students' motivation to learn science and asked them to evaluate their perceptions of the various components of these courses.

Learning Objectives:
* Describe a model for developing online science courses that includes a laboratory component
* Recognize several science motivation and self-regulation characteristics of online learners
* Summarize how a variety of online course activities can support and enrich student learning