Albert Paulo Tarmo

2 Publications in AERD

Author Publications

Enhancing Students’ Understanding of Nerve Cells’ Structures and Their Symbiotic Functioning by Using Technology-Enhanced Instruction Incorporating Virtual Labs and Animations

By Céline Byukusenge

Some science subjects are often perceived to be difficult and boring by students due to their nature and the way they are taught. This study sought to check the effectiveness of the technology-enhanced instruction method with comprehensive use of virtual labs and animations in teaching nerve cells’ (neurons and glial cells) structures and functions. Mayer’s cognitive theory of multimedia learning provided the theoretical model to frame the study. This study used a quasi-experimental design of pre-test and post-test where four secondary schools all from the southern province of Rwanda were selected from two different districts. Two schools from Ruhango District were assigned to the experimental group while the other two schools from Muhanga District were assigned to the control group. The study involved 168 students, 83 forming the control group, and 85 forming the experimental group. The biology test based on nerve cells was used to assess the effect of teaching strategies before and after learning. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS version 23, and we computed a multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and repeated measures ANOVA. The results indicated that the students who learned nerve cells by use of technology-enhanced instruction of virtual labs and animations outperformed those who learned with conventional methods (M. exp. = 80.41% with SD = 10.32 versus M. cont. = 47.11% with SD = 10.68 and a p-value < 0.05). The results also indicated that after learning with virtual labs and animations, the number of students who were able to perform each of the 20 questions of the test increased considerably. The study recommends the use of virtual labs and animations to enhance students’ understanding of nerve cells. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V.

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Exploring Students' Perceptions of Virtual and Physical Laboratory Activities and Usage in Secondary Schools

By Céline Byukusenge

Laboratory experience has been indicated as a crucial component of science teaching for practical skills acquisition and concretization of scientific abstract concepts. However, due to the shortage of physical laboratories, there is a need to integrate virtual labs into teaching as an alternative to physical labs to promote students' experiential learning, conceptual understanding, attitude and overall performance. The present study explored how students in secondary schools perceive the use of virtual and physical laboratories in learning biology. The study involved 53 biology students from one secondary school in the Ruhango district in Rwanda. The school was purposively selected to participate in this study as it had an equipped physical laboratory with the materials needed during the study. In addition, the school was equipped with a computer lab where each student had access to a computer. This study used a mixed-method research approach. A validated survey questionnaire of closed-ended questions was used to collect quantitative data. Furthermore, a focus group of eight students (four boys and four girls) was used to collect qualitative data. The data collected was analysed both quantitatively and qualitatively. The results showed that more students perceived virtual lab activities as easier to perform, more motivating and more interesting than physical lab activities. However, 81% of students stressed that virtual labs should not replace physical labs; rather, both should be used in complementarity as physical lab activities helped them to understand the content more than virtual lab activities. Nevertheless, students pointed out that virtual labs could undoubtedly be very helpful for students whose schools lack physical laboratory equipment. The findings of this study indicate the need for further investigation to compare physical and virtual labs in terms of students' academic performance and interest in biology. © Authors This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).

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