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Wiki Laboratory Notebooks: Supporting Student Learning in Collaborative Inquiry-Based Laboratory Experiments

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Abstract

Recent examples of high-impact teaching practices in the undergraduate chemistry laboratory that include course-based undergraduate research experiences and inquiry-based experiments require new approaches to assessing individual student learning outcomes. Instructors require tools and strategies that can provide them with insight into individual student contributions to collaborative group/teamwork throughout the processes of experimental design, data analysis, display and communication of their outcomes in relation to their research question(s). Traditional assessments in the form of laboratory notebooks or experimental reports provide limited insight into the processes of collaborative inquiry-based activities. A wiki environment offers a collaborative domain that can potentially support collaborative laboratory processes and scientific record keeping. In this study, the effectiveness of the wiki in supporting laboratory learning and assessment has been evaluated through analysis of the content and histories for three consenting, participating groups of students. The conversational framework has been applied to map the relationships between the instructor, tutor, students and laboratory activities. Analytics that have been applied to the wiki platform include: character counts, page views, edits, timelines and the extent and nature of the contribution by each student to the wiki. Student perceptions of both the role and the impact of the wiki on their experiences and processes have also been collected. Evidence has emerged from this study that the wiki environment has enhanced co-construction of understanding of both the experimental process and subsequent communication of outcomes and data. A number of features are identified to support success in the use of the wiki platform for laboratory notebooks.

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Acknowledgments

Funding for this study was provided through a University of Queensland Faculty of Science Teaching and Learning Grant. The contribution of the postgraduate tutors (Chandhi Goonasekera, Jing Zhong Luk and Jozef Hodyl) to the facilitation of the laboratory experience is gratefully acknowledged. Institutional ethics approval (2011000132) was granted for the research procedures in this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, 4067, Australia

    Gwendolyn Angela Lawrie, Lisbeth Grøndahl & Simon Boman

  2. Teaching and Education Development Institute, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, 4067, Australia

    Trish Andrews

Authors
  1. Gwendolyn Angela Lawrie
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  2. Lisbeth Grøndahl
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  3. Simon Boman
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  4. Trish Andrews
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Correspondence to Gwendolyn Angela Lawrie.

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Lawrie, G.A., Grøndahl, L., Boman, S. et al. Wiki Laboratory Notebooks: Supporting Student Learning in Collaborative Inquiry-Based Laboratory Experiments. J Sci Educ Technol 25, 394–409 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10956-016-9601-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10956-016-9601-0

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