VIEWS OF TERTIARY INSTITUTION SCIENCE LABORATORY TECHNOLOGISTS ON VIRTUAL LABORATORY AMIDST COVID-19 OUTBREAK IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Abstract
Usage and switching from physical to virtual laboratories is fast growing and gaining more
momentum and popularity among the teachers, students and technologists as a result of
advancement and improvement in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in this
21st century otherwise known as digital age which is also necessitated by the spread of Covid19. The design for this study was descriptive study. The study sampled thirteen (13) laboratory
technologists who were conveniently selected across the federal and state tertiary institutions
in Nigeria responded to the Google form questionnaire link shared on their various WhatsApp
platform. The instrument used for this study was adapted and tagged “views of Science
Laboratory Technologist on Virtual Labs Questionnaire” with three possible Likert scales
(Agree, Neutral and Disagree). The face and construct validity of the instrument was
determined by ICT experts and analyzed with a validity and reliability indexes of 0.72 & 0.68.
The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequency, percentages and chart
diagram) Overall feedback shows that most laboratory scientists’ (75%) concluded that virtual
laboratories aid teaching-learning process, especially during the period of Corona Virus
pandemic lockdown and to a greater extent, it helps the application of students’ theoretical
knowledge into practice, it promotes students self-learning, prepare students to get more familiar with experiments’ and also helps them to handle the equipment correctly before
entering physical labs.