Rapid Transition to Remote Instruction of Physics Labs During Spring 2020: Instructor Perspectives

TL;DR

This paper surveys physics lab instructors' experiences during the rapid shift to remote teaching in spring 2020, highlighting challenges, adaptations, and future considerations for online lab instruction.

Contribution

It provides insights into instructors' adaptations and challenges during emergency remote teaching of physics labs, emphasizing common themes and future intentions.

Findings

Instructors faced challenges in replicating in-person lab experiences.

Courses shifted towards more concept-focused learning.

Use of simulation tools increased during remote instruction.

Abstract

Laboratory courses are an important part of the undergraduate physics curriculum. During physics labs, students can engage in authentic, hands-on experimental practices, which can prepare them for graduate school, research laboratories, and jobs in industry. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020, colleges and universities across the world rapidly transitioned to teaching labs remotely. In this work, we report results from a survey of physics lab instructors on how they adapted their courses in the transition to emergency remote teaching. We found that the instructors who responded to the survey faced numerous challenges when transitioning their classes to remote instruction, particularly in providing students with a similar experience to the in-person labs. In addition, we identified common themes in the instructors' responses including changing learning goals of the courses to be more concept-focused, reducing group work due to equity and technological concerns, and using a variety simulation tools, as well as report on factors that the instructors hoped to continue once they have returned to in-person instruction.