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Introduction: This paper reports on a sequential explanatory mixed-methods study that assessed technological, pedagogical and content knowledge (TPACK) competency among life sciences teachers in the context of virtual lab adoption in rural schools in South Africa. Methods: Drawing from TPACK framework as the study's theoretical foundation, data gathered through questionnaires (N = 186) and in-depth semi-structured interviews (N = 4) were analysed using descriptive and thematic analysis. Results: The study uncovered a ubiquitous deficiency in TPACK competency among the participating life sciences teachers. The teachers demonstrated significant expertise in conventional areas such as content knowledge (CK), pedagogical knowledge (PK), and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), mainly influenced by teaching experience. However, they exhibited a noticeable gap in technology-related TPACK domains, including technological knowledge (TK), technological pedagogical knowledge (TPK), and overall TPACK proficiency. Discussion: This paper aspires to address a significant gap in educational research by spotlighting the often-overlooked rural teaching contexts. In addition, the paper advocates for tailored professional development initiatives to enhance teachers' overall TPACK proficiency. Such initiatives are crucial for empowering teachers to integrate technology into their teaching and improve learning outcomes effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has provided unprecedented opportunities to enhance the quality of life over the past few decades. It has not only augmented the efficacy of telecommunication but also facilitated lifelong teaching and learning. ICT played a remarkable role in assisting students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the outbreak of the pandemic, schools and colleges have been closed to prevent its lethal impact. In order to facilitate teaching-learning during the pandemic, the entire educational system was shifted to an online mode of knowledge dissemination. In the online mode, both students and teachers encountered some difficulties. During lockdowns, mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets, were used to conduct online experiments via virtual platforms. Despite this, a comprehensive Learning Management System (LMS) was required to fill the gap created by the lack of proximity in a typical classroom. A LMS not only makes online learning possible, but also helps students gain practical experience R. Kaur Department of Electronics, Acharya Narendra Dev College, University of Delhi, New Delhi-110019, India. 4ravneetkaur@andc.du.ac.in and allows teachers to evaluate them. In this paper, an Android-based LMS is proposed to assist students perform physics experiments virtually on smart devices. The proposed system is an inexpensive, hands-on solution that is easy to install on smartphones and tablets. The main objective of the proposed system is to provide teachers with a comprehensive way of managing teaching-learning and evaluating the knowledge of concepts. Though the proposed system is designed for the physics lab, it can be expanded and adapted to other subject areas. The system is not intended to replace the current education system, but to supplement it by fostering and testing innovative ideas and solutions for effective learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Involving students in laboratory and inquiry-based activities can help them understand the concepts of physics. However the learning process should not only focus on the concepts. Moreover, the advantages of using virtual or physical labs are still under examination. The purpose of this study is to analyse which of the two modes (virtual or physical) is the most effective for high-school students, in terms of conceptual understanding and attitudes. The criteria for this comparison are (a) the contribution of these two modes to the improvement of conceptual understanding and (b) the students' attitudes towards both modes of laboratory. The participants were high-school students of 3rd grade in two different groups. For the purpose of the study, four educational scenarios were created: two in the field of Mechanics and two in that of Electricity. The study revealed no statistically significant difference regarding students' experimenting in either lab mode. Moreover, students' attitudes towards both virtual and physical labs were similarly positive. We assume that these results may contribute to a broader perspective on choosing the lab mode when designing activities, given the fact that both the understanding and attitudes of the students are similar in the cases examined. Thus, the final choice of modality should be based on other factors, such as the adequacy of equipment, the educational conditions (e.g. distance education) and the specific learning goals set by the teacher. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

IntroductionThis paper reports on a sequential explanatory mixed-methods study that assessed technological, pedagogical and content knowledge (TPACK) competency among life sciences teachers in the context of virtual lab adoption in rural schools in South Africa.MethodsDrawing from TPACK framework as the study’s theoretical foundation, data gathered through questionnaires (N = 186) and in-depth semi-structured interviews (N = 4) were analysed using descriptive and thematic analysis.ResultsThe study uncovered a ubiquitous deficiency in TPACK competency among the participating life sciences teachers. The teachers demonstrated significant expertise in conventional areas such as content knowledge (CK), pedagogical knowledge (PK), and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), mainly influenced by teaching experience. However, they exhibited a noticeable gap in technology-related TPACK domains, including technological knowledge (TK), technological pedagogical knowledge (TPK), and overall TPACK proficiency.DiscussionThis paper aspires to address a significant gap in educational research by spotlighting the often-overlooked rural teaching contexts. In addition, the paper advocates for tailored professional development initiatives to enhance teachers’ overall TPACK proficiency. Such initiatives are crucial for empowering teachers to integrate technology into their teaching and improve learning outcomes effectively.

The current digital transformation in manufacturing has a strong impact on the competencies needed by manufacturing companies. This leads to evolving requirements for digital training in industrial engineering courses. The concept of virtual labs in academic environments can be instrumental in teaching new digital skills through practical experience. This paper aims to examine the requirements and essential factors involved in designing virtual labs, proposing a framework to meet the requirements of virtual lab activities, integrating didactic and research purposes while examining the requirements and essential factors involved in designing virtual labs digital twin as an enabling technology. The framework is the result of the analysis of the technical aspects related to immersive technologies, such as extended reality, together with insights gathered from interviews and pilot testing conducted in workshops involving students, teachers, and lab managers from three institutions implementing virtual labs. The outcomes of this study include the digital model of four manufacturing labs as virtual labs that are openly available for academic purposes. This showcases a commitment towards offering quality and inclusive engineering education through cutting­edge virtual technologies.

The current digital transformation in manufacturing has a strong impact on the competencies needed by manufacturing companies. This leads to evolving requirements for digital training in industrial engineering courses. The concept of virtual labs in academic environments can be instrumental in teaching new digital skills through practical experience. This paper aims to examine the requirements and essential factors involved in designing virtual labs, proposing a framework to meet the requirements of virtual lab activities, integrating didactic and research purposes while examining the requirements and essential factors involved in designing virtual labs digital twin as an enabling technology. The framework is the result of the analysis of the technical aspects related to immersive technologies, such as extended reality, together with insights gathered from interviews and pilot testing conducted in workshops involving students, teachers, and lab managers from three institutions implementing virtual labs. The outcomes of this study include the digital model of four manufacturing labs as virtual labs that are openly available for academic purposes. This showcases a commitment towards offering quality and inclusive engineering education through cuttingedge virtual technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research is aimed at developing virtual lab media that can be used to teach mathematical material about flat-sided shapes. The development model used is the Four-D model (Define, Design, Develop, Disseminate). Researchers used LORI, UEQ instruments, and pre-test and post-test questions to measure the quality of the virtual lab products being developed. The subjects involved in this research included experts, teachers, researchers and students at the Class VIII Junior High School level. This research produces a virtual lab learning media product called Gevila (Geometry Virtual Lab). Product testing by experts from the perspective of media appearance and content or material presented received a very worthy category. The practicality of virtual labs tested with small groups shows that the virtual lab media developed is practical. Based on the results of the pre-test and post-test, the virtual lab media was effective in improving students' critical thinking skills. This improvement was triggered by the addition of a database to track student activities, apperception activities, ice breaking with mini games, and exploration of material presented on Gevila. The results of testing user satisfaction with Gevila media show that this media is able to provide satisfaction to users by fulfilling the above average criteria on the UEQ questionnaire Abstrak Penelitian ini ditujukan untuk mengembangkan media virtual lab yang dapat digunakan untuk membelajarkan materi matematika bangun ruang sisi datar. Model pengembangan yang digunakan adalah model Four-D (Define, Design, Develop, Disseminate). Instrumen yang digunakan adalah LORI, UEQ, dan soal-soal pre-test dan post-test untuk mengukur kualitas produk virtual lab yang dikembangkan. Subjek yang terlibat dalam penelitian ini meliputi para ahli, guru-guru, peneliti, dan peserta didik di jenjang SMP Kelas VIII. Penelitian ini menghasilkan produk media pembelajaran virtual lab bernama Gevila (Geometry Virtual Lab). Pengujian produk oleh para pakar dari sudut pandang tampilan media dan isi atau materi yang disajikan memperoleh kategori sangat layak. Kepraktisan virtual lab yang diuji dengan kelompok kecil menunjukkan bahwa media virtual lab yang dikembangkan bersifat praktis. Berdasarkan hasil pre-test dan post-test yang dilakukan, media virtual lab yang dikembangkan efektif dalam meningkatkan kemampuan berpikir kritis peserta didik. Peningkatan ini dipicu oleh penambahan basis data untuk melacak aktivitas peserta didik, kegiatan apersepsi, ice breaking dengan mini games, dan eksplorasi materi yang dituangkan pada media Gevila. Hasil pengujian kepuasan pengguna terhadap media Gevila menunjukkan bahwa media ini mampu memberi kepuasan terhadap pengguna melalui pemenuhan kriteria above average pada kuesioner UEQ.