Peer Review

Virtual Labs Interactive Physiology Library

Material Detail page

Reviewed:: Aug 31, 2017 by Biology

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Ratings

Overall Rating:

Content Quality:

Effectiveness:

Ease of Use:

Overview:

Rich, high-end interactive learning media for physiology including tutorials, animations, virtual labs, simulations, quizzes. Vision, cranial nerves, CV, respiratory, renal, GI. Demos available at site.
http://www.plosbiology.org/plosonline/?request=get-document&doi=10.1371%2Fjournal.pbio.0020157

Type of Material:

Collection

Recommended Uses:

Tutorial
review
general information

Technical Requirements:

Shockwave plugin
Using Windows 10, could not open the files in Chrome or Microsoft edge. I was able to open files using Firefox.

Identify Major Learning Goals:

The user will find information on physiology, neuroscience, biology, immunology, health, humanities and other topics.

Target Student Population:

Some activities are geared toward K-12 populations (e.g. links under "Health Education"). In general, though, most are appropriate for high school and undergraduate A&P or Biology courses.

Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:

Most of the resources here are best used with some prior introduction to the topic(s) being covered.

Content Quality

Rating:

Strengths:

Materials are organized clearly into groups, making them easy to find.
The material covered is accurate and provides clear concept demonstrations of concepts that are often difficult for students.

Concerns:

Some activities may need a bit more explanation or more obvious instructions. For example, under "immune system module" there are a series of activities that auto-play. There are stop/start buttons, and it's not entirely clear how the student should interact with those or what the activity involves. It may be useful to include an overview or introduction page for these types of activities.
Similarly, the "Multiple Choice Quiz Builder"; link directs to a quiz about popular (?) celebrities. It is not clear how/if this relates to physiology.

Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool

Rating:

Strengths:

broken down into topics
each module is self contained
animations reinforce text

Concerns:

Many of the items don't work well as assessment tools and do not have identified learning goals.
It can be difficult to identify the level of the activities before starting them; faculty and students may need more guidance as to what is covered in each link.

Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty

Rating:

Strengths:

The main page is well-organized and the logo is attractive.
Many of the materials are well-designed and engaging/interactive.

Concerns:

Many of these activities require ShockWave and/or Quicktime. I had difficulties loading most even after using two separate browsers.
Many links are broken, particularly in the Immunology unit.
Appears to have been last updated in 2007.

Other Issues and Comments:

This is a database or a list of links.
Depending on the link there are animations and text, or sometimes just text.
The links in the database have different uses, review, homework, class projects
Not all of the topics relate to each other.
A big problem was that I had to try several browsers to find one that would work.

Creative Commons: