This collection of materials, sponsored by the Olympus company, gives a comprehensive overview of microscopy and related topics including the physics of light, digital imagining and others. The site is organized by topic and includes short interactives which further explain key concepts. A useful resource for college-level science courses, this site could be used before a microscope based lab to orient students to microscopy.
Type of Material:
Collection
Recommended Uses:
In class, homework, extra credit, individual, team, group.
Technical Requirements:
Java and Flash needed for some parts.
Identify Major Learning Goals:
Learn to use, understand, and engage with the world of microscopes.
Understand how objects are magnified by lenses.
Understand the parts of a microscope.
Know applications of microscopy in various fields of study.
Target Student Population:
College General Ed, College Lower Division, College Upper Division, Graduate School,
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:
None needed.
Content Quality
Rating:
Strengths:
Comprehensive collection of materials.
Images are designed to enhance textual content.
Tutorials are well designed and aid in comprehension.
Includes additional web resources and a bibliography.
Concerns:
The material is text heavy
Organization sometimes difficult to follow-unclear if hot links take you to internal or external sites.
Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool
Rating:
Strengths:
Web resources include links to educational materials for various grade levels.
Some suggested activities could be used as an assessment tool.
A useful resource for students before they complete a microscope-based lab.
Concerns:
A solid reference tool, but external resources would need to be used to assess learning or to create a learning activity.
Organization of the pages makes finding important information or designing an activity more labor intensive than necessary.
Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty
Rating:
Strengths:
Well organized.
Easy to navigate; side bar and other home buttons will get you back home page more easily.
Good use of imagery.
Concerns:
Consider adding audio narration to enhance accessibility.
Creative Commons:
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