Science labs have been altered in many ways to fit the pandemic’s standard. Virtual science labs have taken over. Hybrid students still complete labs in person, but there have been alterations to them in order to prevent the spread of the virus. But how has that affected the teachers and students? The CST  interviewed a Living Environment teacher and a Living Environment hybrid student to get their opinions on the labs. 

Ms. Katsionis, a Living Environment teacher at Lindenhurst High School, gave me her view on the labs.

How did you convert the paper labs to virtual labs? Were there any difficulties?

“Well, I had to learn how to do that. I had a fellow teacher that helped me do that. She is very patient and younger, so she is more tech savvy than me. She helped me out, so once I learned it, it wasn’t a problem. It was time consuming taking everything and digitizing it. It’s not hard, but very time consuming.”

What are your opinions on the virtual labs?

“With respect to it, I think it’s good. I think it is much better to do hands on work and get messy, and socially, it is better because you’re working with something and someone. That’s why I say “Get up and go work,” because the social part is not the same. But, my room is a lot cleaner because I don’t have the glassware to clean, because usually this place is a mess!”

Will you continue to assign labs virtually after the pandemic has passed?

“No, because I think science should be hands on. For the twenty-seven years I’ve been teaching, that’s what science is, it’s hand on. You can take your data and bring it to the computer and evaluate and analyze it, but I think the hands on is the way to go.”

Emma Pollard, a freshman hybrid student at Lindenhurst High School, gave me her opinion on the labs. 

What are labs like for you in person? How do you approach them? Do you prefer paper or virtual labs?

“Labs can be very difficult no matter how you do them. I like to do some research about what my lab is about, and look over some of the questions before I start. I enjoy that most labs can be done with partners. I don’t like that they can be time consuming. I prefer paper labs because I find it easier to answer the questions and understand the labs better.”

Is there anything you wish you could with labs that you weren’t able to do?

“Due to Covid, we can’t do labs to the extent we usually do, so I wish it could go back to normal. But with what we have right now, I think that the labs are very good for circumstances at hand.”

Have the virtual labs affected your grades in any way? Have they changed your outlook on how you approach them?

“Yes, the labs are a little more difficult online, so my grades have been affected. I try and pay closer attention when doing labs now to help me understand more.”

Overall, from the people interviewed, it seems that paper labs are more efficient than the virtual labs. Everyone’s opinion can be different from each other, but paper labs seem to be more popular amongst the people I have interviewed. On the other hand, labs have had many changes in the way they are approached due to the circumstances schools were faced with because of the pandemic.