Investigating the effectiveness of using the virtual computer simulation game, LABSTER, for knowledge acquisition purposes amongst university freshmen

Traditional usage of lecture slides and notes for teaching and learning, though familiar to many, has its flaws in communication. Teachers have taken advantage of the increasing popularity of technology usage and applied it to class, to cater to different learning styles of students. A more recent method, Digital Game-Based Learning (DGBL), is gaining interest among teachers and researchers, for the potential benefits that it can bring to class. This study investigates the use of the virtual lab game, LABSTER, to complement lecture notes usage in students’ learning. Students were to take three tests. The first was when students had no content exposure. The second was when students have studied the lecture notes. The third was when students have used a particular chosen virtual lab with the notes, to examine what effects can it bring to students. Results from this study showed that, although the software was well enjoyed by the students as seen in survey responses, LABSTER was generally ineffective in boosting student test scores. The improvement of students after using the game was not statistically significant (>0.05). In fact, some students even had a decrease in scores as compared to earlier tests after game exposure. The strengths and weaknesses that LABSTER has when applied in class are further discussed in relation to recommendation of the context of its use.Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Science