Fostering Students’ Cognitive Achievement Through Employing Virtual Reality Laboratory (VRL)

Abstract

Titration is one of chemistry concepts which highly requires laboratory work in the learning process. However in the implementation, many obstacles are often encountered in a conventional laboratory such as lack of materials, tools, and times which make it less optimal. Evidently these issues could be solved by employing Virtual Reality (VR) technology. Thus far VR makes great contributions especially to the education sector. One of them is through combining it in the process of developing virtual laboratory. Virtual laboratory played an important role in the learning process specifically in terms of laboratory works. It was possible to manipulate 2D (virtual world) objects similar to 3D (real world) objects. This study developed Virtual Reality Laboratory (VRL) to analyze its characteristics, quality, and impact on students' cognitive achievement. A research and development (R&D) method with a post-test design was applied in this study. The subjects of this study were 102 high school students in class XI. The samples were divided into 3 classes, namely CC (real laboratory); EC-1 (VRL); and EC-2 (real laboratory and VRL). The findings of students' cognitive achievement were analyzed using ANOVA and it was found that there were significant differences in students' cognitive achievement in those three classes. Students who used VRL had higher cognitive achievement than students who used the conventional one. VRL also received excellent grades from chemistry educators. Thus, VRL is very useful as a supplement in the teaching and learning process.