Remote laboratories
Virtual Laboratories
Simulated Laboratories
NTPW is an umbrella term given to the grouping of remote laboratories, virtual laboratories and simulations.
Remote laboratories
Remote laboratories offer experiments with internet-enabled hardware, so that users can see, hear, and control the apparatus and collect data without being physically present in the same location as the experiment. They come in two main flavours:
Synchronous remote lab: live interaction with the equipment, promoting exploration and the development of inquiry skills. Example: the openEngineering Laboratory at the Open University.
Asynchronous remote lab: users request experiments to run according to their selection of parameters. The request is queued, eventually the experiment is run, and the results returned to the student. Example: the RELOAD laboratory at the University of Leeds.
Virtual laboratories
Virtual laboratories provide users with a synchronous or asynchronous experience by drawing on a pre-recorded data, permitting much larger scale / throughput. Example: virtual microscopes in the OpenSTEM Lab at the Open University
Simulations
Simulations are an alternative that can be useful when the apparatus is too large (e.g. CERN), or the intended learning outcomes do not require a physical artefact (e.g. a simple model can be preferable in certain cases). There is still much more to be said about the difference (and similarities) between simulations and experiments in an education context – more on that later.