Application of VL in combination with flipped classroom in teaching of virus infection diagnosis

Objective To explore the effect of "virtual laboratory (VL) + flipped classroom" in teaching of virus infection diagnosis. Methods 40 students of Class One from clinical medical undergraduates of Grade 2014 were randomly taken as the experimental group, with 40 students of Class Two as the control group. The experiment group adopted flipped classroom teaching by virtual lab platform and class-room activities, while the control group adopted traditional classroom teaching such as watching video and lecturing. Finally post-test scores were compared by the independent samples t-test of SPSS 18.0 statistical software between the two groups. The teaching effects were evaluated through questionnaires survey in exper-imental group. Results The scores (82.73±2.62) of comprehensive assessments were superior to the control scores (57.94±4.65). Difference between the two groups was statistically significant (t=29.380, P=0.000). Students' satisfaction concerning the teaching methods and effects of the flipped classroom in experimental group was up to 85%. Conclusion Flipped classroom based on internet virtual lab platform in teaching of virus infection diagnosis can enhance the teaching quality and improve students' learning enthusiasm and thinking ability. Key words: Virtual laboratory; Flipped classroom; Virus infection; Examination method; Experimental teaching