Virtual wet lab practice: From a sudden crisis towards the deployment of an integrated faculty strategy

Abstract

This is a brief overview on student engagement and perception of remote practical activities during the COVID-19 outbreak emergency. The topics that were heavily affected by these sudden and unexpected changes, where chemistry, biochemistry, bioinformatics, pharmacology, and compounding. This survey took responses from the students of both bachelor and master's degrees at the School of Pharmacy of the University of Milan. This University is in the epicentre of the COVID-19 outbreak in Italy. Despite a good or high appreciation of the online practical activities, up to 95% of participants agreed that multimedia content cannot efficiently replace in- person labs. Moreover, discussions with the teachers and discussions among lab mates has a great positive impact on the knowledge and skills they acquire.