The learning design involves students conducting three main tasks:

• familiarising themselves with the fitness testing equipment by conducting the V-Lab pre-lab tutorial
• conducting real fitness tests
• entering the data gathered from these tests into the V-Lab database and comparing their results with the data stored in the database.

View the Learning Design Sequence for a graphical representation of this learning design.

Students are required to methodically work through four sections of the V-Lab resource: Introduction, Equipment, Procedure, Data Processing....

V-Lab, print manual, face-to-face classes, and real laboratory work are all significant resources...

Critical to the learning: The discursive activities in face-to-face classes; Individualised support provided by email or in real laboratories; Technical support is critical to ensure learning is not disrupted by technical problems...

V-Lab is used during several learning sessions conducted over a three week period at the mid-point of the semester. Basic introductory concepts are delivered in face-to-face mode before students use V-Lab...

Learn about the nature and use of fitness testing equipment in a virtual environment; Learn the step-by-step procedures for carrying out complex fitness testing; Competently apply the procedures in a real laboratory setting; ...

The very basic assessment strategies employed are important in ensuring that students carry out the V-Lab testing procedures. In and of themselves they do not serve as a mechanism to demonstrate learning outcomes. The demonstration of learning outcomes is more evident in the procedures conducted in the real lab...

The use of ICT was introduced in an attempt to overcome difficulties associated with learning certain concepts in overcrowded laboratories in a short time frame, including...

No particular learning theory was espoused before or during the design phase. It could be argued that the learning design uses a procedural model underpinned by elements of Gagne-Briggs theory of instruction, particularly...

Meetings were held between faculty and academic development staff to identify the learning problem...

No broadly-based research has been conducted on the learning design per se. An initial evaluation was conducted on the implementation of V-Lab Part of this sought data on students' beliefs about what they learnt...

There may be some cultural assumptions built into the design; at the time of design and development, cultural diversity issues were not considered...