If schools go virtual, what happens to the role of the teacher?

I don't think virtual learning would work well in science, art, or a lot of other subjects where you are developing skills that need to be applied to the subject (i.e. lab skills, art techniques, etc.).

 

Ooo! You should probably check out https://www.explorelearning.com/ for virtual lab experiments. My Physical Science counterpart uses this with our students, and they love it.

 

Yeah. Virtual labs are useful, but they really aren't comparable to actually doing the experiment in the real world, having to measure out the mass of objects using a mass balance, create the right concentration of solution, or measuring the volume of something. Tomorrow, we're learning about metallic bonding by using an electroplating solution, a circuit to electroplate a penny with zinc, and then using bunsen burners to meld it into a brass alloy.

The type of engagement is just different. I think simulations are great things to do after students have experienced the real world lab, and they want to explore further or run their own experiments (of course I think running their own experiments would be better if they could do it in reality too), but I find when students do simulations, they don't always connect it to the real world.

Simulations should definitely be used in conjunction with real labs, but they shouldn't replace them.