ExperD: Web-based Support for Laboratory Class Workflow Design

The design, use, and evaluation of a web-based experiment designer, ExperD, are described. ExperD supports students in designing a research strategy for their laboratory class. Next, ExperD supports students in their actual laboratory class work by showing them which experiments they have to carry out, and what the relation is between experiments. The use of ExperD was evaluated in the 2009 and 2011 editions of a Food Chemistry course at Wageningen University in The Netherlands. The evaluations showed that students (n = 60 and 98) find ExperD helpful and that teachers see the ExperD as a valuable addition to the laboratory class. Usage logs show that students used the tool throughout the entire laboratory class. Furthermore, the ExperD proved to be a promising research tool for monitoring both student design activities as well as student actual lab work activities.