Virtual Physiology Laboratories Platform garners further recognition at the Australian Awards for University Teaching
Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute’s now global Virtual Physiology Laboratories Platform has won an award for curriculum transformation and innovative pedagogy at the Australian Awards for University Teaching (AAUT).
The Awards, presented at the Universities Australia Solutions Summit in Canberra in February, recognise excellence, innovation and leadership in the higher education system, and celebrate Australia’s outstanding educators and programs.
The Virtual Physiology Laboratories, led by Professor Ramesh Rajan with assistance from Professor Julia Choate and other Department of Physiology staff including Dr Ari Pinar, Dr Belinda Henry, Dr Christine Lee, Professor Kate Denton, Associate Professor Nicholas Price and Professor Renea Taylor, were developed by Josef Kenjeric, Amber Taylor, Dr Maria del Mar Quiroga and Dr Scott Clarke to help manage rising student numbers, a deficit in student understanding of lab technologies, and the ethical issues associated with the use of animals in labs.
The 14 open-access virtual labs are used for physiology teaching across the Biomedical Science, Nutrition Science, Science, Radiography and Medicine degree programs at Monash University and were built based on real experimental data and with experimental variability and progress hurdles.
As well as enhancing student understanding of physiology concepts and technologies, the virtual labs provide students with access to previously inaccessible experiments in fields such as hearing and vision, cardiac muscle, male reproduction, obesity and visual neuroscience.
The labs overcome barriers to experiential hypothesis-testing, such as high costs and the need for sophisticated equipment and skilled staff to be present in a university lab, Professor Rajan said.
“Our team has designed and built an innovative suite of open-access virtual physiology laboratories that solve these constraints and unlock a diversity of experiments,” he said.
“The laboratories have also enabled development of blended (virtual plus physical) laboratory models that allow direct experiential learning under conditions that model real-life experiments.”
The Virtual Physiology Laboratories were developed between 2014 and 2022. During the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a 300 per cent increase in the platform usage globally and, in the past year, the labs were used by over 400,000 students and educators across 166 countries.[1]
Professor Choate said the self-paced online virtual experiments in the labs are an effective way to enhance student understanding.
“I have found that the virtual labs enhance student preparedness, allowing valuable lab time to be devoted to experimental skills, critical thinking and learning,” Professor Choate said.
The AAUT accolade is the latest in a series of awards won by the Physiology Virtual Laboratory Platform. The team was a finalist in the 2024 Australian Financial Review’s Higher Education Awards and in 2023, they received both the Vice-Chancellors Award and the Monash Medicine, Nursing and Health Science’s Dean Award for Excellence in Education – Innovation in Learning and Teaching.
[1] https://aautn.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/2025-Awards-Profile-Booklet.pdf
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About the Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute at Monash University
Committed to making discoveries that will relieve the future burden of disease, Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute at Monash University brings together more than 120 internationally renowned research teams. Spanning seven discovery programs across Cancer, Cardiovascular Disease, Development and Stem Cells, Infection, Immunity, Metabolism, Diabetes and Obesity, and Neuroscience, Monash BDI is one of the largest biomedical research institutes in Australia. Our researchers are supported by world-class technology and infrastructure, and partner with industry, clinicians and researchers internationally to enhance lives through discovery.