What emotions did the Microbiology students experience when they returned to the Laboratory?

Abstract

The pandemic will appear some emotions, of which stress has been the most studied. With the return to the classroom, is considered important to know what emotions the students have experienced and if these have influenced in their learning, which gives the reason for this case study carried out with university students from a group that attends the Laboratory of Microbiology. In this investigation, a mixed methodology was developed, and a questionnaire was applied to know the emotions of the students in different aspects of the classes. Among the negative emotions detected are anxiety, depression, and fear, as well as stress generated by both family and school aspects. On the other hand, the positive emotions identified were hope, fluidity, elevation, and satisfaction. Some students mentioned that at a certain point they thought about abandoning the course, but the classroom environment generated by the teachers made them finish the course. Regarding learning, there was fear of performing the laboratory techniques, but the feedback helped them learn and gain confidence, and the exams motivated them to continue learning. It is concluded that although there are negative emotions, it is worth promoting the positive ones as a strategy to improve learning.