Science is best learned by experiment.

A six-thousand-student survey of mechanics courses found that interactive-engagement methods roughly double students' conceptual learning gains compared with traditional lectures.

A meta-analysis of 225 studies found active learning raises STEM exam performance by about half a letter grade, while students in traditional lectures are 1.5× more likely to fail.

The team behind the PhET project reported in Science that well-designed interactive simulations promote exploration and can outperform equivalent hands-on laboratory equipment for conceptual understanding.

A systematic review of a decade of research concluded that computer simulations consistently enhance traditional science instruction, with the strongest effects when simulations support prediction and investigation.

Reviewing physical versus virtual laboratories in Science, researchers found virtual labs offer distinct advantages — including making the invisible visible and linking phenomena directly to their underlying models.