New Microscopes Help Students Learn Safely

Knowing how to use a microscope is a skill that veterinarians need to have on day one of practice. Normally, veterinary students at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine learn to use a microscope in large laboratory classes and in smaller groups on pathology rotations, working closely with faculty. When the pandemic hit and remote learning began, the pathology faculty got creative.

They attached video cameras to their microscopes to create a live feed for the pathologist to share slides and discuss with students in virtual classrooms on Zoom.

With hybrid learning this fall, this virtual approach still supplements microscope training for students when they are not scheduled for in-person labs or rotations. But six new WIFI-enabled digital microscopes for in-person learning allow instructors to view all the students’ slides on an iPad or on a computer in real time (with appropriate social distancing in place) as well as to project live images from any of their microscopes for group viewing and discussion.

Learn more: https://now.tufts.edu/articles/new-microscopes-help-students-learn-safely.