Laboratory work is considered to be important in students’ learning of science because it is able to facilitate the understanding of scientific concepts and the nature of science, provide opportunities to learn inquiry skills and problem solving, and cultivate scientific habits of mind. However, time in the laboratory has been the most pressing concern, due to the fact that there are many other tasks that need to be done during the very same period of time in class, such as the introduction or revision of the concepts, checking the exercises with students, experiment demonstrations by the teacher or from online videos, etc. What students usually experiment in class, therefore, is the “necessary minimum”.

To deal with this negative vibe in the classroom, I have tried flipped classroom approach in one microbiology laboratory activity lesson. Students were expected to complete the online learning activities at home to gain a basic understanding of the concepts and technical terms, so that more group cooperation and discussions, peer instruction and differentiated instruction were triggered and facilitated in class to cater to different learning styles and learning paces and learning needs.