Now along side the theoretical and experimental branches of chemistry, there is the computational branch. Chemists are developing new theoretical models using computer simulations while chemistry students are learning the critical principles and techniques of experimental chemistry using interactive simulation software like Model ChemLab . Moreover, interactive simulations represent a new way of learning, a way that appeals to a whole generation of students raised with television and entertained by computer games. Nevertheless, interactive simulations should not be considered a substitute for hands-on experience. In fact, they are a great way to prepare students to perform experiments efficiently and safely.
Educators know how awkward it is to explain lab procedures to students.
Even when the instructor demonstrates the lab before their eyes, students ask what to do when the equipment is in their hands. The instructor inevitably ends up moving around the lab answering the same questions over and over again. By having students run through the experiment using an interactive simulation before they perform the actual experiment, they are better prepared and have a better sense for what's going on. The laboratory becomes a safer environment for learning, and expensive chemicals are less likely to be wasted. When a practical lab is not feasible due to hazards, budget constraints, or time limitations, a simulation can provide a convenient substitute.