Several years ago our School of Anatomy and Human Biology needed to purchase new microscopes and provide large numbers of histological slide boxes. This was in response to a need to replace old microscopes and damaged slide collections - but also to meet the demands of increased numbers of medical and dental students, and students studying biological and health sciences entering this University.

At the time, faculty and school budget restraints that prevented purchasing large numbers of new microscopes. This budget constraint was part of what prompted me to develop a computer-based histology program

My experience with Histology Online is that:

• the hours required to be allocated to laboratory practical sessions have been reduced.
• the demand for laboratory teaching rooms and space for histology teaching has also reduced, and this has freed up these teaching areas for other classes.
• we don’t face the need to purchase additional microscopes to cater for increased student numbers, or to replace aging microscopes.
• we don’t have to to create additional class slides boxes containing histological sections.
• we no longer need the extra academic or sessional teaching staff to be present to help direct the students during each practical class session. The part-time teaching budget has therefore been reduced, as have the teaching hours for academic staff