Geoscience Education Researcher Toolbox

GER Starting Point

There are some foundational pieces that will help all geoscience education researchers from beginners to veterans. These include the general topics of GER, an introductory reading list, essays on GER as a Community of Practice and a GER Strength of evidence model, as well as advice on writing GER grant proposals.

Instruments and Surveys

Data collection is central to the research processes. This section includes an annotated list of published instruments and surveys useful to geo-ed researchers.

Conducting GER Studies Across Institutions

Many research questions in GER benefit from multi-institutional studies. This resource provides information and advice for designing and managing multi-institutional studies.

Getting GER Published

Dissemination of results from geoscience education research is important to moving the discipline forward. This section provides advice on how and where to publish.

Analysis Tools

After collecting data, GER data needs to be analyzed in order to report results. Provided here are suggested analysis tools useful to geoscience education researchers.

Translating GER Results into Practice

GER is only as valuable as its ability to affect what happens in the classroom. There are ways to strengthen the connections between research results and teaching.

Navigating a Career in GER

There are many routes into a career in GER. This resource includes advice and strategies to help geoscience education researchers plan for and be successful in their careers.

About the Toolbox

The GER Toolbox is the result of a NSF-funded and community-contributed effort to support current and future geoscience education researchers. The toolbox resources build on outcomes and needs identified in the 2012 NRC analysis of discipline-based education research (DBER, Singer et al., 2012), the 2014 NAGT GER Division survey of members, the 2015 NSF-funded Shaping the Future of GER workshop, and the 2016 NSF-funded community needs survey. Themes identified in the community needs survey became the primary toolbox resource categories (e.g., Instruments and Surveys). Participants at the 2016 Geoscience Education Research Community Planning Workshop contributed resources and ideas on these themes, thereby truly making this a toolbox by geoscience education researchers for geoscience education researchers. Additional resources can be suggested using the comment option on each resource page. Resources will be updated to incorporate suggested additions on a regular basis.