January 2007 Journal of Geoscience Education
Volume 55, Number 1
On the Cover: An anaglyph stereo map of Crater Lake constructed from the USGS East and West Crater Lake DRGs and DEMs. The lake bathymetry produced by James V. Gardner, Larry A. Mayer, and Mark Butenica was merged into the USGS topographic data. Anaglyph maps like this one allow most students to more easily grasp the land surface geometry that topographic maps try to convey.
Red/Blue 3D glasses allow viewing of this image in 3 dimensions.
Fostering Students' Comprehension of Topographic Maps
David N. Rapp,
Northwestern University
Steven A. Culpepper,
University of Minnesota
Kent Kirkby,
University of Minnesota
Paul Morin,
University of Minnesota
Novice earth science students often have difficulty
visualizing three-dimensional interpretations of flat,
two-dimensional displays. This challenge becomes
apparent when students attempt to comprehend
topographic maps. In this study, we investigated
conditions that influence such activity. Earth science
students viewed standard topographic maps, maps that
included shading, maps that included stereo
visualization (affording a three-dimensional percept of
the map), or maps with both stereo visualization and
shading. Students answered line-of-sight questions (i.e.,
intervisibility tasks) while viewing their assigned map.
These questions required students to visualize a
route-perspective from the map's survey-perspective,
with particular attention to the terrain relief. Tasks like
this are routinely completed during topographic map
experiences, and provide insight into a user's
understanding of the dynamic land surfaces conveyed
by those maps. Overall, stereo visualization was more
successful than shading in facilitating students'
completion of the task. Students' general performance
was not influenced by gender, but was influenced by
other background characteristics (e.g., expected course
grades, prior map experience, and predilections for
outdoors activity). Students also preferred maps
employing three-dimensional cues more than maps
without them. Classroom activities in the earth sciences
may benefit from incorporating stereo visualizations into
map-learning exercises.
Full Text (Acrobat (PDF) 441kB Jun5 07)
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Toward the Improvement of Reasoning and Writing Skills in Sedimentary Geology
Richard Smosna and Kathy R. Bruner,
West Virginia University
A series of exercises has been gathered into an
inquiry-based writing assignment for an undergraduate
course in sedimentary geology, the purpose of which is
to improve students' skills in geological reasoning,
problem solving, and writing. The seven exercises
contain petrographic data relating to the mineral
composition of detrital sediments, and these data are to
be plotted in various formats including QFL triangular
diagrams, X-Y graphs, and histograms. Students then
write an interpretive report explaining the results and
meaning of each individual plot and integrating the
results into a general discussion of the major controls on
composition. Although the objective of each data set
tends to be readily apprehended, students must rely on
their own powers of geological reasoning to interpret
these seven exercises. Their synthesis addresses the most
important factors that control or influence detrital
mineral composition: parent rock, tectonic setting,
topography in source area, climate, transport distance,
durability of grains, depositional environment, and
diagenesis. In the final analysis, students come to realize
the complexity involved in the making of a detrital
sediment.
Full Text (Acrobat (PDF) 265kB Jun5 07)
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Using Numerical Models to Teach Sequence Stratigraphic
Principles and the Nature of the Stratigraphic Record
Achim D. Herrmann,
Arizona State University
Sequence stratigraphy has become a central topic for
sedimentology and stratigraphy. While outcrop studies
are an important part of introducing sequence
stratigraphic concepts to students, computer models go
beyond the mostly descriptive approach in that they can
be used to evaluate the importance of different factors
leading to stratigraphic change (e.g., changes in sea level,
sedimentation rates, etc). Students can use a combination
of a stratigraphic simulation package (STRATA) and an
evolutionary random branching model (BIOSTRAT) to
simulate stratigraphic sequences and their bounding
unconformities across a basin and the stratigraphic
distribution of species within these sequences. Students
can explore processes responsible for forming
stratigraphic sequences, assess the relative importance of
global sea-level fluctuations in unconformity generation,
and investigate the underlying causes for the
stratigraphic distribution of different species.
Furthermore, students can use the simulated data set to
perform graphic correlation in order to study how
stratigraphic correlation is impacted by correlations
across facies changes and important sequence
stratigraphic surfaces (i.e., flooding surfaces,
unconformities, etc).
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Student Evaluation of Cities' Hazards and Benefits for
Company Relocation: An Introductory Geology Class Project
in Educated Citizenship
Janet L. Bertog,
Northern Kentucky University
Directed inquiry is used in an introductory geology class
at Northern Kentucky University as a means for
introducing students to the role of geology in community
politics while also teaching students critical thinking
skills, data analysis skills and group interaction skills.
Students are instructed that they will be evaluating the
geologic setting of a city of their choice in order to
provide a recommendation to a company that is
considering relocating to their city. Through the project,
students must evaluate the geologic hazards and benefits
of the city and present a summary and recommendation
based on their findings. The project is divided into three
subprojects throughout the semester - plate tectonics,
geologic history and topographic setting. For each
subproject, students are provided a data set that they
must interpret and summarize in a written report. The
results of these subprojects are used to characterize the
geologic hazards and benefits of the city that the students
present in a final PowerPoint presentation. Student
knowledge is assessed through questions on the final
exam that address similar scenarios in other cities, in
order to determine whether they can apply the concepts
learned in the project to new situations. As presented,
this project is suitable for relatively small classes
(approximately 40 students). In larger lecture classes, the
project can be modified as a report or a series of
assignments.
Full Text (Acrobat (PDF) 799kB Jun5 07)
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Developing Science Literacy using Active Conceptual
Approaches to Understanding Change Through Time
Edward Nuhfer,
Idaho State University
Pam Mosbrucker,
Word Partners Ink
General education requirements for science classes exist
to convey science literacy. The realm of science concerns
matter, energy, and time. A particular value of geology
lies in providing students with understanding of change
through time, which enables one to conceptualize the
temporal qualities of change in general. Students arrive
in college with limited awareness of time based on
common-sense models derived from personal
experience, but deeper understanding of science is
possible by learning how to consider age, order of events,
patterns, rates, magnitudes, durations and frequencies.
Tracing origins of our modern ideas about temporal
qualities helps us to understand how the process of
discovery produced the framework of reasoning unique
to geoscience. Lifelong applications result if one realizes
how awareness of the temporal qualities of a process
influence everyone's perceptions of events caused
specifically by that process. For example, the process that
produces strong, infrequent earthquake events in the
Midwest can lead those living there during long time
spans between events to perceive there is no danger.
Inappropriate building codes, insurance availability,
etc., there result largely from such misperceptions. This
paper presents some effective active learning classroom
activities: role play, timeline exercises, scaling,
storytelling, and group analyses of natural phenomena
as a means to promote conceptual thinking about change
through time. All exercises, instructional aids, and tools
mentioned are available in a downloadable zip file.
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A Simple Sand Column Laboratory Exercise to Illustrate
Pollutant Hydrology in Groundwater Systems
Frank M. Dunnivant and Robert Olsen,
Whitman College,
The transport of pollutants in groundwater systems is an
important concept taught in contaminant hydrology.
Yet, surprisingly, no relevant soil column experiments
have been described in the pedagogical literature (Journal
of Chemical Education, Chemical Education Research and
Practice, or Journal of Geoscience Education). This
experiment illustrates the transport of tracers in a sand
column using the conservative (non-retained and
non-reactive) tracer fluorescein, along with a step input
of non-conservative (retained/adsorbed) cadmium ion.
The experiment is easy to set up, uses inexpensive
commercially-available glassware and sand, and is
highly reproducible. Step inputs of conservative tracer
elute in one pore volume (the volume needed to
completely replace the water held in the saturated
column), with cadmium eluting in three pore volumes.
This experiment can be completed in two, three-hour
laboratory periods.
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Exploring the Relationship of Scratch Resistance, Hardness, and other Physical Properties of Minerals using Mohs Scale
Minerals
Donna L. Whitney,
University of Minnesota
Annia K. Fayon,
University of Minnesota
Margaret E. Broz,
University of Minnesota
Robert F. Cook,
National Institute for Standards and Technology
The Mohs scale is enshrined in geoscience curricula as a
simple and effective tool for identifying minerals and
understanding the influence of crystal structure and
chemistry on physical properties; e.g., hardness.
Measuring scratch resistance is different from measuring
hardness, however, because scratching involves
components of loading and shearing, whereas "absolute"
hardness is measured by the response of a material to
vertical loading (indentation). Although it is not practical
for most undergraduate classes to do indentation
hardness testing, students can evaluate tabulated
quantitative hardness data and compare these data with
their own determination of relative scratch resistance. To
help students better understand physical properties of
minerals, and in particular the concept of mineral
hardness, we present an example exercise based on
recent systematic measurements of the hardness of Mohs
scale minerals using indentation techniques. This
exercise allows students to explore the differences in
hardness among minerals of the Mohs scale, enhancing
their understanding of the Mohs scale itself as well as the
chemical and physical factors that influence mineral
hardness. The exercise is most appropriate for Earth
materials and mineralogy classes, but can be adapted for
students with different levels of expertise, including
introductory physical science students.
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The Problem with Using Problem-based Learning to Teach
Middle School Earth/Space Science in a High Stakes Testing
Society
Jeffrey A. Nowak,
Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne
This study examines whether middle school students
learn as much via Problem-based Learning (PBL) as they
do in non-PBL classrooms on multiple-choice tests. The
questions on the tests covered textbook content, were
predominantly fact-based, and provided by the textbook
publisher on a CD-ROM supplied with the text. While
not all aspects of "high-stakes" testing involve the use of
multiple-choice questions, high-stakes testing often
contains a large number of these types of questions. In
addition, both the process and final product(s) produced
via PBL are often assessed; whereas high-stakes tests
seldom have students develop products outside of the
completion of a pencil and paper test. Two eighth-grade
gifted and talented science classes in a Midwest public
middle school were compared. Focused observations,
interviews, test score analyses, and document analyses
were used.
Problem-based learning is an educational approach
where a purposefully ill-structured problem initiates
learning and the teacher serves as a coach instead of an
information repository (Gallagher and Stepien, 1996).
Problem-based learning has many similarities to
project-based learning. PBL is necessarily
interdisciplinary. PBL is also based upon the theories of
situated cognition (Brown, Collins, and Duguid, 1989;
Plucker and Nowak, 2000; Resnick, 1987), and consistent
with the principles of constructivism (Savery and Duffy,
1995).
Questions have been raised about the
appropriateness of using PBL in the middle school
setting. Multiple-choice test score analyses of geology
and astronomy content indicate that students in a
teacher-directed classroom learn more fact-based
content than via PBL. Students engaged in PBL have
better retention. In a high-stakes testing society with
many inherent issues (Casbarro, 2005; Grant, 2004;
Marchant, 2003), the best solution is likely an integrated
PBL project approach. Teacher-directed instruction
could be intentionally embedded within a PBL project
instructional model.
Full Text (Acrobat (PDF) 135kB Jun5 07)
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Building A Community of Teacher Learners in an
Earth/Environmental Science Professional Development
Opportunity
Karen R. Dawkins,
East Carolina University
Daniel L. Dickerson,
Old Dominion University
This study documents a support system that arose in the
context of an NSF-funded, three-year professional
development initiative for middle and high school
earth/environmental science teachers entitled
Earth-View (ESI-9911850). Three data sources are
reported in this paper that reveal the importance of the
community in supporting learning for the Earth-View
teachers including: (a) rankings of program components
resulting from Likert scale items; (b) responses to
open-ended items; and (c) interview data. The
researchers identified several aspects of the Earth-View
community of learners that might profitably be
incorporated into other professional development
programs aimed at enhancing middle and high school
level earth/environmental science teacher quality,
including: (a) interactions with faculty beyond the
formal instructional settings; (b) extensive year-round
communications with other participants, especially the
small groups with which they identified during the
summer sessions; and (c) a strong content focus aimed at
the instructional responsibilities that the teachers have in
common.
Full Text (Acrobat (PDF) 280kB Jun5 07)
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An Immersion Professional Development Program in
Environmental Science for Inservice Elementary School
Teachers
Juanita M. Constible,
Miami University
Robert G. McWilliams,
Miami University
Edward G. Soldo,
West Chester, OH
Bruce E. Perry,
Miami University
Richard E. Lee, Jr.,
Miami University
Poor performance by elementary school students on science assessment tests is due in part to inadequate science education for teachers. Environmental Science for Elementary School Teachers (ESEST) is a 14-year collaboration between university faculty in geology and biology and
public school teachers in Ohio. The primary goal of this
immersion, field-based program is to increase K-6
teacher knowledge of basic principles of environmental
science. Participants and in structors take daily trips to
field locations; hands-on activities are used to illustrate
concepts such as geologic time and use of biotic indices to
assess stream quality. Qualitative and quantitative assessments
indicate a two-fold increase in content knowledge and an improvement in teaching skills by our participants. Further, participants return to their classrooms
with the confidence to teach state academic content standards and an increased sense of independence.
We argue that partnerships between K-12 and
post-secondary institutions are critical to effective
teacher education: most school systems do not have the
infrastructure or funding to deliver a program of this nature on their own. ESEST meets multiple criteria for professional development for teachers. Our experience indicates that the program is successful because participants
are immersed in a physically and mentally challenging, collaborative, outdoor learning environment.
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Case-Based Learning in an Upper Level Petrology Laboratory
Class
Lara E. Heister and Charles E. Lesher,
University of California, Davis
We designed new laboratory exercises for
undergraduate igneous petrology that teach the
fundamentals of petrography and petrology within the
framework of tectonic environments. Our exercises are
designed to promote the use of the scientific method by
requiring students to collect and use data to test
hypotheses and petrogenetic concepts presented in
lecture. The integration of fundamental concepts of
petrology with geologic and tectonic settings, in our case
drawing on the diversity found in California, allows for
the introduction of more advanced material in both the
laboratory and lecture portions of the course. Student
written feedback and performance on exams, laboratory
exercises, and final projects reflect an increased
understanding of the subject matter and confidence in
problem solving. This type of class structure is
transportable to programs in any location, can be used
for classes of reasonable size, and is an effective method
to teach science classes at either an introductory or
advanced level.
Full Text (Acrobat (PDF) 3.8MB Jun5 07)
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Increased Student Learning and Attendance in Resources
Geology through the Combination of Sentence-Headline
Slides and Active Learning Measures
Michael Alley,
Penn State
Madeline Schreiber,
Virginia Tech
Elizabeth Diesel,
Virginia Tech
Katrina Ramsdell,
Virginia Tech
Maura Borrego,
Virginia Tech
This study assessed how combining active learning
measures with teaching slides that relied on sentence
headlines affected test scores and attendance in a large
resources geology course. For all six sections of the
course, the following remained the same: instructor,
classroom, semester time slot, and number of teaching
slides. For two sections, though, we transformed the
existing teaching slides that followed the traditional
design of a phrase headline supported by a bulleted list
(and often an image) to a sentence-headline design
supported by visual evidence. In this new design, the
sentence headline stated the main assertion of the slide.
To increase active participation, we posted these
sentence-headline slides as fill-in-the-blank notes, as
opposed to complete slides as posted for the other
sections. To increase attendance in these two sections, we
administered a graded activity in each class period.
These two sections had statistically significant increases
(p < 0.001) in both class attendance and test scores on
identical questions.
Full Text (Acrobat (PDF) 230kB Jun5 07)
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Departments
2006 OEST Winners (Acrobat (PDF) 5.7MB Jun5 07)
2006 Neil Miner Award (Acrobat (PDF) 163kB Jun5 07)
2006 GSA Biggs Award (Acrobat (PDF) 125kB Jun5 07)