Shaping the Future of Geoscience Education Research: Synthesizing Results and Articulating Future Directions

Project Overview

The project aimed to investigate the current status of geoscience education research (GER), building on recent reports on Discipline-Based Education Research (DBER). It supported a collaborative effort by the geoscience education research community to identify and synthesize the accomplishments, results, and claims of GER, to compile an annotated list of methods used in such research, and to recommend future research directions and ways to support such efforts.

We also explored how we could translate research results into practice and how we could use practitioner wisdom and experience to inform research. A workshop at the Earth Educator's Rendezvous, virtual opportunities before, during, and after the workshop, and the website supported community-wide engagement. The project provided a focus on the current status and future directions of GER and ultimately, as research translates into practice, in shaping undergraduate geoscience education at the individual, institutional, and national level.

Workshop at the 2015 Earth Educator's Rendezvous:

Synthesizing Geoscience Education Research: Where are We? What is the Path Forward?
This workshop has already occurred.

This workshop communicated the current status of Geoscience Education Research with the greater geoscience community. Participants prioritized needs and directions for future Geoscience Education Research. This working session contributed to a synthesis published on the NAGT site, and built on information shared during this week's afternoon sessions.

About the Project

Project Leaders:
Heather Macdonald, College of William & Mary
Anthony Feig, Central Michigan University
Laura Lukes, George Mason University
Karen McNeal, North Carolina State University
Eric Riggs,Texas A & M University
Kristen St. John, James Madison University
Nicole LaDue, Northern Illinois University

Staff:
John McDaris, SERC-Carleton College