Reading list and Syllabus, GS-270
Issues in Geoscience Learning
Spring, 2005, by William Prothero
Description:
This course will focus on
issues that you will face, as a future geoscience educator. The landscape for
undergraduate education is changing rapidly. Technology, changing student
expectations, and new pedagogy based on new understandings of how students
learn is driving this change.
Some
of the topics we will discuss are:
¥ Learning theories
¥ Education reform
¥ ÒNewÓ teaching methods, group work, hands on,
inquiry, writing to learn
¥ Teaching resources, technology, online resources,
digital libraries
¥ Course and materials evaluation
¥ Online learning, online environments
Assignments for the
class will include:
Presenting
student: present an outline of the important points or issues
addressed by the paper. Please use Powerpoint.
2) Weekly Google-quest on
specified keywords. Include the results of your exploration in your class
presentation.
3) Each student is required
to complete a course project of your own choosing. We will provide more details
as the course progresses, but each student is expected to
á
submit a 1-page proposal
of the class project, due May 4
á
make a presentation of
the final project to the class, last class meeting.
Possible course projects
topics are listed below. In each case there is an expectation that the project
will be justified by readings completed in this class or other educational
theory.
á
Create and/or modify an
existing geology/geoscience lab section activity (GS-2,3,4, etc).
á
Development of an
instructional unit at any K-14 level.
á
Application of an
educational technology to a learning situation.
á
Review and present a
summary of recent literature on a relevant topic for geoscience education
(i.e., computers and geology, distance education, applications of technology in
educational settings).
Each week will consist of one
or more of the following:
Reading materials will be
supplied in the course reader, and from the web.
Weekly topics and activities (subject to modification):
Week 1 (March 30):
Introduction and presentation
by Prothero
Food
for thought: What geoscience
education issues are you are interested in? Where did you get your interest in geoscience education?
What is the importance of geoscience education to society? What geoscience
education issues does our society face?
á
Participant presentations.
á Self test: Multiple Intelligences and Learning Styles, (http://www.ldpride.net/learningstyles.MI.htm)
Food
for thought: Is there a need to
change our approaches to
geoscience education at: K-12 levels, college levels? What makes some students
interested in science and others not interested? Is there a gender bias in the
way geoscience education is taught? How can we interest the general public in
geoscience?
Readings:
American Geophysical
Union (1996). Shaping the Future of Undergraduate Earth Science Education,
Innovation and Change using an Earth System Approach. (read or copy from this
url) http://www.agu.org/sci_soc/spheres/intro.htm
American Association
for the Advancement of Science. (1989). Science for all Americans. New York:
Oxford University Press. Chapter 1, pp. 3-13, Chapter 4, pp. 35-51.
Tobias (1990).
They're Not Dumb, They're Different, Stalking the Second Tier, Pub by Research
Corporation, pp. 7-18.
Ault,
C.R. (1998). Criteria of excellence for geological inquiry: The necessity of ambiguity.
Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 35, 189-212.
Google
explorations: California K-12
Standards, AAAS Science Standards
Food
for thought: What is the most
effective way of teaching a subject? How would you teach a particular topic, so
that it was most effective to your class of general population students?
Readings:
Bransford,
J. D., Brown, A. L., & Cocking, R. R. (Eds.). (1999). How people learn. Washington, DC:
National Academy Press. Chapter 1, pp. 3-31
Brown,
J.S., A. Collins, P. Duguid (1989). Situated Cognition and the Culture of
Learning,
http://www.exploratorium.edu/IFI/resources/museumeducation/situated.html
Johnson, J., S. Reynolds (2005).Concept Sketches - Using Student- and Instructor-generated, Annotated Sketches for Learning, Teaching, and Assessment in Geology Courses
Kastens, K. A. (2001). Development and Evaluation of
"Where Are We"
Map-Skills Software and Curriculum. Journal of Geoscience Education, May 2001.
Wells, N (2002). Studying Earthquakes, While also Learning about
Data and Visualization. Journal of Geoscience Education, May 2002.
Talanquer, V., D. Morgan. Learning to Teach, Journal of College
Science Teaching, V. 34, 5 p 28-31.
Google-quest
search items: Bloom's taxonomy,
learning cycle, constructivism, Cognitive Apprentice
In-class
activities:
Take a web
questionnaire on understanding: http://learnweb.harvard.edu/alps/tfu/index.cfm
Food
for thought: In the context of this
week's readings, would you revise your approach to teaching a topic? What is
the difference between active learning and "plug and chug." Have you
experienced active learning methods in your past courses?
Readings:
Bransford,
J. D., Brown, A. L., & Cocking, R. R. (Eds.). (1999). How people learn. Washington, DC:
National Academy Press. Chapter 6,
pp. 131-154 .
Gobert,
J. D. (2000). A typology of causal models for plate tectonics: Inferential
power and barriers to understanding, International Journal of Science
Education, 22, 937-977.
Meyers, C, Jones, T.B. (1993). Promoting Active Learning,
Strategies for the College Classroom, Jossey-Bass Publishers, pp3-18.
Yuretich, R. (2001). Active-Learning Methods to Improve Student
Performance and Scientific Interest in a Large Introductory Course. Journal
of Geoscience Education,
March 2001.
Google-quest
search items: Cognitive Apprentice,
scaffolding for learning,
Food
for thought: What are the barriers to
implementing writing assignments? What are the benefits of writing? Is there
online technology that can make writing assignments easier to implement?
Readings:
Calibrated
Peer Review: http://cpr.molsci.ucla.edu/
http://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2003AM/finalprogram/abstract_61373.htm
http://serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/peerreview/cpr.html
Peer
Review: http://serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/peerreview/index.html
Writing
in Language Arts vs Writing in Science: http://www.mcps.k12.md.us/curriculum/science/instr/wrlavssci.htm
Writing
to Learn: http://www.rit.edu/~comets/pages/workshops/writingtolearnwkshop.html
Google-quest
keywords: Calibrated Peer Review,
Writing to Learn Science, using earth data,
In
class activities:
Presentation
on Oceanography science writing and online peer review by Prothero.
Week 6 Topic (May 4): Technology
applications for geoscience education:Part 1 Teaching science, Digital
Libraries, Earth Data
Food
for thought: How can we teach
students how science really works? Is it possible? Are realistic science
investigations practical in, for example, a large introductory course? What are
the challenges? How can we best collaborate with other teachers and share
resources? What are other teachers doing?
Readings:
Please
explore these online libraries:
Teach
the Earth: http://serc.carleton.edu/
DLESE:
http://www.dlese.org/dds/index.jsp
Merlot:
http://www.merlot.org/Home.po
Prothero,
W. (2005). Our Dynamic Planet CDROM. Please install CD on your computer and
assess it's potential for an introductory geoscience course. Can you think of
ways it might be used to create active learning experiences?
Please
find something interesting by starting at one of these two sites:
http://oceanography.geol.ucsb.edu/~gs4/w2005/a_Earth_Data.html
http://jules.unavco.org/
Bransford,
J. D., Brown, A. L., & Cocking, R. R. (Eds.). (1999). How people learn. Washington, DC:
National Academy Press. Chapter 7,
pp. 172-189.
Kal, Y. (2003). A Virtual Journey within the Rock-cycle: A
Software Kit for the Developing Effective K-16 Geoscience Research
Partnerships. Journal of Geoscience Education, March 2003 Issue. Accompanying Website http://yaelkali.org
Google-quest
search items: Just in Time Teaching,
discover our earth, our dynamic planet
Food
for thought: Teaching requires a lot
of book-keeping, grading, communication with students, etc. How can technology help us out in this
regard? What are the strengths and weaknesses of technology solutions?
Readings:
Loegering, J. and Edge, W.D. (2002). Reinforcing Science with
Web-Based Exercises. Journal of College Science Teaching, December 2001/January 2002.
Riffell and Sibley (2003). Learning Online: student Perceptions of
a Hybrid Learning Format. Journal of College Science Teaching, March/April 2003.
Martin , E. E. (2001). Active Inquiry, Web-Based Oceanography
Exercises. Journal of Geoscience Education, March 2001.
EarthEd Online:
http://oceanography.geol.ucsb.edu/Collab/Index.html
Please find and report on something interesting by starting at:
http://www.eduref.org/
Google-quest
search items: class management
software,
Food
for thought: Does gender matter in
learning science. There are many more males than females in physics, but the
female population of geosciences is high in our student population. Why? In
some cultures, students are not willing to ask questions or actively question
their teachers. How might a teaching strategy change to accommodate this? Is
this a serious problem?
Readings:
Padgett, D. A. Teaching Race, Class, and Cultural Issues in Earth
Sciences to Enhance Multicultural Education. Journal of Geoscience Education, September 2001.
Hobson, A. (2001). Teaching Relevant Science for Scientific
Literacy: Adding Cultural Context to the Sciences. Journal of College
Science Teaching,
December 2000/January 2001.
Buck, P. (2003). Authentic Research Experiences for Nevada High
School Teachers and Students. Journal of Geoscience Education, January 2003 Issue.
Please find and report on something interesting related to
cultural issues by starting at: http://www.eduref.org/
Readings:
Hall-Wallace, M. K. (2002). Design, implementation, and evaluation
of gis-based learning materials in an introductory geoscience course. Journal
of Geoscience Education,
January 2002.
Stewart, M. E. (2001). A GIS Class Exercise to Study Environmental
Risk, Journal of Geoscience Education, May 2001.
Week 10 (June 1): Student presentations