This article points out that many content- or skill-based labs can be revised to explicitly involve the scientific method by asking students to propose hypotheses before making observations. Labs in which this method has been successfully applied include skill-building labs such as topographic map labs, content-based labs involving experiments with models, and field labs. Because these labs force ... Full description.

NOTE: This is a large file, 95.8 mb in size! One way to envision our mental knowledge structure is as a hyperlinked network of concepts, a concept map. Concept maps are a useful tool to help students articulate ideas, identify and arrange key concepts, and see how these ideas and concepts are connected. For geology, however, concept maps fail to take advantage of the very visual nature of the science ... Full description.

This article discusses how the two paradigms of education (Teaching-Centered and Learning-Centered) could affect the way faculty members are reviewed when undergoing peer review. The major challenge to fair and proper peer review arises from the need to review the growing number of instructors who conform to the Learning-Centered paradigm. Early preparation for peer review should help avoid the disjunction ... Full description.

NOTE: This is a large file, 22.7 mb in size! As urban development encroaches onto less suitable sites, knowledge of the connection between the ground beneath one's home and the home itself becomes increasingly critical to the homebuyer. This paper describes an applied course designed for Realtors and appraisers that the author founded and taught for about eight years in Colorado. It describes the ... Full description.

This article describes the results of an evaluation of a career orientation course at Texas A&M University. The evaluation was based on 5 years of entry and exit surveys and on student performance. Some of the findings of the evaluation: 1) Students strongly preferred peers to introduce outside speakers and gain experience in communication, compared with having a faculty member lead the class; ... Full description.

Researchers categorized over one hundred print and web resources that use food to demonstrate earth science concepts. This article describes their findings: food-based activities are found in print and web-based resources with nearly equal frequency; most feature geologic themes; most are designed for primary and middle school audiences, but can be adapted for older students; and most of these activities ... Full description.

"Scrapbooking" is a popular hobby and as such, has found its way into educational settings, primarily in middle and elementary school levels. This article describes a scrapbook project that is used both as a means of demonstrating the connections between geology and students' daily lives and as an alternative form of assessment. The project was developed for an introductory Earth Science class for ... Full description.

Disconnection between students and nature in an urban setting thwarts student engagement and impedes geoscience teaching and learning. Conducting field trips is one way to engage students, but the urban environment does not provide an ideal setting with respect to the availability of appropriate field sites and safety. This text reports on a field-based inquiry project conducted in San Antonio, Texas. ... Full description.

Soil science education is lacking in terms of accommodations for persons with disabilities to the extent that these individuals are often excluded from soil science activities in school, and from careers in the discipline. This article describes a study whose goal was to develop accommodations to the soils protocols currently being used in the GLOBE (Global Learning Observations to Benefit the Environment) ... Full description.

This article examines the effects of a program involving authentic research on the participants' interest in research, career plans, and attitudes on science. The findings are from the first year of a three-year program funded by the National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates program. In three out of four projects, participants increased their interest in research, with two-thirds ... Full description.