This Starting Point teaching module highlights a case study of Malama Keone'o'oi. Students will learn techniques for conducting a local environmental assessment in an ecologically sensitive area. Identification of native plants and methodologies for sampling will be taught in the classroom and then reinforced in the field. The module also includes a community awareness and conservation aspect. Users ... Full description.

This website provides an overview of using investigative cases as teaching tools in geoscience. The site is part of the Starting Point: Teaching Entry Level Geoscience project. Information includes a description of how cases serve as springboards to student-designed investigations and how cases engage students and faculty in collaborative problem posing, problem solving, and persuasion. Full description.

This website is the homepage for LifeLines Online Project, a NSF funded project that supports faculty from two year colleges in developing case-based teaching materials. The materials are investigative and utilize their student's prior knowledge and current interests in real world problems. Users can link to biology based case studies, workshops, information of field testing and editions of the LifeLines ... Full description.

In this Starting Point investigative case, students will explore niche competition and population ecology by developing plans for species density studies. They will also develop a plan to re-establish a species (the woodpecker) in an area where there are almost none left. Users can access information regarding learning goals, context for use, teaching notes and tips, teaching materials, assessment ... Full description.

This investigative case is part of the Starting Point module. In this exercise students role play as professional ecologists working for the fish and wildlife service. Students must develop a plan to manage a new wildlife refuge along the Rio Grande River. The fish and wildlife service plans to connect forest islands along the river, which will become not only a new refuge but also a "wildlife corridor." ... Full description.

This website provides resources for teachers who are looking for methods to incorporate student research projects into their teaching. The site provides several case studies of how research has been incorporated into courses such as structural geology, hydrology and geography. For each example, the teacher has provided their methods, results, tips, and references. In some cases the assignment is provided. ... Full description.

In this experiment, students investigate the evaporation of water as part of a solution to a simulated mystery. They will compare rates of evaporation under different conditions, demonstrate knowledge of the concepts of evaporation, and be able to explain evaporation in the context of the water cycle. Full description.

LifeLines Online Project supports faculty from two year colleges in developing case-based teaching materials that are investigative and utilize their student's prior knowledge and current interest in real world problems. This website lists the 2004 Project Presentations hosted by LifeLines Online. Presentations include workshops and annual meetings. Users may access presentation information including ... Full description.

This lesson has students develop a Darwinian explanation for the sexual dimorphism seen in coloration between the male and female ring-necked pheasant. Students will work in groups to develop their explanation and craft a research proposal to bolster some part of their explanation. Students will participate in a simulated grant funding competition in which they will present their explanations and ... Full description.

This website is the portal homepage for the Starting Point collection. This site is designed for faculty and graduate students teaching undergraduate entry-level geoscience, environmental science, or related courses. Each section describes a teaching method, why/when it is useful, how it can be implemented, and a set of examples spanning the Earth system that can be used in your class. Users can follow ... Full description.