ERIC Number: EJ1164620
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2010-Nov
Pages: 13
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1089-9995
EISSN: N/A
Linking Physical Geography Education and Research through the Development of an Environmental Sensing Network and Project-Based Learning
Roberts, Dar; Bradley, Eliza; Roth, Keely; Eckmann, Ted; Still, Christopher
Journal of Geoscience Education, v58 n5 p262-274 Nov 2010
Geographic education is more effective when students actively participate by developing hypotheses, designing experiments, collecting and analyzing data, and discussing results. We describe an innovative pedagogical approach, in which students learn physical geography concepts by analyzing environmental data collected in contrasting environments in Santa Barbara County, CA. The major components of this approach include a local network of micrometeorology stations (the Innovative Datasets for Environmental Analysis by Students (IDEAS network)), student field trips, a web portal (www.geog.ucsb.edu/ideas) and analysis tools which support student education and research. Examples of student work, graded rubrics, course evaluation scores, and instructor observations demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach. The most serious limitation is the high cost of equipment given the low number of students initially involved, a weakness that can be addressed through expanded use of this facility by other physical geography classes and institutions, facilitated by the IDEAS website, and increased enrollment in existing classes.
Descriptors: Physical Geography, Science Education, Science Instruction, Instructional Innovation, Science Process Skills, Field Trips, Science Activities, Instructional Effectiveness, Outcomes of Education, College Students, Active Learning, Student Projects, Meteorology, Scores, Course Evaluation, Comparative Analysis
National Association of Geoscience Teachers. Carleton College W-SERC, One North College Street, Northfield, MN 55057. Tel: 540-568-6675; Fax: 540-568-8058; e-mail: jge@jmu.edu; Website: http://nagt-jge.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: National Science Foundation (NSF), Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE)
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: California (Santa Barbara)
Grant or Contract Numbers: 0632917