Integration of Laboratory and Lecture within an IntroductoryGeology Course: Combining a Constructivist and Case Study Approach

该项目的目标是通过重新设计课程来增加大型介绍性物理地质学课程中科学的相关性：1）包括更详细的主题; 2）在讲座中采用案例研究方法，最大限度地提高讨论/辩论; 3）在实验室中采用建构主义方法，最大限度地提高基于发现的学习;四是实验与讲座充分结合，实验与讲座讨论相结合，阐述地质学原理。该课程将分为三个主要内容领域：入门单元（矿物、岩石周期和地质年代）;外部过程单元（地下水、河流/洪水、地球能源）和内部过程单元（火山、地震、板块构造）。在讲座中，案例研究将成为课程的一个组成部分。每个案例研究的背景材料和“问题说明”将通过为课程设计的一系列网页提供给所有学生。四组学生将合作做额外的研究，并讨论/辩论的问题，类的其余部分。每个学生将参与一个合作小组，所有学生将负责所有的案例研究。讲师将作为这些讨论中所呈现材料的质量控制。实验室将通过探索型活动以及对综合数据集的分析和综合，为这些案例研究制定背景原则。这项工作的影响将是三方面的：1）对案例研究的重视将产生一个更了解“真实的”地质和环境问题的普通学生群体; 2）实验室的重点将从分类和识别转向批判性思维和解决问题; 3）练习和案例研究将作为其他机构可以全部或部分采用的模式。

The objective of this project is to increase the relevance of science in a large introductory Physical Geology course by redesigning the course to: 1) include fewer topics that are covered in greater detail; 2) employ a case-study approach in lecture that maximizes discussion/debate; 3) employ a constuctivist approach in lab maximizing discovery based learning; and 4) fully integrate lab and lecture, so that labs illustrate the geologic principles relating to lecture discussions. The course will be divided into three main content areas: an introductory module (minerals, rock cycle and geologic time); an external processes module (groundwater, rivers/floods, energy from the Earth) and an internal processes module (volcanoes, earthquakes, plate tectonics). In lecture, case-studies will form an integral part of the curriculum. Background material and the "problem statement" for each case-study will be available to all students through a series of web pages designed for the course. Four groups of students will do additional research collaboratively and discuss/debate the issues to the rest of the class. Each student will be involved in one collaborative group and all students will be responsible for all case studies. The instructor will serve as quality control for the material presented in these discussions. Labs will develop the background principles for these case studies through explorationtype activities as well as analysis and synthesis of integrated datasets. The impact of this work will be three-fold: 1) the emphasis on case studies will produce a general student populace that is more aware of "real" geologic and environmental issues; 2) the focus in lab will shift from classifying and identifying to critical thinking and problem-solving; and 3) the exercises and case studies will serve as a model that other institutions can adopt in whole, or in part.