Field-based Instruction as Part of a Balanced Geoscience Curriculum at Washington and Lee University

Journal of Geoscience Education, Mar 2006 by Knapp, Elizabeth P, Greer, Lisa, Connors, Christopher D, Harbor, David J

ABSTRACT

Traditionally at Washington and Lee University teaching in the field has been the core of our geology curriculum. We emphasize fieldwork at all levels of our instruction from the field-based introductory courses to our senior theses. We are fortunate to be located in a geologically diverse location (in the Valley and Ridge of Virginia and within minutes of the Blue Ridge Mountains). The close proximity of geologic variety allows us to spend nearly every class or laboratory period outside. We view fieldwork, however, as just the beginning of geoscience education. A crucial aspect of field geology is making observations and synthesizing the data collected. It is equally important for students to have well-developed skills in field methods, in analytical techniques, in computation and modeling, and in synthesis and presentation. To emphasize all of these aspects, our coursework is largely focused on emulating the process of research. Because we have had such a strong field emphasis, we are striving to strike a balance in our curriculum. We will present 3 examples of integrated exercises in our geology courses (including introductory geology, sedimentary geology, and geochemistry).

INTRODUCTION

Washington and Lee University is located in the Valley and Ridge province of Virginia and within minutes of the Blue Ridge Mountains (!Figure 1). Our department is situated in the Appalachian fold and thrust belt atop Cabro-Ordivician carbonates. Grenville age igneous and metamorphic complexes are approximately 10 km to the east and Silurian sandstones and Devonian shales 20 km to the west. The close proximity of geologic variety allows us to spend nearly every class or laboratory period outside. We are a 4-faculty department within a small liberal arts college. Our introductory courses have an average of 20 students per class and our upper-level courses an average class size of 8 or 9. For us, fieldwork has traditionally been the core of our geology curriculum. The solid basis for our field-intensive instruction has been founded on years of regional geological experience (Spencer, 1990; www.wlu.edu).

We emphasize fieldwork at all levels of our instruction from the field-based introductory courses to our senior thesis projects. Learning in a hands-on field setting is one of the best ways to reinforce topics learned in the classroom, to integrate academic and experiential learning and to demonstrate the interrelationships of geoscience sub-disciplines (e.g. Lord, 1999; Noll, 2003). Learning to be an effective field scientist, however, is just the beginning of a balanced geoscience education. A crucial aspect of field geology is making observations and synthesizing the data collected. It is equally important for students to have well-developed skills in field methods, in analytical techniques, in computation and modeling, and in synthesis and presentation. To emphasize all of these aspects, our coursework is evolving to focus on emulating the process of research. We are working to fold parts of our own local research into the classroom and to have our students complete projects that begin with field data collection and follow through the analysis and computational phases. We also work heavily with students in our summer research and believe this is one of our most valuable teaching tools. We attempt to make an integrated approach to our teaching. In the following three examples we present a range of activities from our curriculum (introductory geology, sedimentary geology and geochemistry) that emphasize our incorporation of a field component.

EXAMPLE 1: INTRODUCTORY PHYSICAL GEOLOGY PACE AND COMPASS / GPS / GIS MAPPING

This is the first project of our introductory physical geology class. The course attracts both prospective majors and those satisfying a general education requirement because it has a large field component. The purpose of this lab is to familiarize students with 2 instruments commonly used by field geologists (a compass and a GPS unit), ways of acquiring spatial data, and evaluating the quality of the data collected. In addition, students are exposed to the techniques of GIS mapping that are so commonly employed today by professional geologists. Our exercise is based on previous studies that have incorporated and emphasized the importance of using pace and compass in field instruction (Reichard, 2002), using GPS in introductory classes (Herrstrom, 1999), and using GIS and GPS in field instruction (Onasch and Frizado, 1996; Ludman, 2000; Purk and Pair, 1998). Our exercise extends these examples to give introductory students exposure to field data collection using pace, compass and GPS, and analysis using spreadsheet analysis and GIS.

Data Collection - After an introduction to pace and compass surveying, and to a GPS unit, students work in groups of 3 collecting pace, bearing, and GPS waypoints as they conduct a survey loop on campus at survey stations of their choosing. They have a USGS orthorectified aerial photo of campus on which they mark the location of each station. In addition, one GPS unit is left in a fixed location and the entire class contributes to repeat measures of this location.