MATH ROCKS! LINKING PHYSICAL GEOLOGY WITH A MATHEMATICS COURSE TO IMPROVE STUDENT LEARNING

An important component of a Physical Geology course is the use of numbers and algebraic equations to describe and analyze geologic features and processes. Many students have difficulty with college-level math which leads to problems when studying geology; these problems are exacerbated for students who have low scores on math placement tests. It is very difficult to address the needs of these students when they are in a large lecture or mixed with other students in the lab. We developed a “learning community” by linking one lab section of a Physical Geology course with a section of Intermediate Algebra (a developmental math course).

The learning community students attend a large geology lecture but have their own closed lab section; they are all in the same section of Intermediate Algebra; and they attend a weekly seminar with the geology and math instructors. The closed geology lab provides an environment where the mathematical aspects of the lab assignment can be explained more thoroughly. In Intermediate Algebra, examples from geology and science are used for some of the application problems. The weekly seminar gives the students and instructors extra time to explore the mathematical concepts included in that week’s geology lecture and lab exercise. Students in the learning community have said that the linked courses have improved their understanding of both subjects. As instructors, we have gained valuable insight into what our students are learning and expected to know in each other’s classes.