IMPACTS OF THE COLLABORATIVE FOR EXCELLENCE IN TEACHER PREPARATION (CETP-PA) UPON THE GEOLOGY CURRICULUM AT SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY

CETP-PA is an NSF funded initiative intended to foster exchange between education faculty and those in natural sciences and mathematics. The outcome is intended to be enrichment of science and math content in educational methods courses, accompanied by pedagogical enrichment of the content courses, with hope of bolstering teaching at all levels. Emphasis is placed upon Constructivist methods. Constructivism is an approach recognizing that people often learn new material by assembling pieces of pre-existing knowledge and experience into a realization of a novel concept. More generally, experiential, problem-based, and student centered methods are encouraged and supported through the collaboration. A monograph of Best Practices and course exercises can be obtained from the point of contact listed above.

Environmental Geology, lecture and lab, Hydrology and Hydrogeology have been influenced at SRU by pedagogical study completed over the past four years. Environmental Geology carries an endorsement by CETP-PA as a reformed class that has received two favorable reviews by peers trained to evaluate pedagogical techniques and class dynamics. New exercises compelling students to push beyond their previous understanding by assembling fundamental concepts and sound logic in formulating additional knowledge now exist in each class. This evolution has not meant the death of lecture. Rather, lecture is employed intermittently, in the company of primary source accounts of natural phenomena, video, field investigations, or other media to poise student inquiry and discovery. Typically this strategy is well received by the students and supported by anecdotal evidence of its value. Efforts to semi-quantitatively demonstrate success by student survey are underway.