INCORPORATING GEOLOGY COURSES FOR NON-SCIENCE MAJORS INTO STUDY ABROAD PROGRAMS

The University of Georgia System has a strong commitment to internationalism. A goal has been set to have 4 % of the student population participate in a study abroad program before graduation. Geology departments, as well as programs in life sciences, traditionally focus on providing study abroad experiences specifically designed for their majors. Teaching core classes to nonmajors participating in study abroad programs is not common. The European Council Study Abroad Programs (Valdosta State University) provide an excellent opportunity to offer core classes in both biology and geology in conjunction with courses in the arts, business and humanities. Approximately 130 students and 12 faculty members from throughout the university system participated in the 2001 London Study Abroad program. Ten students elected to take at least one core science course. Historical Geology was the most popular science elective. The entire program takes place over a five-week period. Classroom lectures are held on Mondays and Wednesdays while organized field activities are conducted on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The success of teaching a core geology class in the program strongly depends on the following factors: 1) providing carefully designed readings and assignments for students to complete before departure; 2) utilizing at least four different types of off campus sites; 3) making the student journal the centerpiece of your course and 4) connecting geology with other areas of study students are interested in. In 2001 the four field activities included spending a day identifying rocks and minerals used as construction materials in Westminster Abbey and in objects displayed in the British Museum, a trip to the Sedgwick Museum at Cambridge, fossil collecting at Lyme Regis and tour of Charles Darwin's Down House. The model we present in this paper can easily be modified for a number of different study abroad programs.