ONE METHOD OF PROJECT ORIENTED GEOSCIENCE: THE MELDING OF STRUCTURAL GEOLOGY AND METAMORPHIC PETROLOGY

Upper level geology students at the State University of New York at Potsdam study local shear zones in both Structural Geology (fall semester) and Metamorphic Petrology (spring semester). Areas examined include two locations of the Carthage/Colton Mylonite Zone, several smaller unnamed shear zones, and a brittle fracture zone. Key outcrops are examined several times in a student's career and particular features appropriate to the course emphasized. There is no sequencing of classes, so in each class approximately half the students have studied shear zones previously and half have not. Students form their own working groups of three or four, usually with a mix of experienced and inexperienced students. Thus, at least one person in each group can teach the other members about the previous semester's project, types of data available, and can lead the group towards a greater level of understanding than previous classes achieved. For each particular class project, students decide among themselves what types of data they need, how it will be collected, and what can be drawn from previous structure and petrology class projects and the literature. Using this method, each successive project benefits from knowledge and data gained by prior classes. Data collected so far by students includes petrography, mineralogy, microprobe data, microstructure and macrostructure information, geochemistry, stable isotopes, and, from the literature, geochronology. As a culminating activity for the project, each group gives an oral presentation. Some talks are standard powerpoint presentations while others involve innovative multimedia deliveries.