PROJECT-BASED LEARNING FACILITATES COLLABORATIVE EDUCATION WITHIN AND ACROSS DISCIPLINES

Two Bryn Mawr College courses used an on-campus stormwater retention pond as an outdoor laboratory during fall 2003. While common and course-specific successes and pitfalls existed, the experience led to a community of learning. A chemist (Lukacs) and geologist (Hoyle) radically altered Low-temperature (Environmental) Geochemistry, an upper-level elective for science majors, to focus on active-learning experiences after they attended the NAGT/DLESE Cutting Edge workshop Designing Effective and Innovative Courses in the Geosciences in July 2003. They compared their insights with a geologist (Sussman) who taught Sedimentology, a mid-level required geology course, as an evolving project-based course.

The Geochemistry students devised individual chemical analytical and computational projects. They delivered their results in oral and written presentations. As a group the Sedimentology students investigated physical and historical aspects of the pond and surrounding landscape. They voluntarily agreed to continue their activities beyond the fall semester. The two classes met as a group twice to discuss pond issues. All students were surveyed on their experiences with their respective class, but those results will not be available until after grades are submitted.

Both classes enjoyed successes and encountered pitfalls. Lukacs and Hoyle found that their students became highly invested in their projects. Sussman found that while her students required guidance in collecting and interpreting new information, they were extremely competent in posing the questions they wanted to answer. Successes common to both courses included: emergence of new knowledge; general student satisfaction with conducting research; and productive collaborations between the classes. Pitfalls included: student discomfort with the open-ended nature of inquiries and frustration with the time required to develop methodologies; and curriculum-imposed constraints on course content that rendered the pond a less valuable resource for Sedimentology than Geochemistry. Overall, the mentoring that occurred at all levels within and across the two classes enhanced everyone’s intellectual creativity and fostered a sense of learning within a larger community.