THE ROLE OF FIELD CAMPS IN UNDERGRADUATE GEOSCIENCE EDUCATION – VIEWS FROM ACROSS THE POND

Fieldwork is a fundamental component of all UK undergraduate geoscience programmes. There is currently no specified minimum in terms of the number of compulsory taught field days that a programme must contain, but institutions seeking accreditation from the Geological Society of London must ensure that their programmes include “an extensive programme of field study with clearly defined learning outcomes”. Whilst accreditation is not compulsory it is recognised as being an important indication of the quality of geoscience programmes, and is therefore desirable to many UK institutions.

In many UK Universities the role of the ‘field camp' is quite different from that of the traditional ‘fieldtrip'. A fieldtrip can encompass any activity in which the student undertakes fieldwork, be it a single day spent focusing on a particular exposure or an extended trip covering the geological evolution of an entire region. The field camp often plays a much more specific role in relation to the final year dissertation in which the student will typically produce a geological map of an area, together with subsequent analysis and written synthesis of the regional geology. Until relatively recently traditional field-mapping based dissertations had been in decline across many UK universities, with many students opting for either lab-based projects or those with a minimal field component. In the last few years, however, the field camp approach appears to have reversed this decline in many undergraduate programmes. This has been driven not only by the desire to obtain accredited status, but also by the recognition that this approach has clear benefits for both the students and academic staff.

This paper will discuss some of the key issues relating to field camps, and fieldwork more generally, in UK undergraduate geoscience programmes using the University of Plymouth as a case study to explore some of the impacts upon curriculum design and the student learning experience. Whilst in general the future for UK fieldwork appears to be positive, particularly in terms of the opportunities afforded to students, there are nonetheless some significant threats which will need to be addressed if we are to ensure that field-mapping based dissertations continue to be an integral part of UK geoscience education.