THE HAZARDOUS EARTH: THE DEVELOPMENT, IMPLEMENTATION, AND ASSESSMENT OF AN EARTH SYSTEM SCIENCE COURSE

The primary goal of Earth System Science education and the study of geohazards in this course is to help students use knowledge of the Earth and its systems to improve their personal life and the quality of life of humans everywhere. Within the Earth system science context students will develop an understanding of science as a way of knowing. Therefore, knowledge about the Earth sciences is learned and interpreted in a personal-social context for future world citizens. Earth system science has emerged as the predominant paradigm for Earth studies. It is now recognized that Earth is an intricately coupled system where the interactions between land and its soils, oceans, atmosphere, terrestrial and marine life, sediments, and ice are critical to an understanding of environmental change. This is a scientific inquiry course and the methods of science are powerful tools with which we can attain a clearer understanding of the world. In the modern world, science has real application to all people's lives. Scientific literacy helps people to make sense of the explosion of information they encounter every day. This course uses scientific methodologies to examine relationships between events in the natural world and make students aware that science occurs in a social, cultural, political, and ethical context. Use of scientific methods in laboratory or field settings is an integral part of these courses. As students plan investigations, collect, analyze, and interpret data and develop their ability to propose answers, offer explanations, and make predictions, they come to see both the power and the limitations of science. This course emphasizes the skills of critical thinking, writing, conducting research, quantitative reasoning, working with information technology, and collaborating with others. Specific assignments and student understanding related to geohazards (flooding, landslides, volcanoes, earthquakes, asbestos) will be presented and discussed as they apply to local, regional, and global geohazards.