MAKING A CONNECTION: USING PERSONAL INTERESTS TO ESTABLISH THE IMPORTANCE OF GEOSCIENCE EDUCATION

Using as inspiration my own experience in Meg Thompson's “Geology and Human Affairs” course at Wellesley College, course projects have been designed to establish connections between knowledge of geoscience concepts and an understanding of their use in everyday life. The students I work with are primarily those who are not geology majors, and for whom courses in this field are a “necessary evil” to fulfill graduation requirements. Semester-long projects of this type have been developed in two courses, one focusing on natural disasters, and the other concentrating on environmental geology and land use. While the success of these projects has not been overwhelming to these non-majors, there are certainly a number of students for whom the work becomes a compelling and engrossing study of how geoscience and environmental concepts can affect them and their property.

In each of these projects (which change somewhat from year to year), the first important step is for students to choose an area to study and evaluate – an area they are encouraged to choose based on some vested interest in the site. This may be an area where they would like to live, where they have lived, or where they currently own property. By selecting a site for study that they have interest in, or that they already may know, students begin their work with some established personal connection to the project.

In the case of natural disasters, students evaluate the potential (in a qualitative manner) of their sites in terms of the disasters they may face, and those that have occurred in their areas in the past. The work is divided into three broad categories: tectonic, geomorphological, and meteorological hazards. In the environmental geology course, the project is divided into more detailed categories: geological aspects, geomorphologic features, land use and resource availability, air, land and water quality issues (contamination, etc.) and other environmental concerns as appropriate.