MINING FOR EARTH SCIENCE IN HIGH SCHOOL BIOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY: BARRIERS, ROADBLOCKS, AND LAND-MINES

The Earth sciences are the most underrepresented of all STEM fields. Recent school reports suggest few states require an Earth science course at the high school level. Consequently, few high school teachers are certified in Earth science and, even those teachers who are certified to teach Earth science, lack formal coursework in the earth sciences. Geologists and science educators joined efforts to provide the G.E.T. (Geoscience Experience for Teachers) in the Field project, 10 days of authentic geoscience experiences designed to increase teachers’ interest content knowledge in geoscience, and enhance teachers’ ability to incorporate geoscience concepts into their biology, chemistry, or physics curricula.

Seven Oklahoma high school science teachers participated in the project. These non-Earth science teachers came from underrepresented groups (i.e., Native American, women) and/or high schools with a high percentage of students from underrepresented groups. Student enrollment at teachers’ campuses ranged from 96 to 2,243 students. Teachers’ underrepresented students were classified as (1) Native American (ranging from 10-52 percent) and (2) economically disadvantaged (ranging) from 18-71 percent).

A variety of measures assessed changes in teachers’ readiness and propensity for incorporating geoscience concepts into their current curricula. Pre/post data included teacher observations, teacher interviews, and daily reflections. Teachers recognized time, mandated Oklahoma End-Of Instruction (EOI) regulations, and limited knowledge and understanding of Earth science concepts. This presentation will provide additional details concerning teachers’ perceived barriers, roadblocks, and land-mines to integrating the Earth sciences into high school science classroom. These results provide significant, new understanding about how to help biology and chemistry teachers incorporate natural Earth science connections in their classrooms.