GEOSCIENCE IN THE CONTEXT OF PLACE AND CULTURE FOR A GLOBAL COMMUNITY

We now live in an era for which the expression “globally connected” applies to everything from economics, to environmental issues, and even to education. Students in our U.S. classrooms come from all over the world and through study-abroad programs, we strive to place U.S. students in classrooms across the globe. The geosciences are particularly global in content as we teach about natural processes that occur around our planet and even on other planetary bodies. Given that we teach global content to a globally diverse audience, geology classes provide a perfect opportunity to emphasize the contributions to our science from an internationally diverse group of researchers and to select examples of processes and features from around the world. When selecting these examples there is also the opportunity to talk to the class about the wider geography of the region both in physical terms and even cultural terms when relevant to the features being discussed. The benefit of expanding on the context of the geological example is the potential increased learning that comes from the associations that students make with their own heritage, a place they have traveled, a place they would like to visit, or other connections with friends and family. Students will also learn new things about new places that they may later connect to other aspects of their learning or their lives. Context of place and culture is equally important for international research in the geosciences. Finding a local collaborator can add significant value to a research project through the addition of place-based knowledge and logistical insights. International collaboration can open doors for our students and can lead to opportunities for in-country students. Geoscience students from all over the world are likely to work across many cultures either locally or globally in their careers, so the more we bring the world to our classrooms and research endeavors, the more we prepare our students for success.