ENABLING AND FACILITATING UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH THROUGH THE USE OF REMOTELY OPERABLE EPMA AND SEM INSTRUMENTATION IN INTRODUCTORY AND UPPER-LEVEL GEOSCIENCE CURRICULUM: EARLY SUCCESS AND CHALLENGES

Utilizing major geoscience analytical instrumentation in classroom instruction has generally served a restricted number of students because of issues of time, and cost limitations related to student access and training. Geoscience faculty at the University of South Florida (USF), Florida International University (FIU), Florida Gulf Coast University (FCGU) and Valencia College (VC) are seeking to expand and facilitate the use of a remotely operable Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM; JSM 5900) and Electron Probe Microanalyzer (EPMA; JEOL 8900) available at the Florida Center of Analytical Electron Microscopy (FCAEM; https://fcaem.fiu.edu) in geoscience courses and curricula at their institutions.

A fundamental developmental stage in undergraduate science majors is the transition from passive directed-learners to active, self-directed investigators. A key goal of our strategies is to facilitate this transition in undergraduates, ultimately toward supporting them in student-led independent research. In order to overcome some of the initial barriers to adopting remote microbeam analysis, we have developed in-class activities and useful specimen collections for undergraduate courses in Physical Geology, Earth Materials, Mineralogy and Petrology and Stratigraphy in order to assist interested Geoscience faculty for easy implementation. Some of these activities have been posted on the SERC website. Additionally, narrated instructional video tutorials on the use of the SEM and EPMA have been developed and are available online for users. A full-time post-doctoral researcher works directly with instructional faculty, providing support and training on instrument use, and has traveled to participant institutions to prepare and test classroom technology. Data gathered to date suggest that use of the instrumentation in class serves to focus student thinking and improve understanding of course concepts. More importantly, this study has found significant increases to students’ willingness to continue with independent research projects. Examples of applications by the original and new users will be presented.