ADAPTATION OF SEAFLOOR SEDIMENTS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT CURRICULUM INTO UNDERGRADUATE EARTH AND ATMOSPHERE LABORATORY COURSE

An adaptation of ocean drilling core data and seafloor sediment curriculum -inspired by professional development experiences in the Minority Serving Institutions-Reconstructing Earth’s Climate History (MSI-REaCH) 2015 workshop- was used in our introductory Earth and Atmosphere laboratory course. The primary aim of integrating workshop content into this lab course is to introduce the interconnections of the Earth system to a general education audience. The lab activity is designed for a diverse population of non-science majors working individually and in small groups to complete in a two hour timeframe exercises adapted from the textbook Reconstructing Earth's Climate History: Inquiry-Based Exercises for Lab and Class. Using hands-on, inquiry-based activities, students examine actual marine sediments and authentic data from ocean drilling cores in order to reach a deeper conceptual understanding of Earth as a system. In Part I, students sketch observations of representative seafloor sediment particles while using microscopes to examine smear slides prepared from authentic ocean cores housed at the International Ocean Discovery Program's Gulf Coast Repository. Through examination of the physical characteristics of core sediments, students identify and learn the basic lithologies of seafloor sediments. Students are then challenged to consider the origins of marine sediments and how they arrive at their particular locations on the seafloor. In Part II, students learn methods of core sample collection, core terminology, and use actual core sample data to construct and analyze a class base map of modern marine sediments distribution. Students also explore what controls the accumulation of various types of seafloor sediments, investigate how changes in controlling factors will influence the distribution of seafloor sediments, and discuss how this knowledge can be used to interpret Earth’s past climate and ocean history. This adaptation of professional development curriculum effectively bridges students’ understanding of the relationships between the geosphere, the hydrosphere, and the atmosphere. Thus, allowing them to achieve a deeper understanding of the interrelationships of Earth’s subsystems and to gain insight into one method used by scientists to study Earth’s past climate history.