MAPPING THE ENVIRONMENT WITH SENSORY PERCEPTION: USING CASE STUDIES TO CRITICALLY INVESTIGATE QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE DATA ANALYSIS, COLLECTION, AND INQUIRY

Mapping the Environment with Sensory Perceptionis a two to three-week instructional module wherein students develop an understanding of the systemic effects pollutants have on the environment. Students evaluate how geoscientists and other concerned parties investigate these effects and use the results to communicate and develop containment and remediation strategies. In the module, sensory data are collected by students and used to trace the movement of contaminants through an environmental system.

In Unit 4 of the module (Case Study Analysis), students evaluate different environmental case studies to critically investigate qualitative and quantitative data analysis, collection, and inquiry. Each case study includes different forms of data presented in a variety of formats directed at different audiences (e.g. journalistic, scientific, narrative, visual, auditory). Students use cooperative learning methods to analyze the materials, assess the impact each item would have on different audiences (including impacted populations and decision makers), and learn how and why the collection of perspectives and formats provides a more complete and complex representation of each case. This prepares students for the final unit in which they develop a map that characterizes an environmental setting using collected sensory data.

In this demonstration, participants will analyze selected materials from one of the three case studies used in the module. The context of the discussion will include evaluation of data types used to understand an environmental concern, comparison of different conceptual approaches used when characterizing an environmental site, and consideration of how different data types and a variety of characterizations affect diverse audiences.

The on-line module, available at the InTeGrate website (http://serc.carleton.edu/integrate) includes a detailed description of the entire module including the context for use, step-by-step instructions, teaching materials and notes, discussion prompts, assessments, and additional references and resources.