LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE INAUGURAL WVU-USGS APPALACHIAN GEOSCIENCE GEOCAMP

The Appalachian Geoscience GeoCamp is a partnership between West Virginia University (WVU), the US Geological Survey and the West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey. Designed to engage high school students in geoscience-oriented STEM activities through adventure-based outdoor recreation, the inaugural GeoCamp was held on 17-21 June 2018, with nine participating high school students from Virginia and West Virginia.

The area of the camp is on the Allegheny Plateau, located just northeast of Morgantown, WV. Bedrock geology is comprised of very gently dipping sedimentary rocks that include the Mississippian age Greenbrier Limestone and Mauch Chunk Formation succeeded by the Pennsylvanian age Pottsville and Allegheny formations. Outdoor activities were used to introduce basic geologic concepts of mineral and rock identification and classification, geologic mapping, geologic hazards, and geomorphology. Outdoor experiences included zip-lining at the WVU Outdoor Education Center, hiking and mountain biking at nearby Coopers Rock State Park, white water rafting on the Cheat River, and spelunking at Laurel Caverns Geology Park. Campers were exposed to basic geologic concepts such as the Laws of Original Horizontality and Superposition, and how to interpret sedimentary structures through field study. Geologic mapping concepts, including contacts and folds, were presented on the rafting trip through the core of the Preston anticline, and the natural caving experience re-enforced the concept of limestone dissolution. Modern mapping technologies were highlighted, including the use of StraboSpot for data collection (bedding and joint strike-dip orientation) and Structure from Motion (SfM) photogrammetry for landslide and rockfall analysis. Participants also received experience with iNaturalist, a web-based citizen-scientist community dedicated to observing, recording and identifying species.

Evaluations by the campers resulted in the following lessons learned: 1) camp leaders and staff were well received, but 2) several teaching units were too long, not informative, too tangential, or too complicated for student educational level; 3) lessons that focused on technology for data collection (particularly iNaturalist and StraboSpot) were the most popular with the campers.