FINDING GEOLOGY WHERE YOU LIVE

Students at Mt. San Antonio College (a 2YC in Los Angeles County) and elsewhere seldom seem to realize that their urban environment is geologically rich. To help them gain a sense of how relevant Geology is in their lives, I have assigned a photo essay project wherein students find and photograph either a man-made urban feature of geologic interest, such as a scene at an amusement park (the Matterhorn at Disneyland, Lazy River at Raging Waters), a movie or other setting chosen for its geology (Vasquez Rocks, Dodger Stadium, Hollywood Bowl), or some spectacular display of real facing stone in an iconic building or shopping mall in the greater L.A area.

They report on what is geologically exciting about the feature (Matterhorn is an iconic glacially-carved remnant), what drew them to discover the feature, and what they thought were reasons why the feature was incorporated into the design. They finish by sharing whether the exercise changed their perspective of Geology. This presentation will report the observed evidence for benefits in student learning, retention and self-efficacy found in the students’ work.