Reinforcing key concepts in the discipline of geobiology through active learning in the field – an example integrating middle school through graduate school students

Abstract:

Our goal was to introduce students to current research in the scientific discipline of geobiology. To accomplish this, we established a three-fold approach to link course work with fieldwork through: 1) active participation in the field and laboratory, 2) multi-tiered mentoring, 3) and formal education modules. During the summer of 2015, six undergraduate students and seven graduate students collected field samples from Green Lake (NY) and Mahoney Lake (BC). The students learned how to take water and sediment samples, process samples in anaerobic chambers in the field, and deal with moderately adverse field conditions. These learning by doing activities reinforced lessons learned in the classroom. The second phase involved two high school students who helped process and analyze the samples in the laboratory during summer session. These students worked with the undergraduate and graduate students who participated in the fieldwork. This interaction benefited both the high school students, who learned new methods, and the university students who learned to explain their field research and mentor younger students. The third phase involved creation of education modules to better inform middle school students of the issues of hypoxia. We piloted portions of our module at a conference for forty middle school girls. Graduate students showed the girls field equipment and how to make oxygen measurements using handheld instruments. In all of these activities, the students had the opportunity to work with the PI’s, who were fully engaged in the process and who made a constant effort to be educators in the field and in the lab.