Hydrogeology Laboratory Semester Project: Hydrogeologic Assessment for CenTex Water Supply, Inc.

Matthew Uliana

Texas State University-San Marcos

This activity is part of the On the Cutting Edge Peer Reviewed Teaching Activities collection.

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Scientific Accuracy
Alignment of Learning Goals, Activities, and Assessments
Pedagogic Effectiveness
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This page first made public: Jun 28, 2005

Summary

A semester-long hydrogeology project (groundwater resource assessment) which consists of a series of lab exercises which cover basic hydrogeology concepts while contributing to the overall project. This project allows students to learn basic concepts within the context of a larger project so that they can see why they are learning the material. It also gives the students experience managing data and results for a real-world project, and it gives them experience with technical writing.

Aquifer properties, Water supply/water resource evaluation, Well ...(more) | College Upper (15-16)

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Context

Audience

Upper division undergraduate physical hydrogeology laboratory section.

Skills and concepts that students must have mastered

solid earth-science background (physical & historical geology, structural geology, stratigraphy); basic chemistry, familiarity with MS Excel and computer operating systems; high-school geometry, trig, and algebra

How the activity is situated in the course

A sequence of exercises that fill up the majority of the laboratory section of the course.

Goals

Content/concepts goals for this activity

basic hydrogeology concepts, application of those concepts towards water resource evaluation

Higher order thinking skills goals for this activity

Analysis of data provided by instructor. Using data and results to develop a computer model. Synthesis of multiple hydrogeologic concepts into a single product (final report).

Other skills goals for this activity

Technical writing, computer skills, ability to apply skills towards a single goal

Description of the activity/assignment

This activity is a single, semester-long project that involves a hydrogeologic assessment of a property in Central Texas. The project is presented in the lab portion of a hydrogeology class, and it is broken into several separate steps. Each step is treated as a separate assignment, however, the data and results associated with each assignment are applied towards the overall goal of the project. Students are required to maintain a file and a master Excel workbook containing all information, data, and results from each of the steps. All this information is then used to develop an analytical model that simulated drawdowns in the aquifer. This model is used to answer the primary question associated with the project. The results are then documented in a technical report.

Determining whether students have met the goals

Students are graded based on their individual exercises, their Excel workbooks, and their final report. Since their final report is dependent upon the individual exercises, students who fail to grasp the concepts and do not successfully complete the individual assignments will not be able to complete the final report.

More information about assessment tools and techniques.