Workshop Program

Sunday, April 18

5:00 PM Welcome and Opening Reception Great Hall in Severance - Carleton College

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• 5:30-6:30 Introductions and poster session
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  • Lynn Fichter and Eric Pyle - Chaos/Complex Systems Theory Learning Progression (Acrobat (PDF) 163kB Apr16 10)
  • Lynn Fichter and Eric Pyle - Evolution of Complex Earth Systems (Acrobat (PDF) 178kB Apr16 10)
  • Bruce Fouke - Coral Reef Systems Geobiology
  • Bruce Herbert - Analogous Reasoning About Complex Watersheds (Acrobat (PDF) 41.9MB Apr19 10)
  • Andy Johnson - Students Understanding Conceptual Relationships: An Example From Introductory Physics (Acrobat (PDF) 896kB Apr19 10)
  • Bob MacKay - Generic Structure of a Water Tank (PowerPoint 739kB Apr9 10)
  • Kirsten Menking - Numerical Modeling in Undergraduate Earth and Environmental Science Programs (Acrobat (PDF) 704kB Apr8 10)
  • Cindy Shellito - Using Global Climate Models in the Classroom to Explore the Complexities of Climate Dynamics (Acrobat (PDF) 4.7MB Apr17 10)
  • Nikki Strong - Analyze This: Fluvial Landscape Dynamics and Its Preservation in the Rock Record
  • Vanessa Svihla - Complex Systems and Energy Ideas (Acrobat (PDF) 5.6MB Apr8 10)
  • Dan Zalles - Data Sets and Inquiry in Geoscience Environmental Restoration Studies (Acrobat (PDF) 890kB Apr12 10)
• 6:30-7:30 Dinner
• 7:30-8:30 Keynote presentation and discussion: Complex Systems in Geoscience Learning (PowerPoint 2007 (.pptx) 5.4MB Apr19 10) - Neil Stillings, Hampshire College
• Discussant: Bruce Herbert, Texas A&M University

Watch video of the presentation (MP4 Video 935.6MB Aug1 17) (The video will be most useful if you have the PowerPoint file open to follow along.)

Monday, April 19

Courtesy breakfast at hotel

8:45-9:00 Plan for the Day Alumni Guest House Meeting Room - Carleton College

9:00-12:30 Goals, Challenges, and Cognitive Underpinnings of Teaching Complex Systems

• 9:00-9:45 What are the challenges? Table discussion and report out

Each table will synthesize what you learned about the challenges of teaching complex systems, and effective strategies of addressing those challenges, from all of the workshop participants' essays. Read the challenges and strategies from the discussion.

• 9:45-10:45 Classrooms, Knowledge Communities, & Other Complex Systems (PowerPoint 36.2MB Apr19 10) - Jim Slotta, University of Toronto
• Discussant: Eric Pyle, James Madison University

Watch video of the presentation (MP4 Video 1742.5MB Aug1 17) (The video will be most useful if you have the PowerPoint file open to follow along.)

• 10:45-11:00 Break

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• 11:00-12:00 Complex Systems Theory (PowerPoint 23.7MB Apr20 10) - Lynn Fichter, James Madison University
• Discussant: Catherine Gautier, UCSB

Watch video of the presentation (MP4 Video 1004.6MB Aug1 17) (The video will be most useful if you have the PowerPoint file open to follow along.)

Presentation is also available in PDF format: Complex Systems (Acrobat (PDF) 3.1MB May5 10)

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The human mind is built to think in terms of narratives, or stories. Chaos/complex systems theories are such narratives. They are not a series of unconnected or disconnected equations or models. If we present our students with a "complex system" but do not systematically develop the narrative that holds it together or makes sense of how all the pieces are interrelated, their ability to understand it will be hindered.

There are impediments to incorporating these ideas in the discipline and in the classroom. One impediment is the dominance of linear/equilibrium thinking and training in our schools. Teaching chaos/complex systems principles requires students be familiar with mathematical principles, techniques, and properties not yet systematically taught. A second impediment is the inconsistent and ambiguous use of the terms "complex" and "system." A third impediment is the domination of biological evolutionary theory as the only systematic mechanism for evolutionary change. Finally, a fourth impediment is the absence of rubrics for introducing chaos/complex systems theories and modeling techniques in class rooms. We need to address all these to construct a comprehensive, integrated, universal theoretical framework for evolutionary processes in the universe.



• 12:00-12:30 Individual reflection and group discussion

12:30-2:00 Lunch Burton Dining Hall - Carleton College

2:00-5:30 Teaching Complex Systems with Models

• 2:00-3:30 Insights from models of complex systems in various disciplines - panel discussion
• Dave Bice (Geology, Pennsylvania State University): Modeling as a Way of Learning About Complexity in Earth Systems (PowerPoint 2007 (.pptx) 2MB Apr19 10)
• Bruce Grant (Ecology, Widener University): Modeling Teaching & Learning AS a Complex System (PowerPoint 6.9MB Apr19 10)
• Greg Marfleet (Political Science, Carleton College): Exploring Complex Systems in Social Science (PowerPoint 2007 (.pptx) 357kB Apr19 10)
• 3:30-4:30 Model demonstration session (includes break)
• Catherine Gautier: SBDART: an accurate radiative transfer model to teach about climate change
• Steve Hurst: Environmental model building using STELLA and Vensim
• Kirsten Menking: Using STELLA to Model Complex Systems
• Noelle Selin: Using Models in International Science-Policy Contexts: Screening Chemicals for Long-Range Transport
• Cindy Shellito: Exploring the complexities of climate dynamics using global climate models
• Nikki Strong: Rivers as complex systems
• Vanessa Svihla: Complex models that foster and reveal learning

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• 4:30-5:30 Teaching with models:
• What have we learned?
• What do we need that we don't have?
• How would we get it?
• 5:30-6:00 Plan for tomorrow, reflection and road check

7:00 Dinner Boonie's Bar & Grill of Millersburg

*Vans will leave from the Country Inn at 6:45pm

Tuesday, April 20

Courtesy breakfast at hotel

8:45-9:00 Reflections from Road Check Alumni Guest House Meeting Room

9:00 -12:30 Teaching Complex Systems with Visualizations

• 9:00-10:00 Teaching Complex Earth Systems using Visualizations (PowerPoint 17.9MB Apr20 10) - Kim Kastens, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University
• 10:00-11:15 Panel with demonstrations (includes break)
• Barb Dutrow, Louisiana State University: Developing visual interpretation of complex geosystems (Acrobat (PDF) 2.4MB Apr27 10)
• Cindy Hmelo-Silver, Rutgers University: Visualizations and mental models of complex systems (PowerPoint 2007 (.pptx) 15.8MB Apr20 10)
• Federica Raia, City College of New York of CUNY: Pattern Recognition: a necessary skill to understand Causality in Complex Systems (PowerPoint 3.6MB Apr20 10); images from the NetLogo Termite Simulation (PowerPoint 3.4MB Apr20 10)
• 11:15-12:30 Discussion of teaching with visualizations, return to discussion of why teaching complex systems is difficult, what other strategies are we using/should we be thinking about using, create working groups

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12:30-1:30 Lunch with Working Group Burton Dining Hall - Carleton College

1:30-4:00 Working Groups Work Time

Working group pages (accessible only to workshop participants)

4:00-5:00 Working Group Report Out and Group Discussion

Public webpages arising from working groups:

• Definitions of complexity
• Promising pedagogical approaches to teaching complex systems
• Using computer models to teach complex systems
• Combining an inquiry-based approach with multiple representations of complex systems
• A role-playing approach to coupled complex natural and human systems
• Assessing students' understanding of complex systems
• Modeling exsolution (and perthite formation) as an example of complex system behavior

5:00-6:00 Personal Reflection, Table Discussion, Whole Group Synthesis

• Developing documents to inform our colleagues on lessons learned, recommendations, and next steps
• End of workshop evaluation

7:00 Dinner Out on the Town