Initial Publication Date: March 6, 2012

Temporal Learning Journal Club Readings

These are the articles selected by the leaders and participants for the Temporal Learning Journal Club readings. Reading selections focus on Note: If you are in the Journal Club, go to our private workspace to download copies of the readings.

Session 1: Temporal concepts in geoscience

For discussion:

  • Libarkin et al. (2007). College student conceptions of geological time and the disconnect between ordering and scale. Journal of Geoscience Education, v. 55, p. 413-422.
  • Trend, Roger David (2001). Deep time framework: A preliminary study of U.K. primary teachers' conceptions of geological time and perceptions of geoscience. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, v. 38, n. 2, p. 191–221.
  • Dodick, J. and N. Orion (2006). Building an Understanding of Geological Time: in Earth and Mind, Manduca and Mogk (Eds.). p. 77-94. Geological Society of America, Boulder, CO.

Optional background readings:

  • Zen, E-An (2001). What is Deep Time and why should anyone care? Journal of Geoscience Education, v. 49, n. 1, p. 5-9.
  • Kieffer, Susan W. (2000). Geology, The Bifocal Science: in The Earth Around Us: Maintaining a Livable Planet, ed. by Jill Schneiderman, Chapter 1, pp. 2-17, Freeman Press.

Session 2: Cognitive processes essential to learning temporal geoscience concepts

  • Shipley, Thomas F. (2007) An invitation to an event: in Understanding Events: From Perception to Action, Shipley and Zacks (Eds.). Chapter 1. Oxford University Press.
    This chapter provides an overview of thinking about time in terms of events. It is written for a broad psychology audience so it is accessible to geoscientists.
  • Resnick, Atit, and Shipley (in prep). Teaching geologic events to understand geologic time.
    This paper briefly reiterates some of Shipley's ideas in the context of geoscience and discusses another important issue: the hierarchical structure of how we think about time as humans and as scientists.
  • Casasanto, D. (2010). Space for thinking: in Language, Cognition, and Space: State of the art and new directions. V. Evans & P. Chilton (Eds.). p. 453-478. Equinox Publishing, London, UK.
    This chapter reviews work on the relationship between space and time. It has some experimental details, but is still quite accessible.

Session 3: Teaching about time using analogies

For discussion:

  • Clary and Wandersee (2009) How old? Tested and trouble-free ways to convey geologic time. Science Scope, Dec. 2009, p. 62-66.
  • Wenner et al. (2011) Teaching Quantitative Skills in the Geosciences: Deep Time and Big Numbers and Scientific Notation.
  • Thompson and Opfer (2010) How 15 hundred is like 15 cherries: Effect of progressive alignment on representational changes in numerical cognition. Child Development, v. 81, n. 6, p. 1768-1786.
  • Jee et al. (2010) Analogical Thinking in Geoscience Education. Journal of Geoscience Education, v. 58, n. 1, pp. 2-13.

Optional background reading:

  • Jones et al. (2009) Concepts of scale held by students with visual impairment. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, v. 46, n. 5, pp. 506-519.

Session 4: Pedagogic strategies for teaching about geologic time

  • Frodeman, R. (1995). Geological reasoning: Geology as an interpretive and historical science. Geological Society of America Bulletin, 107, 960-968.
  • Miller, M. (2001). Regional Geology as a Unifying Theme and Springboard to Deep Time. Journal of Geoscience Education, v. 49, n. 1, pp. 10-17.
  • Thomas, Robert C. (2001). Learning Geologic Time in the Field. Journal of Geoscience Education, v. 49, n. 1, p. 18-21.
  • Teed, R. Using An Earth History Approach to Teach Geoscience.

Session 5: Teaching temporal concepts in geoscience

For discussion:

  • Mogk, D. Earth System Science Temporal Vocabularies.
  • Wood, Warren (1997). Fluxes as a new Paradigm for Geoscience Education. Ground Water, v. 35, n. 1 (Jan-Feb), p. 1.
  • Middleton, G.V. (1973). Jonannes Walthers Law of the Correlation of Facies. Geol. Soc. of America Bulletin, v. 84, p. 979-988.
  • Rance, Hugh. 'The Present is the Key to the Past,' particularly the section on Walther's Law. Formerly available at http://geowords.com/geohisthr.htm.
  • Parker, J. D. (2011). Using Google Earth to Teach the Magnitude of Deep Time. Journal of College Science Teaching, v. 40, n. 5, p. 23-27.

Optional background reading:

  • Wolman and Miller (1960). Magnitude and Frequency of Forces in Geomorphic Processes. Journal of Geology, v. 68, n. 1, p. 54-74.