Afternoon Mini Workshops
Afternoon mini workshops are open to all participants registered for that day (not reserved ahead of time).
Monday
How Can We Teach Atmospheric Dynamics Better?
Convener: John Knox, University of Georgia
Monday, July 12 | 12:00-2:30pm PT / 1:00-3:30pm MT / 2:00-4:30pm CT / 3:00-5:30pm ET
Atmospheric dynamics is/are arguably the hardest class(es) to teach in the undergraduate meteorology/atmospheric sciences curriculum. The subject is rooted in math and physics material that our students may have not learned well; dynamics is an important gateway class for prospective atmospheric sciences graduate students, but its theoretical content can be off-putting to future forecasters and visual learners; some of its key topics, such as the Coriolis force, confound even faculty; and the first edition of James Holton's classic textbook on the subject will be 50 years old in 2022. In this mini-workshop, we will pool both our frustration and our fresh ideas in order to emerge with an improved understanding of, and new approaches to, how to teach atmospheric dynamics successfully to a wider range of students than before. Bring with you an example of what works for you and your students in dynamics, and a topic or aspect of dynamics that you want to improve on as a teacher!
Planetary Science Education: Thoughts, Approaches, and Examples for Teaching Planetary Science and Introducing Students to the Research Process
Convener: Nick Lang, Mercyhurst College
Monday, July 12 | 12:00-2:30pm PT / 1:00-3:30pm MT / 2:00-4:30pm CT / 3:00-5:30pm ET
This short course will explore approaches used to teach planetary science content to students at the K-12, college, and graduate levels. Approaches to successfully integrating students at each level into the research process will also be addressed as will topics related to broader community outreach efforts and efforts to increase the diversity of planetary science students. An example teaching activity will be created as part of this workshop.
Purposefully Examining Student Work for Instructional Decision-Making
Convener: Kim Cheek, University of North Florida
Monday, July 12 | 12:00-2:30pm PT / 1:00-3:30pm MT / 2:00-4:30pm CT / 3:00-5:30pm ET
Collaboratively examining student work and thinking has emerged as a powerful tool to improve instruction in K-12, but it has been used less frequently in higher education. It is a reflective practice that is part of an instructor's toolkit for continuous improvement. Participants in this session will be introduced to protocols for collaboratively examining student work and will practice using them. Participants are encouraged to bring one or more deidentified examples of student work from a course assignment to discuss. Resources for implementing this strategy will be shared.
Engaging students in Earth's systems thinking with model-based inquiry
Conveners: Jonathan Griffith, University of Colorado at Boulder, Lynne Harden, University of Colorado at Boulder, Anne Gold, University of Colorado at Boulder, Jennifer Kay, University of Colorado at Boulder
Monday, July 12 | 12:00-2:30pm PT / 1:00-3:30pm MT / 2:00-4:30pm CT / 3:00-5:30pm ET
Arctic Feedbacks - Not all warming is equal, is an Earth's systems curriculum inspired by the 2019-2020 MOSAiC (Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate) expedition, one of the most extensive Arctic research endeavors ever conducted. Developed by members of the MOSAiC education and outreach team, the curriculum follows the model-based inquiry instructional framework designed around the construction, revision, and testing of conceptual models by students as they gather evidence to explain Arctic amplification, a natural phenomenon in which the Arctic is warming at a rate much faster than the global average. Using this phenomenon to anchor instruction, students investigate important Earth Science topics including the Earth's energy budget, the electromagnetic spectrum, the greenhouse effect and feedback loops -topics that become more engaging and accessible when given context. Participants will leave this mini-workshop ready to implement the Arctic Feedbacks curriculum and with the tools to develop their own model-based inquiry units.
IDEAS: a novel approach to promoting success for underrepresented minorities in the geosciences
Convener: Kellum Tate-Jones, University of Oregon
Monday, July 12 | 12:00-2:30pm PT / 1:00-3:30pm MT / 2:00-4:30pm CT / 3:00-5:30pm ET
In 2018, a team of graduate and undergraduate students, post-docs, and faculty in the University of Oregon Department of Earth Sciences formed the Inclusivity and gender Diversity in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences (IgDEAS) Initiative. In the past three years, the IDEAS Initiative has employed an intersectional philosophy to develop programming that empowers womxn, TGNC (transgender and gender-nonconforming) individuals, and other underrepresented groups to pursue careers within the geosciences. Participants in this workshop will come away with a tailored plan for implementing this framework within their own departments and organizations.
Integrating Affective Domain Mini Lessons into Introductory Geology Classes
Conveners: Julie Sexton, University of Colorado at Boulder, Molly Jameson, University of Northern Colorado, Jennifer Wenner, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Dina London, University of Northern Colorado, Curtis HopeHill, University of Northern Colorado
Monday, July 12 | 12:00-2:30pm PT / 1:00-3:30pm MT / 2:00-4:30pm CT / 3:00-5:30pm ET
In this workshop, we will introduce participants to 6 affective domain lessons that were developed to be used in introductory geoscience courses. The lessons use a flipped teaching approach and have an online component completed before class and an in-class/lab component (this component can also be taught online, if needed). The lessons use best practices and research-based approaches to teaching and uniquely focus on affective domain concepts related to the intersection of math and geoscience (e.g., math anxiety, stereotype threat, interest). The lessons are novel because, unlike most resources on the affective domain that are geared toward the instructor, these focus on increasing students' awareness of the affective domain and increasing their agency to successfully incorporate affective knowledge and skills into their educational practices to improve their learning.
Making Science News Work for You: Incorporating Eos into Your Classroom
Conveners: Heather Goss, American Geophysical Union, Kyle Fredrick, California University of Pennsylvania, Eric Riggs, Texas A & M University
Monday, July 12 | 12:00-2:30pm PT / 1:00-3:30pm MT / 2:00-4:30pm CT / 3:00-5:30pm ET
In this workshop, educators will engage with an approach to science literacy and critical science news consumption that they can fully integrate into their teaching. Leveraging the time-tested activity development tool of Teach the Earth with the geoscience current events reported in Eos: Science News by AGU, we'll present a step-by-step method for integrating science news into your lessons and curriculum. This workshop will address general objectives, models for using news articles, and an array of assessments that instructors can employ in their courses or throughout their curriculum, appropriate to their educational setting.
Thursday
Geoscience is Elementary
Conveners: Kim Cheek, University of North Florida
Thursday, July 15 | 1:15-3:45pm PT / 2:15-4:45pm MT / 3:15-5:45pm CT / 4:15-6:45pm ET
Are you interested in engaging elementary school aged children in authentic geoscience learning? Would you like to learn how to support in-service and pre-service elementary teachers to improve the quality of their instruction? If so, this workshop is for you. We will focus on geoscience topics and investigations that are appropriate for elementary learners, while emphasizing strategies, principles, and tips for working with young learners and their teachers. Participants will have an opportunity to share their own insights from working with elementary teachers or students.
OOI Data Labs - Online Laboratory Manual for Introductory Oceanography Courses
Conveners: Christine Bean, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Janice McDonnell, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Sage Lichtenwalner, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Denise Bristol, Hillsborough Community College, Anna Pfeiffer-Herbert, Stockton University
Thursday, July 15 | 1:15-3:45pm PT / 2:15-4:45pm MT / 3:15-5:45pm CT / 4:15-6:45pm ET
Are you looking for ways to incorporate large data sets into your classes that are student and teacher friendly? Whether you are teaching remotely or face-to-face, the OOI Data Labs Project has a NEW Online Lab Manual for use in typical Introductory Oceanography courses. Explore this new resource along with the learning goals and instructional support available for these activities. Leave the workshop with a plan for how to incorporate this into your classes and how to stay connected to the growing Data Labs Community of Practice.
Teaching the Anthropocene: Reframing Geoscience Education for the Critical 2020s Decade
Conveners: Gary Gomby, Central Connecticut State University
Thursday, July 15 | 1:15-3:45pm PT / 2:15-4:45pm MT / 3:15-5:45pm CT / 4:15-6:45pm ET
I've been teaching a "Human Impacts" course framed around the narrative of the Anthropocene since 2015. Our students, particularly high school and undergraduates --who may never take another science class—need to understand that planetary change involves much more than "global warming." You will learn about: the Anthropocene (the "Age of Humans") and its relevance to geoscience education; planetary boundaries and tipping points; population growth and planetary change; environmental justice, which is inseparable from any discussion of anthropogenic change. Participants will explore and provide feedback to different sample classroom exercises involving on-line resources that link geoscience and environmental justice and use a sample syllabus as a jumping-off point for developing their own lesson plans. We will wrap-up the workshop with a discussion as to the usefulness of this approach for your own teaching and share examples of lessons/activities incorporating the Anthropocene. Nearly ten years ago, Nobel laureate Paul Crutzen, who coined the name "Anthropocene," lamented that students needed to be taught they were living in the Anthropocene. It is now time to "teach the Anthropocene."
Using geophysics to address societally-relevant, urban and environmental questions in introductory-level geoscience courses
Conveners: Carol Ormand, Carleton College, Andrew Parsekian, University of Wyoming, Lee Slater, Rutgers University-Newark, Sarah Kruse, University of South Florida, John Taber, IRIS Consortium
Thursday, July 15 | 1:15-3:45pm PT / 2:15-4:45pm MT / 3:15-5:45pm CT / 4:15-6:45pm ET
The IGUaNA project, Introducing Geophysics for Urban and Near-surface Applications, has developed a set of curricular modules that feature the applications of shallow geophysical techniques to societally-relevant, real-world problems and are designed to attract a more diverse population of students to the geosciences. These modules support the development of students' quantitative and critical thinking skills by providing meaningful opportunities to apply those skills using authentic datasets related to examining salt marsh pollution and restoration, identifying historical burial grounds and urban infrastructure, and urban renewal planning. In this workshop, participants will explore the curricular materials developed by the IGUaNA project through a deep dive into the modules with time to work through at least one of the activities or assignments. Small groups of participants will also discuss and plan for integrating some portion of the curricular materials into their own teaching.
Facilitating Student Exploration of Local Environmental Challenges via Mathematics and Computational Thinking
Convener: Susan Meabh Kelly, University of Connecticut
Thursday, July 15 | 1:15-3:45pm PT / 2:15-4:45pm MT / 3:15-5:45pm CT / 4:15-6:45pm ET
This workshop is designed to help 9-14 educators leverage geoscience databases and open source software (R) in order to expand opportunities for students to engage in inquiry as professionally practiced. With publicly-available NASA, NOAA, and EPA datasets as resources, step-by-step R tutorials as reference, and a Connecticut-based environmental challenge as example, participants will practice mathematics and computational thinking as they explore factors that may contribute to variation in daily air quality. Working in small groups with similar teaching assignments, participants will explore other public geoscience databases and identify potential data explorations that are relevant to their communities.
Curiosity to Question: A new model for disciplinarily diverse and inclusive course-based research experiences
Conveners: Adam Papendieck, The University of Texas at Austin, Julia Clarke, The University of Texas at Austin, Kathy Ellins, The University of Texas at Austin
Thursday, July 15 | 1:15-3:45pm PT / 2:15-4:45pm MT / 3:15-5:45pm CT / 4:15-6:45pm ET
Curiosity to Question (CtQ) is an emerging model for course-based research experiences that are diverse by design. By recruiting for diverse identities and disciplines, and by emphasizing open inquiry, peer mentorship and iterative peer feedback, CtQ courses encourage the kind of epistemic and cultural fluencies required for inclusive and interdisciplinary science. In this workshop, the facilitators will report on what they are learning about how and why the CtQ model works, and will share new resources that earth educators can use to design for diversity. Working in small groups, participants will be facilitated in the development of a proposal for a CtQ-style course or module of their own.
Adapting Lessons for Your Classroom
Convener: Christopher Berg, Orange Coast College and Megan Plenge, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Thursday, July 15 | 1:15-3:45pm PT / 2:15-4:45pm MT / 3:15-5:45pm CT / 4:15-6:45pm ET
Many fantastic Earth and Environmental Science lesson plans and course materials are now available from SERC, NASA, IRIS, and a variety of other institutions. This workshop will provide you with suggestions and strategies for modifying these existing lesson plans to align with your existing learning objectives and fit your course context (whether a remote asynchronous course, a laboratory, a large-enrollment lecture course, or something in between).