Jennifer Sliko: Using Cli-Fi in Planet Earth at Pennsylvania State University - Harrisburg

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About this course

An introductory level course for non-majors.

35

students

Two 120-minute lectures

per week

Small, public 4-year university

, that is one of the 24 campuses that create The Pennsylvania State University, a large research university.

Planet Earth course syllabus (Microsoft Word 75kB Sep8 15)

Show the description of the Planet Earth course

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Planet Earth is an introductory course about Earth, with emphasis on the processes the affect the landscape of Earth. Students learn about fundamental geologic processes and how they impact humans and the environment on regional and global scales. Some of these processes are slow, such as the movements of continents, and change Earth over a period of millions of years. Others are rapid, such as earthquakes and floods. Students learn how these processes are related and interact with each other.

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Course goals and content:

Planet Earth is a general education natural science elective. Topics covered in this class include: the scientific method, earthquakes and Earth's interior, Earth spheres, volcanism, rivers and floods, plate tectonics, groundwater, contour maps, climate change, geologic time, and shorelines.

Relationship of InTeGrate Materials to my Course

I taught this module about half-way through the semester. Before doing this module, the students had previously learned about hypothesis testing and the scientific method, groundwater, rivers, and plate tectonics. The students also wrote an opinion paper on hydraulic fracturing in Pennsylvania before we started this module. Before starting Unit 1, the students read the textbook chapter about climate change.

A Unit-by-Unit Breakdown of How I Taught this Module

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Assessments

The students completed each of the assessments as they are described in each unit. However, while completing this module, the students completed more homework than I typically give in class (the students were not used to doing the extra work).

The summative assessment was given as a take-home assignment, and the students had one week to complete the assignment. While some students did well on the summative assessment, others had clearly put in minimal effort the night before the assignment was due.

Outcomes

I wanted to use this module to teach my students about climate change. While my students did learn about climate change (based on exam scores), they also learned about climate change communication. Based on their performance in Unit 5, I think they understood when it is appropriate to use the different forms of communication covered in different situations. Also, at the end of the module, my students understood the difference between pathos, logos, and ethos, which was an unexpected, but welcome, outcome.

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