Using InTeGrate Materials in Large Lecture Classes
InTeGrate's emphasis on engaging students in hands-on learning means that it isn't always obvious how to make the materials work in large lecture classroom settings. However, there are a range of strategies that can help you make that leap with the students in your large lecture course.
- The Introducing Active Learning Strategies to Large Intro Courses workshop at the 2016 Earth Educator's Rendezvous tackled this issue with a specific focus on using InTeGrate materials.
- This topic has also been the focus of several posters and presentations including: Adapting InTeGrate for the Large Lecture Classroom: Impacts on Engagement and Student Performance and Strategies for incorporating InTeGrate materials in a large lecture physical geology course: Implications for early adopters
How instructors across the country have adopted InTeGrate materials for large classes
Cindy Shellito: Adapting Climate of Change for a Large Lecture Course at the University of Northern Colorado
Instructor story detailing adaptation of the InTeGrate "Climate of Change" module for a large introductory meteorology and climatology lecture course, emphasizing active learning, data analysis, and societal impacts of climate change through unit-by-unit implementation strategies, assessments, and outcomes at a public university.
Joan Ramage: Teaching Natural Hazards and Risks: Hurricanes in Introduction to Environmental Science at Lehigh University
Instructor story detailing the implementation of the Natural Hazards and Risks: Hurricanes module in a large introductory environmental science course at Lehigh University, emphasizing interactive teaching strategies, student engagement through real-world case studies like Superstorm Sandy, and adaptations for lecture-based settings without labs.
Laurel Goodell: Teaching Living on the Edge
Instructor story page detailing Laurel Goodell's implementation of the InTeGrate "Living on the Edge" module in both an undergraduate Natural Hazards course at Princeton and a professional development workshop for K–12 teachers, emphasizing student engagement, risk assessment at plate boundaries, authentic data use, and alignment with science education standards.
Silvia Secchi: Using the Map your Hazards Module in Geography, People and the Environment at Southern Illinois University Carbondale
Silvia Secchi, University of Iowa
Instructor story page detailing Silvia Secchi's adaptation of the InTeGrate Map your Hazards module for a large-enrollment, introductory geography course focused on environmental justice and flooding at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
Astrid Schnetzer: Using Ocean Sustainability in Marine Biology at North Carolina State University
Astrid Schnetzer, North Carolina State University
I piloted this module in a fairly large class with up to 100 students who have rather strong pre-notions of the subjects to be introduced in a "marine biology" class (e.g., sharks and whales). The additional coverage of chemical and physical ocean characteristics and build up to themes of global climate change and its impact on ecosystems and organisms as a whole "caught some by surprise". A number of students did not welcome the use of active teaching tools right away, but in the end, they all embraced the challenge and were excited about the opportunity to share their opinions. The link that was made between the health of marine ecosystems and our actions (i.e. carbon footprint) left the students with a sense of empowerment.
Christopher Berg: GEOL 1121 (Physical Geology) at the University of West Georgia
Christopher Berg, Orange Coast College
Instructor Story page detailing Christopher Berg's adaptation of InTeGrate modules—particularly "Humans' Dependence on Earth's Mineral Resources" and "Living on the Edge"—into a large-lecture introductory physical geology course at the University of West Georgia, emphasizing active learning, sustainability, resource management, and natural hazards through revised curricula, CMS integration, and polling techniques to enhance student engagement and real-world relevance.
Judi Roux: BIOL 1001: Biology and Society at University of Minnesota Duluth
Judi Roux, University of Minnesota-Duluth
Instructor story page detailing Judi Roux's implementation of InTeGrate modules in her large-enrollment BIOL 1001: Biology and Society course at University of Minnesota Duluth, focusing on active learning, case studies, and sustainability topics like climate change, evolution, and environmental justice within non-majors biology education.
Molly Redmond: Using InTeGrate Materials in Biology 3144 (Ecology) at UNC Charlotte
Molly Redmond, University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Instructor story page detailing Molly Redmond's adaptation of InTeGrate modules on carbon cycle, climate change, and systems thinking for a large-enrollment introductory ecology course at UNC Charlotte, emphasizing active learning strategies and feedback loop pedagogy.
Ellen Wisner: Using InTeGrate Materials in General Biology II at University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Ellen Wisner, University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Instructor story page detailing how Ellen Wisner integrated three InTeGrate modules—on geologic timelines, the carbon cycle, and ocean acidification—into her large-enrollment General Biology II course at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte to enhance sustainability education and link content to service learning, with adaptations for student engagement and assessment.