
Katherine Ryker
Geography and Geology, School of the Earth, Ocean and Environment
University of South Carolina-Columbia
I am an Assistant Professor of Geoscience Education at the University of South Carolina, and have served the NAGT Geoscience Education Research division as Secretary (2014-2017), Vice President, President and Past President (2017-2020).Â
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My primary research interests revolve around 1) interventions in introductory geoscience classes (especially labs) to improve cognitive and affective learning goals, and 2) teaching professional development (faculty, graduate teaching assistants and pre- and in-service teachers). This includes exploring connections between reformed teaching practices, student learning, teaching beliefs, and the implementation of inquiry-based geoscience labs. Other specific topics I am interested in include the use of augmented and virtual reality in geoscience programs and how teachers develop their beliefs and identities over time.
I am always open to establishing new collaborations! Please let me know if you're interested in tackling a question together.
Website Content Contributions
Activities (6)
GeoClick: Sedimentary Environments part of Pedagogy in Action:Library:Spatial Reasoning with GeoClick Questions:Examples
Students apply their understanding of sedimentary rocks and sediment characteristics to identify where rocks may be forming using a simplified cross-section of a landscape from mountain to sea.
Conference Presentations (28)
Results of the 2021/2022 GER Needs Assessment Survey: A Snapshot of the Community part of Earth Educators Rendezvous:Previous Rendezvous:Rendezvous 2022:Program:Poster Sessions:Wednesday Poster Session
The geoscience education research (GER) community began to coalesce as its own independent field in the 2000s, after significant groundwork done by "border crossers" in prior decades (NRC, 2012). By 2014, ...
Other Contributions (18)
Research on Cognitive Domain in Geoscience Learning: Temporal and Spatial Reasoning part of NAGT:Our Work:Geoscience Education Research:Community Framework for GER:Cognitive - Spatial and Temporal Reasoning
Download a pdf of this chapterKatherine Ryker, University of South Carolina and Allison J. Jaeger, Temple University. With contributions from: Scott Brande, University of Alabama at Birmingham; Mariana Guereque, ...
Communities

Southeastern Section, Geoscience Education Research Division
19 activities reviewed
July 2017 Earth Educators Rendezvous 2015
July 2015 Planning CommitteeICON Education Interest List
Education Icon
Earth Educators' Rendezvous Interest Group
NAGT Teaching Graduate Students
Teaching Geoscience Online
Teaching with Augmented and Virtual Reality Interest
Living on the Edge Interest Group
GeoPRISMS Interest Community
NAGT All
JGE Associate Editors
EER 2019 Contributed Program Committee
Advocacy Interest Group
ASCN Member
Earth Educators' Rendezvous 2016
Compass Community Discovery Advisors
Teach the Earth
Workshop Leader (4 workshops)
July 2020Earth Educators Rendezvous 2019 mini-workshop: Spicing Up Your Assessments: Moving beyond exams
Measuring and Increasing the Level of Inquiry in Science Laboratory Activities
Workshop Participant (45 workshops)
April 2022 Strengthening Engagement between Disciplinary Societies and Community Colleges
January 2022 Earth Educators' Rendezvous 2021
July 2021