Integrating Investigation Across the Geology and Physics Curricula using the Cullowhee Creek Environmental Field Station, Western Carolina University

Lord, Mark; Peterson, Ginny; Vandervoort, K. G.

doi:10.5408/1089-9995-51.4.415

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…In this context, Waldron et al [1], addressing the recognized difficulty that students experience in transferring their classroom knowledge to the field environment, describe the building and use of a "geoscience garden". Related approaches include the construction of an on-campus well field to ease the access to wells with the purpose of, namely, being used for borehole geophysics teaching [2]; and the creation of an "environmental field station" supporting the use of seismic, Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR), magnetic, and electrical resistivity methods for teaching purposes [3]. As for the methodological approaches, May and Gibbons [4] support the view that undergraduate geoscience programs can be enhanced with relatively small additions, such as short courses taught in the field, on the occasion of an environment-oriented four-day course on geophysical methods; this is in line with an equipment-intensive field methods course in Environmental geoscience proposed by Tibbs and Cwick [5] that involved the learning of the GPR system.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using EM Induction and ERI Geophysical Methods in Undergraduate Teaching: A Case-Centered, Discussion-Based Approach

et al. 2022

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In the last decades, the application fields of exploration geophysics have considerably broadened, reinforcing the relevance of exploration geophysics courses both within geosciences and non-geosciences degrees. Among these courses, those with a hands-on, place-based pedagogical approach and aligned with problem-based and case-based learning methodologies have proven to be particularly successful in regard to addressing the recognized difficulty that students experience in transferring their classroom knowledge to the field environment. In this article, we report a theoretical–practical module for the teaching of exploration geophysics methods to undergraduate non-geoscience major students, and in particular, to forestry engineering students. The in-field activity, based on a combination of Electrical Resistivity Imaging (ERI) and electromagnetic induction (EM) methods, was complemented with in-class sessions covering the fundamentals of these methods and Archie’s equation, software usage, data analysis and interpretation, and critical in-group discussions. This situated, context-rich teaching and learning example may be reproduced in other teaching institutions to provide technology-driven educational experiences in their curricula, helping students recognize the relevance of the abovementioned geophysical methods to address research questions beyond geology.

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