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Although field and research experiences have been shown to help retain students in the geosciences, there is less known about how and why this is the case. We created a field-based research experience for five students with a range of backgrounds and prior experiences. We used mixed methods case study research to identify affect-related persistence factors influencing geoscience interns during a field-based research experience, to interpret how the experience elicited those factors, and to explain why the factors influenced students' intention to persist. The study is framed within the Social Cognitive Career Theory and Geoscience Identity theoretical frameworks. Results indicate that the students in this field-research experience were influenced by five main factors: increasing self-efficacy, discovering people as resources, developing a geoscience identity, making connections with Earth, and maintaining interest. The first three factors have important social aspects to them that were impacted by the design of the field experience. The field experience contributed, positively or negatively, to the students developing the self-efficacy to succeed as a geoscientist and the geoscience identity needed to pursue a geoscience career. Therefore, these affective reactions of the students to the field experience, rather than cognitive reactions, played a key role with regard to impacting their intention to major in the geosciences.

We developed and tested different pedagogical treatments using an Augmented Reality (AR) Sandbox to teach introductory geoscience students about reading topographic maps at five institutions in both pilot and full implementation studies. The AR Sandbox treatments were characterized as 1) unstructured play, 2) a semi-structured lesson, and 3) a structured lesson. The success of each was contrasted with the control condition of a traditional topographic map lab without the AR Sandbox. Students completed a subset of questions from the Topographic Maps Assessment (TMA) and a series of mental rotation questions post-implementation. No significant differences were found on TMA post-test scores between groups who used the unstructured Sandbox play treatment compared to the control condition. Semi-structured and structured lesson formats similarly failed to produce a statistically significant difference on the TMA post-test. This indicates that no single treatment worked universally better than another. However, regression analysis showed two factors significantly predicted performance on the TMA, including spatial performance and self-assessed knowledge (or confidence) of topographic maps. Of the groups that used the Sandbox, students with low and high scores on the mental rotation test performed best on the TMA following the structured treatment.

In this study, we explore how cross-linguistic differences can contribute to children's scientific thinking. We compared first and third grade Chinese students' pre-instructional ideas of the earth expressed in clinical interviews with that of their English-speaking and Greek-speaking counterparts (as recorded in the literature). Inspired by a "Complex Dynamic Systems" (CDS) theoretical perspective on cognition and by the literature on "linguistic relativity" we hypothesized that in cases when two language systems offer greatly different linguistic elements, differences can be expected in how these elements interact with other types of conceptual elements. Consequently, such changes in dynamics may lead to variations in system-level conceptual structures emerging from native speakers of different languages. Our findings showed that (1) Chinese students held no flat or dual earth type of pre-instructional ideas about the earth; (2) Chinese students provided significantly more sphere-based responses than their American and Greek counterparts when responding to questions directly addressing the shape of the earth; (3) such cross-linguistic differences largely vanished for questions not directly getting at the shape of the earth, resulting in high frequency of inconsistency when responses to all the interview questions were interpreted as a whole. We discuss the significance and possible implications of these results for research on cross-cultural conceptual development and for teaching and learning science.

This chapter describes InTeGrate, a national sustainability curricular development program, and the influence of the program on instructors who created the curriculum as well as those who utilized the InTeGrate curriculum in their courses.

Active teachers noted persistent problems in their classrooms, including low levels of student engagement and gaps in students' use of evidence in forming arguments. Earth Science students provided written responses to two questions using the previously implemented Claim, Evidence, Reasoning (CER) framework. The first question was answered without a preceding discussion whereas the second question was answered following a discussion protocol--no discussion, discussion without Talk Science, and discussion with Talk Science. A ninth grade teacher more comprehensively implemented Talk Science by incorporating statements from all four goals whereas a seventh grade teacher did not. As a result, ninth grade students improved their use of evidence, reasoning, and content, but seventh graders did not show the same improvements. All students valued the discussion, but this study shows that Talk Science discussions can be used to improve students' content knowledge and CER argumentation skills.

Learning outcomes are inevitably to be declared by any university and educational institution at every level of their programmes. It should have a general scheme for all programmes regardless of the discipline specificities, individual courses or even independent instructional units. Such outcomes are stated at different levels based on the taxonomy of learning adopted in each scheme. People follow different learning taxonomies for stating course contents, designing the assessment items and measuring the attainment. In this work, revised Bloom's taxonomy (Anderson and Krathwohl, 2001) has been adopted as a classic model to express different cognitive levels in outcome statements and assessment items. This has been demonstrated here based on an 80 credit postgraduate programme in geology offered by state universities and autonomous institutions. This article presents outcome statements and assessment items for three courses of the programme, namely (a) Biostratigraphy and Palaeontology, (b) Metamorphic Petrology and (c) Structural Geology, which can be ideal specimen for adopting the learning taxonomy and outcome-based education in any similar disciplines of educational programmes.

The Lens on Climate Change (LOCC) is an informal, place-based science program designed to engage middle and high school students from underserved groups in learning and communicating about impacts of climate change on their communities. This student-driven experience involves identifying a local environmental challenge, researching the topic, and creating a short film about it with the guidance of film and science mentors. The case study presented here provides an in-depth analysis of a small group of Native American high school students whose film depicts a strong connection to place and includes stories about their personal experiences of the impacts of drought on their community. LOCC's focus on the communities where students live was maintained even when students participated in a workshop outside of their home communities. Even in this unique context for a place-based program, the students drew meaningful connections to home and to a critical environmental challenge that impacted their community through their films and filmmaking processes. Follow-up interviews with the students suggested that the LOCC program experience was transformative for them with regard to their personal actions around environmental challenges and their approaches to thinking and communicating about climate change. LOCC's focus on place and storytelling through film helped students find greater personal meaning in the geoscience topics they were learning and may be a useful model for other education programs in geoscience. The alignment of LOCC with components of culturally responsive teaching and future directions for tailoring the program for Indigenous students are discussed.

Incorporating scientific uncertainty as part of science teaching means acknowledging that there may be incomplete or potentially limited scientific information when scientists draw conclusions. In the geosciences, scientists routinely make inferences about the Earth based on observations of the present, and test those observations against hypotheses about Earth's history and processes that are not readily observable. We engage students in thinking about uncertainty as part of writing scientific arguments in an online Earth science curriculum module called, "Will there be enough fresh water?" In this article, we introduce the module, the structured scientific argumentation task format, and students' uncertainty attributions identified across eight argumentation tasks in the module. The impact of the module on student learning of uncertainty attribution was based on 546 middle- and high-school students taught by nine teachers who implemented the module in six states. Students achieved significant gains from pretest to posttest on scientific argumentation (effect size = 1.38 SD, p < 0.001) consisting of claims, explanations, uncertainty rating, and uncertainty attribution. According to our linear regression analysis, students' uncertainty attribution performance during the module was a statistically significant predictor (p < 0.001) for their posttest uncertainty attribution performance, although gender (p = 0.48), ethnic minority status (p = 0.71), English language learner status (p = 0.27), and prior computer use for science learning (p = 0.42) were not. Teachers can use these results to support students' consideration of the strengths and limitations of data and models and the uncertainty of the science itself.

Undergraduate research experiences (UREs) have been shown to facilitate students' pursuit of graduate studies and careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, including geoscience. Less is known about why or how UREs have a lasting impact on participants, particularly through graduate school and into careers. Furthermore, few studies have captured the views and experiences of former URE participants no longer in STEM. The present study used purposive sampling and semistructured interviews to explore the long-term academic and career impacts of a summer-long geoscience URE (4 to 7 years post-URE; M = 5.4) on 10 former participants: 4 in STEM graduate school, 4 in STEM careers, and 2 in non-STEM careers. During interviews, participants described key long-term URE impacts within three interrelated domains: research/science, graduate school, and careers. These came about through a combination of significant relationships (e.g., mentors) and heightened self-awareness (e.g., clarity of career aspirations), which participants developed during the URE. Often, participants spoke of seemingly proximal URE outcomes that retained or gained significance over time. For example, the URE offered immersive experiences (e.g., in laboratory science) and opportunities for professional development (e.g., programing) that gave participants insight and skills related to their future endeavors. Drawing on these emergent themes, we discuss the importance of examining long-term URE impacts towards a deeper understanding of their benefits and toward the design of more effective URE programs.

A collaboration between geoscience professors and pedagogic and technical support experts at Universidad de los Andes led to a teaching innovation, as part of a project entitled GEOC-SENSE. GEOC-SENSE was based on the use of active pedagogy techniques aided by information and communication technologies (ICT) to improve motivation and acquisition of transferable skills using active learning techniques and a flipped classroom structure. Lessons were divided into preclass, in-class, and postclass activities for students to acquire key concepts, to apply those concepts to solve in-class activities, and to reinforce acquired knowledge. The GEOC-SENSE project resolved major challenges previously identified in the geosciences course and, based on student surveys, improved student learning while allowing participants to develop transferable skills. This generated increased motivation in a diverse student population by making classes more dynamic and encouraging independent work. GEOC-SENSE allowed students to acquire knowledge using problem-solving skills, practical activities, and in general increased interaction in the classroom. The activities were perceived by students as directly applicable to a professional setting, making the course more relevant for students' subsequent careers. The project increased student motivation and skill development; however, it also posed challenges: mainly difficulties when working in groups and accessing the ICT tools by some of the students.

Adding to concerns about falling participation rates in science education, the profile of certain student groups who go on to study decreases, particularly as the year level increases. The aim of this paper is to examine if, and in what ways, demographic factors predict students' post-16 participation in biology, physics, chemistry and earth/space sciences. The study was conducted in Australia, drawing on data from over 4,300 students. Characteristics of focus include students from low socio-economic status (SES) backgrounds, indigeneity and gender. Outcomes of this study indicate that SES predicts participation in post-16 science subjects in each science domain. Indigenous status was a negative predictor of student participation in biology, physics and chemistry, but not earth/space sciences, where there were no significant differences in participation. Gender is a significant predictor in biology and physics participation, but not chemistry or earth/space sciences. Drawing on Bourdieusian perspectives, the authors discuss associations between participation and access to cultural, social and science capitals. Implications for the ways in which students' capital may impact their subject choices and how capital may be enhanced, are explored.

This chapter describes research on a four-year National Science Foundation grant project that supported instructional, organizational, and professional change made by geoscience faculty change agents. The faculty change agents participated in sustained professional development, led regional workshops, and engaged in college-, program-, and classroom-level reforms en-route to their development as midlevel leaders.

Third year geoscience students were introduced to digital tools for fieldwork, Fieldmove on iPads, in a capstone field mapping course at Oslo University, Norway. Despite little prior experience with digital tools for fieldwork, they became independent Fieldmove users in a few hours. They self-report positive cognitive impacts, including positive effects on quality of fieldwork, maps and reports. However, submitted course material suggest students achieved similar levels of understanding with and without digital tools. We hypothesize that students' confidence in their work increases when supported by digital tools, however, they may also overrate their proficiency due to the ease of collecting large data sets, and the professional look of the digital outputs. Students report both positive and negative effects on teamwork; observations suggest this reflects sharing of devices rather than use of digital tools per se. The students also report pronounced positive affective impacts, which appear to be the main effect of the digital tools in this study. Overall, the students are very positive to digital tools in fieldwork, preferring they were introduced early during the bachelor program, but after traditional field methods are learnt. When given a choice, most students chose to combine traditional and digital tools for their fieldwork.

Place-based education has traditionally had a limited focus on mathematics, and critical mathematics education often lacks explicit attention to place and space. We explore integrating theories of place, spatial justice, and critical mathematics education. To begin, we consider various frameworks of place--including Indigenous, urban, and critical perspectives--to situate a discussion on how place acts as a shaping force on social relations like race, gender, and sexuality, and, conversely, how social relations shape place. We include mathematics as a category of social relations in that guiding framework. We next summarize and build on various notions of place and spatial justice, toward their integration with critical mathematics education. In so doing, we present teaching mathematics for spatial justice, or using mathematics 1) to identify power relations in and through place and 2) to transform the world by re-imagining and remaking place. We sidestep a false urban-rural divide and instead, illustrate the potential of teaching mathematics for spatial justice using rich examples organized around four thematic categories: geographies of opportunity, mapping, human mobility, and land relations and obligations.

This article is a presentation of a three-day sequence of lessons that engaged fifth-grade students in an exploration following the activities of scientists. From asking questions and analyzing data, to engaging in scientific modeling, to defending their theories to the scientific (classroom) community, these fifth graders were mirroring how scientists investigate the natural world. This investigation was part of a larger unit exploring Earth's relationship to the Sun, Moon, and other stars. Prior to this length of daylight investigation, students had already explored the causes of day and night (through modeling) and linked it to the changing position of the Sun over the course of a day (tracking shadows).

Although the existence of and access to clean water are essential for sustaining life on Earth, multiple studies have demonstrated students' nascent understanding of basic water principles. Students have misconceptions related to the water cycle (Ben-zvi-Assarf and Orion 2005), groundwater (Dickerson and Dawkins 2004; Covitt et al. 2009), and the effects of pollution (Bingol 2017). Regardless of the number of science classes taken, students' knowledge of water remains stagnant, with misconceptions becoming more prevalent over time (Brody 1993). The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) address the need for students to develop a depth and breadth of understanding of water, specifically within the high school Earth Science domain on the intersections of Earth and human activity (National Research Council 2012). The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) offer a blueprint for addressing enduring global challenges by 2030. The SDGs are grounded in global consensus and set targets to be reached by all countries. In this interdisciplinary Project-Based Inquiry (PBI) Global (Spires et al. 2019), students engage in collaborative inquiry across multiple academic disciplines around SDG 6 ("ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all") (United Nations General Assembly 2015). Through their inquiry, students create multimodal learning products to share their research findings with a broader audience and take social action to address global water and sanitation challenges.

In an inquiry with young children at a small river beside a school in Cuenca, Ecuador, romanticizations of harmonious childhoods and pristine, even magical, river natures are in abundance. Using common worlds framings, this article interrupts purity in child-nature pedagogies. We argue that encountering the river as a site of contradiction, and as an inherently pedagogical contact zone, requires disrupting discourses of "purity" that separate humans from their vulnerabilities with/in mutual, already contaminated worlds. To do so, we revisit pedagogical documentation from our walks at the river, and put them in conversation with persistent anthropocentric logics and the vibrant life of plastics at this river. We also gesture toward the pedagogical dispositions that might be required to cultivate educational experiences that are situated in the midst of the problems and impurities that the world proposes.

Situated learning theory offers a theoretical modality for promoting a knowledge, skilled, and ethically adept future geoscience workforce. Features of situated learning pedagogies include field-based instruction and situating students within a community of practice. While there is an assumed value of such approaches, there is limited research exploring why and how these situated approaches are beneficial for students. Situated learning theory is an underutilised framework applied among geoscience education researchers, which emphasises legitimate peripheral participation in communities of practice. In this paper, our research objective was to systematically explore the ways scholars have applied situated learning theory in post-secondary geoscience curricula. To address our research objective, we utilised systematic literature review procedures, wherein we collected and synthesised ten articles extracted from several prominent sources that featured peer-reviewed scholarship for geoscience education research. To analyse articles, we developed a coding framework both deductively from the core tenants of situated learning theory and inductively based on how articles had applied the framework. Thematically, using the codes as a guide, we identified 3 themes highlighting trends in scholars' application of situated learning theory to undergraduate geoscience curricula, (1) instructional practices, (2) student outcomes, and (3) assessment techniques. Using the codes and themes, this study provides a framework to guide others who aspire to integrate situated learning theory into geoscience curricula.

An interactive, field-based course on the environmental aspects of natural water was developed as part of STEM initiatives at a comprehensive university in the United States. The project is funded by the National Science Foundation. The course is focused on two fundamental student skills, such as hydrologic field procedures and analytical methods. For field procedures, an area watershed was delineated as a natural laboratory and integrated into the course curriculum by designing creek-side learning activities. For analytical methods, instrumental setup and analysis for water and soil samples were designed to cover core concepts in hydrology. The primary goal of the course is to portray water's important role in the natural environment. Exercises are written in an interdisciplinary setting making sure that students can identify real-life environmental problems and offer realistic solutions to them. By taking part in this project, students gained new knowledge on stream gauging, groundwater simulations, ion chemistry, GIS applications, bio-pollutants, wastewater treatment, hydrologic systems, and sampling protocol. Students also gained important skills in handling state-of-the-art equipment, including ion chromatograph, spectrophotometer, sediment analyzer, data-logger, and well purging systems. Outcomes assessment indicates that students who took the new course are more efficient in data collection, compilation, and interpretation associated with the availability, movement, and impairment of natural water. They are able to think more critically about the aquatic environment and the interrelationships among its components. Overall, the students view this course as one that has improved their learning in water sciences. Hands-on activities were very useful to critically think about natural processes that impact the water environment. They better understood how field and laboratory research data are used to implement water policies.

International research has recognized numerous alternative conceptions and obstacles to learning about Earth dynamics. The objective of this research was to evaluate the impact of a teaching intervention that incorporates models and scientific inquiry to promote understanding about Earth dynamics in a group of seventh grade students at a school in Santiago, Chile. Through a quantitative approach, a quasi-experimental design was implemented with pre- and post-test evaluation of a control and an experimental group. Student-centred lessons were implemented in the experimental group, where data and evidence were analyzed, and analogical models were used to represent the collision of tectonic plates and the formation of relief. In the control group, the teaching of the same contents was carried out by a more "teacher-centred" approach. The participants were 60 7th grade students (36 girls and 24 boys) aged between 12 and 14 years. Student performances were measured with an instrument created and validated in a previous research project, which addressed three main topics: Earth layers, Earth dynamics and continental drift. We identified 26 misconceptions, many of which have not been described by previous studies. At the end of the intervention, both groups improved their knowledge about Earth sciences, but the effect was greater in the experimental group (mean = 26.8, t = -10.24, r = 0.81, p < 0.001) compared to the control group (mean = 22.4; t = -8.3; r = 0.65, p < 0.001). The results suggest that student-centered strategies represent an effective means for decreasing students' misconceptions about plate tectonics and Earth science concepts in general.

The National Association of Geoscience Teachers' "Workshop for Early Career Geoscience Faculty: Teaching, Research, and Managing One's Career" has been offered annually since 1999. The five-day workshop with accompanying web resources employs a "whole faculty" approach to support geoscience faculty members during their transition into academic careers. More than 1,000 faculty members (53% female, 47% male) have attended the national workshop; 52% from doctoral-granting institutions, 15% master's, 28% bachelor's, and 5% associates. Evidence-based instructional practices are shared and modeled during workshop sessions. Situated learning theory grounds the workshop design and promotes the development of a community of practice. Examination of the 2016 National Geoscience Faculty Survey data using univariate analyses of covariance (ANCOVAs) showed that workshop alumni report spending more class time on student activities, questions, and discussion than faculty members who did not participate in the workshop, particularly on small group discussions or think-pair-share and in-class exercises (for introductory courses p < 0.05; for majors courses p < 0.001). Workshop alumni also were more likely than faculty who did not participate to report feeling part of a geoscience community that shares their goals, philosophy, and values for geoscience education (p < 0.01), more likely to report that interactions with this community help them to become better educators (p < 0.001), and more likely to attend talks on teaching methods or science education (p < 0.001). Although causality cannot be established without random assignment, these findings are consistent with the hypothesis that this discipline-based workshop with its holistic approach is effective at promoting evidence-based teaching strategies and a community of practice.

Increasingly more students with disabilities, including autistic or otherwise neurodiverse students, are studying for degrees in STEM field subjects. In recent years, there has been an increased effort from the geoscience education community to make teaching more accessible and inclusive to these students. However, much of the literature on this topic lacks the voice of the individuals these practices aim to serve. This, combined with the medical, deficit-based understanding of autism typically presented in the literature, has resulted in the perpetuation of harmful stereotypes, along with recommendations that may not actually serve as best practice. Here we present a more accurate and holistic explanation of what autism actually is, using our lived experiences as autistic geoscientists. We then outline a comprehensive framework for best supporting autistic and neurodiverse geoscience students, with a focus on field-based learning. This framework includes three pillars: (a) develop effective communication pathways with autistic students, (b) presume competence and include autistic students in the planning of their own accommodations, and (c) employ strategies for expectation management. We also touch on the importance of recognizing the sensory processing aspects of autism spectrum conditions and suggest strategies for minimizing these difficulties in a field environment. By centering autistic voices in the discussion of how to support autistic geoscience students, we hope to change the narrative of inclusion for this diverse, but significant population.

There is a clear desire in the geoscience community to engage students in field work in ways that minimize institutional (cost, size, liability) and circumstantial barriers (family obligations, financial burdens) that decrease field trip participation at the introductory level. Here we demonstrate that non-major students want accessible field experiences; however, concerns over time and transportation limit students' ability to engage in field trips outside of class time, even when offered. We used the free NSF-funded Flyover Country mobile app to create self-guided field trips to regional parks and urban areas with geological features of interest. These trips were implemented in a small, non-major focused, Introduction to Geology course which had previously experienced poor attendance for field trips outside of class time. We then compared experiences of students using the app to experiences of students in the same course who attended a traditional instructor-led trip. Lab grades and student survey responses provide evidence that students on the self-guided field trips observed similar geology and reported similar affective outcomes as those students who attended the instructor-led trip. While outcomes at the Introductory level suggest a self-guided modality is a promising option, results may vary for more technical upper division courses.

The geosciences consist of multiple disciplines including geology, oceanography, and atmospheric science. Significant work expended to understand spatial thinking skills important to teaching and learning geology has advanced our ability to support students in geology courses and to achieve increased student success, retention, and diversity in geology programs. However, as we investigate teaching and learning broadly, including oceanography and atmospheric science, an important question is how well spatial thinking frameworks previously used in geoscience education research (GER) map onto these disciplines. A cross-disciplinary exploration of spatial thinking reveals multiple frameworks that classify spatial thinking skills from different perspectives. The spatial sciences, including geographic information systems and cartography, employ frameworks that emphasize geospatial thinking related to maps and navigation. In contrast, GER highlights key spatial skills such as those necessary to visualize landforms from topographic maps, or interpret folded and overturned rock units. Intelligence theorists develop taxonomies based on measurable human intelligence factors, while some cognitive scientists distinguish between object and spatial visualizers. New typologies support categorization of spatial thinking skills by intrinsic-extrinsic and static-dynamic relationships, and recently, a heuristic framework synthesizes spatial factor literature in support of STEM education. In this commentary we recognize the landscape of spatial thinking perspectives, review various frameworks potentially applicable to thinking and learning in multiple geoscience disciplines, raise questions intended to drive forward spatial thinking research across geoscience disciplines, and reflect on how different approaches at the forefront of the field may serve to address related GER Grand Challenges.

Individuals use information selectively, in ways that support group beliefs or one's psychological needs--this is motivated reasoning. Motivated reasoning is revealed in correlations between (1) opinions/knowledge and (2) individual cognitive preferences, such as need for closure, belief in a just world, and authoritarianism. We ask whether motivated reasoning around climate change persists after a 14-week college-level geoscience course, using a quasi-experimental design that compared students in nonmajor geoscience classes focusing on climate (N = 134) with students in similar courses that did not address contemporary climate change (N = 94). At the beginning of the course, students completed surveys that assessed cognitive preferences, political affiliation, general science and climate science knowledge, and opinions on anthropogenic climate change. At the end of the course, students' knowledge and opinions were reassessed. Correlations among variables indicated tendencies toward motivated reasoning at the beginning of the class. However, at the semester's end, evidence of motivated reasoning diminished: Fewer correlations between psychological variables and climate change knowledge and opinions reached significance, and those that did were less robust at the end of the semester. The effect was similar for both courses, demonstrating that a semester-long science course, irrespective of topic, may reduce motivated reasoning around climate change.

Most likely a large number of students have heard of the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis), and know that they are a phenomenon in the sky. Although they may not have seen the Northern Lights, most have probably seen other phenomena in the sky, such as a rainbow, shooting star, or super moon. These experiences provide an opportunity for students to reflect on the awesomeness of space. The activity described in this article will show how mathematics is used by scientists to predict when the Northern Lights will occur, and should be used only after students have learned how to evaluate equations, create Venn diagrams, and calculate simple probability. These activities inform the class as a whole about the earth's place in the universe and space systems, an important scientific practice identified in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGGS Lead States 2013).

Both children and adults struggle to explain the cause of the day/night cycle and the seasons (Schoon 1995). Early elementary students may not be developmentally ready to explain that patterns of day and night are caused by Earth's rotation on its axis, or that the seasons are caused by Earth's tilted axis as the planet revolves around the Sun. However, when observing scientific phenomenon of day and night, they can notice different amounts of daylight throughout the year, and may wonder why this happens. To answer their questions, students can observe the Sun's apparent daily pattern of motion across the sky and see how this pattern changes throughout the year. This article explains how to use 360-degree photographs of the Sun's apparent daily pattern of motion across the sky at different times of the year (relative to a fixed object on Earth) to provide a realistic and accessible way for students to observe these patterns and explain annual daylight patterns.

Field trips have long been a part of the elementary student experience, and through the years a great deal of research and work has been done around how field trips best support and facilitate learning. When new earth science unit was being rolled out across the Burlington (MA) Public Schools' second grades, the opportunity to shake up the students' field trip experience and better meet these criteria was greeted with open minds from the district's teachers. Though climate change and sea-level rise are not phenomena expected to be explored in second-grade, appetite for exploring these ideas and the need to "act locally" was present throughout the community and school leadership. A field trip that could intertwine both the district's second-grade science learning goals and an early dose of authentic civic activism toward these growing realities was therefore welcomed, provided it could be done safely, cost-effectively, and within the school day.

The unequal distribution of natural resources is the direct result of past geologic processes. Once a promising region is located, geologists use a variety of techniques to find the materials and energy that society consumes. Their tools can be as simple as a hand lens or as sophisticated as a satellite. Along the way, exploration geologists and their companies must stay within budget, exercise patience and common sense, and, in most cases, accept failure more frequently than success. A common exploration method is tracing a material, such as diamonds or gold, back to its source. In this lesson, students will examine the global distribution of diamond deposits, practice identifying grains of common minerals and rocks, and model exploration geology as they search for their own diamond mine.

A university geology department partnered with a STEM-focused high school to introduce project-based learning-centered geoscience content at the ninth-grade level. We hypothesized that these students, already interested in science, would be a natural recruitment pool into geoscience. Because they are enrolled by lottery, their demographics match those of the community, potentially enhancing the recruitment of underrepresented minorities. We administered a survey of students' attitudes and experiences before and after a semester of geoscience content intervention. We found that two barriers often cited as hindrances to recruitment in geosciences--family/friend opinions and interest in outdoor activity--were not an issue for our students. Students also reported previous exposure to both geoscience and environmental science content, which is significant because they cited interests developed before high school as key influences on college major choice. Although many had not decided on a major, they appear disinclined to view geology as a possibility. Despite their interest in geoscience and "environmentally friendly" careers, fewer students reported a desire to learn more about geoscience after the course than before, and they tended to consider geology as a low-prestige, relatively low-paying career option, perhaps suggesting a failure of the curriculum intervention as a means of recruitment. Our findings also suggest that primary and middle school exposure to geoscience may not adequately convey career possibilities to students. As more geoscience content is integrated at lower grade levels through the Next Generation Science Standards, we should examine how this material is being taught, particularly in promotion of environmental stewardship.

Situated learning experiences such as research apprenticeships can help connect girls to the sciences, ultimately helping to achieve gender equity in the science workforce. The material resources available in research apprenticeships--such as research equipment, field gear, etc.--may be particularly consequential for building identification with science, as they are abundant and frequently hold disciplinary authenticity. However, most sociocultural studies of research apprenticeships have focused on cognitive-ideational or social aspects rather than on the material aspects of the learning setting. This paper investigates the association between different types of science-related material resources in the context of a geoscience and biology-focused research apprenticeship program for girls. The study employed a qualitative approach, drawing on theoretical constructs of communities of practice, identity resources, and identity work to inform program design and analysis. Our findings highlight specific ways that instruments, specialized clothing, specimens, artifacts, and physical settings of science intersect with science-related affect, science learning, and a sense of "feeling like a scientist." The results imply that practitioners both in and out of the classroom should privilege agentic use of tools when working with all learners, but especially girls. Further, the types of material resources selected in learning settings are critically important, as different types of material resources afford different types of identity work. In particular, using materials that hold disciplinary authenticity, when coupled with learning about how scientists use those same instruments, helps girls "feel like scientists," an important part of becoming a science apprentice.

Incorporating games in teaching can help students retain material and become innovative problem solvers through engagement and enjoyment. Here we describe a new board game, "Taphonomy: Dead and Fossilized," and its use as an active learning tool (material available at doi: 10.18738/T8/NQV2CU). The educational objective is to teach the player about taphonomy and fossilization, while the gameplay objective is to preserve and recover the best fossil collection. Through competitive gameplay, students learn how chemical, physical, and environmental factors, as well as physiology and discovery biases can influence an organism's preservation and collection potential. The game is modeled after an Early Jurassic fossil deposit for scientific accuracy and relevance. The game was incorporated in undergraduate classroom activities in 20 colleges and universities across the United States. Survey results show that students and teachers were overwhelmingly positive about the game, stating that it was fun and helped them learn or strengthen their knowledge of fossilization. When analyzed statistically, we find that students' self-reported learning outcomes and opinions vary most significantly with college year, major, ethnicity, and race. White students and geoscience or STEM majors reported the highest levels of learning and enjoyment, with minorities and non-STEM majors responding less favorably. We suggest this game is most advantageous for use in upper-level paleontology classrooms, although it is still beneficial at lower levels. It is critical to use this game as part of a larger lesson plan and tailor it to fit the needs of an individual classroom. Modifications for time and class size, as well as follow-up discussion questions, are included.

In this study, we explore how interactions with faculty influence first-year geoscience students' negotiations of belonging in a study programme. We situate the study within the field of retention and use the concepts of belonging and culture to analyse our empirical material, collected through ethnographic fieldwork. We explore how faculty-student interactions during geoscientific fieldwork and in an "interview exercise" give students access to explicit and tacit knowledge about doing geoscience research, the department culture and possible careers in geoscience. The analysis shows that faculty-student interactions offer important avenues for the students' negotiations of how they belong in the study programme (who they are) and in assessing their future possibilities (who they want to become). However, while positive for some students, the perceived needs to be highly devoted to the discipline and to perform in the field poses challenges for other students' sense of belonging in the geoscience programme. By situating activities in the wider context of the culture of the study programme and analysing the combined effect of different faculty-students interactions, we find that institutions must offer first-year students possibilities for creating a sense of belonging that are varied, authentic and inclusive.

Augmented reality (AR) sandboxes are useful tools in helping students develop a three-dimensional understanding of topographic maps and landforms. Research on the AR sandbox indicates that students enjoy it, but evidence about student learning gains is inconclusive. This study aims to understand how students engage with these tools as a precedent to understanding learning gains. Technology in the form of skin biosensors allows researchers to measure skin conductance (or electrodermal activity -- EDA) as a proxy for student engagement. This study used wrist biosensors to monitor the engagement of students exposed to different instructional treatments of an AR sandbox in an introductory lab course. The data were supplemented by dynamic video of the students interacting with the sandbox. Statistical analysis of the EDA data suggests that the use of an AR sandbox, particularly during structured lab activities, increases student engagement. Regression modeling supports a relationship between spatial reasoning skills. Based on video data, students' collaborative and social interactions also showed a significant relationship with EDA. These results suggest that instructors focus on developing and using structured and collaborative activities when incorporating AR sandboxes in their courses in order to best engage students.

Background: The Classroom Observation Project employs direct observations of geoscience teaching across the USA using the Reformed Teaching Observation Protocol (RTOP) to quantify the use of reformed teaching practices. We report on 345 RTOP observations used to evaluate the extent of teaching reform when curricular materials developed as part of the InTeGrate Project (ITG) were used. The InTeGrate Project has published 40 modules of curricular materials that teach geoscience in the context of societal issues and support instructors through guided use of student-centered instructional practices. All ITG materials were developed by teams of instructors, follow a consistent structure, and were evaluated against a project rubric. Results: RTOP scores for classes observed when ITG materials were used (ITG; n = 50, M = 54.0) are significantly higher than RTOP scores for classes observed when ITG materials were not used (non-ITG; n = 295; M = 39.8; p < 0.0001). ITG observations all have RTOP scores in the student-centered ([greater than or equal to] 50) or transitional (31-49) instructional categories, and none in the teacher-centered instructional category ([less than or equal to] 30), demonstrating that ITG materials support more student-centered teaching in class sessions where they are used. In 33 paired observations of the same instructor teaching with and without ITG materials, mean RTOP scores when teaching with ITG are greater than mean RTOP scores when teaching without ITG (M = 54 and M = 47.1, respectively). Conclusions: RTOP observations reveal that more student-centered instructional practices occur in class sessions in which ITG materials are used. There is a small range of RTOP scores when individual ITG activities are used by multiple instructors, suggesting that using ITG materials results in a consistent quality of instruction. The complete absence of teacher-centered instruction when using ITG materials means the materials are a useful resource for practicing reformed teaching methods. The model of the ITG Project in the creation and broad dissemination of ready-made curricula for use in large numbers of classrooms can be replicated to transform teaching and learning in other disciplinary communities.

Chemistry education has an important role in creating a sustainable path forward for humanity. By connecting chemistry education to a fuller understanding of the world, citizens and scientists will be more effective in addressing the coming complex challenges. This article presents a new approach to introducing high school chemistry that links to Earth's systems using a systems thinking framework. This structure provides students with a bridge to the larger world that makes chemistry relevant and empowering. Systems thinking concepts such as connectedness, nestedness, and feedback loops are central to this framework. Specific activities and content, using examples of human and natural systems, are introduced in the beginning of the curriculum and guide and support the entire year-long college-preparatory chemistry course content. This article provides examples of the activities used to introduce systems thinking in the context of Earth's systems.

The value of field trips is undisputed across disciplines. Field-site visits whether in social or physical sciences provide grounding for place- and discovery-based learning. Yet field trips have limitations that can now be overcome by the promise of immersive technologies that can improve quality and accessibility. This promise is twofold: First, we can harness advancements made in sensing technologies to create immersive experiences of places across the earth efficiently; second, we can provide detailed empirical evaluations on immersive learning and quantify educational value. We report on a study that splits an introductory geosciences course into two groups with one group experiencing a traditional field trip, while a second group visits the same site virtually, immersing the students in the site using a head-mounted device. Results show the advantages of virtual field trips (VFTs) concerning enjoyment, learning experience, and actual lab scores. We embed the discussion of these results into a more general assessment of the advantages of VFTs and a taxonomy of VFTs as a basis for future studies.

We compared 236 geoscience instructors' histories of professional development (PD) participation with classroom observations using the Reformed Teaching Observation Protocol (RTOP) that describe undergraduate classes as Student-Centered (score [greater than or equal to] 50), Transitional (score 31-49) or Teacher-Centered (score [less than or equal to] 30). Instructors who attended PD (n = 111) have higher average RTOP scores (44.5 vs. 34.2) and are more frequently observed teaching Student-Centered classes (33% vs. 13%) than instructors with no PD (p < 0.001). Instructors who attended PD that is topically-aligned with content taught during the classroom observation are likely to have RTOP scores that are higher by 13.5 points (p < 0.0001), and are 5.6 times more likely to teach a Student-Centered class than instructors without topically-aligned PD. Comparable odds of teaching Student-Centered classes (5.8x) occur for instructors who attended two topical PD events but were observed teaching a different topic. Models suggest that instructors with at least 24 h of PD are significantly more likely to teach a Student-Centered class than instructors with fewer hours. Our results highlight the effectiveness of discipline-specific PD in impacting teaching practices, and the importance of attending more than one such PD event to aid transfer of learning.

Burlington Junior School in the East Riding of Yorkshire decided to highlight some excellent role models to its pupils during British Science Week 2021, who were not the stereotypical male, white, old or dead scientist. The intention was to make learning more relevant, more accessible and therefore more engaging and informative. It was hoped that this would enhance science capital and enable the learners to develop a greater affinity or interest in the subject. Each year group chose a living scientist to study and in year 3 (ages 7-8) it was decided to focus on earth scientist, Dr. Anjana Khatwa, linking with a science unit of work on rocks and other recent research about palaeontologist Mary Anning, including a link with the Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre on the Jurassic Coast in Dorset. Anjana agreed to participate in a "Google Meet" with the pupils during British Science Week. On Thursday 11 March Dr. Anjana Khatwa was welcomed, albeit virtually, for what proved to be an engaging and thought-provoking session with all the pupils. Anjana shared various stories about her learning journey to becoming an earth science expert. She also shared many different rocks with the pupils and they were fascinated. She was so approachable and made everyone feel so at ease that the pupils seemed to forget about the barrier that being online could have created. Anjana was truly inspirational and encouraged everyone at school, particularly with regard to the benefits of making connections, following your dreams and having a real sense of respect, awe and wonder for the planet. [This article was written with Anjana Khatwa.]

Digital globes are new technologies increasingly used in informal and formal education to display global datasets and show connections among Earth systems. But how effective are digital globes in advancing public literacy in Earth system science? We addressed this question by developing new content for digital globes with the intent to educate and excite the public about biological and geophysical processes and exploration in the deep ocean. We developed the content in tight collaboration with scientists, educators, and graphic artists. We used global datasets, including a new dataset for locations of deep-sea vents, and imagery from deep-diving vehicles to create two narratives, Life Without Sunlight and Smoke and Fire Underwater, each targeting a set of Earth Science and ocean literacy principles. Here, we evaluate perceived learning outcomes for the narratives delivered as movies and as live, docent-led presentations with the room-sized Science On a Sphere®. Both narratives led to median responses of ''Some'' to ''Quite a bit'' of perceived learning per literacy principle. Perceived learning outcomes were greatest for adult lifelong learners, followed closely by students (under age 18); adult educators generally reported less learning. We found no significant differences in the effectiveness of our movies compared to docent-led presentations for any of the literacy principles, and all presentations led to ''Quite a bit'' of excitement for all viewers. Our evaluation provides an initial indication that digital globes can be effective in teaching the scientific literacy principles, and we make recommendations for additional assessment of digital globes as educational platforms.

To engender and raise awareness to the geosciences, a geoscience research project and a corresponding geoscience internship program were designed around plume dispersion dynamics within and above the New York City subway system. Federal, regional, and local agencies partnered with undergraduate students from minority-serving institutions to conduct the largest plume dispersion study ever done in a complex, dense, urban-coastal metropolis. The students were engaged in an array of geoscience activities within the confines of geoscience learning communities. Assessment results indicate that the geoscience exposure and experience helped to stimulate and proliferate geoscience awareness and knowledge among the undergraduates.

This article describes a museum-based urban teacher-residency (UTR) program's approach to building subject-specific content knowledge and research experience in Earth Science teacher candidates. In the museum-based program, graduate-level science courses and research experiences are designed and implemented specifically for the UTR by active Earth and Space research scientists that account for almost half of the program's faculty. Because these courses and research experiences are designed specifically for the teacher candidates, they are different from many science courses and research experiences available to preservice teachers in a university setting. At the same time, the museum-based program is the only UTR, to our knowledge, to incorporate such a rigorous science curriculum, and this article considers some possible advantages and disadvantages of the program's approach. Because the museum-based program's science curriculum is balanced against the educational coursework and teaching residencies that necessarily form the program's backbone, the museum's approach to strengthening the teacher candidate's science background may also inform the faculty and administration of other UTRs in cases in which one of their program goals is to further expand their teacher candidate's content knowledge and practical subject matter experience.

Geoscience faces dual recruiting challenges: a pending workforce shortage and a lack of diversity. Already suffering from low visibility, geoscience does not resemble the makeup of the general population in terms of either race/ethnicity or gender and is among the least diverse of all science, technology, engineering, and math fields in the U.S. Many studies discuss recruiting and diversity issues in science and math, but only a small number consider--and address quantitatively--barriers in geoscience. We interviewed 31 current and former geoscience majors (18 women, 13 men; 8 Hispanics, 21 whites) at a large university in the southwestern U.S. to collect 926 ''critical incidents,'' or experiences that affected choice of major. These critical incidents were classified, sorted, and analyzed by race/ethnicity and gender. We found that positive experiences in introductory courses, supportive family members, personal characteristics that meshed with geoscience, and outstanding field experiences were the most commonly reported factors influencing the choice of a geoscience major. Though our sample was not large, we interpret these factors as crucial tools for improving recruitment and retention. Hispanic students reported more familial factors, and more negative familial factors, than white students. Hispanic students also reported fewer informal outdoor experiences and fewer incidents involving personal factors. Men reported more critical incidents related to career and economic factors than women. Women reported more negative experiences than men in required nongeoscience courses. These findings suggest that sociocultural factors behind underrepresentation in other fields may similarly impede diversity in geoscience. Although geoscience majors share many common experiences, knowledge of subtle barriers that may exist for only Hispanic students and women in geoscience can inform recruiting, teaching, and advisement strategies.

Students' thinking should serve as the foundation of effective science curriculum and instruction. To promote science learning, particularly in the geosciences, teachers must attend to students' existing ideas about natural phenomena through the use of ''high-leverage'' instructional practices such as formative assessment. Elementary teachers need support to learn to implement formative assessment practices effectively. However, few studies have explored relationships between elementary teachers' content knowledge and formative assessment practices, analysis of students' thinking, and instructional decision making. To begin to address this gap in the literature, we conducted a convergent parallel mixed methods study to examine how elementary teachers employ formative assessment practices to scaffold elementary students' learning about interactions between water and the geosphere, which is a core, unifying concept in the Earth sciences. This research is embedded within a multiyear professional development program designed to support elementary teachers (grades 3-5) to learn to employ formative assessment in their classrooms. Study findings show teachers' own knowledge of geoscience disciplinary content is unrelated to their formative assessment practices. They also highlight the importance of the elementary science curriculum materials teachers use in framing disciplinary concepts in ways that influence how teachers evaluate student artifacts and engage in follow-up instruction based.

Two-stage exams--where students complete part one of an exam closed book and independently and part two is completed open book and independently (two-stage independent, or TS-I) or collaboratively (two-stage collaborative, or TS-C)--provide a means to include collaborative learning in summative assessments. Collaborative learning has been shown to have positive benefits, including increased student engagement and learning. To try to improve student learning, as measured by improvement in exam scores, two sections of introductory geology were taught using two-stage exams. It was hypothesized that class scores would be higher for semesters using two-stage exams--whether part two was TS-C or TS-I--than for semesters using traditional (T) exams. The median attendance rate was approximately 67% for all testing methods and was significantly greater when exams were TS-C (69%) rather than TS-I (53%). The class score was significantly greater during semesters when exams were TS-C (81%) but was not significantly different between T and TS-I semesters. To assess individual student learning over time, part one of the first exam and part one of the comprehensive final exam were compared. Across the F and D grade ranges, improvement on individual exam scores was significantly greater for the TS-C semester than for the TS-I and T semesters. Student learning, as measured by individual exam scores, improved due to the use of TS-C exams. The improvement in class scores due to the collaborative portion of two-stage exams was independent of increased attendance rates, greater for the lower-achieving students, and not observable if part two of the exam was completed as a take-home exam (TS-I).

This paper is an examination of a teacher professional development program in northeast Louisiana, that provided 30 teachers and their students with the technology, skills, and content knowledge to collect data and explore weather trends. Data were collected from both continuous monitoring weather stations and simple school-based weather stations to better understand core disciplinary ideas connecting Life and Earth sciences. Using a curricular model that combines experiential and place-based educational approaches to create a rich and relevant atmosphere for STEM learning, the goal of the program was to empower teachers and their students to engage in ongoing data collection analysis that could contribute to greater understanding and ownership of the environment at the local and regional level. The program team used a mixed-methodological approach that examined implementation at the site level and student impact. Analysis of teacher and student surveys, teacher interviews and classroom observation data suggest that the level of implementation of the program related directly to the ways in which students were using the weather data to develop STEM literacy. In particular, making meaning out of the data by studying patterns, interpreting the numbers, and comparing with long-term data from other sites seemed to drive critical thinking and STEM literacy in those classrooms that fully implemented the program. Findings also suggest that the project has the potential to address the unique needs of traditionally underserved students in the rural south, most notably, those students in high-needs rural settings that rely on an agrarian economy.