"The Science of Teaching Science to Non-Science Majors"
Thursday, March 11, '10, 2:30-3:30 pm
Science West, Room 122

German Mora Dr. Mora holds a B.S. in geology from the National University of Colombia, and a M.S. and a Ph.D. both in geology from Indiana University. Before joining the department in Spring 2008, Dr. Mora was an associate professor at Iowa State University, where he taught geology and environmental science courses and supervised students’ research projects. In addition, Dr. Mora has worked as a professional geologist for the private industry and the government. He is a member of the Geological Society of America, the American Geophysical Union, and the National Association of Geology Teachers. Dr. Mora’s research interests include changes in past climates, organic matter decomposition, the water cycle, and understanding modern environmental processes using stable isotopes as natural tracers.

ABSTRACT: A consensus exists about the necessity to implement active learning instructional techniques in science classes to improve overall student learning, and in response to this need a number of instructional techniques have been developed. Some of these active learning methodologies have been implemented successfully, but no direct comparison between different instructional techniques exists to date. For that reason, the purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness in student learning of two active learning methods: peer instruction and lecture tutorials. In particular, this study focuses on the first implementation of these active learning teaching methods in small- to medium-size introductory physical geology classes. Evaluation of their effectiveness was measured through the Geoscience Concept Inventory, which was administered at the beginning (pre-test) and at the end (post-test) of each course. In addition, students were asked to evaluate the contribution of these techniques to their own learning using a Likert-like survey. Preliminary results of this study will be presented and evaluated, and the effectiveness of other teaching methodologies will also be discussed.