Geography (88) This project is being run by faculty from the Department of Geography and Earth Science. It is integrating inquiry-based learning into the core physical geography and earth sciences curriculum by modifying six courses. Course activities are now based on modern field equipment and a computer laboratory that has been upgraded into a Physical Geography Computation Laboratory. The field equipment includes 20 Garmin GPSMap 76S GPS units, a Topcon GTS-600 Series total station, several Swoffer Model 2100 current velocity meters, a Bosch Electric Rotary Hammer with adapter, a sub-soil probe, a CM-031 Ground Conductivity meter, and a Bartington MS2 Magnetic Susceptibility System. The university already has an unlimited license for ESRI's ArcGIS Suite of software. The project is adapting similar programs at East Carolina University and Indiana University and Purdue University at Indianapolis. Faculty from these institutions are providing advice on the implementation of this project. The intellectual merit of the proposed activities is derived from leveraging the use of our teaching skills and experience with instrumentation to enhance student learning in geographic concepts and techniques. The investigators are experienced in teaching, curriculum reform, and the use of the requested field and computing equipment. Although this project represents an adaptation of similar programs at other universities, it has a larger integrative scope and it is designed to specifically meet the needs of our students. We are linking six physical geography courses through shared field and computing equipment, and an inquiry-based curriculum that includes the integration of hands-on field work. The broader impacts of the proposed activity include enhancing the learning experiences of non-science majors, Geography majors, Geography and Earth Science minors, those who are underrepresented in the scientific community (including women and persons with disabilities), and pre-service K-12 teachers. By using hands-on learning and modern equipment, this project is improving student learning, stimulating student curiosity, and providing students with a strong foundation for their future roles in an increasingly technological society. We are evaluating the project by using pre- and post-tests for majors and non-majors, and by assessing student portfolios of projects. The project design and results will be disseminated locally, regionally and nationally, so that others may review our project and consider it as a potential model for curriculum revision.
