Because most graduate programs in the geosciences focus on developing students' research abilities, most new faculty members are not well prepared to teach undergraduates and, in addition, tend to teach primarily by lecturing. To address these problems, we propose to develop a four-day workshop for early career geoscience faculty that will be offered three times during the three-year project. The workshop will include plenary sessions, mini-workshops, and break-out groups on the following topics: the basics of teaching, active learning strategies, integrating research and research-like experiences into all geoscience classes, supervision of undergraduate research, grading and assessment, and life as a new faculty member. In addition, we will provide examples of syllabi, assignments, and activities for introductory and upper-level geoscience courses, and participants and presenters will meet to share ideas and strategies for teaching those courses. Follow-up activities will include opportunities for continuing electronic discussions, progress reports by participants, and panel presentations by and for early career faculty at professional meetings. Resources materials, including information on various science teaching resources, examples of course-specific activities and assignments, and an advice column for early career faculty will be placed on a Resource Website. The audience for this project will include faculty members in their first four years of teaching. Participants will leave the workshop better prepared to provide an excellent education to undergraduate students. We anticipate that these early career faculty can become agents for change in undergraduate teaching at their home institutions. This proposal is being submitted in parallel with proposals from the College of William and Mary and the University of Arizona.
