The COVID-19 pandemic differentially disrupted daily activity in higher education during the spring of 2020, with ramifications for geoscience instructors' teaching practices. Though facing similar challenges in this transition to many faculty nationwide, disciplinary specific coursework, such as field work and field trips to observe geological…

Experimentation is a contributing factor to the interest and meaningful learning of Science. In Geology and Earth Science, the effects of soil textures, settlements, and water-holding capacity are parameters for landslides in Barotac Viejo and other flooded areas. Landslides are triggered during heavy rainstorms, causing severe property damage and…

The intricacy of real-world challenges in project-based geoscience learning is complex to assess with a STEM approach; hence, research into an effective model is necessary to address current issues in education. Understanding the role of STEM in resolving challenging real-world issues requires integrating STEM literacy that is appropriate for…

The widespread occurrence of flooding and the fact that both precipitation data and river flow data are readily available for many locations provides an excellent opportunity for educators to bring relevant professionally collected data into their teaching. By connecting those data to the use of models, students can collect, interpret, and…

Digital outcrop models (DOMs) have facilitated quantitative and qualitative studies in digital and virtual environments of source and reservoir rock analogs important to the oil industry. The use of immersive virtual reality (iVR) to extend field experiences has motivated several research groups to develop software integrating iVR techniques with…

Sustainability has a molecular basis that suggests a central role for chemistry in addressing today's challenges to Earth and societal systems, and this role requires educators to see chemical reactions and processes as integral parts of dynamic and interconnected systems. Despite this prospect, few accessible resources are available for students…

There is a growing consensus that hydrology education should move towards student-led learning formats and simultaneously incorporate recent hydrologic technologies that reflect workforce expectations. Prior theory suggests improvements in learning outcomes from student-led learning; however, little empirical evidence has been collected to confirm…

During the early decades of the 18th century, Newtonian physics was still new. Much effort was expended in testing its validity. One arena in which evidence could be found was the shape of Earth. Was it perfectly spherical? On the observational side there were two hints. In 1671 Jean Richer had measured the rate of ticking of a pendulum clock near…

This study explores the relationship between the self-confidence and content knowledge of undergraduate students in a large enrollment geoscience course following an active-learning think-pair-share (TPS) activity, and whether high confidence necessarily leads to overconfidence. We used a pre-experimental, one group pre-test -- post-test design,…

This study aims to examine preschool teachers' earth and space science practices and the expected achievements of children in these practices. The research was conducted with a phenomenological pattern. Participants of the study consisted of 28 preschool teachers working in public schools and determined by the criterion sampling method, one of the…

Simple energy balance models of planetary systems are of fundamental importance to understanding equilibrium temperatures. Most textbooks that discuss energy balance take a further step and include the effects of an atmosphere on the surface temperature. It is noticeable, however, that in such discussions of planetary surface energy balance some…

Owing to the presence of the Coriolis effect, the rotation of Earth has a multitude of surprising consequences that make the mechanics of the atmosphere or the oceans different from that of a fluid in a container. Since the Coriolis effect also captures the imagination of screenwriters, contributing to the continual exposure of students to bogus…

Model-based inquiry (MBI) is an instructional framework designed around the construction, revision, and testing of models by students to make sense of and explain a phenomenon (Windschitl et al. 2008). Focusing on explaining natural phenomena provides a specific context for students to learn and apply scientific understandings to and can help…

This study assessed the knowledge, feelings, and life experiences of students in public middle schools in the Brazilian Amazon toward aquatic mammals by applying semi-structured interviews, with a qualitative-quantitative approach. A total of 241 students, from all genders, aged between 12 and 14 years old, from four public schools of Pará State…

The anomalous thermal expansion of water in the 0 °C-4 °C range is extremely important to life on Earth, but it is normally not presented experimentally in educational settings. This paper presents a simple experiment to explore the anomalous thermal expansion of water in the 0 °C-4 °C range and the heat exchange processes in natural bodies of…