Basic quantitative and population genetics topics are typically taught in introductory plant breeding courses and are critical for success in upper-level study. Active learning, including simulations and games, may be useful for instruction of these concepts, which rely heavily on theory and may be more challenging for students. The statistical…

Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) is one of the most commonly used analytical techniques for the measurement of metals in environmental matrices. However, one of the drawbacks of ICP-OES is interference, viz., spectral and nonspectral (due to transport effects) interference. In this simple laboratory experiment,…

A laboratory exercise was developed for the study of the effect of three cations (Al, Ca, and Na) on the flocculation and dispersion of soil particles. The exercise was designed for Soil Science undergraduate students in the second-course in the Agricultural Engineering and Environmental Sciences department at the University of Vigo. The students'…

The annual National Collegiate Soils Contest (NCSC) has long been anecdotally recognized as a beneficial event for participating students to practice soil profile descriptions and landscape interpretations. The objective of this study was to quantify student learning outcomes and to identify how students' perspectives shifted over the course of…

This paper describes a reading assignment that resulted in students completing 80-90% of the assigned reading in a content-heavy science course taught in a flipped format. Students reported almost unanimously that the assignment was valuable in helping them learn the material, and a majority reported that other professors should adopt a similar…

Water movement in soil is often difficult for students to understand, particularly when soil texture changes within the profile. Students in introductory soil science courses may be able to define concepts of water movement, but not be able to apply the information in real scenarios due to reliance on intuition rather than fundamental concepts. To…

By exposing students to the concept of digital agriculture earlier in their lives, they will be able to develop the proper mindset to advance the field further when they enter the professional world. Engaging students in activities such as the one described here, which center on the Grand Engineering Challenges and socially relevant contexts, may…

Writing could enhance student learning of topics such as soil management while contributing to students' critical thinking and communication skills, but this has been little studied in high-enrollment and diverse major undergraduate courses in agriculture. We assessed whether writing contributes to student learning and explored challenges and…

This study assessed the environmental knowledge, attitude and behaviour among market women in the Nigerian city of Ibadan, Oyo State. A quantitative research design was adopted and 403 market women were randomly selected from different markets in Ibadan. Questionnaire items adapted from Fah and Sirisena (2014) and Abdullahi and Tuna (2014) were…

Teaching geography creates an opportunity for the transfer of knowledge about environmental problems and ways of solving them. Teachers from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Turkey, and the United Kingdom indicated strengths and weaknesses of physical geography as well as the selected geographical concepts of: Maps/Cartography,…

Faculty in the Chemistry and Environmental Science programs at St. Mary's University in San Antonio, Texas, collaborated to develop an undergraduate course in Field-Based Environmental Chemistry. The course was developed and implemented as a 2-semester, 1-semester, and online, synchronous course offered during the 2020/21 COVID-19 pandemic. As…

The importance of the soil being a source for human existence and sustaining life has caused to the wide meaning to the soil. The aim of this study is to analyze the metaphorical perceptions of middle school students about the concept of soil within the social studies program. The participants of the study are secondary school students selected…

The relevant literature has shown that student teachers hold alternative conceptions of soil erosion. Even though Turkish science student teachers are expected to teach the concept of 'soil erosion' in lower secondary schools (grades 5-8), none of the earlier studies have explored their conceptual growth and/or mental models throughout a 4-year…

COVID-19 restrictions required a transition of our Soil Science and Forest Soils courses to an online format. A pre-transition survey found that ~10% of students enrolled in our courses lacked high-speed internet capable of streaming videos and/or computers compatible with the applications in our Learning Management System (LMS). To ensure that…

Purpose: Soil fertility is decreasing in many parts of Sub-Saharan Africa. To mitigate this trend, various agricultural technologies are available, but their uptake by farmers has been low. Perception of the problem, information exposure, and knowledge play a major role in adoption of technologies. This study assessed empirically the levels of…