Education and outreach bring science to the general public, engage families, and ignite a passion for science in youth to seek careers in STEM. However, engagement in science depends on access, and language can be a major barrier. To ensure a welcoming, inclusive, and diverse community in the geosciences, we are calling for a community of practice…

There has been little discussion regarding the design of geology courses (and programs) to be inclusive of students with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Here, we outline challenges instructors may encounter when teaching geology courses with field components that include students with an ASD and describe solutions we have found to be successful…

In this article, author Bill Robertson attempts to help readers understand some of the Earth's heating and cooling mechanisms and how they relate to global warming. Figures are provided to help facilitate learning.

Gastropods are a major component of modern marine ecosystems and can be found in nearly every type of marine ecosystem. They experienced their first notable radiation during the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event (~470 Ma), during which their diversity tripled. This study examines the gastropod assemblage preserved in the Basin and Range…

As online coursework become more popular, students with disabilities that need vocabulary support for reading comprehension will be among the increase in cyber school students. Researchers have some evidence that certain types of vocabulary support strategies are more efficacious for students with disabilities. The purpose of this article is…

With the release of the Next Generation Science Standards, the Earth and environmental sciences receive greater emphasis at all grade levels. These rigorous standards increase pressure on elementary teachers to possess strong science content and pedagogical content knowledge. They also require teachers to hold a set of beliefs compatible with the…

Geoscience instructors depend upon photos, diagrams, and other visualizations to depict geologic structures and processes that occur over a wide range of temporal and spatial scales. This proof-of-concept study tests click-on-diagram (COD) questions, administered using a classroom response system (CRS), as a research tool for identifying spatial…

In this (purportedly) Anthropocene epoch, are schools meaningfully learning with 'Earth in mind'? This paper explores the early stages of a participatory action research (PAR) project in an inner-urban Melbourne secondary school generating a postcolonial, place-responsive, ecopedagogy framework. The project, dubbed the "EcoTardis" by the…

This study investigated the relationship between gifted students' academic self-concept (ASC) and academic achievement (AC) in earth science with internationally representative high-school students from the third International Earth Science Olympiad (IESO) held in Taiwan in 2009. The results of regression analysis indicated that IESO students' ASC…

Work on transversal competences in university degrees is a teaching line entirely established since the implementation of the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS). Nevertheless, undergraduate students present shortcomings in the development of some of these competences, especially on collaborative work, time management, oral and writing…

Faculty Communities of Practice (CoP) have been promoted as a way to improve education in both K-12 and higher education. Over the last two decades, faculty who teach undergraduate geoscience in the United States have built a thriving nationwide community of practice, characterized by individual learning, supportive colleagues, group…

In this study, we are interested in the evaluation of the department of the Earth Sciences and Universe (Science de la Terre & l'Univers-STU), Faculty of Science Ben MSik, Casablanca, Morocco, through teachers of the department of Geology. The accomplishment of this work passes through an evaluation that was carried out firstly through a…

There is a widespread debate in higher education about how best to support students in becoming more active and engaged learners. Geographers have occupied a central position in these debates having long been concerned with understanding and creating teaching spaces that encourage active and experiential learning. Recent pedagogical innovations…

This nonexperimental study examined academic performance profiles and contributions of language-specific and metacognitive skills to science reading comprehension of Grade 7 students of varied English proficiency. The sample included 204 regular education students, most of whom were English learners (ELs; 35 non-ELs, 86 current ELs, and 83 former…

This article presents a multiple case study exploring the emergence of inclusive learning communities within geoscience field courses designed to enable the active participation of students with disabilities. The purpose is to reflect on the outcomes of three distinct projects and consider what lessons can be drawn from them to help promote and…