We will use TI calculators and an array of probes will be used for some data collection activities. No prior experience with calculators, GPS, or geology is required for this course. This course is an excellent, rapid introduction to science in the field. The Institute is expanding to Coastal North Carolina in the summer of 2001 to provide an innovative approach to teacher professional development. Our mission is to enhance the geoscience knowledge of middle school and high school teachers throughout the southeast United States by offering laboratory, field, and technology training in coastal marine science themes.
Teachers can directly use the activities, lessons, and materials back in their classrooms.
Participants will apply the scientific method to actively examine the hydrology, ecology, and human impact on coastal watershed processes. The program will combine intensive field and laboratory components designed to integrate biological, chemical, geological, and geographical approaches to determining watershed health. In the field, participants will conduct geologic surveys, measure hydrodynamic conditions in tidal waters, examine plant and animal communities, utilize various water and soil sampling strategies, and examine land use conditions using a GPS and GIS technology. In the laboratory, participants will conduct water quality and soil analyses, learn mapping skills, and quantify various coastal land cover ecosystems. Emphasis will be placed on concepts and exercises that can be modified for application in a wide range of middle school and high school classroom settings.