1. Instructor Stories About Reformed Teaching Practice
Dr. Christopher Berg
University of West Georgia
InTeGrate Research Team Leader
Earth Educators’ Rendezvous
July 21, 2016

2. Implementing InTeGrate
Control Group: Fall 2015
Course taught in a “traditional” way
Incorporated some “think-pair-share”, small-group exercises, human “models”
112 students, mostly non-STEM majors, majority underclassmen
Pilot Group: Spring 2016
Half of “traditional” content replaced with InTeGrate materials
Immersive, application-based activities in classroom
Background content mastery left to students outside classroom
65 students, mostly non-STEM majors, majority underclassmen
Experiment Group: Fall 2016
Repeats pilot methodology
112 seat section

3. InTeGrate Modules
Environmental Justice and Freshwater Resources (part)
A Growing Concern: Sustaining Soil Resources through Local Decision Making (part)
Humans’ Dependence on Earth’s Mineral Resources (full)
Living on the Edge: Building Resilient Societies on Active Plate Margins (full)
Natural Hazards and Risks: Hurricanes (part)

4. Content Comparison: Topics Replaced by InTeGrate Materials
Course Introduction
Plate Tectonics
Minerals
Igneous Rocks
Volcanoes
Weathering & Soils
Sedimentary Rocks
Metamorphic Rocks
Earthquakes
The Ocean Floor
Crustal Deformation
Mass Wasting
Streams
Groundwater
Glaciers
Deserts
Shorelines
Geologic Time
Global Climate Change
Course Introduction
Unit 1: Humans’ Dependence on Mineral Resources
Minerals
Sedimentary Rocks
Igneous Rocks
Metamorphic Rocks
Unit 2: Living on the Edge
Plate Tectonics
Earthquakes
Volcanoes
The Ocean Floor
Crustal Deformation
Unit 3: Sculpting Earth’s Surface
Weathering & Soils
Mass Wasting
Streams
Groundwater
Glaciers
Deserts
Shorelines
Additional Units
Geologic Time
Global Climate Change
Fall 2015
Spring 2016

5. What happened? Successes
Engaged students and raised their awareness/interest
Fostered interdisciplinary thinking
No drop in performance on class exams
Real-world context and problem-solving
Challenges
Classroom logistics for exercises in a large class
Textbook or no textbook?
Student access to and familiarity with technology
Workload – assignments, grading
Student perceptions

6. How to Increase Chances of Success
Promote Accountability
Instructor  Student
Student  Instructor
Student  Student
Organize / Plan / Structure
Think about logistics (space, time, class materials)
Manage the material (what to keep / what to leave)
Have an assessment strategy
Be Mindful
Know your students
Know your limits
Be ready to intervene
Be positive!