Integration of Inquiry Fossil Research Approaches and Students’ Local Environments Within Online Geoscience Classrooms

Abstract

The Fossil Freeway project, an assignment in which students investigate local fossils and reconstruct paleoenvironments through these fossils, emerged from our previous research that revealed local environments had the greatest impact on students’ Geologic Sense of Place^©, or their affective and intellectual state concerning the Earth and its components. Our earlier research also revealed that online students could successfully conduct self-directed field investigations within their local areas. We researched and optimized the Fossil Freeway project over three semesters (n = 15, 14, 7). Students in an online master’s level paleontology course were directed to procure local fossils, either through field sites or informal educational displays. Through the fossils, students reconstructed two paleoenvironments of their local environments. Student performance affirmed positive learning outcomes on the Fossil Freeway project. Through content analysis of anonymous surveys, several stable themes emerged: (1) The Fossil Freeway project promoted regional connections of the course material to the students’ local geographical areas, through identification of local fossil resources and the illustration of local environments’ changes throughout time; (2) inquiry-based, active-learning activities had high value in online classrooms; and (3) activities developed within Fossil Freeway projects could be modified and implemented within K-12 school environments. However, initial student feedback indicated that the project created a higher-than-average demand on students’ time. Through refinement over subsequent semesters, the Fossil Freeway project was optimized to integrate course projects with the final Fossil Freeway project. The number of required fossils was also reduced. The 2011 content analysis revealed complete student support for the project. We propose that inquiry-based, fossil field investigations can be conducted within online classrooms to successfully promote meaningful learning by integrating course content through local paleoenvironmental reconstructions.

Appendices

Appendices

1.1 Appendix 1: The 2011 History of Life Fossil Freeway Assignment Guidelines

History of Life

4th Quarter Exercise Project

Application and Synthesis

Your Local Fossil Freeway

The Strata that Matter

In lieu of a Brice, Levin, and Smith lab manual component for your 4th Quarter Exercise assignment, you will be responsible for a synthesis and application project. You will be responsible for a “chapter” about your local area in which you will be Cruisin’ the Fossil Freeway.

Use Johnson’s and Troll’s text as a loose guideline for fossil exploration in your own area. What interesting fossil outcrops, museums, and parks are within driving distance in your part of the country?

You will photograph and discuss fossil specimens that you locate in a minimum of three informal educational sites (museums, fossil parks, university collections, local fossil collecting sites,¹ etc.). In this assignment, you will be applying the knowledge and skills you have acquired in this course to your local paleontological displays and fossil outcrops. You will then adapt the specimens and the informal sites for use in your own classroom. Your grade for the 4th Qtr Exercises will come from this project; there will be no lab manual assignment or 4th Qtr Exercises exam.

Guidelines for the Project

• 1. The specimens: Each student is required to locate and include a minimum of ten specimens representing ten species and five different phyla (Cnidaria, Porifera, Mollusca, Brachiopoda, etc. You may also use plant divisions to count for phyla.) You should use a minimum of three informal educational sites (local collecting site, fossil park, university museum, Natural History Museum, etc.) Please let me know if you encounter difficulties in locating informal education sites or fossil outcrops in your area. Specific exhibits at any informal educational site may be used only once this semester. Therefore, if you describe the Mesozoic landscape of your area, and then use fossils from the local natural history museum to illustrate this environment, no other HoL student may use the Mesozoic display at this local natural history museum (but may use the Paleozoic exhibit). Therefore, please e-mail me with your choice(s), and I will send an approval e-mail if the site has not already been claimed by one of your colleagues. (This should only affect a few of you who live in the same general vicinity.) We will post the approved sites on a discussion board so that everyone will be aware of the sites that are already claimed.

  • (a) Each of the 10 specimens that you include in your project must be photographed. Include in the photograph (1) a standard yellow #2 pencil for scale, centered at the bottom, and (2) the MSU Geosciences Bully logo (with the HoL Spring 2011 annotation) in the lower right of your photographs. The 2011 MSU Geosciences Bully logo is attached to an instructor’s message, as well as posted under Additional Resources.

    • (i) Please print a copy of the logo to use in your photographs; it should insert into an MS Word file as an image that is 1.3 × 1.72 in..

    • (ii) You may have to take two photographs—one including the scale, and the other focusing on the specimen—for each fossil. You are required to take at least one photograph that includes the 2011 Bully logo and the yellow pencil for each of the 12 specimens.

    • (iii) Please check with the museum/site staff before your visit to verify that photography is permitted. If it is not permitted, contact me for additional instructions.

    • (iv) *Never trespass on private property in search of fossils! You must procure permissions before investigating privately owned property.

    • (v) Be prepared to take many photographs if you use museum sites, as photographing specimens behind glass is often tricky. (Place the camera lens directly against the glass, or, if you have a flash that can be angled, aim the light at an oblique angle to the glass surface.)

    • (vi) If you do not have a digital camera for this assignment, buy disposable cameras, and when processing your film, have the photographs saved to a CD. This has become a viable, inexpensive option.

  • (b) Each specimen must be identified according to its phylum, genus, and species in the caption under the photograph.

    • (i) Museum specimens will be identified for you. Therefore, you must also include a brief discussion of the distinguishing features of that specimen. (You must discuss why it warrants a particular classification. For example, why is a specimen categorized as Cnidaria, Tabulata, Halysites?) Your discussion should include an explanation of the basic, significant morphological features of each specimen.

    • (ii) For collected specimens displayed in museums or parks, be sure to include only fossils of organisms that either lived in your local area or were collected in your area. (For example, do not include trilobite specimens from Utah, unless you are fortunate enough to live in Utah!)

    • (iii) For specimens you collect in the field, more leeway is given for identifications. Please identify the specimen as best as you can, and note why you placed the fossil in this category.

      • 1. Each specimen must be identified according to its phylum and genus. Please make an attempt at the species identification. Common or familiar names (such as “chain coral”) are encouraged, but not mandatory; however common names do not replace the necessity for scientific ones.

      • 2. There are several fossil texts that can aid you in the identification of your specimens. The “Roadside Geology” series are often good places to start for US locations. The Audubon Society, Simon and Schuster, and the Smithsonian also publish easy-to-use field guides. If you are procuring in a specific area, an internet search might turn up a book on fossils specific to your area.

      • 3. Be sure to reference any source that you utilize in your project.

      • 4. You should explain how you identified each specimen; this should include an explanation of the basic, significant morphological features of your specimen. Even though you may incorrectly identify some of your specimens, you will receive full credit if your explanation supports your identification.

  • (c) Each specimen must be identified according to its geologic age. Please include the specimen’s period (or epoch for Cenozoic specimens) and an approximate age.

• 2. The paleoenvironments: Your fossil road trip should include general descriptions of your area at two different geologic times. Therefore, if you focus upon Pleistocene mammals for part of your fossil road trip (and use specimens from a local university geology museum), please include a general environment of deposition for Pleistocene mammals in your area. What was the landscape like in the Pleistocene? You should describe at least two different geologic times for your area or two different paleoenvironmental interpretations of your area. Remember, you have a minimum of three different sites that you must visit, and from these three, you must incorporate fossil specimens. It is desirable that you choose different paleoenvironments for at least two of your informal sites. If you investigated a Cretaceous reef exhibit at a field site (and described your local area as underwater in a shallow Cretaceous sea), please make sure that you choose another environment and/or geologic age for at least one of your other sites. (Your Cretaceous sea may have given way locally to warm forests, and your fossil specimens may include Eocene mammals at another site or museum.) It is your choice whether you would like to describe a third local environment (geologic age and/or environment) from your third required site or whether you use one of the two described environments for the third site. (In other words, you may have two sites—e.g., a museum and a Cretaceous reef in the field—illustrating your description of your local area under Cretaceous seas.)

  • (a) Summary: You will need a minimum of two different paleoenvironments. You may choose to investigate a theme such as reefs of different periods, or terrestrial, aquatic, and airborne organisms of one particular period. Just make sure that you can describe your local area—or an area within driving distance—in at least two different geologic times or two different environments.

  • (b) Your other quarterly projects should be directly implemented into this project as much as possible to save you valuable time. Your palynology MicroWorld project should have yielded some valuable paleoenvironmental information for your area, just as your ichnofossil project did.

• 3. The field sites: A general description of each of the informal educational sites you investigated is also required. If this is a public, “formal” informal site (such as a museum, fossil park, or university museum) be sure to include the number of annual visitors, the targeted age group(s), and/or outside support the facility receives. Any brochures, lesson plans, group discounts, or other pertinent information that the site offers would add to your project and may be included.

  • (a) You may interview an educational director at each site to obtain this information. Be sure to cite the interview in your reference list as “interview” or “direct correspondence.”

  • (b) If you choose fossil outcrops, please provide a general description of where the site is located (e.g., roadcut along Highway 125, 2.5 miles west of New Town, exposing the Prairie Bluff Formation). GPS coordinates are also nice and can be obtained from the free Google Earth software if you don’t have a GPS unit or a GPS application on your phone.

• 4. The classroom application: In Part II of this project, you will need to develop a mini-unit that includes activities for each informal educational site—or a combined activity utilizing the three sites (and addressing at least two paleoenvironments)—for the age group that you currently teach. These activities may be components of a larger unit (e.g., a multiple-stop field trip), or they may be stand-alone activities.

  • (a) Provide a brief description of your current classroom, including grade, courses taught, and whether your students possess any special needs and/or require accommodations. You may use earlier descriptions from application activities unless you are addressing a different classroom with this project.

  • (b) Develop activities using the three sites and two past paleoenvironments. This may include a field trip activity for your class and a hands-on activity (e.g., if you investigate a children’s informal site). You do not have to “field test” your activities within your classroom this semester, but it is my hope that you will end up with activities that you will be able to include in your future classrooms.

  • (c) Be sure to include your objectives for the activity, state competencies/benchmarks/standards, and any national standards (NSES) that are addressed. (Please state the actual objective, instead of identifying objectives only by alphanumeric codes.) You must incorporate higher order thinking skills in at least one of your activities. Please specify how you accomplish this within the activity’s description.

  • (d) You must address more than one learning style in the three activities. Please describe exactly how you accomplish this.

  • (e) You must provide at least one assessment tool for the activities.

  • (f) If you are not a classroom teacher, please contact me for an alternative assignment to this requirement.

• 5. The submission: Assemble your specimen photographs, descriptions, and classroom activities in a booklet or paper. Because photographs may be large files, you may need to upload your project in a series of files in order to submit it. Please use MS Word for your text; you may incorporate photographs directly into a Word file, or you may submit them separately in jpg format.

  • (a) All submissions should be made directly through the myCourses Assignments tab.

  • (b) If you submit your photographs separately, please label the files with your initials and their appropriate placement in your document (RMC Fig. 1, etc.). Please note where each figure belongs in your paper if you do not incorporate the photographs directly.

  • (c) Please make sure your name is on each MS Word submission. (For example, you may choose to submit photographs and descriptions for each informal site as separate files and your classroom activities as separate files. Please type your initials in the header for each file.)

  • (d) You may use any standard style for writing and assimilating your project, including—but not limited to—APA, MLA, or Chicago Style. You must consistently use the same standard writing style, however.

• 6. Projects are due on _______________________________.

• 7. A tentative rubric for the assessment of this project is included on the next page. Additionally, projects are scored with a multipage checklist that notes whether (1) three informal sites were used and described; (2) two paleoenvironmental descriptions are included; (3) the location, period, relative age, identification, description, and photograph with required scale/logo are included for each of the required 10 fossils; and (4) all classroom mini-unit requirements—objectives, class description, assessment, etc.—are present.

• 8. You may incorporate this research into your local field course. The time you spend developing this assignment is applicable for your local field course as well—especially if the exhibits represent the local geology of the area. (For example, you may develop an activity involving a fossil “guide” than can be downloaded from your Local Field Course website.) Several students reported in the past that the majority of their “field work” from their 4th Qtr project was directly applicable to their local field course.

• 9. Bonus points: Include an illustrated map of your Fossil Freeway, with your three sites identified. Check out Johnson and Troll’s text for examples.

• 10. Happy Hunting! If you encounter any problems or have questions during this project, please feel free to contact me.

1.2 Appendix 2: Checklist and Rubric for the Fossil Freeway Project

History of Life Fourth Quarter

Fossil Freeway Application Exercise

Student name: ___________________

Category	4 – Excellent	3 – Good	2 – Average	1 – Poor
Amount of information	All specimens are present and all information regarding the specimens is available	All specimens are present and most information regarding the specimens is available	All specimens are present and some information regarding the specimens is available	Specimens and information are missing
Quality of information	Information clearly relates to the specimen. Scientific rigor was incorporated, and several supporting details are included	Information clearly relates to the specimen. Scientific rigor was incorporated, and 1–2 supporting details are included	Information clearly relates to the specimen. Some scientific rigor was incorporated; no supporting details are included	Information does not relate to the specimen
Photographs and illustrations	Photographs and illustrations are neat, accurate, and add to the reader’s understanding of the topic	Photographs and illustrations are accurate and add to the reader’s understanding of the topic	Photographs and illustrations are neat and accurate and sometimes add to the reader’s understanding of the topic	Photographs and illustrations are not accurate or do not add to the reader’s understanding of the topic
Classroom activity	Classroom activities are appropriate, with objectives and standards clearly stated and exemplary work exhibited	Classroom activities are appropriate, with objectives and standards clearly stated	Classroom activities are appropriate, only some objectives and standards stated	Classroom activities are inappropriate
Classroom assessment	Assessment is very appropriate and exemplary with higher order thinking skills and different learning styles addressed	Assessment is appropriate with higher order thinking skills and different learning styles addressed	Assessment is appropriate with higher order thinking skills or different learning styles addressed	Assessment is inappropriate
Organization	Information is very organized with well-constructed paragraphs and subheadings	Information is organized with well-constructed paragraphs	Information is organized, but paragraphs are not well constructed	The information appears to be disorganized

1.2.1 Fossil Freeway Project Checklist

Fossils
(A) Specimens
1. Specimen 1
(a) Photograph	_____
(b) Identification	_____
(c) Distinguishing features	_____
(d) Where collected	_____
(e) Geologic age	_____
2. Specimen 2
(a) Photograph	_____
(b) Identification	_____
(c) Distinguishing features	_____
(d) Where collected	_____
(e) Geologic age	_____
3. Specimen 3
(a) Photograph	_____
(b) Identification	_____
(c) Distinguishing features	_____
(d) Where collected	_____
(e) Geologic age	_____
4. Specimen 4
(a) Photograph	_____
(b) Identification	_____
(c) Distinguishing features	_____
(d) Where collected	_____
(e) Geologic age	_____
5. Specimen 5
(a) Photograph	_____
(b) Identification	_____
(c) Distinguishing features	_____
(d) Where collected	_____
(e) Geologic age	_____
6. Specimen 6
(a) Photograph	_____
(b) Identification	_____
(c) Distinguishing features	_____
(d) Where collected	_____
(e) Geologic age	_____
7. Specimen 7
(a) Photograph	_____
(b) Identification	_____
(c) Distinguishing features	_____
(d) Where collected	_____
(e) Geologic age	_____
8. Specimen 8
(a) Photograph	_____
(b) Identification	_____
(c) Distinguishing features	_____
(d) Where collected	_____
(e) Geologic age	_____
9. Specimen 9
(a) Photograph	_____
(b) Identification	_____
(c) Distinguishing features	_____
(d) Where collected	_____
(e) Geologic age	_____
10. Specimen 10
(a) Photograph	_____
(b) Identification	_____
(c) Distinguishing features	_____
(d) Where collected	_____
(e) Geologic age	_____
11. Specimen 11
(a) Photograph	_____
(b) Identification	_____
(c) Distinguishing features	_____
(d) Where collected	_____
(e) Geologic age	_____
12. Specimen 12
(a) Photograph	_____
(b) Identification	_____
(c) Distinguishing features	_____
(d) Where collected	_____
(e) Geologic age	_____
(B) Paleoenvironments
1. Environment 1 description	_____
2. Environment 2 description	_____
(C) Exhibits
1. Informal Site 1 description	_____
2. Informal Site 2 description	_____
3. Informal Site 3 description	_____
Part II: Mini-unit
(A) Classroom description	_____
(B) Activities
1. Objectives	_____
2. National standards/state benchmarks	_____
3. Higher order activities specified	_____
4. Learning styles specified	_____
5. Assessment tool	_____