Earth literacy across the curriculum:
New materials (and more!) from InTeGrate
Anne E. Egger, Central Washington University
AAPT Winter Meeting
San Diego, CA
January 5, 2015
This work is supported by a National Science Foundation (NSF) collaboration between the
Directorates for Education and Human Resources (EHR) and Geosciences (GEO) under grant DUE - 1125331
What is InTeGrate?
NSF’s STEP Center in Geoscience
A 5-year community effort to improve
Earth literacy and build a workforce
prepared to tackle environmental and
resource issues
InTeGrate supports integrated
interdisciplinary learning
about resource and environmental
issues across the undergraduate
curriculum to create a sustainable
and just civilization.
A systems model for
transformation of
individuals, institutions,
and the geoscience
community
Courses
Programs/
Institutions
Community/
Network
Preparing students for the future
Curricular materials that …
• Engage all students in a variety of settings
• Address grand challenges society is facing
• Use rigorous science
• Use best practices in learning
• Are adaptable and adoptable by instructors
How do we ensure that all of these conditions are
met in the materials we develop?
1. Design of development teams
• Three instructors from three different institutions
(and often from three different disciplines)
• Assessment consultant from assessment team
• Web consultant from web team
• Content area leader from leadership team
2. Goals are encoded in a materials
design rubric
• Guiding Principles
• Learning Objectives
and Outcomes
• Assessment and
Measurement
• Resources and
Materials
• Instructional Strategies
• Alignment
Guiding principles (Must score 15/15)
Course/module addresses one or more geoscience-related grand challenges facing
society
Course/module develops student ability to address interdisciplinary problems
Course/module improves student understanding of the nature and methods of
geoscience and developing geoscientific habits of mind
Course/module makes use of authentic and credible geoscience data to learn central
concepts in the context of geoscience methods of inquiry
Course/module incorporates systems thinking
Learning objectives (Must score 13/15)
Learning objectives describe measureable geoscience literacy goals
Instructions and/or rubrics provide guidance for how students meet learning goals
Learning objectives and goals are appropriate for the intended use of the
course/module
Learning objectives and goals are clearly stated for each module in language suitable for
the level of the students
Learning objectives and goals address the process and nature of science and
development of scientific habits of mind
Assessment and Measurement (Must score 13/15)
Assessments measure the learning objectives
Assessments are criterion referenced
Assessments are consistent with course activities and resources expected
Assessments are sequenced, varied and appropriate to the content
Assessments address goals at successively higher cognitive levels
Resources and Materials (Must score 15/18)
Instructional materials contribute to the stated learning objectives
Students will recognize the link between the learning objectives, goals and the learning
materials
Instructional materials should be sufficiently diverse and at the depth necessary for
students to achieve learning objectives and goals
Materials are appropriately cited
Instructional materials are current
Instructional materials and the technology to support these materials are clearly stated
Instructional Strategies (Must score 13/15)
Learning strategies and activities support stated learning objectives and goals
Learning strategies and activities promote student engagement with the materials
Learning activities develop student metacognition
Learning strategies and activities provide opportunities for students to practice
communicating geoscience
Learning strategies and activities scaffold learning
Alignment (Must score 5/6)
Teaching materials, assessments, resources and learning activities align with one
another
All aspects of the module/course are aligned
Total
Points
Score
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
84
Guiding principles
• Address one or more geoscience-related grand
challenges facing society
• Develop student ability to address interdisciplinary
problems
• Improve student understanding of the nature and
methods of geoscience and developing geoscientific
habits of mind  geoscientific thinking skills
• Make use of authentic and credible geoscience data to
learn central concepts in the context of geoscience
methods of inquiry
• Develop student ability and propensity to use systems
thinking
The Rest of the Rubric
• Drawn from high-impact practices and
research on learning
• Based on a backward design model
We need you!
http://serc.carleton.edu/integrate
Guiding principles
• Address one or more geoscience-related grand
challenges facing society
• Develop student ability to address interdisciplinary
problems
• Improve student understanding of the nature and
methods of geoscience and developing geoscientific
habits of mind  geoscientific thinking skills
• Make use of authentic and credible geoscience data to
learn central concepts in the context of geoscience
methods of inquiry
• Develop student ability and propensity to use systems
thinking
Guiding principles
• Address one or more geoscience-related grand
challenges facing society
• Develop student ability to address interdisciplinary
problems
• Improve student understanding of the nature and
methods of geoscience and developing geoscientific
habits of mind  geoscientific thinking skills
• Make use of authentic and credible geoscience data to
learn central concepts in the context of geoscience
methods of inquiry
• Develop student ability and propensity to use systems
thinking
How do we assess if these are working?
• Impact on faculty as agents
of change;
• Impact on students’…
– …Earth literacy;
– …interest in majoring in
geosciences and/or in a career
that uses geoscience;
– …ability and motivation to
contribute to solving grand
challenges of resources and
environmental sustainability.
Reflections and
interviews
Geoscience Literacy
Exam (GLE):
pre- and post-
InTeGrate Attitudinal
Instrument (IAI):
pre- and post-
Interdisciplinary
thinking essay
question:
post only
Results thus far
• Faculty indicate that they
– Were impressed with the level of engagement
and development of the students
– Will continue to use their own module and test
other modules
– Have applied what they learned about curriculum
development to other courses
• Impact on students harder to assess right
now: low dosage and small numbers
• Stay tuned!
A systems model for
transformation of
individuals, institutions,
and the geoscience
community
Courses
Programs/
Institutions
Community/
Network
Develop a new vision for developing broad Earth literacy and
sustainability studies in higher education
• Within and beyond geoscience departments
• Within and beyond single institutions
• Up to $50K to support design and development
http://serc.carleton.edu/participate/ip_call_f2014.html
A systems model for
transformation of
individuals, institutions,
and the geoscience
community
Courses
Programs/
Institutions
Community/
Network
In-gathering…
We need you!
Summary
• All ways to get involved:
http://serc.carleton.edu/integrate/participate/index.html
• Interested in being a module author?
Email me: annegger@geology.cwu.edu
• Interested in an implementation program?
http://serc.carleton.edu/participate/ip_call_f2014.html
• Interested in talking with others about
sustainability across the curriculum?
http://serc.carleton.edu/earth_rendezvous/2015/index.ht
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