The effectiveness of the GEOL336 Iceland virtual fieldtrip to aid student sketching and interpretation of lava flows.

• Main Author: Watson, Alexander John
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: University of Canterbury 2019
• Subjects: New Zealand; Reykjanes; Krafla; Christchurch; Heimaey; Sumner; Iceland
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.26021/6709; https://ir.canterbury.ac.nz/handle/10092/17281

Fieldtrips are a critical component of learning in the geosciences to develop skills, integrate knowledge, foster geoscientific identities and motivate student engagement. Given the development of new technologies and the growing demand for more inclusive classroom environments, virtual fieldtrips are increasingly being considered as an effective form of teaching to either augment or replace fieldtrips. However, little re- search has established the effectiveness of virtual fieldtrips at aiding the development of geological skills (e.g., sketching and interpretation), and the learning gains measured as a result of virtual fieldtrips. The GEOL336 Iceland virtual fieldtrip was developed to teach a third-year undergraduate volcanology course (GEOL336: Magmatic Systems and Volcanology), at the University of Canterbury, about volcanic features and processes at three field locations in Iceland (e.g., Reykjanes, Heimaey and Krafla). The virtual fieldtrip was designed to aid the development of geological skills (e.g., sketching and interpretation), which are normally taught and learned on fieldtrips. The effectiveness of the virtual fieldtrip to aid student sketching and interpretation was measured by calculating the learning gains for an in-class exercise, which was completed by students pre- and post- the virtual fieldtrip. The in-class exercise required students to sketch and interpret a photograph of a lava flow from Sumner Beach near Christchurch, New Zealand. Following the virtual fieldtrip, a reflective questionnaire provided students an opportunity to reflect on their learning in the virtual fieldtrip and provided qualitative data for this research. Positive learning gains were calculated for the sketching, annotation and interpretation parts of the in-class exercise. The virtual fieldtrip was most successful at aiding student interpretation based on the higher learning gains for the interpretation parts of the in-class exercise. Possible reasons for these higher learning gains included the three-dimensional visualisations and instructional videos implemented in the virtual fieldtrip, which allowed students to spatially explore the volcanic features and processes; the reinforcement of GEOL336 content in the virtual fieldtrip; and an increase in student motivation, interest and engagement as a result of the virtual fieldtrip. Based on the in-class exercise and reflective questionnaire results, a framework was developed for tertiary geology virtual fieldtrips. This framework includes constructively aligning virtual fieldtrip content, providing a range of assessment opportunities, implementing appropriate technologies to deliver virtual fieldtrip information, providing opportunities for student reflection, connecting students to the virtual fieldtrip experience, and designing a learning space which encourages group discussion.