July 30, 2020
Online is a good time to start calling the “office hour” by another name
Now, with social distancing in place and some university programs fully online, will even fewer students come to the office hours? And does calling it an office hour for incoming freshmen even make sense? There is alot to think about as we prepare for the fall semester – and we should not forget to think about office hours and what we will name them, how we will promote them, and how we will utilize them in a virtual environment.
July 15, 2020
SDGs Today – real-time and timely data for the Sustainable Development Goals
Check out the website http://sdgstoday.org/ and explore to see how you can use this tool and these data with students. We have 10 years left – what data-informed solutions can we advance to meet the SDGs?
July 13, 2020
Wikipedia biography pages – every edit counts
There are several additional reasons why we should edit Wikipedia – and plenty of opportunities to learn how. What will you contribute? No matter how many words or citations you add, every edit counts.
May 25, 2020
Giving a remote talk? Check out these tips.
This post compiles advice and experiences from those that have been teaching or giving one-off presentations via online technology. These experiences are valuable to share and can only assist all of us as we continue to move forward exploring our teaching, research, and outreach in an online world.
May 16, 2020
Getting Earth and space into the science fair
The challenges to getting more Earth and space science in the science fair include: the science fair criteria/judging, the student gender/teacher influence, and if/when Earth and space science are taught in K-12 grades. So what do we do about this?
May 2, 2020
Searching for equity in the science fair
This blog post is meant only to call attention to what we already know as scientists, teachers, and parents. We all need to take that step back, reflect, and provide an honest answer to the question, “are science fairs really fair?”
April 27, 2020
Join AAAS for a Virtual Paperless Meeting Program
What would you create for a “virtual paperless meeting” on an Earth/space science topic? And could this be a model of engagement for more remote learning (perhaps bringing in an expert during the live chat time to engage with students)? Thank you, AAAS, for an example of creative engagement for challenging times!
April 17, 2020
Celebrate International Haiku Poetry Day with The Sciku Project
For this year’s International Haiku Poetry Day, why not write your own science-themed haiku? And check out The Sciku Project to explore some more!
April 11, 2020
Virtual podcast clubs – creating communities to discuss science and more
Getting a group of individuals together online that have listened to a common list of podcasts can generate a lively discussion – dynamic, respectful, thoughtful, reflective… I had no idea a list of individual podcast episodes could create such an engaged community
April 6, 2020
If you have the bandwidth, think about expanding your science communication and outreach
Consider some ideas and a different spin or twist on either your existing science communication portfolio or some new options and opportunities to explore.
Laura Guertin is a Professor of Earth Science at Penn State Brandywine in Media, PA. Her research focuses on how technology can enhance teaching and student learning in introductory-level geoscience courses for non-science majors. Her blog focuses on geoscience education/outreach, science communication, and technology tools in the classroom, online, and in the field.