Service-Learning
in Undergraduate
Geosciences
Alexandra Beatty, Rapporteur
Board on Science Education
Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, DC
www.nap.edu
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This activity was supported by Grant No. 1544268 from the National Science Foundation. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-45272-4
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-45272-4
Digital Object Identifier: 10.17226/24621
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Copyright 2017 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America
Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2017). Service-Learning in Undergraduate Geosciences: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24621.
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STEERING COMMITTEE ON SERVICE-LEARNING IN UNDERGRADUATE GEOSCIENCES—A WORKSHOP
CATHRYN MANDUCA (Chair), Science Education Resource Center, Carleton College
ANTONY BERTHELOTE, Department of Hydrology, Salish Kootenai College
SUE EBANKS, Department of Marine and Environmental Sciences, Savannah State University
SARAH FORTNER, Department of Geology, Wittenberg University
ART GOLDSTEIN, College of Science and Mathematics, Bridgewater State University
EDWARD LAINE, Department of Earth and Oceanographic Science, Bowdoin College
JOHN SALTMARSH, New England Resource Center for Higher Education, University of Massachusetts
SUSAN SULLIVAN, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado
KERRY BRENNER, Study Director
SAMMANTHA MAGSINO, Senior Program Officer, Board on Earth Sciences and Resources
HEIDI SCHWEINGRUBER, Director, Board on Science Education
MIRIAM SCHEIBER, Program Assistant
BOARD ON SCIENCE EDUCATION
ADAM GAMORAN (Chair), William T. Grant Foundation
MELANIE COOPER, Department of Chemistry, Michigan State University
RODOLFO DIRZO, Department of Biology, Stanford University
MATTHEW KREHBIEL, Achieve, Inc.
MICHAEL LACH, Urban Education Institute, University of Chicago
LYNN S. LIBEN, Department of Psychology, The Pennsylvania State University
CATHRYN MANDUCA, Science Education Resource Center, Carleton College
JOHN MATHER, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
BRIAN REISER, School of Education and Social Policy, Northwestern University
MARSHALL “MIKE” SMITH, Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
ROBERTA TANNER, Thompson School District (retired), Loveland, Colorado
SUZANNE WILSON, Neag School of Education, University of Connecticut
HEIDI SCHWEINGRUBER, Director
Acknowledgments
This proceedings of a workshop has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its published proceedings as sound as possible and to ensure that the proceedings meets institutional standards for clarity, objectivity, and responsiveness to the charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the process. We wish to thank the National Academies Research Center for their work gathering literature related to service-learning for the committee’s considerations during the workshop planning process.
We also wish to thank the following individuals for their review of this proceedings: Jonathan M. Harbor, Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Purdue University; Alexandra Moore, Department of Geological Sciences, Cornell University; Linda Silka, Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions, University of Maine; and Susan Sullivan, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder.
Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they did not see the final draft of this proceedings of a workshop before its release. The review of this proceedings was overseen by Julie C. Libarkin, Geocognition Research Laboratory and Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Michigan State
University. She was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this proceedings was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this proceedings rests entirely with the rapporteur and the institution.
Contents
2 The Role of Service-Learning in the Geosciences
Value of Service-Learning in the Geosciences
Discussion: Successes and Challenges
3 Service-Learning Benefits for Students and Institutions
Reaching Historically Underrepresented Populations
Preparing Students for Employment
Discussion: Ideas for Enhancing Students’ Competitiveness in the Workforce
4 Characterizing Current Service-Learning
What Does Service-Learning Look Like?
Discussion: Similarities and Differences
Reflections on the Guiding Questions