From energy and water resources to natural disasters, and from changing
climatic patterns to the evolution of the Earth's deep interior,
geoscience research affects people's lives in many ways and on many
levels. This book offers a stimulating cross-disciplinary perspective on
the important relationship between geoscience research and outreach
activities for schools and for the general public.
The contributors - academics, research scientists, science educators and
outreach program educators - describe and evaluate outreach programs
from around the world. A section entitled Field-based Approaches
includes a chapter describing an initiative to engage Alaskan
communities and students in research, and another on problem-based
learning in the field setting. The Online Approaches section discusses
ways to connect students and scientists using online forums; use of the
web and social media, including the United Nations University and its
experience with the design of a web magazine featuring geoscience
research; and video clips on marine geoscience created by students and
scientists. The section on Workshop and Laboratory-based Approaches
includes a chapter on teaching geochronology to high school students,
and another describing an extracurricular school activity program on
meteorology. The Program Design section presents chapters on Integrating
Geoscience Research in Primary and Secondary Education, on ways to
bridge research with science education at the high school level, and on
use of online geoscience data from the Great Lakes. The concluding
section, Promoting Research-enhanced Outreach, offers chapters on
Geoscience Outreach Education with the local community by a leading
research-intensive university, and on the use of research to promote
action in Earth science professional development for
schoolteachers.Geoscience Research and Outreach: Schools and Public
Engagement will benefit geoscience researchers who wish to promote
their work beyond academia. It offers guidance to those seeking research
funding from agencies, which increasingly request detailed plans for
outreach activities in research proposals. Policymakers, educators and
scientists working in museums, learned societies and public
organizations who wish to widen participation will also find this book
useful.
Together with the companion volume Geoscience Research and Education:
Teaching at Universities, this book showcases the key role that
geoscience research plays in a wide spectrum of educational settings.
