The Chamberlain Formation, one of the lower members of the early Mesoproterozoic Belt Supergroup, has previously yielded low-diversity assemblages of microfossils but the reported fossils were of limited utility for inferring paleoenvironmental conditions. Here, we describe substantially more diverse microfossil assemblages from drill core of the Chamberlain Formation obtained from the Black Butte mine locality near White Sulphur Springs, Montana. The Chamberlain Formation biota contains abundant Valeria , Leiosphaeridia , Synsphaeridium , and Lineaforma , with lesser amounts of Satka , Symplassosphaeridium , and Coniunctiophycus. The assemblages partially overlap with, but are distinct from, microfossils recently reported from the Greyson Formation, another unit from the Helena embayment of the Belt Supergroup. Since the overlapping taxa exhibit similar states of preservation but dissimilar relative abundances, we interpret the assemblages as reflective of distinct paleoenvironmental conditions of the sampled sections of the Chamberlain and Greyson Formations. The Chamberlain Formation assemblages are most comparable to microfossil groupings reported from the Bylot Supergroup of Canada and the Roper Group of Australia from sediments from very shallow-water (supratidal to lower shoreface) marine environments. This comparison corroborates previous hypotheses on the basis of sedimentological data that the lower Chamberlain Formation sediments were formed in a lagoonal or mud-flat environment. By contrast, the Greyson Formation assemblages are most comparable to microfossil groupings associated with sediments from shallow-shelf marine environments. The fidelity of comparisons among the 1.2 Ga Bylot Supergroup, 1.49 Ga Roper Group, and 1.45 Ga Belt Supergroup assemblages indicates that the groups of microorganisms that produced these assemblages, and their associations with the paleoenvironments that they inhabited, may have been characteristic of the littoral marine biosphere throughout much of the Mesoproterozoic.

Over the past 50 years, geoscience education has evolved in a number of important ways in terms of what we teach, whom we teach, and how we teach. What we teach has changed focus from traditional geology to the geosciences more broadly defined, including the significant impact of Earth processes on a burgeoning world population and the impacts of that population on the Earth. The importance of the geosciences to decisions critical to our human future is incorporated into courses, textbooks, and curricula. Although preparation of a professional geologic workforce is still an important focus of geoscience education, geoscience literacy to enable all citizens to make informed decisions related to geoscience topics has become an important goal underpinned by national policy documents. What remains a challenge is that we still fail to reach the vast majority of future citizens with geoscience education at the high school and college levels. How we teach has also changed. Although great teaching and strategies for effective teaching are not new, what has developed over the past 50 years is the cognitive science and pedagogical research that validates best practice and supports broad reform in geoscience education. The past 15 years have seen a widespread rise at the undergraduate level in interest in effective teaching, along with increased use of active learning strategies, research-based best practices, real-world data, and authentic assessment. Changes in how undergraduate geoscience is taught have been critically catalyzed by development of a community of practice and supported by advances in technology.

Learning in the field has traditionally been one of the fundamental components of the geoscience curriculum. In light of the historical value that has been ascribed to field instruction, there is a surprising paucity of scholarly studies that provide the direct evidence to support these claims. The preponderance of literature is descriptive and anecdotal, but in aggregate, these reports reveal a communal experience, which we recognize as “practitioners' wisdom,” that places a high value on field instruction in the training of geoscientists. We initially review the attributes of learning in the field environment, instructional goals for field instruction, the place of field instruction in the modern geoscience curriculum, and the value that has been ascribed to learning in the field in terms of cognitive and meta-cognitive gains, aspects of the affective domain, impacts on learning through immersion in nature, and the role of field instruction in providing the foundation for development of skills and expertise in the geosciences. The theory and practice of the cognitive, learning, and social sciences provide further insights into thinking and learning in the field setting in three important domains: (1) embodiment, how body and mind are integrated through interactions within the natural and social environments in which geoscientists work; (2) creation and use of inscriptions (i.e., constructed representations of natural phenomena such as maps, sketches, and diagrams) to explain, confirm, rationalize, and externalize our understanding of Earth; and (3) initiation into the community of practice that has established accepted norms and practices related to language and discourse, selection and use of tools, ethics and values, and a common understanding of the assumptions, limitations, and uncertainties inherent in the discipline. These insights on how people learn in the field have important implications for what and how we teach in the geoscience curriculum, and they provide a framework to guide future research. Our initial findings indicate that learning in the field results in cognitive and metacognitive gains for students; produces affective responses that have a positive impact on student learning; affords types of learning that cannot be easily achieved in other, more controlled environments; facilitates creation and use of representations of nature (inscriptions) in learning; helps initiate novices into the community of geoscience practice; and provides a solid foundation for development of geoscience expertise.

Abstract Field instruction has been at the heart of the geoscience curriculum for over a century and a half. The field environment provides learners the opportunity to encounter nature in all its diversity, to experience firsthand the methods and strategies that geologists use to interrogate Earth, and to engage in the social interactions that animate geology as a discipline. The field environment provides a great opportunity for learners to learn science by doing science and to undertake field work as developing scientists. This holds true for learners of all kinds, for K–12and undergraduate students, continuing professional training for graduate students and working geologists, and informal learning by the general public. The purpose of this contribution is to provide an introduction to the many factors that could be considered in the design and implementation of a field trip to provide students with an optimal learning experience. You will have your own motivations and learning goals for your students based on their grade level, curricular needs, and geologic setting; the following ideas are presented as an overview to help you reflect on ways you can prepare to conduct a comprehensive and effective learning experience for your students in the field. A more complete coverage of these topics can be found in Butler (2008),Mask all and Stokes (2008), the special issue of the Journal of Geoscience Education on Teaching in the Field (Manduca and Carpenter, eds., 2006), many articles in Whit meyer et al. (2009),and in a chapter by D.W. Mogk and C. Goodwin for a GSA Special Paper in preparation.

The uniqueness of the Indiana University geologic field programs is a consequence of the remarkable diversity in the geologic setting of the Judson Mead Geologic Field Station, and programmatic decisions that emphasize a fully integrated curriculum and individual student work. A simple summary of the attributes developed by the courses includes the following key components: sense of scale, self-confidence, independence, integration, and problem solving. These core principles have resulted in a program that prepares students for any of the challenges that they might encounter as professionals. Over time, courses offered through the field station have evolved to reflect the needs of the students and available technologies. The present array includes courses that address environmental geology, applied economic geology, and introductory environmental science; additional courses include those designed for both high school students and teachers and others that provide professional development enhancement.

The Yellowstone-Bighorn Research Association (YBRA) is a nonprofit research and teaching organization chartered in the state of Montana in 1936. YBRA maintains a field station south of Red Lodge, Montana, at the foot of the Beartooth Mountains at the NW corner of the Bighorn Basin. The YBRA Field Station has been host to a wide variety of primarily geological field courses and research exercises, including a YBRA-sponsored Summer Course in Geologic Field Methods , offered initially by Princeton University and subsequently by the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Houston. Enrollments in that course vary from year to year, an experience shared by other field-course programs. The YBRA field station does not depend exclusively on field-course enrollment; by diversifying its client base, YBRA has been able to operate effectively through high-amplitude variations in enrollment in traditional courses in field geology.

The summer field camp experience provides many students with their best opportunity to learn the scientific process by making observations and collecting, recording, evaluating, and interpreting geologic data. Field school projects enhance student professional development by requiring cooperation and interpersonal interaction, report writing to communicate interpretations, and the development of project management skills to achieve a common goal. The field school setting provides students with the opportunity to observe geologic features and their spatial distribution, size, and shape that will impact the student’s future careers as geoscientists. The Les Huston Geology Field Camp (a.k.a. Oklahoma Geology Camp) near Cañon City, Colorado, focuses on time-tested traditional methods of geological mapping and fieldwork to accomplish these goals. The curriculum consists of an introduction to field techniques (pacing, orienteering, measuring strike and dip, and using a Jacob’s staff), sketching outcrops, section measuring (one illustrating facies changes), three mapping exercises (of increasing complexity), and a field geophysics project. Accurate rock and contact descriptions are emphasized, and attitudes and contacts are mapped in the field . Mapping is done on topographic maps at 1:12,000 and 1:6000 scales; air photos are provided. Global positioning system (GPS)–assisted mapping is allowed, but we insist that locations be recorded in the field and confirmed using visual observations. The course includes field trips to the Cripple Creek and Leadville mining districts, Floris-sant/Guffey volcano area, Pikes Peak batholith, and the Denver Basin. Each field trip is designed to emphasize aspects of geology that are not stressed in the field exercises. Students are strongly encouraged to accurately describe geologic features and gather evidence to support their interpretations of the geologic history. Concise reports are a part of each major exercise. Students are grouped into teams to (1) introduce the team concept and develop interpersonal skills that are fundamental components of many professions, (2) ensure safety, and (3) mix students with varying academic backgrounds and physical strengths. This approach has advantages and disadvantages. Students with academic strengths in specific areas assist those with less experience, thereby becoming engaged in the teaching process. However, some students contribute less to final map projects than others, and assigning grades to individual team members can be difficult. The greatest challenges we face involve group dynamics and student personalities. We continue to believe that traditional field methods, aided by (but not relying upon) new technologies, are the key to constructing and/or interpreting geologic maps. The requirement that students document field evidence using careful observations teaches skills that will be beneficial throughout their professional careers.

The Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences (EPS) at the University of New Mexico offers two field geology courses (EPS 319L, Introductory Field Geology, and EPS420L, Advanced Field Geology). Prior to summer 1986, these courses were taught during the academic year, on the weekends. Over a two year time span, despite some faculty consternation, the department converted both classes into full-blown summer field geology courses. These continue to be offered as two separate, independent classes for several reasons. Introductory Field Geology is required of all EPS geoscience majors and has attracted numerous students from institutions outside New Mexico. All mapping is done using a paper topographic map and/or an air photograph base, with, eventually, the aid of a handheld global positioning system (GPS) device. Given that topographic map skills remain essential for effective computer- and GPS-based mapping, we emphasize these traditional techniques within the limited time span (three weeks) of the course. Despite the fact that all students are expected (required) to have passed the standard array of core undergraduate courses in the geosciences, the backgrounds of the students, including level of previous field experience, vary considerably. Consequently, the approach taken in EPS 319L is one in which strong emphasis is placed on providing rapid feedback and focusing maximum instructor attention on the students who need it the most. As one means of providing rapid feedback to all of our students, we utilize a “postage stamp” map exercise as an essential component of each mapping project. After at least one day of introduction to the project, the entire class focuses on a morning of mapping in a small, yet very revealing project area. The maps are turned in after a group discussion of the postage stamp area, and detailed feedback, using several rubrics, is provided to all students by the end of the day (but these maps are not graded). In field geology courses, where the goal is to maximize student field learning within a limited time frame, the postage stamp exercises have proven to be an effective way to provide timely instructor input and reinforcement of burgeoning student skills. Student evaluations of the course support the use of the postage stamp exercises for each map project; these exercises improve the instructor’s ability to assess final map products in an even more rigorous and consistent fashion.

Like many similar courses across the United States, traditional geology field camps run by Boston University (BU) and James Madison University (JMU) faced a crisis at the turn of the twenty-first century. Student enrollment was declining, and many geoscience professionals questioned the continued relevance of field camps to modern undergraduate geoscience programs. A reassessment of field course content, along with changes to management styles and attitudes, was required for survival. In our case, the combination of relocation, managerial improvements, curriculum innovations, and elimination of redundant exercises resulted in a vibrant course with a strong student demand. We believe that our reforms may serve as a guide to success for other courses that are facing similar difficulties. The current JMU field course in western Ireland is the product of reforms and modernizations to the previous BU and JMU traditional field camps. To create time for new course content, we had to consider whether long-established exercises were still essential. Caution is needed in both adding and deleting course content, as the curriculum may suffer from inclusion of new technologies that turn out to be short-lived and from discontinuation of exercises that develop students’ core field expertise. Nevertheless, we have implemented major changes in the ways students are taught to work in the field, and we question the continued relevance of some existing procedures. Our criteria include level of pedagogical engagement and transferability of skills to nongeoscience professions.

The undergraduate geoscience curriculum at Lake Superior State University is field based and project centered. This format provides an active learning environment to enhance student development of a meaningful geoscience knowledge base and of complex reasoning skills in authentic contexts. Field experiences, including data acquisition, are integrated into both lower- and upper-division coursework. Students simulate the activities of practicing geoscientists by conducting all aspects of field projects, including planning, collecting data, analyzing and interpreting data, incorporating background and supplemental data, and completing oral and written reports of results. The projects stimulate interest, provide motivation for learning new concepts, and are structured to develop teamwork and communication skills.

At the University of Montana Western (UMW), geoscience classes are taught primarily through immersion in field research projects. This paper briefly describes: (1) why and how we achieved a schedule that supports immersion learning, (2) examples of two geoscience classes taught in the field, (3) assessment, and (4) the challenges of this model of teaching and learning. The University of Montana Western is the first public four-year campus to adopt immersion learning based on one-class-at-a-time scheduling. We call it “Experience One” because classes emphasize experiential learning and students take only one class for 18 instructional days. The system was adopted campus wide in the fall of 2005 after a successful pilot program funded by the U.S. Department of Education. The geoscience curriculum has been altered to reduce lecture and focus on field projects that provide direct experience with the salient concepts in the discipline. Students use primary literature more than textbooks, and assessment emphasizes the quality of their projects and presentations. Many projects are collaborative with land-management agencies and private entities and require students to use their field data to make management decisions. Assessment shows that the immersion-learning model improves educational quality. For example, the 2008 National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) showed that UMW has high mean scores compared to other campuses participating in the survey. Of the many challenges, none is more important than the need for faculty to change the ways in which they interact with students.

International field experiences offer exceptional opportunities for effective student learning in the geosciences. Over the 10 yr period between 1998 and 2008, more than 40 undergraduate students from 14 institutions participated in field research investigating active tectonics on the Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica. Three different project models were used: (1) a month-long summer research project, (2) a series of 1 to 2 wk independent field study projects, and (3) a week-long field research module. These projects shared a common research theme (active tectonics), field area (Nicoya Peninsula), and pedagogy (experiential learning), thus allowing for easy comparison of teaching methods, logistics, and learning outcomes. Each model has unique pedagogical benefits and challenges, and is therefore better suited for a different group size, student to faculty ratio, project duration, and budget. Collectively, these student research projects generated significant publishable data relevant to ongoing investigations of forearc tectonics and earthquake hazards along the Costa Rican Pacific margin. Individual student projects were carefully designed to provide a quality field learning experience, while adding a new piece to the larger research puzzle. Indicators of project success include levels of student engagement; gains in technical and cognitive field skills; and productivity of student-authored publications, reports, and presentations. Students commonly described these projects as instrumental in shaping their professional identity as geoscientists. Blending international field research with experiential learning pedagogy creates a powerful synergy that captures student imagination and motivates learning. By placing students beyond the comfort of their home learning environment, international field projects pique student curiosity, sharpen awareness and comprehension, and amplify the desire to learn. Experiential learning pedagogy encourages students to define their own research agenda and solve problems through critical thinking, inquiry, and reflection. The potent combination of international fieldwork and experiential learning helps students to develop the self-confidence and reasoning skills needed to solve multifaceted real-world problems, and provides exceptional training for graduate school and professional careers in the geosciences.

Field experiences form the core of the undergraduate geology program at St. Norbert College and provide learning opportunities that cannot be duplicated in the classroom. The field is vital for developing in students a life-long “diligent curiosity” for geology—which we define as a persistent inquisitiveness toward our science. We regularly offer an international trip of about 2 wk in length. The trip serves as a capstone experience for our students in several ways: it provides focused time to develop and synthesize their geological knowledge and field skills; it is a setting for “mini” research projects; it challenges students to commit to geology as a career; it offers a multicultural experience; and it develops their emotional maturity. The international trip need not be logistically daunting or expensive. Most geoscience educators are willing to share their specific experiences and logistical information from leading trips to other countries, but several general recommendations follow. Behavior contracts signed by students emphasize the importance of good conduct and should clearly outline the consequences of poor behavior, especially if a student needs to be removed from a trip. A briefing by a health-care professional well versed in international travel should be required well in advance of a trip, and a medical “inventory” of each participant, focusing on medications, preexisting health conditions, and potential emergency procedures, should be done by the trip leaders. Trip leaders need to work closely with the home institution’s risk management office in drafting a comprehensive liability waiver. Finally, we recommend working with an in-country expeditor, especially for travel. In many countries, utilizing a local driver can be cost effective and may save legal problems in the event of automobile accidents.

Geoscience students often have difficulty interpreting real-world spatial relationships from traditional two-dimensional geologic maps. This can be partly addressed with direct, tactile field experiences, although three-dimensional (3-D) cognition can still be hampered by incomplete exposure of all spatial dimensions. Many of these barriers can be overcome by incorporating computer-based, virtual 3-D visualizations within undergraduate field-oriented curricula. Digital field equipment is fast becoming a standard tool in environmental, engineering, and geoscience industries, in part because of the increased accessibility of ruggedized computers equipped with global positioning system (GPS) receivers. Handheld computers with geographic information systems (GIS) software record and display data in real time, which increases the accuracy and utility of draft field maps. New techniques and software allow digital field data to be displayed and interpreted within virtual 3-D platforms, such as Google Earth. The James Madison University Field Course provides a field geology curriculum that incorporates digital field mapping and computer-based visualizations to enhance 3-D interpretative skills. Students use mobile, handheld computers to collect field data, such as lithologic and structural information, and analyze and interpret their digital data to prepare professional-quality geologic maps of their field areas. Student data and maps are incorporated into virtual 3-D terrain models, from which partly inferred map features, such as contacts and faults, can be evaluated relative to topography to better constrain map interpretations. This approach familiarizes students with modern tools that can improve their interpretation of field geology and provides an example of the way in which digital technologies are revolutionizing traditional field methods. Initial student feedback suggests strong support for this curriculum integrating digital field data collection, map preparation, and 3-D visualization and interpretation to enhance student learning in the field.

Adapting geologic field education and research training to new geospatial technologies requires considerable investment of time and money in acquiring new instruments, mastering new techniques, and developing new curriculum in return for dramatically increased mapping capabilities. The University of Southern Maine’s Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Program has developed an integrated system of digital mapping specifically designed for geologic work that involves satellite and optical digital survey instruments, digital imagery, and a variety of mapping techniques. These new digital tools, techniques, and resources are used to explore the nature of crustal deformation in an adventure-based undergraduate field research program that employs sea kayaks for coastal access to island bedrock exposures. This new generation of digital mapping tools enabled the development of new techniques for outcrop surface mapping where we are able to delineate 1–100-m-range mesoscale geologic features that are often overlooked in traditional quadrangle-scale geologic mapping. Maps of extensive exposures in coastal Maine created using these digital techniques continue to reveal new and never-before-seen geologic structures and relationships. Because of this, undergraduate students are able to make meaningful contributions to our base of geologic knowledge and acquire essential geospatial skills, while learning these digital mapping techniques in a research setting. The emphasis we place on teamwork, risk taking, exploration, and discovery as part of the adventure programming aspect of the field component builds a confidence and enthusiasm that extends into the research component of the project, where students are able to develop new analytical methods, applications, and approaches to our field and laboratory work.