HR: 1340h
AN: ED13C-1159    [Abstracts]
TI: Natural Hazard Demonstrations for Teaching
AU: * Malamud, B D
EM: bruce.malamud@kcl.ac.uk
AF: Environmental Monitoring and Modelling Research Group, Department of Geography, Kings College London, Strand, London, WC2R 2LS United Kingdom
AB: This paper presents several demonstrations that have been developed or gathered from other sources in the general area of natural hazards (e.g. landslides, earthquakes, volcanoes, wildfires, tsunamis, mass movements, asteroid impacts, etc.). There are many methods of teaching, but as university lecturers, particularly for large class sizes, we find ourselves too often presenting material to students by direct speaking, or some combination of blackboard/whiteboard/slide projector/digital projector. There are certainly a number of techniques to more actively involve students, so that teaching is not just `receiving of information', including breaking up students into small group discussions, encouraging students to actively participate in class through comments and questions, and/or some combination of hands-on activities and demonstrations. It is this latter which is concentrated on here. As a teaching tool, the students themselves became much more excited about what they are learning if use is made of 5--10 minute demonstrations, even if only peripherally related to the subject at hand. The resultant discussion with questions and comments by students keeps both the students and the lecturer (in this case the author) motivated and intrigued about the subjects being discussed. Days, weeks, and months later, the students remember these `demonstrations', but to set these up takes time, effort, and resources of equipment, although not necessarily a large amount of the latter. Several natural hazards demonstrations are presented here, most inexpensive, that have been used in front of large university classes and smaller `break-out groups', and which can also be adapted for secondary-school students.
DE: 0468 Natural hazards
DE: 0800 EDUCATION
DE: 0805 Elementary and secondary education
DE: 0810 Post-secondary education
DE: 0845 Instructional tools
SC: Education and Human Resources [ED]
MN: Fall Meeting 2005