HR: 0800h
AN: ED31C-1228    [Abstracts]
TI: Improving Geoscience Outreach Through Multimedia Enhanced Web Sites - An Example From Connecticut
AU: Hyatt, J A
EM: hyattj@easternct.edu
AF: Environmental Earth Science, Eastern Connecticut State University, 83 Windham Street, Willimantic, CT 06226 United States
AU: Coron, C R
EM: coronc1@southernct.edu
AF: Earth Sciences, Southern Connecticut State University, 501 Crescent Street, New Haven, CT 06515 United States
AU: * Schroeder, T J
EM: schroedert@easternct.edu
AF: Environmental Earth Science, Eastern Connecticut State University, 83 Windham Street, Willimantic, CT 06226 United States
AU: Fleming, T
EM: flemingt1@southernct.edu
AF: Earth Sciences, Southern Connecticut State University, 501 Crescent Street, New Haven, CT 06515 United States
AU: Drzewiecki, P A
EM: drzewieckp@easternct.edu
AF: Environmental Earth Science, Eastern Connecticut State University, 83 Windham Street, Willimantic, CT 06226 United States
AB: Although large governmental web sites (e.g. USGS, NASA etc.) are important resources, particularly in relation to phenomena with global to regional significance (e.g. recent Tsunami and Hurricane disasters), smaller academic web portals continue to make substantive contributions to web-based learning in the geosciences. The strength of "home-grown" web sites is that they easily can be tailored to specific classes, they often focus on local geologic content, and they potentially integrate classroom, laboratory, and field-based learning in ways that improve introductory classes. Furthermore, innovative multimedia techniques including virtual reality, image manipulations, and interactive streaming video can improve visualization and be particularly helpful for first-time geology students. This poster reports on one such web site, Learning Tools in Earth Science (LTES, http://www.easternct .edu/personal/faculty/hyattj/LTES-v2/), a site developed by geoscience faculty at two state institutions. In contrast to some large web sites with media development teams, LTES geoscientists, with strong support from media and IT service departments, are responsible for geologic content and verification, media development and editing, and web development and authoring. As such, we have considerable control over both content and design of this site. At present the main content modules for LTES include "mineral" and "virtual field trip" links. The mineral module includes an interactive mineral gallery, and a virtual mineral box of 24 unidentified samples that are identical to those used in some of our classes. Students navigate an intuitive web portal to manipulate images and view streaming video segments that explain and undertake standard mineral identification tests. New elements highlighted in our poster include links to a virtual petrographic microscope, in which users can manipulate images to simulate stage rotation in both plane- and cross-polarized light. Virtual field trips include video-based excursions to sites in Georgia, Connecticut and Greenland. New to these VFT's is the integration of "virtual walks" in which users are able to navigate through some field sites in a virtual sense. Development of this resource is ongoing, but response from students, faculty outside of Earth Science and K-12 instructors indicate that this small web site can provide useful resources for those educators utilizing web-based learning in their courses.
UR: http://www.easternct .edu/personal/faculty/hyattj/LTES-v2/
DE: 0805 Elementary and secondary education
DE: 0810 Post-secondary education
DE: 0825 Teaching methods
DE: 0830 Teacher training
DE: 0845 Instructional tools
SC: Education and Human Resources [ED]
MN: Fall Meeting 2005