Multi-scale virtual field experience, Grand Ledge, Michigan, USA

Abstract

Abstract. Field experiences are a critical component of undergraduate geoscience education; however, traditional onsite field experiences are not always practical due to accessibility, and the popularity of alternative modes of learning in higher education is increasing. One way to support student access to field experiences is through virtual field trips, implemented either independently or in conjunction with in-person field trips. We created a virtual field trip (VFT) to Grand Ledge, a regionally important suite of sedimentary outcrops in central lower Michigan, USA. This VFT undertakes all stages of a field project, from question development and detailed observation through data collection to interpretation. The VFT was implemented in undergraduate Sedimentation and Stratigraphy courses at two different liberal arts institutions, with one version of the VFT conducted in-person and the other online. The VFT was presented from a locally hosted website and distributed through an online learning platform. Students completed a series of activities using field data in the form of outcrop photos, virtual 3D models of outcrops and hand samples, and photos of thin sections. Student products included annotated field notes, a stratigraphic column, a collaborative stratigraphic correlation, and a final written reflection. VFT assessment demonstrated that students successfully achieved the inquiry-oriented student learning outcomes and student reflection responses provide anecdotal evidence that the field experience was comparable to field geology onsite. This VFT is an example of successful student learning in an upper-level Sedimentation and Stratigraphy course via virtual field experience with an emphasis on local geology.

Reply on RC2

“…This approach, in combination with outcrop photographs, could improve at the same time their petrographic skills as well as their linking with outcrop-scale sedimentary features (e.g. Marshall and Higley, 2021). Another improvement could be allowing the students to plan their own daily itineraries based on the collected data in previous days, so that they can decide where to focus their efforts based on which areas look more promising, just as in physical fieldwork.…”

Virtual fieldtrip to the Esla Nappe (Cantabrian Zone, NW Spain): delivering traditional geological mapping skills remotely using real data

“…Mead et al, 2019); (v) virtual educational games where students use an avatar to interact with different information and scenarios where a certain learning task needs to be performed (e.g. Pringle, 2013, Virtual Landscapes, 2020Needle et al, 2021); (vi) virtual reality tours which provide the students with an immersive 3D experience using a head mounted display, through which they may interact with a virtual environment and utilise different data; (vii) virtual globe experiences, where a 3D visualisation of rocks, structures, and topography is possible, which may be supplemented with photographs, sketches and outcrop descriptions (Blenkinsop, 2012;Whitmeyer, 2012;Whitmeyer and Dordevic, 2020;Rotzien et al, 2021;Bond and Cawood, 2021;Toy et al, 2021;Mahan et al, 2021;Marshall and Higley 2021). The effectiveness of these trainings depends largely on the degree of student engagement in the learning process itself, the type of information available to the students, the way in which the working data is provided, and the nature of the final outcome of the activity.…”