Bringing the Field into the Classroom by Using Dynamic Digital Maps to Engage Undergraduate Students in Petrology Research

Abstract

We utilize Dynamic Digital Maps (DDMs) in our undergraduate petrology courses to bring inaccessible and exciting volcanic field areas to the students in the classroom and to engage the students in research experiences. A DDM is a stand-alone computer program that presents interactive geologic maps, digital images, movies, animations, text and data (http://ddm.geo.umass.edu). We have developed exercises that use two different DDMs to provide field-based context for undergraduate research projects in petrology. The projects include a group research project on the evolution of the Tatara-San Pedro volcanic complex (Central Chilean Andes) and a laboratory exercise that studies magma evolution of the Springville Volcanic field (Arizona, USA). To assess the impact on student learning we administered a student assessment before and after the Tatara-San Pedro research project. We found significant gains in both students' confidence in ability to do research and to understand petrology. The DDM template is presently being converted to a cross-platform open-source format that will enable others to make their own DDMs for any field of interest. DDMs are versatile and can potentially be adapted effectively from 100-level introductory geology labs to research-oriented graduate level courses and in a variety of geologic sub-disciplines.