AUGEN NEWS - February 2022
From the President
It’s birthday time for AUGEN! 🎉
Late January marked 10 years since the first meeting of a broad and diverse group of Australian geoscientists to discuss geoscience education in higher education in Australia! A short summary of our ten years of networking and advocacy below.
Thanks everyone who joined and presented and engaged in discussions at our annual meeting online earlier this month. It was an excellent session and some really interesting discussions were had. A short summary of the meeting follows below.
At the annual meeting, we also formally launched our AUGEN Values and Code of Conduct, https://www.augenteam.net/augen-values, which all members agree to observe and adhere to, and which is another important step in formalising AUGEN. Thanks to the committee for their work on these statements and to the GSA for allowing us to base our Code of Conduct on their documents.
February has also brought three new members to the AUGEN committee, and we welcome Marissa Betts (University of New England) Helen McCoy-West (JCU) and Susan Filan (AusEarthEd) to their new roles! You can find out more about them all in their profiles, below.
To celebrate our tenth birthday, our members area is now available online! This has been something AUGEN have been talking about since our inaugural meeting in 2012. After some teething issues the site is now available, although currently only contains resources from my teaching materials. If you wish to share any resources you have developed or which you have used and can recommend, please get in touch. It is password protected, please contact a member of the committee for the current password. For assessment and exam questions obviously we don’t want to make the site too easily discoverable.
And don’t forget our bi-monthly Conversations series is back on - please join us on Wednesday 16 March for the first event of the year (more info below)
We are all about to begin (or have just begun) our Semester 1 teaching programs and it’s fair to say that there is a reasonable degree of anxiety about a full return to face-to-face teaching, particularly where mask mandates have been removed. This semester will probably be the most challenging of the many pandemic semesters we have already approached. The goalposts have moved, yet again, and uncertainty is higher, even for the eastern states where many months of remote teaching have already been and gone. The challenges of significantly higher case numbers and a return ‘to normal campus life’ will be different for us all, and for our students too. Remember to look after your own wellbeing and to reach out to your support networks if you need.
Looking forward to seeing you all at an upcoming AUGEN event soon!
Best, Sandra
A/Prof Sandra McLaren
School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Melbourne
🎉 AUGEN turns 10! 🎉
AUGEN has grown from our first meeting 17-19 January 2012! That first meeting, driven by the fabulous Mark Tingay (formerly University of Adelaide, now Petronas, Malaysia) was held at the University of Adelaide on the North Terrace campus. Among a great program of talks, we also toured the recently renovated teaching spaces in the Mawson Building and had an enjoyable network dinner on Rundle Street. Our initial informal name was the Australian Geoscience Teaching and Learning Network (AGTLN).
The inaugural 2012 event brought together a community that has persisted, grown and matured over ten years, united by the importance of geoscience and of Earth Science education at all levels. Well done team!
The meeting was back in the day of ‘old school cameras’ so there are fewer photographic records! If you have photos from the event and are happy to share, it would be great to capture a few more and share them on the website. Please send Sandra an email.
Successful and productive 2022 AUGEN TEAM annual meeting
We had an excellent event online on Friday 4 February and, as previously, the event has already set a high-bar in terms of highlights on our annual calendar. Many thanks to the presenters, those who lead discussion topics, and to everyone who joined in with contributions and enthusiasm. Links to the recordings, some presentation material and the meeting chat are all available on the website: https://www.augenteam.net/virtual-meeting-2022
Geoscience Education Research
Our first Geoscience Education Research Discussion was held in November and the team had a great brainstorming session thinking about projects that they would like to lead or be involved with. Some suggestions were:
At the AUGEN TEAM annual meeting on 4 February, we workshopped two of these topics to discuss next steps in getting started. The two topics we started to explore were:
What are the motivations for students to study geoscience in Australasia?
Is it possible to effectively learn fieldwork skills virtually or is in person fieldwork always a better option to engage and learn?
If you are interested in being a part of discussions on either of these topics going forward, please let a member of the committee know!
AUGEN Values and Code of Conduct
At our annual meeting this month, we launched our AUGEN Values and Code of Conduct statements. You can read them online: https://www.augenteam.net/augen-values
By joining AUGEN you agree to adhere to our values and code of conduct in all your interactions with AUGEN Team members and at all AUGEN events. New members joining our mailing list will need to check a statement agreeing to the statements, and the statements also apply retrospectively to all existing members.
Members area now live!
The Members area of the website is finally up and running!
This is a platform for sharing teaching materials and resources among the team so is password protected. Contact Sandra or another member of the committee for the current password. If you use or modify a resource it would be great to let the member who shared it know how it went! Feedback is always welcome as we all work to improve our teaching for the benefit of students across all our institutions.
Contributions to the members area are very welcome (currently it’s mostly structure, tectonics and metamorphic things from Sandra) Please email a member of the committee if you have resources to share
AUGEN Conversations
A reminder that our next AUGEN Conversations event is coming up soon! Join us on Wednesday 16 March 2022 as we answer the question:
“Care to find out why a T&L study got cited close to 9000 times?”
The Conversation will discuss concepts explored in another classic paper ”Learning and Teaching Styles In Engineering Education” Felder, & Silverman, Engineering Education, 78(7), p. 674–681 (1988) Read the paper here (Note that it’s not necessary to do any pre-reading, Dom will lead us through the key concepts in the paper on the day)
Here is the link to join via CollabUltra - you don’t need to pre-register just click the link on the day!
10 AM WA
(11:30 am NT — 12 noon Queensland, PNG — 12:30 pm SA — 1 pm NSW, Vic, Tas, ACT — 2 pm Fiji — 3 pm NZ)
For further queries, or to suggest a topic for Conversation, contact Dom
Welcome to our new committee members!
The TEAM are excited to welcome three new members to the committee! Susan Filan (AusEarthEd), Dr Helen McCoy-West (JCU) and Dr Marissa Betts (UNE)! Get to know them by reading through their AUGEN profiles:
Helen McCoy-West
James Cook University
helen.mccoywest@jcu.edu.au
My current teaching role
Lecturer in Geology/Earth and Environmental Science - I teach second and third year igneous and metamorphic petrology, natural hazards, and part of the honours in geoscience program
Areas of special interest/expertise
Petrography, Geochemistry, Outreach (primary and secondary schools), Geoscience Education Research
Feel free to get in touch if you have questions on these topics!
What’s the best teaching advice anyone has ever given you?
Do not necessarily try and make big sweeping changes to your classes when you first start teaching. Do what feels comfortable and small incremental changes can be easier and often work better while you find your feet at the beginning
What do you enjoy most about your teaching role?
I most enjoy practical classes where I can interact with the students and samples in a more hands on setting
What advice would you give someone starting out in geoscience teaching?
Build your network both in your institution and externally of peers and mentors that can support you when needed in the future. Many of us are experiencing or have gone through similar challenges and you will find some great advice and tips out there
What is the greatest challenge to increasing the reach of geoscience education?
Enhanced geoscience education in secondary schools, and the awareness and understanding of geoscience by the general public, especially with respect to the role that geoscience has in current challenges such as climate change and green technologies
Which wins for you? Rock, mineral, fossil, structure?
Rock!
Meet the Team
Marissa Betts
University of New England
marissa.betts@une.edu.au
My current teaching role
Lecturer in Earth Science - I coordinate a first year geology unit at UNE (GEOL120, Dynamic Earth) and our second year palaeontology unit (GEOL202, Introductory Palaeontology)
Areas of special interest/expertise
Palaeontology, Sedimentology/Stratigraphy, Fieldwork, Outreach (general public), First year geoscience teaching, The Cambrian explosion of life, carbonate sedimentology, chronostratigraphy and timescale development
Feel free to get in touch if you have questions on these topics!
What’s the best teaching advice anyone has ever given you?
Relax! You know more than them! (This is a bit tongue-in-cheek, but I have a tendency to get a bit anxious and overthink things and sometimes this helps)
What do you enjoy most about your teaching role?
I love seeing the lightbulbs go off and the pennies drop! I love teaching students about how the Earth works. To be able to facilitate challenges and then seeing their success is fantastic
What advice would you give someone starting out in geoscience teaching?
Draw on your own experiences - as a researcher (integrate your research into your teaching, it means you come across as excited and enthusiastic about the subject matter), but also as a former student. My memories of what it was like learning geoscience as an undergrad have really helped to shape my teaching style
What is the greatest challenge to increasing the reach of geoscience education?
The a priori assumption that geology is simply about mining and is therefore a synonym for environmental damage and climate change needs to be actively dismantled. I think geoscience needs a kind of "rebranding" that portrays it as an extraordinarily diverse discipline essential for a sustainable future. Playing to such altruistic motivations has been shown to ring true with minorities and people from diverse backgrounds (over economic benefits for example) and is likely to translate to increased participation from such groups who are currently underrepresented in the geosciences
Which wins for you? Rock, mineral, fossil, structure?
Fossil!
Meet the Team
Susan Filan
Australian Earth Science Education
ednsw1@ausearthed.com.au
My current teaching role
Lead Educator - Senior Secondary Engagement
Areas of special interest/expertise
Palaeontology, Outreach (primary and secondary schools), Outreach (general public)
Feel free to get in touch if you have questions on these topics!
What’s the best teaching advice anyone has ever given you?
The examples of passionate instructors and active learning have provided me with invaluable unspoken advice. Having students DO something rather than describing it to them is key.
What do you enjoy most about your teaching role?
Travelling to schools across NSW, getting students excited about geoscience and its relevance to their lives/future
What advice would you give someone starting out in geoscience teaching?
Involve students in active learning and don't be afraid to show your nerdy passions
What is the greatest challenge to increasing the reach of geoscience education?
The lack of knowledge and outdated conceptions held by premary/secondary teachers are a significant barrier. The general public is informed by boring experiences at school and negative media coverage. Students are not encouraged to consider geosciences as a field of study. We need to change the narrative from the beginning and nurture the interest of rock-collecting children
Which wins for you? Rock, mineral, fossil, structure?
Fossil!
See all the AUGEN TEAM profiles online
https://www.augenteam.net/team-profiles
WE NEED YOU! Complete the form at https://forms.gle/kPk5YQwFDXh4S8vD8 to be profiled on our website and in an upcoming newsletter!
Links, reading and resources
Some recommended reading and online resources from the AUGEN TEAM:
Another reminder of Dr Marli Miller’s (University of Oregon) amazing online photo gallery: https://geologypics.com/ So many spectacular and striking geoscience images, freely available (please credit) and ideal for teaching!
The fabulous video from Bonnie Teece and Carol Oliver’s students at UNSW (shared during our annual meeting): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DjoT-gRrn4E
And the equally fabulous Hartley virtual field trip from Tom, Casey and Nathan at Macquarie University: https://sites.google.com/mq.edu.au/hartley/home
HERDSA Talking about Teaching and Learning (TATAL) Webinar
What is Talking about Teaching and Learning (TATAL)? How does it work? What do participants get out of it? Find out more about TATAL in this HERDSA Webinar (non-members welcome)
1 – 2 p.m. (AEDT) on March 3, 2022Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUtc-Gqqj4oH9JfzugLQawaKAupZ6GMFcUq
Who teaches what, and where?
Help the TEAM understand the current geoscience education landscape at different universities across the region.
We have set up a google spreadsheet and would like you to check and add/edit/complete the details for the Institution where you teach:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1EMe3x0EhLFuNnqoNXGw4gg2c8KZlZkc8ddMyuBvy88k/edit?usp=sharing
The sheet is still open and available for editing. Note the level of detail we are seeking here is greater (and different) from the AGC ‘State of the Departments’ survey that is currently underway and which should have been sent to all Heads of Department in the latter part of 2021.
Through the lens
Sandra’s University of Melbourne GEOL30002 Tectonics and Geodynamics class on the rocks at Cape Conran in East Gippsland. Unfortunately we could only have one day of our planned five day trip (due to COVID-19 complications) but it was an excellent day and will form a good basis for a hybrid-virtual excursion over the coming weeks
WE NEED YOU! Do you have some geoscience photos to share? Email them to sandra.mclaren@unimelb.edu.au to be featured on our website and in an upcoming newsletter!
Contributions to AUGEN News are welcome! Please send your updates, commentaries, book or journal article reviews, photos and ideas through to the team - sandra.mclaren@unimelb.edu.au