A Collaborative Approach to Petrology Field Trips

In a change from the traditional approach to geology field trips, we used collaborative learning to promote the field experience for undergraduate petrology students. Students formed small research groups several weeks prior to each of two field trips. Each group became the expert for one sample from the upcoming trip, producing a detailed petrographic report. In the field, students presented their findings orally, while instructors prompted discussion of the overall meaning of the observations made by each group. This collaborative approach to petrology field trips was an unqualified success. Task-sharing among the group members allowed production of a more thorough report than would have been possible for a single student. Moreover, the cooperative effort allowed the students to express their ideas comfortably, to receive support from their peers, and to build self-confidence. Student feedback was overwhelmingly positive. They felt that the trips were more interesting, more informative and more producti...