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Abstract
Active, experiential, contextual learning has been shown to significantly increase students' ability to process and integrate conceptual learning into their schema for subsequent useful applications. This paper describes the use of active teaching strategies in a week long travel course that integrates multiple disciplinary perspectives each focused on a National Heritage River, the St. Johns River in Florida, USA. The overall objective is to substantially increase connections between science and the world it affects. Instructors integrate relational concepts of the river into their own courses delivered throughout the academic term. During the week of spring break, a cross-section of students participated in the field event traveling approximately 300 kilometers on the river~ Students engaged in scientific, historical, social, engineering and educational activities guided by faculty members representing these disciplines. A Project-Based Science (PBS) approach was used as each student takes ownership of their learning and shares their unique expertise with other students.
Keywords: science education, informal settings,multidisciplinary, experimental methods.
Resumen
En este trabajo se muestran los resultados del proyecto que utiliza la metodología del aprendizaje activo en un viaje educativo de una semana en el Río St. Johns en la Florida, EE UU, y que integra múltiples perspectivas disciplinarias. El objetivo general de estas actividades es aumentar el entendimiento de las conexiones entre la ciencia y el mundo, a través de la integración de los conceptos científicos relacionados con el río. Durante las vacaciones de primavera, estudiantes de varios y diferentes campos han participado en este evento viajando aproximadamente 300 kilómetros en el río, tomando parte en actividades de ingeniería y educación, científicas, históricas, y sociales, dirigidas por docentes de cuatro disciplinas. En este enfoque se utiliza el planteamiento del proyecto basado en ciencias, donde cada estudiante tiene la responsabilidad por su propio aprendizaje y comparte su especialidad única con los demás estudiantes del grupo.
Palabras clave: educación en ciencias, ambientes informales, disciplinas múltiples, métodos experimentales
INTRODUCTION
This course is aligned with a new university initiative Transformational Learning Opportunities (TLOs) defined as "learning opportunities inside or outside the classroom that potentially enrich or augment student learning and personal development." The university has signaled its intention through its strategic plan to further develop and expand TLOs that include, as a central feature, community-based...