Developing ‘A’ level Geology Fieldwork and Coursework Projects res TES Issue 39_2 Text page 33... · Developing ‘A’ level Geology Fieldwork and Coursework ... develop a framework

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Developing ‘A’ level Geology Fieldwork and Coursework Projects:a research project funded by the PT Carr Award

Joanie Marion

Joanie Marion received the PT Carr Award in 2012 to fund geological fieldwork research in an area near Edinburgh. The aim of the research was to develop a framework for A-level forensic geological investigations that could be used by geology teachers using either the same field area near Edinburgh, or adapting it for use in other field locations. This is a report outlining the progress made to date.

IntroductionThe A-level geology syllabus currently offered by the WJEC and OCR exam boards incorporates a comprehensive breadth of geological knowledge; however neither exam board covers the application of this knowledge to forensic science. This research project aims to redress this by developing a framework for use by A-level geology teachers that can offer students geological research within a forensic context. The project can be used to enhance the teaching of GL6 and GL5 topics within the WJEC curriculum as well as offering an engaging means to enhance general geological teaching.

A field area near Edinburgh was chosen for the reseach project, however the final project has been written in such a way that teachers can overlay its general principles to their own chosen field area. This can offer flexibility in the choice of field locations to take into account accessibility issues, as well as utilising local sites such as quarries and Geoparks.

Aim and ContextAimThe ultimate aim of the proposal is to showcase students’ geological skills and knowledge suitable for the coursework components of the WJEC GL6 topic or general A-level teaching. The project will develop field skills. In the chosen field area near Edinburgh for example students can make field sketches of a fault (Figure 1), take fold/bedding measurements, identify way-up structures (Figures 2 and 3) and undertake the drawing and interpretation of a sedimentary log. Alternatively, the project may be developed to cultivate students’ laboratory skills in sediment description and interpretation of environments of

deposition. These two options are carried out within the context of a forensic problem, the scenario of which is a murder.

Context 1 - FieldworkA murder has been committed and sediments have been found on the victim. Six suspects have been apprehended and each has been found to have traces of sediments in their clothing/footwear. The job of the forensic geologist is to find a common link between the sediments found on the victim and those found on the suspects. The police

Figure 1 Minor normal fault - fault plane dipping N, striking E-W. Joppa Beach, Edinburgh (looking east).

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34 Teaching Earth Sciences Vol 39 No 2 2014 www.esta-uk.net

believe the murder was carried out at Joppa Beach (Figure 4) near Edinburgh, a site different to where the body was found. Fieldwork is required, therefore, to confirm the location of the murder, and also establish a link between the victim’s and suspects’ trace sediments, and the field site. After undertaking field investigations which showcase geological techniques applicable to the chosen field site, students are given sediment samples associated with the suspects to compare with the sediment samples taken from

Figure 5 Black sand - comprises mainly pyroxene and plagioclase. Longniddry nr Edinburgh. (Photography by Maggie Williams)

the victim. One or more of the suspects’ samples and the victim’s sample have been contaminated with geologically incongruent black sand (Figure 5) or microfossils, thus identifying the murderer(s) through cross-contamination. Although a culprit is easily identifiable thus giving all students the opportunity to deduce an outcome, there is potential for higher-end students to develop their geological analytical skills.

Context 2 - Laboratory WorkThe crime and the scene of the murder are described in Context 1, but instead of undertaking fieldwork, the students are given six suspect samples representing different sedimentary environments, one or more of which have been contaminated with either black sand or microfossils. The students are required to carry out detailed sediment descriptions (i.e. colour, composition; size, shape, sorting) and suggest an environment of deposition with reference to published sedimentary logs. The students are subsequently given the victim’s sample, which has also been contaminated, thus allowing identification of the murderer(s) through cross-contamination. Again, although

Figure 2 Load structures - excellent way up indicator. Joppa Beach, Edinburgh (looking east)

Figure 3 Cross-bedding - excellent way up indicator Palaeocurrent flowed S to N at this outcrop. Joppa Beach, Edinburgh (looking east).

Figure 4 Western edge of Midlothian Syncline Beds dipping 40o-60o E (younging direction). Joppa Beach, Edinburgh (looking northeast).



a culprit is easily identifiable, there is a lot of scope for higher-end students to showcase their geological prowess if the contaminants are incongruent in any sample (i.e. a sediment identified as beach or aeolian would be unlikely to contain unbroken microfossils as the energy found in both environments would break them up).

Note: Both the field and laboratory components of GL6 can be satisfied simultaneously with a little tinkering of the context.

MethodologyA literature search of the local geology in Edinburgh was undertaken to identify and visit promising field sites. Sources ultimately used were:

http://www.edinburghgeolsoc.org/r_download.html (Joppa Shore 2007) [Accessed 30.12.13]

McAdam, A.D. & Clarkson, E.N.K. (1996) Lothian Geology, An Excursion Guide. Edinburgh Geological Society.

Armstrong, D., Mugglestone, F., Richards, R. & Stratton, F. (2008) OCR Geology AS & A2 Student Book. Pearson Education Limited: Heinemann.

Approximate scheduleSeveral exploratory field trips were undertaken in the Lothian area between August 2012 and April 2013. These included: Cramond Beach, Holyrood Park, Joppa Beach, Longniddry, North Berwick, Dunbar, Pease Bay, Siccar Point, Cove Harbour and the Pentland Hills (north). Joppa Beach proved to be the most promising for the project and a mapping exercise was carried out in April 2013; a preliminary field sketch with markers indicating essential fieldwork assessment components was drawn up and samples collected. A distinctive black sand was identified at Longniddry, 12 miles east of Joppa Beach, and this was revealed to contain the basic minerals pyroxene and plagioclase, which accords with a local abortive rifting episode. Sediments were also collected from some of the other sites visited, and these were used as suspect samples.

ExpenditureThe main expenditure was transport by personal car, hire car and public transport. Other expenditure included a

digital camera; sample bags; Lothian guide book; maps: (Pentland Hills and Edinburgh); printing and subsistence.

Primary objectivesThe primary objective of the project is to give students a chance to apply their geological knowledge practically within a human context, thus affording students an opportunity to see the value of geology in the modern world. The project will develop students’ field and/or laboratory techniques, and cultivate their analytical skills as applied to geology.

Dissemination of findingsIt is anticipated that the findings and teaching resources produced will be published on the ESTA website in GEOTREX, and reported to the ESTA membership at a forthcoming ESTA conference.

AcknowledgementsThis material builds on the inspirational work of Maggie Williams which can be found in the GEOTREX area of the ESTA website.

Joanie [email protected]

Note from the Editor: In 1996 the late Peter Towsley Carr left a bequest of £3000 to create an award to fund geological research by practising schoolteachers. The aim of the award is to help to fund a practising schoolteacher wishing to undertake geological research, or to enable such a person to complete research already begun. ‘Geological research’ is here interpreted in a wide sense, to include research into:

• Anaspectofthegeologyofanarea,particularlyone local to the teacher’s school;

• GeologicalandEarthscienceeducationatalllevels;• Improvingtheuseofgeologicalcollectionsin

education;• Improvingthepublicunderstandingofgeology

and Earth science;• Theuseofinformationtechnologyinanyofthe

above.• Thelegacyhasbeeninvestedtoproduceanincome

which will be used to fund an award every three years.



Report on the ESTA Secondary Workshop, 2014.Maggie Williams

AbstractThe 2014 Secondary Workshop was held on Saturday 17th May in the Keele Science Learning Centre at Keele University (re: http://www.keele.ac.uk/kslc/). These ESTA-funded annual workshops are open to ESTA members working in secondary education and to members with an interest in supporting the teaching of geology in secondary schools and colleges. This is a brief report on this year’s workshop sessions and an outline of the topics discussed in these sessions.

IntroductionChris King (ESTA Secondary Co-ordinator) organised the 2014 Secondary Workshop which was attended by nine other ESTA members, a representative from the UK Minerals Forum (UKMF) and a member of the UK Groundwater Forum. Chris noted that he had received apologies from 14 ESTA members and pointed out that this situation was largely because of a clash with the date for a meeting of the examiners for external examinations. After brief introductions, there was a review of last year’s workshop activities and an update on what had been

Figure 1: Abigail Brown - looking eager to make a start at the Secondary Workshop?

achieved during the following year. Chris outlined the topics for consideration for the day and, following lively, constructive group discussions, participants then split into smaller groups to explore specific topics in more detail for the workshop sessions timetabled for the remainder of the day. During the workshop plenty of time was allowed for informal discussions - and there were ample opportunities during the day for members to share resources and information about web links and swop teaching hints and ideas.

Update on 2013 workshop projects• EarthCaching

According to the EarthCache website (http://www.earthcache.org/) an EarthCache site is “a place that people can visit to learn about a unique geoscience feature or aspect of our Earth”. Following the 2013 workshop, Elizabeth Devon’s article on EarthCaching had been published in TES 38.2. (This article had even included details of 3 sites within 40 minutes travelling time of Plymouth for the benefit of members attending the 2013 ESTA conference). Including the examples that Elizabeth Devon has added, there are now over 900 places in the UK recorded as EarthCache sites. ThefollowingBookmarkListlinkstomostoftheUK EarthCaches - http://www.geocaching.com/bookmarks/view.aspx?guid=3b5bab1d-cc35-4e09-b003-1f0512fb63d1

• PlanningforESTA’sfuture

During the last workshop various activities had been suggested for inclusion in ESTA’s plan for the next 5 years. Maggie Williams explained that so far progress had been made on three activities:

The distribution of new membership leaflets at the ASE and GA Conferences in a bid to increase ESTA’s membership.

The setting up a YouTube channel for ESTA. The co-option of Sara Falcone to ESTA Council as

‘New Media Co-ordinator’.



Maggie pointed out that the other activities suggested during the 2013 workshop were still under consideration by ESTA Council.

• Updatingoldactivitiesin‘Geology’/‘TeachingGeology’/ ‘Teaching Earth Sciences’ for republication

Maggie Williams reported that two new archive sections have been added to the ESTA website. One archive includes all journals and magazines published up to 2001 by ESTA and the Association of Teachers of Geology (the precursor to ESTA). Updating of resources and teaching ideas from these earlier publications had begun and two articles have now been re-published under the heading “Blasts from the Past” in TES 38.2 and 39.1. Additional resources to support these articles have also been placed on the website.

• PalaeontologicalAssociation(PalAss)-ESTAProject

Gordon Neighbour reported that following discussions between PalAss, ESTA and Palaeocast, an on-line educational resource named “Fossil Worlds Online” was to be developed. The long-term aim is for a series of interactive web resources for different palaeoenvironments including the Ediacaran seas, the Wenlock Limestone reefs and Carboniferous coal swamp environments.

A Jurassic seas pilot project will be launched in 2014 to coincide with the Yorkshire Fossil Festival and the ESTA Conference. As part of the final project PalAss also intends to develop a fossil app that could be used in the field to identify fossils.

• PhDonfracking

A proposal for a PhD on fracking had been discussed at the previous workshop. Chris King explained that although this proposal had been the subject of later discussions within the University of Keele, it had not been possible to offer this at Keele.

2014 workshop projects/ activities• Developingaspecificationformineralawareness

work in schools

Brian Marker from the UK Minerals Forum (UKMF) explained that information about UKMF is available at: http://www.bgs.ac.uk/ukmf/home.html

Brian shared the Forum’s concerns about the limited public understanding of the need for minerals to be extracted and the general lack of knowledge not only

about the benefits and problems of extraction, but also about what can be done to secure supply without undue environmental damage.

A summary of specific issues for consideration was circulated. In the detailed discussions that followed it was recognised that a wide range of materials is already available, but that there is a need to develop case studies relating to mineral extraction and site remediation that would highlight good (and bad) practices. It was also suggested that UKMF priorities should include:

Development of specific mineral awareness work based on hands-on materials and activities that could be used in primary schools.

Linking to the National Curricula for science and geography.

Ensuring resources are in an easily deliverable form. Consideration of the best hub site to use to carry or

link to resources. It was agreed that Brian Marker will report back these

recommendations to UKMF and provide feedback to ESTA at a future Secondary Workshop meeting.

• Writingaguideforsettingupageologyclub

PEST 57, published in 2007, outlined suggestions for developing a geology club and extra-curricular activities linked to Earth sciences. This was used as the basis for discussions about developing geology clubs and activities in secondary schools.

At the end of the workshop it was agreed that a new guide will be developed by Karl Gray and Gordon Neighbour. It is hoped that this will be completed to meet the TES copy deadline on 31st December, 2014 so that this guide will be published early in 2015.

Figure 2: Gordon Neighbour (left) and David Bell (right) who worked on the geology club guide at the Secondary Workshop



• Commentingonvideosandresourcesproducedbythe UK Groundwater Forum

Rachel Bell introduced this item. Rachel explained that information about the UK Groundwater Forum is available at: http://www.groundwateruk.org/ At the 2013 ESTA Conference in Plymouth Rachel had given a demonstration of a sand tank display model that illustrated how water moves through the ground, but since this event the UK Groundwater Forum had received funding from Shell UK to develop educational resources based on the sand tank display model. During the workshop three videos showing the sand tank model in use were shown. Examples of proposed information sheets about permeability of rocks, groundwater flow, groundwater pumping and artesian boreholes were also available to view.

By the end of the day workshop participants had provided Rachel with detailed feedback and made useful suggestions about how the videos of this excellent model could be improved to make them useful for students in a range of age groups. (I have my fingers crossed that the amount of feedback received doesn’t put Rachel off coming to a future workshop!)

Rachel intends to: produce a prequel video to provide a back-story to

the three videos produced so far; rejig the arrangement of the videos and include

additional animations; develop resources, example questions and notes for

teachers to support the videos; publish an e-book on groundwater by November

2014.

• IdeasforfuturePESGB-ESTAprojectsandcompetitions

Maggie Williams had visited the head office of the PESGB in early April this year and gave a brief outline of the 8 projects that had been suggested to PESGB for their consideration. Two of the proposed projects had been for competitions for schools that could take place during 2014 (the year that marks the first 50 years of the PESGB). Comments were invited on these competitions. The first of which is a poster competition based on the 1815 Tambora eruption, which could be billed as ‘Tambora – the year without summer’. The second was a competition to link to the 2014 Earth Science week, which has the theme - ‘Our Geo-heritage’.

During the following workshop session four ESTA members drew up a list of comments and ideas for developing these two competitions. Maggie Williams agreed to pass these comments and ideas onto PESGB. It is hoped that details of these events will be publicised before the start of the next academic year.

Figure 3: David Bailey after working on the information UK Groundwater Forum information sheets Figure 4: Karl Gray reading through Alan Richardson’s pocket guide on fieldwork



Figure 5: Rachel Bell looking relieved at the end of the workshop session

• Apocketguideonfieldwork

During the workshop Alan Richardson circulated a draft copy of his pocket guide on fieldwork and invited comments from workshop participants. It was agreed that this would be a very useful guide. The main comment was that the text needed only minor amendment, but that some of the diagrams in the guide would need to be re-drafted.

Alan agreed to carry on with developing his guide. The intention is that it will eventually be published on-line in the members’ section of the ESTA website.

• Future‘BlastsfromthePast’

Two ‘Blasts from the Past’ have been published, but on the basis that an additional 8 re-drafted articles had been received from participants of last year’s workshop, Maggie Williams was able to outline the range of articles likely to be published in the near future in further editions of Teaching Earth Sciences. Maggie pointed out it appeared that there were copyright issues for an item based on a re-drafted mineral identification exercise and Angela Baughan kindly volunteered to provide ‘new’ photographs for this article. There was also some discussion about articles that could be re-drafted in the future. Maggie mentioned that Joanie Marion, who was unable to attend today’s meeting, had already volunteered to help with re-writing some of the exercises. Angela kindly offered additional help as and when required.

Next year’s Annual Secondary WorkshopThis report has been written to keep members informed about the ESTA Secondary Workshop activities. It is also hoped that it may encourage more members to come along to the next annual workshop.

For this year’s workshop Chris had received apologies from 14 ESTA members. It was clear that there had been an unfortunate clash of dates with other events and so there was considerable discussion about an alternative date for next year’s event. This means that the date for the next Secondary Workshop has not been decided yet, but if you would like to receive details of the next workshop, please contact Chris King by email: [email protected]

Maggie Williams (Retired Chair, 2013-14) Earth, Ocean and Ecological Sciences, Liverpool [email protected]

Exam Howler . . .

Specimen of a brachiopod = “ a cockall”



ESTA and PESGB-funded activities, 2013-14Maggie WIlliams

ESTA first contacted PESGB in 2003/4 with proposals to sponsor the association’s Annual Course and Conference and to develop web-based resources for use by teachers in schools and colleges. PESGB gave generous financial support for these original proposals and, over the last ten years, has continued to support the association. Financial support from the PESGB has helped the association to expand and strengthen its contribution to Earth Science education at different levels. This brief report for 2013/14 is intended to give stakeholders (the membership of PESGB and ESTA) information about how the PESGB-ESTA Partnership has developed during the last year and demonstrate to PESGB’s stakeholders how their investment in ESTA has allowed ESTA to undertake various activities to improve Earth Science education in UK schools and colleges.

Background to ESTA activities funded by the PESGBESTA or the Earth Science Teachers’ Association is a registered charity that started life in 1967 as ‘The Association of Teachers of Geology’ and changed its name to ESTA in 1988. The Association’s aim is to advance education by encouraging and supporting the teaching of Earth sciences at all levels, whether as a single subject or as part of other courses such as science or geography.

ESTA is run by Council: a team of eight unwaged volunteers acting as Chair, Editor, Secretary, Membership Secretary, Treasurer and three Co-ordinators representing the primary, secondary and higher education sectors. Co-options to Council allow other ESTA members to contribute in various ways and at present there are co-opted members of Council covering GeoConservation, Conference Liaison, Advertising and New Media.

Although members of ESTA can be found all over the world, most ESTA members are UK-based. All ESTA members all have an interest in teaching Earth sciences and work in schools, academies, colleges, universities, museums, fieldwork centres or in outreach and adult education centres.

The association supports Earth science and geology teaching by:• influencingpolicydecisionsaffectingEarthscience

and geology education at a national level;• engagingwithnationalawardingbodiesor

examining groups;• producingupdatesoncurriculumdevelopmentand

teaching;• offeringamentorservicefornewteachersatall

levels;• providingasupportnetworkoffellowmembers;• deliveringESTAteachingmaterialsandcourses;• organisinganannualSecondaryWorkshoptoallow

teachers to network and share resources;• supportingateamofteachersdeveloping

resources for Primary school teachers;• arranginganannualcourseandconference;• publishingtwomagazines(TeachingEarth

Sciences), two newsletters (ESTA News) and two briefings(ESTABriefing)eachyear;

• runningadedicatedwebsite:www.esta-uk.net/

PESGB-funded activities, 2013/4Two PESGB-funded activities were completed over the last year. These are the 2013 ESTA Annual Course and Conference at Plymouth University and the project: ‘Virtual Experiments (phase 2)’.

1. 2013 ESTA Annual Course and Conference The association’s 46th Annual Course and Conference, was held at Plymouth University from 27th to 29th September. The course and conference, which was aimed at those teaching Earth Sciences at all levels from Primary to Higher Education, had the theme: ‘Communicating Geoscience’. The University plays a central role in the cultural and economic well-being of Plymouth and worked in partnership with Plymouth City Museum, the National Marine Aquarium, the English Riviera Geopark and the Jurassic Coast to produce a useful, interesting, stimulating and enjoyable event. It was an added bonus to have Professor Iain Stewart (Figure 1) and Dr David Rothery as two key geoscience communicators contributing to the event.



Conference began with a 3D visualisation session featuring a tornado, a fruit fly - and a trip into outer space! This session was followed by a wine reception at the Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery, which allowed delegates to view a selection of items on display there. A very welcome “fish and chip” supper in a campus café preceded the presidential address given by Chris Carlon. Chris (ESTA President and Former Head of Geosciences at Anglo-American plc) gave an insight into his association with salt and the effects of mineral extraction in his home town of Northwich, revealing in his talk that his lifelong passion for geology was inspired when he was taken on an underground field visit to the Meadowbank Salt Mine at

Figure 1: Prof. Iain Stewart explains twitter. Photo by Hazel Clark

Winsford as a fourteen year old. (This helped to reinforce ESTA’s view that teachers play a very important part in enthusing students to take up an Earth Science career!)

The event provided an eclectic mixture of keynote lectures and workshops on the Saturday. Dave Rothery (Open University) gave a keynote lecture that was an informative and entertaining talk about how the media reacts to volcanic, earthquake and tsunami hazards. ‘Exploring volcanoes’ was a workshop session that looked at a number of teaching resources and classroom activities being developed by the Oxford Sparks team at the University of Oxford. A fascinating introduction to micropalaeontology was provided by Jodie Fisher and Malcolm Hart (Plymouth University). Tom Argles (Open University) demonstrated new virtual field trip software entitled ‘Virtual Skiddaw’. During the day there were numerous opportunities to learn from and share ideas with other enthusiasts (Figures 2 and 3).

Morning workshops and lectures were followed by an afternoon ‘Bring and Share’ session for post-16 teachers. This turned out to be another well-supported and popular session which was extended to two hours to accommodate the 19 delegates who presented interesting, fascinating – and, in some cases, unusual teaching ideas. These included:

• MaggieWilliams(LiverpoolUniversity)demonstrated ‘Fieldwork Safety’ - an online, open access resource on fieldwork safety that was

Figure 2: A group of enthusiastic delegates at Conference. Photo by Bill Marshall



funded by the HEA-GEES Subject Centre Learning and Teaching Development Fund. The resource was produced using Xerte (open-source software developed by a team at Nottingham University for creating interactive learning content). This fieldwork safety OER focuses on coastal exposures, mountainous areas and on working and disused quarries. It is suitable for use by UK undergraduates and ‘A’ Level Geology students. Figure 4 shows the main menu for ‘Fieldwork Safety’ and this indicates the range of topics covered by the package. This resource may be found and run at: http://pcwww.liv.ac.uk/geo-oer/fs/

• RachelBellfromtheUKGroundwaterForumdemonstrated her sand tank display model (Figure 5) to delegates. This model illustrates how water moves through the ground. It can also be used to demonstrate how both water and contaminants move through aquifers.

• DavidBailey(BGS)gaveanupdateonthe‘Schoolseismology project’ and explained how a new design of entry level seismometer based on a

mini-slinky in a Perspex tube is being tested. A simple homemade “mass on a spring” seismometer using a mini-slinky when combined with new SEP digitiser (SEP064 from mindsetsonline) and Raspberry Pi running PYTHON data logging code makes an ultra-cheap entry level seismic monitoring system for schools (Figures 6-9).

Figure 3: Interaction over coffee break. Photo by Hazel Clark

Figure 4: Main menu for ‘Fieldwork Safety’.

Figure 5: The sand tank in action.

Figures 6, 7 and 8: The ‘mini-slinky’ seismometer equipment

Figure 9: Seismogram recorded from a slinky seismometer for the M7.7 Pakistan earthquake 24/09/2013



• MikeTukebroughtalongahomemadecoralarchitecture model based on a plastic bucket (Figure 10). Mike then demonstrated his new website which he described as ‘a thousand and one ideas to enliven your Geology teaching’. This site is at: http://www.earth-science-activities.co.uk/

• PeterKennettdescribedanewEarthLearningIdea(ELI)called‘Bouncingback’thatwasasimpleschool version of testing rocks as done by engineers with expensive kit. (Figure 11)

• PeterWilliamsdemonstrated‘GEO-OER’-aGeological Open Educational Resource he has

developedwithAlanBoyleandMaggieWilliamsat the University of Liverpool. GEO-OER (Figure 12) contains open access teaching materials designed for use by teachers in schools, colleges and universities. GEO-OER materials may be freely used if they are required for educational purposes by individuals or institutions. (Works are licensed under the terms of the Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales licence) Materials on this site include standalone/ self-assessment modules, PDFs, photographs, videos and PowerPoint presentations. GEO-OER may be found and run at: http://pcwww.liv.ac.uk/geo-oer/

The conference dinner was held on the Saturday evening at the National Maritime Aquarium, which turned out to be a stunning venue for this part of the event. After

Figure 10: The coral architecture model

Figure 11: ‘Bouncing back’.

Figure 12: Front page of GEO-OER

Figure 13: Conference dinner held at the National Maritime Aquarium. Photo by Hazel Clark



an interesting guided tour of the main attractions at the aquarium, delegates were able to enjoy delicious food while sitting at tables in front of an enormous fish tank - and underneath huge models of whales and dolphins (Figures 13).

Figure 14: Group at Kingsand

ESTA’s Course and Conference finished off on Sunday 29th September with a day of field-based activities. These included visits to various sites at Kingsand, near Plymouth (Figure 14), to three sites on the ‘Jurassic Coast’ - a UNESCO World Heritage Site (Figure 15) and to the English Riviera Global Geopark at Torbay, Devon (Figure 16). The Kingsand trip was a novel experience for many of the delegates because it involved using mobile technologies to ‘enhance their geology fieldwork’ (Figure 17).

The 2014 Course and Conference was a great success. It not only provided delegates with the opportunities to learn from ‘experts’, but it also helped them to meet other teachers, share teaching resources and ideas and explore new field localities and new fieldwork techniques. The generous support provided by the Petroleum Exploration Society of Great Britain has been invaluable. Without this support ESTA would have been unable to organise such a high quality event at a reasonable price. Moreover the association would have found it very difficult to collect together so many excellent teaching resources, ideas and articles for publication in a post-conference edition of Teaching Earth Sciences (ESTA’s magazine).

Figure 15: Mark Anderson pointing to a calcrete fragment in the bed of a river channel.

Figure 16: Matt Watkinson endeavouring to demonstrate how an alluvial fan might form.

Figure 17: Delegates checking geological features at Kingsand against the information shown on their hand-held device



PESGB sponsorship made a huge difference to the number of teachers able to attend the 2014 Course and Conference by significantly reducing the event’s costs. It also produced indirect benefits to an even greater number of teachers because after the event ESTA was able to publish many of the ideas discussed and/ or generated at this event via the ‘conference-themed’ edition of ESTA’s magazine. There is no doubt that pupils taught by ESTA members will ultimately derive benefit from the dissemination of these teaching and learning ideas.

2. ‘Virtual Experiments’ (phase 2)During 2012, PESGB generously provided £5,000 funding for the second phase of the ‘Virtual Experiments’ project to enable ESTA to develop a further four virtual experiments in geology and add to the two existing experiments (‘Strength of rocks’ and ‘Metamorphic aureole’) produced with earlier financial support from PESGB. New resources (‘Resistivity’, ‘Porosity’, ‘Boreholes’ and ‘Speed of Cooling’) are now freely available to teachers in schools and colleges (UK and worldwide) via the ESTA website.

‘Porosity’ is a group of experiment consisting of 15 separate activities of which 9 have animations (Figure 18). Activities include experiments on: porosity, yield and retention, porosity and grain size, porosity and sorting, porosity of angular and rounded grains, porosity and sphericity and porosity and packing.

The activities on ‘Boreholes’ allow students to locate the best site for a production well. For this activity students are allowed to choose the site of 30 exploration boreholes to determine the position and the type of oil trap (Figure 19).

For the virtual experiment entitled ‘Speed of cooling’ there are five separate activities looking at the following factors:

Figure 18. Screen grab from the porosity virtual experiment: http://www.esta-uk.net/porosity/poros1.htm

Figure 19. Screen grab from the boreholes virtual experiment: http://www.esta-uk.net/boreholes/

Figure 20. Screen grab from the speed of cooling virtual experiment: http://www.esta-uk.net/cooling/

Figure 21. Screen grab from the resistivity virtual experiment: http://www.esta-uk.net/resist/



size, surface area, grain size, composition and water in surrounding country rock. All activities involve aluminium shapes, rock cubes or water being heated to 100°C and then recording the speed of cooling observed in the virtual experiment (Figure 20).

The purpose of the virtual experiment ‘Resistivity’ is for students to discover which rocks, minerals and fluids conduct electricity and which do not (Figure 21). This experiment is designed to help students to appreciate that this information is important when using resistivity for prospecting.

SummaryESTA is proud of its partnership with PESGB and the association is extremely grateful to the society for its financial support for these two activities during 2013/14.

PESGB’s continued sponsorship is helping ESTA to:• provideaccessible,up-to-dateresourcesandIT-

based materials for teachers at all levels;• improveEarthScienceeducationinschools,

colleges and Higher Education institutions in the UK;

• supportspecialistGeologyandEarthScienceteaching in the UK;

• arrangeanannualCourseandConferenceatacostthat will encourage more teachers to attend the event;

• helpawiderrangeofESTAmembersbenefitfromthe annual Course and Conference by receiving a ‘conference-themed’ edition of the ESTA magazine that features many of the teaching and learning ideas generated at this event.

Maggie WilliamsESTA Retired Chair, Newsletter Editor and Projects Manager June 2014

Stop press!At the time of writing this report the 2014 ESTA Annual Course and Conference is yet to take place at The Open University, Milton Keynes from 26th to 28th September. The theme for the conference this year is ‘Earth science and planetary science’, reflecting two areas of teaching and research strength at the Open University. Its Environment, Earth and Ecosystems department includes groups working on Ecosystems and biodiversity, palaeoenvironments and Magmatic and tectonic processes. The Department of Physical sciences includes groups studying planetary science, comparing other bodies in the solar system with the Earth. The most important space mission the OU is involved in for 2014 is the Rosetta mission to visit and land on a comet and by the time of the ESTA conference the Rosetta spacecraft will have met its rendezvous with comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.

We are grateful that the PESGB has agreed to continue support for this annual event. The 2014 ESTA conference will include the usual range of inset events, hands-on workshops, talks and “Bring and Share” and will be supplemented by field excursions on the 28th September. The OU will be showcasing some of the Open University science outreach and engagement projects and some of its open and freely available on-line teaching resources such as the OpenScience laboratory and virtual microscopes with rocks and minerals. This event promises to be an exciting and unusual experience for delegates. A copy of the flyer for this event is shown in Figure 22.



Figure 22: Flyer for the 2014 ESTA Course and Conference



Seismology at School 2 – A report on the CPD opportunity at the Centre International de Valbonne, southern France (21st to 25th October 2013)

Gordon Neighbour

IntroductionI was fortunate enough to attend the first “Seismology at School” Training Event in Naples in 2012 and was aware that there would be a further training activity. I was very keen to attend as I have been making use of the materials in a teaching scheme of work and wanted to ensure that I was able to further extend and develop the work. As with the previous workshop I was able tomakeanapplicationthroughtheBritishCouncilasthe CPD event was a Comenius funded project. The process of applying for the funding is relatively easy and involves the applicant showing how the training opportunity will enhance their work in the classroom. As many of you will be aware I am not able to teach Geology as an examination subject, but this has not been a restriction on my attending these courses. They are an amazing opportunity and, like all good training, provide the opportunity to network with colleagues which was the most beneficial experience.

There are a number of training events offered each year and colleagues should refer to the following website http://ec.europa.eu/education/trainingdatabase/. More information about the Comenius Project and other European projects may be found at http://www.britishcouncil.org/comenius.htm.

Prior to the Training EventWe were asked to produce some resources to bring to the event. I produced• Aposterdetailingtheschemeofworkproduced

for Seismology in Schools• APowerpointfilewhichwaspresentedonthefinal

day of the workshopFigure 1 – Using simple materials to model “Site Effect” using Audacity software. (Photograph: Gordon Neighbour)

Figure 2 – Modelling Earthquakes – using data logging tools and accelerometers to model the seismic cycle. (Photograph: Gordon Neighbour)

Figure 3 – Modelling the “Waves Race” – testing materials (granite in this case) to see how the density affects the speed of the waves. (Photograph: Gordon Neighbour)



Figure 4 – Your author by the outlet valve at the Malpasset dam. (Photograph: Ian Harrison)

Figure 5 and figure 6 – The scale of the disaster can be only guessed at when you see the effect of the collapse of the Malpasset dam.

In addition I have • deliveredmaterialtobothAdvancedLevel

Geography classes and GCSE Chemistry classes using the materials that I have developed both as a result of the previous training activity and those that I had prepared for dissemination with this activity

• presentedtheworkwithSeismologyinSchoolsproject to the whole school staff at a school training day. This involved showing the type of work and activity undertaking during the training events and showing how they have been developed in the school (also showing how the students have benefitted from undertaking the scheme of work).

The Training EventThe training event took place over 5 days (21st to 25th October 2013), although I took the opportunity to arrive early and to stay an extra day, in order to gain as much experience and cultural enrichment as was possible. This flexibility and the opportunity to work with such a diverse range of colleagues is an invaluable component of the Comenius projects. We were based at the Centre International de Valbonne, in the Cote D’Azur department. The accommodation was provided by the CIV and it is obvious that this excellent school must give its students an outstanding educational opportunity. The material is delivered by experts in the field and Jean-Luc Berenguer was an excellent host and had organised a rich and varied programme with his colleagues Paul Denton (BGS), Stefano Solarino (Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV)) and Anne Sauron-Sornette (Scientist in Seismology Education at ETH Zurich),

Day 1The morning consisted of three talks• anintroductiontothecoursebyGuustNoletwho

is Professor of Geophysics at Geoazur, • anupdateonthelatestinformationon

earthquakes by Françoise Courboulex (Geoazur) • anupdateontheuseofseismologyinschools(Paul

Denton,BGS).

These all took the form of seminars where we were able to take notes and also we were able to ask questions and develop our understanding. In the afternoon there were two practical workshops where we were split into two international working groups • Hands-onactivitiesintheclassroompart1:Using

Data (Figure 1) and • Hands-onactivitiesintheclassroompart2:

ModellingEarthquakes–(Figures2and3).

This allowed the opportunity to work with colleagues from several European countries and to present our findings to



other members of the group, allowing us to also use ICT to develop our work. I felt really privileged to be able to work with colleagues from France, Italy, Switzerland, the USA, the Philippines, Portugal, Romania and even the Faroe Islands!

This collaboration allowed us to further investigate working in partnership in future years. In the evening we had a briefing on the fieldwork session which would follow on the next day. Following this we had the preparation for the first poster session so that we were able to share the work we had undertaken with our colleagues. Finally we had the opportunity to make use of the “Observatoire de la Cote d’Azur” with an astronomy discovery night.

Day 2In the morning we were given another two talks.

The Ligurian Earthquake of 1887 studying the “historical aspects” of the event and how these may help us predict Geo-hazards was a case study which was presented by Stefano Solarino (INGV). Additional materials were supplied for use in the classroom. . .

The second talk given by Françoise Courboulex allowed us to study “small earthquakes” - a relatively new area of research) which can be used to explain several different phenomena in the teaching of seismology.

In the afternoon we undertook a field visit to the Malpasset Dam which allowed us to study the seismology, natural hazard, geology and history of the local area (Figures 4, 5 and 6). We were formed into teams and I was asked to be the leader / coordinator for one of the teams. This opportunity to work with a truly international group of teachers was very rewarding.

Figure 7 – Gordon Neighbour (Torquay Girls’ Grammar School) and Ian Harrison (Fulneck School) presenting their collaborative work on the causes of the Malpasset dam disaster.

Day 3In the morning we had two further talks, both of which were extremely applicable to the material which we may use in the classroom. The first discussed the phenomenon of “site effect” (Stefan Solarino) and the second was focussed on hazard prevention in France, given by Etienne Bertrand (Le Centre d’Études Techniques de l’Équipement (CETE) Méditerranée).

In the afternoon there were two practical workshops where we were split into two working groups • Hands-onactivitiesintheclassroompart3:Seismic

Instruments• Hands-onactivitiesintheclassroompart4:Seismic

Risk.

This again allowed the opportunity to work with colleagues. In the evening we had the second poster session. I also undertook the opportunity to work with a colleague (Ian Harrison – Fulneck School) to develop a teaching resource from the visit we undertook to the Malpasset Dam (and I hope to prepare another article on this for inclusion in the next issue of TES).

Day 4We were taken to the GeoAzur department of the Université Nice Sophia-Antipolis where we were able to investigate the “Adopt-a-Float” project and more specifically the “Adopt-a-Float with Mermaid” project and then followed this up with a talk on “Tsunami and tsunami risk: The Mediterranean Tsunami Alert Centre”.

In the afternoon we had two guided laboratory tours at GeoAzur and then ACRI-IN, where were able to look at additional educational resources for the teaching of tsunami risk. In the evening we had a cultural visit to Antibes where we were able to take part in a splendid conference dinner.

Day 5 In the morning we had a seminar session on the use of “Seismic Tomography” (Marianne Marot – Geoazur) and this was followed up with a session on further Educational Resources available for the subject in Europe. I also presented a PowerPoint about the work I have undertaken and the resource I had created with a colleague (Figure 7). Further collaborative work took place in the evening.I decided to stay over on the Friday night and really benefitted from the opportunity to work with colleagues that evening. On the Saturday I was able to then go to Monaco and Nice, finishing the week with an excellent cultural experience with colleagues from Portugal.

The futureI am now developing the work that I undertake with the students at Torquay Girls’ Grammar School, which I hope to



be able to “show-off” at the ESTA 2014 conference. The next Seismology at School Training Event is being planned and will take place in Zurich, Switzerland – I am looking forward to it already!

Finally I need to thank the British Council for funding this CPD opportunity, the students and colleagues at Torquay

Girls’ Grammar School and especially the head-teacher, Dr Nick Smith, for allowing me to participate in the training event.

Gordon NeighbourTorquay Girls’ Grammar [email protected]

Maggie Williams (Distinguished Service Award)On June 4th 2014 Maggie Williams was presented with the Geological Society of London’s Distinguished Service Award. From the citation, you can see how richly deserved this honour is for her work in Education, ESTA and on-going staff development courses. I am sure that you will all join in congratulating Maggie.

This year’s recipient, Maggie Williams, is currently Retired Chair of the Earth Science Teachers Association, ESTA, and has a highly distinguished record of contributions to the fostering of Earth science teaching and teacher training in the UK.

Maggie graduated in Geology from Leicester University in 1971, and then did a Postgraduate Certificate in Education at Keele. At the other end of her formal career, a doctorate from Liverpool University was awarded in 2003, the year after retirement (on doctors’ orders) from her position as Assistant Principal and Head of Geology at Birkenhead 6th Form College (where incidentally from 1988 she set up Geography and Geology departments from scratch!).

Her teaching experience has been extensive, having first become Head of Geography and Geology at Rock Ferry High School after teaching there for 14 years. It was during that time that Maggie

joined ESTA (or the Association of Teachers of Geology as it was then known) - a body she has served faithfully and indefatigably ever since This service has included seven years as Treasurer, as Special Projects Manager, Examinations officer, Advertising officer, Conference convener, Member of the Secondary Working Group, Newsletter Editor and

Assistant Editor of the journal Teaching Earth Sciences, for which she regularly contributes articles, and many more roles too numerous to mention.

Her diagnosis with Multiple Sclerosis may have precipitated her retirement from formal employment, but this did not loosen in any way her engagement with Earth sciences and their teaching. Indeed, if anything that engagement redoubled – and she took over as ESTA’s Chair at short notice in 2011.

Maggie is fond of remembering how she was helped by ESTA in her early years as a geology teacher, and that it is her goal to provide the same service for fellow teachers, especially when starting out, and to enhance ESTA’s role as a ‘caring, sharing’ support-body for these colleagues.

Maggie, in recognition of your unconquerable enthusiasm and dedication, we are delighted to award you today the Distinguished Service Award of The Geological Society of London.

The citation is reproduced with permission from the Geological Society

Editor’s note: Maggie has spent her award monies on a Georg Jensen silver ring and bracelet.

Figure 2 Maggie posing in front of the William Smith Map. Photo by Peter Williams

Figure 1 Maggie is presented with her scroll by David Shilston, the President of the Geological Society of London. Photograph reproduced with permission of the Geological Society of London.



Blasts from the past: 3. Geology of Road stonesElizabeth Devon and Peter Williams

Background “Blasts from the past” is the section of Teaching Earth Sciences where some of the teaching ideas and activities, originally produced for early publications of ESTA and the Association of Teachers of Geology (the precursor to ESTA), are re-published.

Teaching ideas and activities have been updated and revised before re-publication in the magazine. Copies of earlier publications of ESTA and the Association of Teachers may be accessed in the archive section of the ESTA website, although PDFs of TES 26.3 onwards may be downloaded from the website.

Geology of RoadstonesThis activity was produced by Mike Tuke (Tuke, 1985). The original diagrams have been updated and two photographs added. The references have also been revised to reflect present highway construction methods

Background to the topic

Most rock types are suitable for the lower two layers providing they have sufficient strength and are packed in such a manner as to be permeable.

The top layer on which the traffic runs, the wearing course, takes much higher pressures and all the wear and tear of the traffic and of the weather. It must provide a durable, skid-resistant surface and must prevent water percolating down to the lower layers. A much higher quality of rock is needed for this layer than for the other layers; only a few rock types are suitable, especially for motorways and other roads carrying much traffic.

Figure 1 Bardon Hill Quarry, Liecestershire (Photograph: P.Williams)

Figure 2 A cross-section through a typical road surface.

Quarries provide the aggregate (crushed rock) used in the construction of our roads. The rock type has to be carefully chosen so that it has suitable properties for the job it has to do. Testing procedures make sure that the aggregate meets the standards. (See reference 3. A guide to aggregates testing)

Cross section through a road surfaceA road is made up of a number of different layers, each with a different function.

Figure 3 Cross section through the wearing layer of a road with a detail of a rock fragment

Good roadstone for making the wearing course of roads must have the following properties:• Themajorityofthemineralsintherocksmusthave

a hardness greater than 5 so that the rock is able to resist the abrasion caused by the tyres of the vehicles.

• Thegrainsmustwearinsuchawaythattheexposed surface of the rock fragments (aggregate) does not become polished, otherwise the traffic would skid. This means that the rock must be



made of two or more minerals with different hardnesses.

• Whentherockfragmentsaremadeofseveralmineral grains with different hardnesses, then the crystals in the rock fragments wear to a stepped surface which is skid-resistant.

• Therockneedstobefine-grainedsothatfragments 0.5cm in diameter contain several mineral grains.

• Theindividualgrainsneedtobestronglyheldtogether so that the aggregate does not crumble under the pressures and stresses exerted by the vehicles. This means the rock must be either well-cemented or made of interlocking crystals.

• Theaggregatesmusthaveroughsurfacessothatthebitumencanadheretothem.Bitumendoesnot adhere well to glassy surfaces e.g. flint and obsidian, but it does adhere to most other rocks.

• Therockofwhichtheaggregateismademustnotbe porous otherwise frost would shatter it in winter.

Table 1: Composition of rocks

Rock type Mineral content

Igneous rocks

Andesite feldspar, hornblende, augite

Basalt feldspar, augite

Dolerite feldspar, augite

Gabbro feldspar, augite

Granite feldspar, quartz, mica

Rhyolite feldspar, quartz, mica, volcanic glass

Obsidian volcanic glass

Pumice volcanic glass

Metamorphic rocks

Marble calcite

Gneiss quartz, feldspar, mica, hornblende

Metaquartzite quartz

Schist mica

Slate mica

Sedimentary rocks

Flint quartz

Greywacke quartz, feldspar, clay minerals

Limestone calcite

Sandstone quartz

Shale clay minerals

Table 2: Hardness of Minerals and Volcanic glass

Augite 6

Calcite 3

Clay minerals 2.5

Feldspar 6

Hornblende 6

Mica 2.5

Quartz 7

Volcanic glass 6

ReferencesTuke, M. (1985) Practical exercise on the geology of roadstone. Geology Teaching, 10 (2), pp. 63-65.

The design and construction of roads - http://community.dur.ac.uk/~des0www4/cal/roads/index.html

An idiot’s guide to road maintenance - http://www.highwaysmaintenance.com/design.htm

A guide to aggregate testing - http://www.northstonematerials.com/filestore/documents/aggregate-tests.pdf

Elizabeth [email protected]

Peter WilliamsDepartment of Earth, Ocean and Ecological SiencesUniversity of [email protected]

Figure 5 A worn road surface with aggregate raised above the bitumen matrix. £1 coin for scale. (Photograph: M. Williams)

Figure 4 Detail of crystal wear in a rock fragment.

Introduction to the practical exerciseIn the following practical exercise students are asked to work out which rocks are the most suitable for use as roadstone.

The students must have been given the information above and for some students it is necessary to provide additional information on the mineral composition of the rocks and on the hardness of minerals, (Tables 1&2). The most satisfactory lithologies are basalt and greywacke. However, because of the high cost of transporting aggregate, slightly inferior rocks are often used. Limestone, although not suitable for motorways is extensively used because it is readily available. The composition of greywacke causes problems at all levels.

The practical is most satisfactory if the students have samples to study while they are filling in the Table 3. Alternatively, if no samples are available and no information on the composition and hardness is given, then the practical can be used as a revision exercise. The practical has been used for A level and degree teaching and, in modified form, for 12 year-olds in science lessons.





Meet the membershipPeter Kennett and Maggie Williams

Name Peter Kennett

Photo by Hugh Carson

Current position in ESTA and/or work Past-Chairman, therefore resting on my laurels. I have just (well, over the last two years!) written a Personal History of ESTA from the point of view of a founder member who is still more or less alive. I have worked on an ad hoc basis for the Earth Science Education Unit since I retired from school teaching in 1999, and am also heavily involved as a voluntary team member for Earthlearningidea.

Did you enjoy school? Mostly, Yes. I was lucky enough to go to a good grammar school, (Prince Charles would have approved!). I guess I peaked at age 16 and have been going downhill ever since. We skipped a year by starting A Levels along with our final year of O Levels, then taking A Level the following year, aged 17, and it did my foundation in Maths, Physics and Chemistry no good at all. The advantage was that we could take Geology A Level in one year flat, and this set me on my career path, which I have never regretted. The CCF gave me the opportunity to fly in aeroplanes, including

Lancasters, at the nation’s expense, and clubs such as the ornithological society were fun. I took up fencing and shooting to get out of blood sports, such as rugby.

What kind of student were you? I mostly kept my head down, and suffered nothing worse than writing lines for minor misdemeanours. Others enjoyed being “characters” and I was happy enough to let them.

Was there a teacher or teachers who had a particularly strong influence on your life? What was so special about them? Several of them had a positive influence on me, but the most outstanding was R.J. Jones (“Bob”), who got all his students successfully through A Level Geology, and who set many of us onto a geological career. He started the course at the request of the father of John Knill (later Sir John), a few years ahead of me. He was highly idiosyncratic but had the gift of inspiring us and of explaining things well. A little after my time, he gained a Ph.D on limestone weathering, which entailed sitting out on the limestone pavement in his old Scout hat measuring the pH of rainwater and taking his own “aerial photos” with his Leica at the top of a long pole. How many teachers today can find the time for a research degree on top of their 60 hour week?

Where did you train to be a teacher? Birmingham University, following 5 years’ service with the British Antarctic Survey, which had its geology/geophysics division on the Birmingham campus at that time. There were no method courses in geology, so I took geography as my main option with science as a second one. The geography tutors were excellent, but I sadly learned very little from their science colleagues.

Where are you teaching now? What subjects are you teaching? I am supposedly retired, but spend quite a lot of time as a volunteer teaching all ages at Ecton Mine, and during

In this new feature, we want to introduce some of the people who have had a significant impact on the Association. We start the ball rolling with Peter Kennett (who is one of the founding members of the Association and has just completed a very comprehensive personal history of ESTA which will be delivered with the November Newsletter) and Maggie Williams (who has recently received the Geological Society’s Distinguished Service Award for her work in Geoscience Education)



National Science Week in South Yorkshire. The ESEU work helps out with the pension.

What do you like most about your work? What do you like least? Most – seeing people become enthusiastic for geology – as happened at Ecton recently, when we had an entire primary school, consisting of 36 children aged between 4 and 11, all at one go! Least – writing letters to Mr Gove, pleading for common sense in the proposals for the Earth science curriculum.

What is your favourite geology fieldwork area? The Isle of Kerrera (see TES 22.4)

Name one new place you would most like to visit. Explain why you’d like to go there. Iceland, because everybody else has been there, and says it is wonderful for geology and birdlife etc.

What do you do in your spare time? What spare time? See above, plus allotment, grandchildren, church admin etc.

What is your favourite piece of music? “Lift thine eyes” from “Elijah”. The recording of Isobel Baillie and colleagues singing it always brings a lump to my throat, and my wife arranged it for the French horn, which my daughter and friends played at a concert – equally moving.

What is your favourite book? I have no idea about modern novelists, but still enjoy the old stalwarts, such as Emma. I read Tess of the Durbervilles at the time of the ASE Conference in Liverpool, knowing nothing at all about it, and deliberately not reading the study guide notes first – gripping!

If you could interview anyone (living or dead), who would it be and why? Jonah, to find out what really happened!

What does ESTA mean to you? I have always valued the genuine friendship of other members and the amazing support which it has given me during my whole career in education. I couldn’t have survived as a geology teacher without it.

Name Maggie Williams

Photo by Peter Williams

Current position in ESTA and/or work Currently I’m ESTA Newsletter Editor, Assistant Editor TES, Projects Manager - and Retired Chair (2013-14). I also work part-time in the Department of Earth, Ocean and Environmental Sciences at the University of Liverpool.

Did you enjoy school? I think I enjoyed most of my time at school.

What kind of student were you? I was a bit of a ‘swot’ at primary school. I even used to take my own encyclopaedias into school each day to check that the teacher told us the correct information. Things changed when I reached secondary school and discovered school sports. I threw myself into athletics and played in the school teams for rounders, netball and lacrosse. At ‘A’ Level I was torn between taking Latin, Greek and Geography or Pure Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry, but chose the sciences with a view to going to university to study Chemistry. (Before it was too late, I saw the error of my ways and eventually applied to do a degree in Geology!)

Was there a teacher or teachers who had a particularly strong influence on your life? What was so special about them? There were several teachers who had a strong influence on my life. At secondary school I was influenced by the Latin teacher Angela Bolton (née Miller) who was both an excellent teacher and a person who took a deep and lasting interest in her pupils’ lives and achievements. At the University of Leicester I was most inspired by Bob King who was a highly regarded field mineralogist and teacher in the department of Geology. While I was an undergraduate at Leicester Bob was pursuing his interest in the mineralogy of Leicestershire as the subject of a part-time Ph.D. at the University and taught me that it was never too late to follow your dreams and to take up study of a subject of great interest to you. Bob founded the Russell Society, was



a founder member of the Geological Curators Group and in 2002 the mineral ‘bobkingite’ was named for him! I kept in touch with both of these teachers until their deaths in 2012 (Angela) and 2013 (Bob).

Where did you train to be a teacher? After gaining a degree in Geology at Leicester University I took a PGCE course at Keele University and trained to teach Geology and Combined Science. While I was training to be a teacher I also undertook volunteer work in the Schools’ Museum Service and with the North Staffs School for Travellers.

Where are you teaching now? What subjects are you teaching? In 2002 I retired on the grounds of ill-health from full-time teaching in a sixth form college. In 2003 I was awarded a Ph.D. in Earth Sciences after part-time study at Liverpool University. (It took 7 years, 1 month, three weeks and two days for me to complete this qualification!) Since completion of this Ph.D., I have worked at the University of Liverpool where I am an Honorary Member of Staff and Recognised Teacher in the School of Environmental Sciences. I am involved with delivering various first and second year undergraduate modules. I also help with STEM Master Classes for ‘A’ Level Science students and organise Inset courses for teachers of ‘A’ Level Geology.

What do you like most about your work? What do you like least? I like the variety and challenge of all of the work I do

What is your favourite geology fieldwork area? Pembrokeshire – this is one of the field areas where we take the first year undergraduates at Liverpool.

Name one new place you would most like to visit. Explain why you’d like to go there. I’d most like to go to the Canadian Rockies of British Columbia to look at the Burgess Shale Formation and see

the exceptional preservation of the soft parts of fossils in this Middle Cambrian formation. (Although I’ve been to British Columbia before I’ve only ever visited in winter when I’ve spent my time skiing in the Rockies)

What do you do in your spare time? I spend most of my spare time skiing, walking, bird-watching, gardening and taking photographs. What is your favourite piece of music? My favourite piece is ‘Cyprus Avenue’ by Van Morrison, but any of the other tracks on this ‘Astral Weeks’ studio album would count as favourites. (This album kept me going during the long hours of study for my Ph.D.!)

What is your favourite book? Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.

If you could interview anyone (living or dead), who would it be and why? Janet Vida Watson FRS, FGS (1923–1985) - a British geologist who was the first woman to become president of the Geological Society of London. After graduating with a first class honours degree in Biology and Geology in 1943, Janet worked at the National Institute for Research in Dairying looking at chicken growth. Janet later took up teaching Biology at Wentworth School, Bournemouth before deciding to become a geologist. I’d like to ask her about her teaching career and how and why she made the decision change career.

What does ESTA mean to you? I spent most of my working life teaching in schools and colleges where I’ve been the only Geology teacher and the support and advice I’ve received from ESTA has been invaluable. Over the years I’ve also found that ESTA Conferences have provided a wonderful opportunity to network and to share experiences and teaching ideas with other Geology enthusiasts.



Reviews

FIRE ON EARTH An IntroductionAndrew C. Scott, David M.J.S. Bowman, William J.

Bond, Stephen J. Pyne and Martin E. Alexander

Publisher:WileyBlackwellISBN:978-1-1199-5356-2Paperback £39.95

This is a beautifully presented and well set out book. The pictures are colourful and language accessible to A Level students. There is also a companion website which when I scanned into my QR reader took me to a specialist book about Percutaneaous Renal Surgery but the link www.wiley.com/go/scott/fireonearth will enable you to download Powerpoints of all the figures from the book, PDF’s of all the tables, links to websites, videos and podcasts as well as additional teaching material including an exercise using charcoal data.

The book is divided into four parts: PART ONE: Fire in the Earth System

This is most apt for Geology student; examining fire in the fossil record, fire in deep geological history and fire in the last two million years. Fire we learn has a relationship with climate, types of vegetation and evolution – ‘Trees did not evolve until the mid-late Devonian period (385 ma) so there could be no forest fires until that time’.

PART TWO: Biology of Fire. Fire and ecosystems are examined in detail here: the impacts of fire on flora and fauna and the temporal and spatial patterns of fire. This may be more useful for Geography and Environmental Studies ‘A’ Level students. Fire management, anthropogenic change in climate and invasive species are discussed. The photographs and diagrams greatly add to the content enhancing the reader’s interest throughout the chapter.

PART THREE: Anthropogenic Fire. In this section the relationship between humans and fire is examined. Humans have utilised fire to enhance our existence: cooking, farming and transportation. There is also a detailed chapter about approaches to fire management in different parts of the world: Banff National Park – Canada, Kruger National Park – South Africa, Le Sepultura Biosphere Reserve – Mexico, West Arnhem – Australia and Vasternorrland County – Sweden. Part Three would be useful for Geography, Archaeology and Sociology Students.

PART FOUR: The science and art of wildland fire behaviour predictionFire here is examined in terms of characterising, modelling and predicting the behaviour of fire. Despite the complexities of the issues covered the authors present and discuss the information in an accessible and interesting manner. Diagrams, models and flow charts will enable most students to gain a good grasp of the scientific content covered.

Overall the book is an excellent research resource for more able or more interested students. The content is wide ranging and applicable to many A Level courses. Fire



ISLAND ON FIRE – THE EXTRAORDINARY STORY OF LAKI, THE VOLCANO THAT TURNED EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY EUROPE DARK. Alexandra Witze & Jeff Kanipe

ProfileBooks(2013)ISBN978-1781250044Hardback - £12.99

In 1783 a section of south west Iceland split open. Huge volumes of lava and ash spewed out along a wall of fire - the Laki Fissure Eruption. It lasted into 1783, causing famine and death in Iceland and beyond. Crops failed all over northern Europe and its climatic repercussions may even have helped precipitate the French Revolution. Similar eruptions are bound to occur again. How would we cope?

This is the question this book’s two science-writer authors set out to examine. The answer is not cheerful. Ask a member of the public to name any historic eruption, and you will get ‘Krakatoa’ and for another year or two, one with the already forgotten name that stopped flights in 2010 - Eyjafjallajökull, news peg for this book. However it is one of the authors’ more surprising assertions that Laki is ‘forgotten’. Actually, commented on by great contemporaries, documented in detail by local eyewitness Jòn Steingrímsson, perpetuated in Earth science curricula, rarely omitted from popular volcanology books, Laki is a lot less forgotten than most. The book reads like a set of excellent lecture notes, detail omitted for the sake of brevity (and to give students something to look up in the library). Difficult science is rather glossed over. Areas of controversy (most interesting to the general public) are sadly ignored while history comes perilously close to the ‘cardboard’ that Steven Jay Gould so abominated. Scholarly accounts are name-checked throughout and well referenced, which will please students and academics. What of human interest? The story of Laki hardly lacks harrowing tales - death by starvation, asphyxia, fluorosis - described by Pastor Steingrímsson (the miracle worker whose ‘fire mass’ apparently halted the lava, and to science, Laki’s great chronicler). His career is perhaps even more compelling raw material for a writer than Iceland’s volcanoes; but it is recounted here in surprisingly neutral tones, crammed into a short chapter. The ‘completist’ urge to mention everything has won out over creative storytelling. Once again, students may be grateful for this. Island on Fire is an excellent undergraduate reader, and its notes and further reading lists will recommend it to an academic audience, who also will welcome the way it broadens to look at global volcanic eruptions generally. However while lay readers will end it better informed, they may, as I was, be a little surprised that they were not better entertained.

Ted Nield NUJ FGS,Editor, Geoscientist magazine (Previously published in, Geoscientist magazine (Vol 24 No5 June 2014)

on Earth is a synoptic book with relationships between multi disciplines interwoven throughout. Extended Project Qualification students with an interest in this area would

find the book invaluable. Perhaps one for the Library considering its cost and the fact the materials are readily available on the website. Angela BentleyHead of Earth SciencesAquinas College



April 2014Until 28th SeptemberExhibition: Britain - One Million Years of the Human StoryNatural History Museum, Cromwell Road London Contact: www.nhm.ac.uk/

20th - 21st SeptemberNewark Rock Gem ‘n’ Bead ShowNewark Showground, NottinghamshireContact: www.rockngem.co.uk

26th - 28th SeptemberESTA Annual Course and ConferenceOpen University, Milton KeynesContact: [email protected]

October 20143rd OctoberGeologists’ Association Lecture: “The Incredible Story of the Stone Pipe Company 1805-1815, London, Manchester and Dublin”The Geological Society, Burlington House, Piccadilly, London, W1J 0BGContact: [email protected]

13th – 19th OctoberEarth Science Week Theme: “Our Geo-Heritage”Contact: www.geolsoc.org.uk/earthscienceweek 15th OctoberThe Geological Society London Lectures: “Geoheritage and the UK’s most significant geological sites”The Geological Society, Burlington House, Piccadilly, London, W1J 0BGContact: www.geolsoc.org.uk

22nd OctoberWorkshop: Engaging Students in Co-Creating Curricula that Embed Equality and DiversityThe Higher Education AcademyPerth, Venue TBCContact: www.heacademy.ac.uk/events

25th – 26th OctoberNewton Abbot Rock Gem ‘n’ Bead Early ShowNewton Abbot RacecourseContact: www.rockngem.co.uk

28th OctoberCornwall Geoconservation Group field meeting: Pentire headland near PolzeathContact: [email protected]

29th OctoberWorkshop: The Nitrogen cycle and the AnthropoceneBritish Geological Survey, KeyworthContact: www.bgs.ac.uk/

November 20141st November 2014 Festival of GeologyGeologists’ AssociationContact: http://geologistsassociation.org.uk/

1st - 2nd NovemberKempton Park Rock ‘n’ Gem ShowKempton Park Racecourse, LondonContact: www.rockngem.co.uk

8th NovemberCornwall Geoconservation Group field meeting: Boscastle Cliffs Contact: [email protected]

Diary



8th - 9th NovemberCheltenham Rock Gem ‘n’ Bead February ShowPittville Pump Rooms, CheltenhamContact: www.rockngem.co.uk

12th NovemberShropshire Geological Society lecture: “Wine, whisky and beer”Shire Hall, ShrewsburyContact: www.shropshiregeology.org.uk/SGS/SGSEvents.htm

16th NovemberUKAFH Free fossil hunting event: Thorness Bay, Isle of WightContact: www.ukafh.co.uk/

21st – 22nd NovemberBrighton Rock Gem ‘n’ bead showBrighton RacecourseContact: www.rockngem.co.uk

19th NovemberThe Geological Society London Lectures: “Contaminated Land: What is it good for?”The Geological Society, Burlington House, Piccadilly, London, W1J 0BGContact: www.geolsoc.org.uk

29th NovemberGeologists’ Association Southeast Regional Conference: “Geology and History in South East England”Amberley (Chalkpits) Museum and Heritage CentreContact: [email protected]

November 20145th DecemberGeologists’ Association Lecture: “The rise, fall and resurgence of UK domestic mineral supply”The Geological Society, Burlington House, Piccadilly, London, W1J 0BGContact: [email protected]

7th DecemberUKAFH Free fossil hunting event: AustContact: www.ukafh.co.uk/

10th DecemberThe Geological Society London Lectures: “Terra Infirma; What Has Salt Tectonics Ever Done For Us?”The Geological Society, Burlington House, Piccadilly, London, W1J 0BGContact: www.geolsoc.org.uk

January 20157th – 10th JanuaryASE Annual ConferenceUniversity of ReadingContact: www.ase.org.uk/conferences/annual-conference/

22nd – 23rd JanuaryCourse for ‘A’ Level Geology Teachers: “Joined Up Geology: Exploring links in Geology”University of LiverpoolContact: [email protected]

March 201513th – 22nd MarchNational Science & Engineering WeekContact: www.britishscienceassociation.org/national-science-engineering-week

April 20159th – 11th AprilGA Annual Conference and Exhibition 2015: “Making an Impact”University of ManchesterContact: www.geography.org.uk/

May 20151st -3rd MayLyme Regis Fossil Festival. 10th Anniversary. Theme “Mapping the Earth”Contact: www.fossilfestival.com

September 201525th – 27th September ESTA Annual Course and ConferenceCardiff UniversityContact: www.esta-uk.net/



ACROSS

9. Dark granular rock used to make abrasive powder. (5)

DOWN

1. An embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located

betweenthesouthernBalkanandAnatolian

peninsulas. (6)

10. Valence characterized by the sharing of electrons in a

chemical compound. (9)

2. City in Pakistan. (8)

11. A volatile, fl ammable, colourless liquid that can cause

alcohol intoxication. (7)

3. A genus of fl owering plant in the family Ericaceae.

(6)

13. Newspaper published from 1872 to 1949 in Shanghai,

China. (4-3)

4. Abbreviation often used in email to indicate those

who are to receive a copy of a message. (2)

14. A person who sells newspapers and magazines. (9) 5. Latin name for the birds. (4)

16. The second largest city in Finland. (5) 6. A second self. (5,3)

17. A geologic mountain-building event caused by Late

Palaeozoic continental collision. (8,7)

7. To buy something as soon as it becomes available.

(4,2)

20. A hydrocarbon secretion of many plants, particularly

coniferous trees. (5)

8. The study of cells. (8)

22. A glassy particle found within a volcanic deposit. (9) 12. 3rd largest city in Latvia. (7)

25. Provide with a coating. (7) 15. Term to describe a gastropod shell shaped like a

spinning-top.(10)

27. More distant in degree, time, or space. (7) 17. Any of the bones or segments composing the spinal

column. (8)

28. A natural or artifi cial lake which is used to store water. (9) 18. Ridges of sand formed in a river or along a shore. (8)

29. A lizard found in warm climates throughout the world. (5) 19. External calcareous layer in corals. (8)

21. A force that can cause a change in an object. (6)

23. To make very angry. (6)

24. A death-duty in late Anglo-Saxon England. (6)

A FLAVOUR OF FIELDWORK

As part of the OpenScience Laboratory initiative, the Open University has developedVirtual Skiddaw – an online chunk of the northern Lake District rendered in a gamingengine from real-world data.6 detailed geological exposures embedded in a 100 km2 digital landscape with ambientaudio to explore, observe, measure, sketch and interpret.Can you complete the tasks, answer the questions and ultimately unravel the area’sgeological history?

• visit as a group – or let them go it alone!• save time: sprint/fly/teleport around the environment• use text chat to guide the experience• call up a cross-section for the subsurface perspective• drape different maps on the landscape for context• examine rocks samples close-up and under a virtual microscope• in-world help, as well as supporting materials on the website• introduce and develop geological field skills and ‘spatial literacy’• fade out avatars that get in the way of your sketch…

For further details on how to access Virtual Skiddaw, please contact Tom Argles([email protected])

For a preview of Virtual Skiddaw, head to: https://vimeo.com/78057630

To register for the OpenScience Laboratory, go to:www.opensciencelab.ac.uk (Registration is free and without obligation)

We know you cannever replace realfieldwork. But maybethe virtual world canlend a helping hand?

Want to enrich your classwork and engage your students?



Crossword Puzzle 51 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

9 10

11 12 13

14 15 16

17 18 19

20 21 22 23 24

25 26 27

28 29

ACROSS

9. Dark granular rock used to make abrasive powder. (5)

DOWN

1. An embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located

betweenthesouthernBalkanandAnatolian

peninsulas. (6)

10. Valence characterized by the sharing of electrons in a

chemical compound. (9)

2. City in Pakistan. (8)

11. A volatile, flammable, colourless liquid that can cause

alcohol intoxication. (7)

3. A genus of flowering plant in the family Ericaceae.

(6)

13. Newspaper published from 1872 to 1949 in Shanghai,

China. (4-3)

4. Abbreviation often used in email to indicate those

who are to receive a copy of a message. (2)

14. A person who sells newspapers and magazines. (9) 5. Latin name for the birds. (4)

16. The second largest city in Finland. (5) 6. A second self. (5,3)

17. A geologic mountain-building event caused by Late

Palaeozoic continental collision. (8,7)

7. To buy something as soon as it becomes available.

(4,2)

20. A hydrocarbon secretion of many plants, particularly

coniferous trees. (5)

8. The study of cells. (8)

22. A glassy particle found within a volcanic deposit. (9) 12. 3rd largest city in Latvia. (7)

25. Provide with a coating. (7) 15. Term to describe a gastropod shell shaped like a

spinning-top.(10)

27. More distant in degree, time, or space. (7) 17. Any of the bones or segments composing the spinal

column. (8)

28. A natural or artificial lake which is used to store water. (9) 18. Ridges of sand formed in a river or along a shore. (8)

29. A lizard found in warm climates throughout the world. (5) 19. External calcareous layer in corals. (8)

21. A force that can cause a change in an object. (6)

23. To make very angry. (6)

24. A death-duty in late Anglo-Saxon England. (6)



Crossword puzzle 4: Answers

E P E N T L A N D I T E

D O L L O I N H

I A L N W A T E R

O R E S E R A

X R A Y S T R O N T I U M D

I T O D S O U

D E L T H Y R I U M O A S I S

E O M O A T T

C M B R O G

S T O S S E S C A R P M E N T

I S O A I E M U

L M O N O C L I N E D N

I I H E U O O I D

C Y C L E E D L M R

O S A E A P A

N E B U L A E M E R A L D

Exam Howler . . .

“andesitic magma is more virile than basaltic magma”


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Developing ‘A’ level Geology Fieldwork and Coursework Projects res TES Issue 39_2 Text page 33... · Developing ‘A’ level Geology Fieldwork and Coursework ... develop a framework