51 Geoscience Education Research: Methods, Frameworks, and Results from Emerging Scholars
This session will highlight empirical research being done in the field of geoscience education as well as the methods and theoretical frameworks that shape our field. Presenters are encouraged to highlight their decision-making process in research studies. New approaches and applications of established methods/frameworks are also encouraged. Early career and student presenters who submitted abstracts to the Totten session will be considered for the Geoscience Education Division’s Totten Awards.
Sunday, 19 October 2025
1:30 PM - 5:30 PM
HBGCC, 301A
Explicit vs Implicit Pedagogies: Investigating Teamwork Process Skills in Undergraduate Geoscience Fieldwork
Paper number: 51-12
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 4:30 PM – 4:45 PM
Authors
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Samuel NyarkoIndiana University Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN
Abstract
Despite decades of research to identify effective ways of making teamwork an essential part of higher education curriculum and pedagogy, gaps remain. Teamwork is generally taught through implicit techniques, leaving students underprepared for effective collaboration, especially in interdisciplinary teams and the workforce. While most of the work in teamwork skills development through explicit instruction has been done in the military, engineering, and healthcare, research around systematically incorporating teamwork as part of science content is lacking, especially in field-based contexts. This study investigated the impact of explicitly taught teamwork process skills on students’ collaboration and workforce development with the aim of addressing the pedagogical gap and adding to both the scholarship of teaching and DBER in the geosciences.
Utilizing a one-group quasi-experimental approach that included pre-and-post intervention measurements on teamwork process skills, survey, observation, and exit focus groups, data were collected from 49 students engaged in four different field courses. Quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS 28 and qualitative data was coded in NVIVO 15.0. Initial analysis of pre-intervention data suggests that although participants knew some elements of teamwork process skills and have worked in teams before, they were unaware of the complexity of teamwork skills that facilitate the interpersonal and transition phase of teamwork. However, post-intervention data show that students became more aware of transition and interpersonal teamwork process skills such as delegation, planning, emotional intelligence, conflict resolution, and ethics. Students also mentioned in focus group interviews that communication, open-mindedness, and adaptability are key teamwork process skills for effective fieldwork. The examined variations in teamwork skills developed and utilized by students after explicit teamwork intervention across geoscience sub-disciplines provides insight into how best we can tailor these skills in training to enhance students’ workforce preparation and marketability. The next phase of this study is to expand the intervention module to other field-based and lecture courses in the geosciences.
Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 57, No. 6
doi: 10.1130/abs/2025AM-412579
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