Experiential learning experiences in the form of field trips can provide very impactful educational experiences for students when constructed to include reflection, conceptualization, and activity. We offered a mini-course during Spring Semester 2019, which culminated in a one week excursion to the University of Georgia Marine Institute on Sapelo Island, Georgia. The students explored the biodiversity, geology and the cultural heritage of the Island. This excursion was offered at a very reasonable cost to students by partnering with the UNL Cedar Point Biological Station. Students met once weekly on campus with the instructors to become familiar with the requisite information they would need. The class traveled by van to and from Sapelo Island, stopping at various campsites for eating and sleeping. The ?road trip? provided time for students to bond with each other and learn how to work as a team. One of the most enjoyable activities undertaken by the students was a trawl from the RV Spartina in Doboy Sound as part of the Institute’s long term data collection. A representative assortment of organisms collected and placed in the sea tables for further observation. Other activities included observation of a beach transect from intertidal to maritime forest, salt marsh ecology, and fiddler crab behavior. In addition, the remains of human activity through the centuries were visited including a Shell Ring thought to have been left by the Guale Indians who inhabited the Island from 2500-1000 BC. The course grade was based on participation and evaluation of written journals.
Keywords: Field Trips, experiential learning
ViABLE (2021)
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