ERTH1000 Planet Earth: The Big Picture
Dr Gilbert Price
School of the Environment
Course overview
- Lecture
- Level: undergraduate, first year
- Size: medium class – approximately 150 students
The course explores concepts as diverse as the origin of the Solar System through to the evolution of life. It will touch on the big geological processes that have shaped our planet, covering topics including plate tectonics, volcanology, earthquakes, natural resources and climate change.
ERTH1000 is recommended for all students in geology, ecology, biology, marine, environmental science and archaeology, and is also appropriate for anyone who wants to know more about the world they live on.
Teaching tools and techniques
- Keywords: active learning–blended learning–hybrid Zoom/F2F–Inspera
Pre-pandemic, the course comprised separate lectures and pracs. During the pandemic, the course shifted online virtually without change in general structure (physical prac specimens replaced with digital specimens). Today, the course can be taught completely in online if necessary, but this semester be delivered with a hybrid approach that includes 2 live Zoom lectures, one live Zoom prac, and one F2F prac on relevant weeks (same prac as the Zoom one but hands-on with physical teaching materials).
The course utilises Inspera for practicals, digital 3D models, physcial specimens (rocks and fossils), in-class interactive and live informal quizzes and surveys.
Lecturer's biography
Gilbert Price is an Associate Professor in the School of the Environment. He is passionate about online learning and his teaching has thrived since the pandemic. His enthusiasm is driven by the challenge of adapting to the online environment (he loves it so much that he even recently started a new blog aimed at helping other lecturers: www.PandemicTeaching.com).
The Planet Earth course has maintained an average SECaT score of ~4.7 for the past several years including during the peak of the pandemic. Gilbert has been awarded several faculty and school-based awards for his teaching efforts.
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