Branson Field Laboratory

Instructional Philosophy

Our philosophy of curriculum and instruction has several major tenants:

 You are best served by a curriculum that includes a broad diversity of field experiences.
 You learn best in a setting that minimizes travel and logistics and maximizes time in the field.
You learn more through contact with numerous instructors who specialize in the types of projects you complete.
 You learn more effectively by working with fellow students in groups.
"To develop competence in an area of inquiry, students must: a) have a deep foundation of factual knowledge, b) understand facts and ideas in the context of a conceptual framework, and c) organize knowledge in ways that facilitate retrieval and application." (Bransford et al., 2000, How People Learn).  We concentrate our instruction to help you understand the conceptual framework for the projects that you complete, and help you to organize that knowledge.  This approach, in a field setting, helps you leave our course with knowledge you can use, not just facts or techniques that you accumulate.
We believe that your learning experience should be active, cooperative, and demanding. Consequently, we are strong believers in the seven principles of good practice in undergraduate education, discussed below.

The Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education

The Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education, created by Arthur W. Chickering and Zelda Gamson, grew out of a special series of conferences investigating ways to improve undergraduate education.. These principles and suggestions for their implementation were distilled from decades of research on the way college-level students learn best. Chickering, Gamson, and their colleagues were determined to find a set of principles that could provide higher-quality learning environments, but they wanted a simple list of principles that was understandable, practical, and widely applicable. The seven basic principles that they settled on distilled decades of research on undergraduate education to conclude that the most effective undergraduate learning is active, cooperative, and demanding.

1. Good Practice Encourages Student-Faculty Contact
   Frequent student-faculty contact in and out of classes is the most important factor in student motivation and involvement. Faculty concern helps students get through rough times and keep on working. Knowing a few faculty members well enhances students ' intellectual commitment and encourages them to think about their own values and future plans.
2. Good Practice Encourages Cooperation Among Students
   Learning is enhanced when it is more like a team effort than a solo race. Good learning, like good work, is collaborative and social, not competitive and isolated. Working with others often increases involvement in learning. Sharing one's own ideas and responding to others' reactions improves thinking and deepens understanding.
3. Good Practice Encourages Active Learning
   Learning is not a spectator sport. Students do not learn much just sitting in classes listening to teachers, memorizing pre-packaged assignments, and spitting out answers. They must talk about what they are learning, write about it, relate it to past experiences, and apply it to their daily lives. They must make what they learn part of themselves.
4. Good Practice Gives Prompt Feedback
   Knowing what you know and don't know focuses learning. Students need appropriate feedback on performance to benefit from courses. In getting started, students need help in assessing existing knowledge and competence. In classes, students need frequent opportunities to perform and receive suggestions for improvement. At various points during college, and at the end, students need chances to reflect on what they have learned, what they still need to know, and how to assess themselves.
5. Good Practice Emphasizes Time on Task
   Time plus energy equals learning. There is no substitute for time on task. Learning to use one's time well is critical for students and professionals alike. Students need help in learning effective time management. Allocating realistic amounts of time means effective learning for students and effective teaching for faculty. How an institution defines time expectations for students, faculty, administrators, and other professional staff can establish the basis for high performance for all.
6. Good Practice Communicates High Expectations
   Expect more and you will get it. High expectations are important for everyone--for the poorly prepared, for those unwilling to exert themselves, and for the bright and well motivated. Expecting students to perform well becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy when teachers and institutions hold high expectations for themselves and make extra efforts.
7. Good Practice Respects Diverse Talents and Ways of Learning
   There are many roads to learning. People bring different talents and styles of learning to college. Brilliant students in the seminar room may be all thumbs in the lab or art studio. Students rich in hands-on experience may not do so well with theory. Students need the opportunity to show their talents and learn in ways that work for them. Then they can be pushed to learn in new ways that do not come so easily.