1. 3-D Visualisation Maggie & Peter Williams 1

2. 2 Developing Excellent Graduates Using Internet-based activities to enhance students’ understanding of 3-dimensional spatial relationships

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5. The problem Much research on the problem of spatial thinking Idea of spatial ability (Eliot and Smith, 1983: Linn and Petersen, 1985) Types of spatial ability: mental rotation, spatial rotation and spatial visualisation (Linn and Petersen, 1985); the 3 cognitive factors linked to high performance in science and mathematics (Lord and Rupert, 1995) Recognition that spatial skills can be troublesome (Ishikawa and Kastens, 2005; King, 2006) 5

6. The specific problem Spatial skills are unevenly distributed among individuals; many students struggle with spatial tasks. Ability to visualise 3-D spatial relationships is essential for students to progress in all GEES disciplines; many students find it difficult to acquire this ability. Barriers to acquiring 3-D visualisation ability: - lack of confidence in understanding and dealing with 3-D spatial relationships; - few opportunities to practise & develop necessary skills; - teachers’ (often strong spatial thinkers themselves) lack of awareness of the degree to which some students are “spatially challenged”. 6

7. Project outline Two year project from September 2007 to March 2009 Alan Boyle, Maggie Williams, Peter Williams Year 1 students starting geoscience courses in the Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences at Liverpool Aim: To explore how using internet-based activities could enhance students’ understanding of 3-dimensional spatial relationships 7

8. Project details Internet- based activities for VITAL. Identifieda target group of students (module EOSC 111) Tested students’ spatial awareness before and after they had usedtheseactivities on VITAL. 4. Encouraged students to work through activities and record: - when they encountered specific topics requiring them touse spatial-visualisation skills, - any new web-links discovered whilst browsing on the web, - comments on the usefulness (or not!) of theactivities. 5. Recorded student portfolio comments. 6. Analysed student performance in spatial awareness tests. 7. Compared spatial awareness test results with results for a control group of students.* 8

9. Project details - note *Students who hadcompleted, apart frommodule EOSC 111, the same Year 1modules as thosein theproject’s target group (and specifically modules EOSC 136Introduction to Geological Maps and EOSC 139 – IntroductiontoFieldGeology): two modules identified as those in whichstudents were required to use spatialvisualisation skills. 9

10. Advice to students A. Key points to remember 1. We all understand 3D objects differently. Our eye/brain systems are very clever, but sometimes let us down. 3. Some things are more difficult to understand than others, butwe all have difficulty with 3-D visualisation 4. Be aware in your modules when 3-D visualisation is needed. 5. There are ways to improve - and practise makes perfect. 10

12. Practice - the more we look the better we understand.

14. Let us know if you find new resources that could be useful.

15. Tell us if you find that some resources do not work or you need help. 11

17. Range of resources

19. Allow manipulation of 2-D or 3-D objects

20. Progression of activities (reflecting order of modules undergraduates would follow during year 1) 12

21. Project resources & activities Minerals e.g. Plagioclase feldspar Crystal (photograph) Crystal (drawing) Section through a crystal (photomicrograph) 13

22. Project resources & activities Minerals – using and rotating models to understand mineral structures Spinel Gold Garnet http://www.3dchem.com/atoz.asp http://www.maths.surrey.ac.uk/hosted -sites/R.Knott/Fibonacci/phi3DGeom.html#cube 14

23. Project resources & activities Awareness of translation from 2D to 3D Cross bedding 15

24. Project resources & activities Sedimentary structures – using animations to understand how structures form http://walrus.wr.usgs.gov/seds/bedforms/mindex.html 16

25. Project resources & activities http://www.uky.edu/KGS/education/fossil_trip.htm http://www.uky.edu/KGS/education/YoungFossils-11.pdf 17 Fossils - using models and slices through fossils http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_8180000/newsid_8187600/8187652.stm

26. Project resources & activities Using Sketchup 18

27. Project resources & activities Volcanoes– using models & animations to understand dynamics of eruptions http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/images/pglossary/index.php http://images.google.co.uk/images?sourceid=chrome&q=active+volcanoes&um=1&ie=UTF8&ei=yfJlS8uvK9q5jAe4yd2jBw&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=4&ved=0CBsQsAQwAw 19

28. Project resources & activities Volcanoes– using models & animations to understand dynamics of eruptions http://www.geology.sdsu.edu/how_volcanoes_work/Eruption_model.html 20

29. Project resources & activities Seafloor Spreading in the North Atlantic Ocean 21 - shown by using animations : http://www.scotese.com/natlanim.htm

30. Project resources & activities Changing distribution of land and sea during the past - using interactive 3D virtual objects - globes that you and manipulate, rotate, and view Cretaceous / Tertiary Boundary (65 million years ago) Earliest Jurassic (Sinemurian, 200 million years ago) http://www.scotese.com/Default.htm 22

31. Project resources & activities Structures (as shown in photos, sketches, diagrams – and on maps) 23

32. Structures (as shown in photos, sketches, diagrams – and on maps) 24 Project resources & activities

33. Project resources & activities Structures (e.g. animations showing fault movements) http://www.iris.edu/gifs/animations/faults.htm 25

34. Project resources & activities Understanding maps using diagrams (e.g. Dipping beds and outcrop patterns) As the beds are dipping they cut across the contours on the map(shown as dashed lines) Beds dip north producing a V-pattern pointing upstream in the valley Beds dip south producing a V-pattern pointing downstream in the valley 26

35. Understanding maps e.g. Angular unconformity Limestone covers over or oversteps several of the older series beds h Upper, younger layers are horizontal Plane of unconformity represents a huge time-gap Lower, older layers tilted/folded 27

36. Understanding maps e.g. Recumbent folds Youngest bed Sedimentary structures would be inverted or upside down here Oldest bed Axial plane is between horizontal and 10° 28

37. Project resources & activities And - for those who prefer real things – paper models! e.g. Synforms and antiforms e.g. faults displacing inclined beds http://www.fault-analysis-group.ucd.ie/ 29

38. Project resources & activities Using interactive 3D geologic blocks GeoBlocks 3D contains interactive movies exploring geologic structures within blocks. You can rotate the blocks, make them partially transparent to view their internal structure, cut through or erode them, displace faults, and more. http://geology.isu.edu/topo/blocks 30

39. 31 Project resources & activities Relating activities to what students may be doing in the future e.g. Pembrokeshire field course Visit Amroth & log the rocks

40. Make observations. Keep records. Draw conclusions. Make interpretations. Use your experience. 32 Use your 3-D visualisation skills - to imagine a landscape 320 million years ago - to reconstruct past environments.

42. Inter-disciplinary thinking

43. Creativity

49. Project results What did evaluation of the feedback provided by students in their portfolios activities show? We are grateful to our students for the time taken to provide this feedback and for the useful, thoughtful commentsprovided. 37

51. User-friendly

52. Included step-by-step tutorials

53. Used overlays

54. Used animations

55. Interactive

56. Included rotational tools

57. Gave feedback

58. Included slower animations

59. Related to actual examples

61. Table 6. Example of a student record of the situations where he/she had to translate between 2D & 3D 39

62. Table 7. Examples of student comments on some of the web-based activities used in semester 1 of the project 40

63. Table 8. Examples of student comments on some of the web-based activities used in semester 2 of the project 41

64. Conclusions Although results of tests of students’ spatial-visualisation abilities indicate different cohorts of students had different ranges of ability, test results did not show improvement with the ‘training methods’ introduced to students. Our assessment of the effects of the project’s activities suggests that internet-basedactivities were valued by students, helped in improving students’ confidence and awareness and cognitive understanding of 3-dimensional spatial relationships. 42

65. Conclusions It is helpful to give students opportunities to manipulate data that will support their learning; allowing students to workattheir own rate on different activitiesenhances their ownership,engagement and understandingof concepts and increases theirconfidence in dealing with information in various dimensions. Many of the web-based resources and activities used were chosen to be of relevance to students on Year 1 geoscience courses, but such resources and activities may have wider application. Project resources and internet-based ‘training methods’ could be adapted for use in other GEES disciplines &/or deposited as an online national learning resource. 43

66. References Eliot, J. and Smith, I.M. (1983) An International Directory of Spatial Tests, Windsor, UK, NFER-Nelson. Ishikawa, T. and Kastens, K.A. (2005) Why some students have trouble with maps and other spatialrepresentations.Journal of Geoscience Education, 53 (2), March: pp. 184-187. Kastens, K.A., Manduca, C.A., Cervato, C., Frodeman, R., Goodwin, C., Liben, L.S., Mogk, D.W., Spangler, T.C., Stillings, N.A. and Titus, S. (2009) How Geoscientists think and learn. Eos, Transactions, American Geophysical Union, 90 (31): pp. 265-272. King, H. (2006) Understanding spatial literacy: cognitive and curriculum perspectives. Planet, 17: pp. 26-28. Linn, M. and Peterson, A.C. (1985) Emergence and characterisation of sex differences in spatial ability: A meta-analysis. Child Development, 56: pp. 1479-1498. Lord, T.R. and Rupert, J. L. (1995) Visual-spatial aptitude in elementary education majors in science and mathtracks. Journal of Geoscience Education, 7: pp. 45-58. 44

67. Appendix The following lists show some of the ‘new’ items that students found useful after working through 3-D Visualisation – part1: 1. Various items on Youtube e.g. Geologic modelling videos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cr1VYrHpqTk Geophysics modelling http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1GeNljM0T8 Geology terrain modelling http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cHEs3f21dA The solar system http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=syeqPLB6fYQ 45

68. Appendix 2. Articles e.g. Geoscientist article ‘Journey into the Earth’ by Paul R. Wood looks at how explorationists today use cutting edge technology to visualise the subsurface in 3D. http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/gsl/site/GSL/lang/en/page2722.html MATLAB simulation of sedimentary structures. http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2005/1272/of2005-1272.pdf New modelling package bridging the gap between reservoir and seismic. http://www.geoexpro.com/sfiles/4/02/9/file/bridging24_26.pdf 46

69. Appendix 3. Animations The rock cycle http://www.classzone.com/books/earth_science/terc/content/investigations /es0602/es0602page02.cfm Formation of clastic sedimentary rock http://www.classzone.com/books/earth_science/terc/content/visualizations /es0605/es0605page01.cfm?chapter_no=visualization Metamorphic rocks formation http://www.classzone.com/books/earth_science/terc/content/visualizations /es0607/es0607page01.cfm?chapter_no=visualization Igneous rock crystallisation http://www.classzone.com/books/earth_science/terc/content/investigations /es0603/es0603page05.cfm?chapter_no=investigation Radioactive decay & absolute age determinations http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/time/visualizations/RadioDec.html 47