Our Staff
Philosophy of Field Science
The philosophy of Field Science has evolved over the years, but has remained pretty consistent. The course was started to include geology and biology, but quickly was modified to include history and the environment. It has also included such topics as journaling, sketching, photography and independent research on numerous topics.
Field Science has always been about getting out in the field and doing “hands-on” science. The original motivation for starting Field Science was the frustration of trying to teach geology and biology and being able to see great teaching sites from the classroom but realizing the difficulty of taking large numbers of students on field trips. The attraction of doing Field Science was taking interested students into the areas where they could see the geologic and biologic features that were discussed in the classroom. In the field, it was not only “hands-on” but also “minds-on” science. Students are asked many questions to get them thinking about what they are seeing. This frequently gets them involved in the experience and they start asking questions. Instructors carry boxes of reference books, mostly in the form of identification guides and field guides that can be used to help answer questions. This type of active engagement results in much greater learning than much of the passive learning that occurs in the typical classroom. Questioning has another advantage in that it allows the teachers to find out what type of misconceptions students may have about the topic being discussed. Because the teachers try very hard to provide a non-threatening environment, students are not afraid to participate in discussions. The teachers use humor and give one another a bad time to help provide a relaxed teaching environment. An advantage of a program that is 40 years old, is that many of the students either know the teachers or have heard about the program and know what to expect. Another aspect of the teaching is the fact that the teachers have access to numerous examples of biological, geological and historical sites and this allow them to revisit concepts that are difficult to understand. Teachers don’t expect students to learn all of the concepts the first time through, but they hope that by the end of the week that students will have a much better understanding of the natural science and history of areas visited.
Mr. Dana Van Burgh has a B.A. in geology, certification in Science Education, an M.A. in education and over 90 graduate hours above the masters level. He taught ninth grade earth science in the same classroom for 38 years, Earth Science Seminar at Casper College for 18 years and field science for 52 years. In addition, he has five years’ experience teaching evening school geology classes at Casper College, and four years of teaching portal school classes for the University of Wyoming. Van Burgh received the Kathleen Hemry “Award for Outstanding Teaching and Contributions to the Casper Community” in 1977, the “Presidential Award for Excellence in Science Teaching” in 1986, and the “Lifetime Achievement Award in Science” from the Wyoming Science Teacher’s Association in 2000.
.
Mr. Beecher Strube has a B.S. degree in physical education and a M.S. degree in botany and zoology. He also has over 50 graduate hours above the masters. Strube taught junior high science for 11 years and has taught high school biology for ? years. He has been teaching field science for 52 years, and worked five years designing and constructing the Braille Trail on Casper Mountain. He received the “Kathleen Hemry Award for Outstanding Teaching and Contributions to the Casper Community” in 1979, the “Wyoming Biology Teacher of the Year” from the Wyoming Science Teacher’s Association in 1989, the J.C. Penny “Golden Rule” award in 1996 and the “Lifetime Achievement Award in Science” from the Wyoming Science Teacher’s Association in 2000.
Dr. Terry Logue has a B.S. in Biology Education, M.N.S. in Geology, and a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction, emphasis in Science Education. He taught junior high earth science 21 years, high school geology and biology 5 years, University geology and science education 12 years. He has taught field science for 42 years. He also taught evening school geology at Casper College for four years, and earth science workshops at the University of Wyoming for three summers. He was awarded the “Lifetime Achievement Award in Science” by the Wyoming Science Teachers in 2000. He is an Emeritus Professor of Earth Science at the University of North Alabama.