Abstract:

Palaeontology is an obligatory matter in the second year of the Bachelor’s Degree in Geology at the University of Barcelona (UB). Within this curriculum, c. 1.8 out of the 12 credits (European Credit Transfer System, ECTS) of this matter are devoted to developing a product based in Project-Based Learning (PBL), which represents 20% of the final course grade. Each year, the professorship selects a new theme for the project.

Over the past six years, the projects have covered diverse topics, including:
(1) Developing a trifold brochure for a museum exhibition devoted to the fossils characteristic of each Phanerozoic geological period;
(2) Preparing a report of the paleontological content of a geological sample for a biostratigraphic consulter company;
(3) Designing an informative panel to be installed outdoors in front of a locally renowned paleontological site;
(4) Improving a Wikipedia page (in Catalan language) about a specific fossil group;
(5) Organizing a fossil exhibition in the hall of the Faculty of Earth Sciences (UB) devoted to outstanding subjects in Palaeontology;
(6) Creating an informative panel on ornamental rocks with fossils to be installed at different places of the university´s campus (Diagonal Campus in Barcelona).

The development of the project followed the traditional PBL methodology. Teams comprised three students, selected randomly. Each team included an “expert” in fossil morphology and taxonomy, an “expert” in paleoenvironment, biostratigraphy or evolution (depending on the subject), and third “expert” responsible for scientific dissemination, e.g. to emphasize the heritage significance of the subject. The project was developed during six weeks (with 2 hours of classroom work per week and approximately about 2-4 hours homework per week) and included the submission of about five group- and five individual-project outcomes. The final product was exposed in an oral presentation in front of the other classmates, who provided feedback and suggested improvements. In some occasions, the final product was also showcased in the hall at the Faculty of Earth Sciences (UB) for broader visibility.

The pedagogical interest of this methodology was that a wide range of competences are practiced and evaluated. These included team work capabilities, skills in solving different problems within the group, abilities to find autonomously the information, skills in graphical design, writing proficiency, and capability of expressing oneself and defending a project in front of an audience. Most of these capabilities/abilities remain under-evaluated in exams, exercises or report-evaluations. In contrast, the value of the PBL methodology for the assimilation of contents in palaeontology was perceived as somewhat limited, but not worse than the traditional teaching system approach involving classroom presentations followed by exercises. Overall, students highly appreciated this learning experience, and they remembered of it long after approving the matter.

Acknowledgement:
The authors acknowledge the support received by the Group of Teaching Innovation of the University of Barcelona GID-DINTO.

Keywords:

Paleontology, Bachelor degree, PBL.