PARENT SESSION
Poster Session #21: Education.
Wednesday, August 8, 2001. Presentation from 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM. Exhibition Hall

Collaboration Through Appalachian Watershed Studies.

Pohlad, Bob¹, Thomas, Carolyn¹, ¹

ABSTRACT- Teaching and research watersheds have been established on or adjacent to six college campuses in Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Kentucky in order to establish collaboration among each college's scientists and their students and provide hands-on experiential learning for their students. These watersheds have been developed as part of projects "Research Opportunities and Collaboration in the Appalachians (ROCA)" through The University of Maryland, Appalachian Laboratory, and "Collaboration Through Appalachian Watershed Studies (CAWS)" through the Appalachian College Association. Watershed studies are inherently collaborative in nature and provide a unique opportunity for integrative education in environmental science. Through this model, students have the opportunity to do comparative studies in diverse watersheds throughout the Appalachian region in simultaneously run courses and independent study projects on a variety of ecological research topics. Each watershed has basic data collected including, stream temperature, stream pH, stream conductivity, precipitation, air temperature, stream flow, macro-invertebrates, leaf decomposition, biotic inventories and litter fall for example. In addition, advanced studies are conducted based upon interests of scientists at the specific colleges and Appalachian Laboratories. Collaboration is through web connections and in the form of data sharing and discussion forums about results and observations on each watershed

KEY WORDS: education, watersheds, collaboration, appalachians