Learning Soil Science Lessons by Studying the Collapse of Easter Island.

Lessons from past civilizations provide an interesting and fun way to
learn about soil science and its fundamental concepts.  We have
developed and tested an innovative assignment about Easter Island and
its soils using peer-reviewed literature from the Web of Science, web
based multimedia (video) from Public Broadcasting Company (PBS), and
other online resources.  Seventy-four Clemson University students
from various fields (forestry, wildlife biology, and environmental
science) had a hands-on experience with the assignment during FNR 204:
Soil Information Systems course taught in the fall 2010.  Students were then asked to fill out a survey providing
answers to 5 questions related to their learning experience and helpfulness
of the assignmentin explaining soil science concepts.  Sixty students
(81 percent of all students) filled out survey forms.  Thirty five percent of the
students had never heard about the Easter Island civilization prior to
this assignment.  Seventy eight percent of students reported the
assignment to be somewhat to very useful.  The most preferred research
aids were Wikipedia, course lecture notes, video, and peer-reviewed
articles.  Overall, most of the student responses to the questionnaire
about their experience with the assignment were positive, indicating
that this assignment can enhance soil science education.