Teaching Teachers: Soils for Science Education Majors in Both Urban and Rural Communities.

Soil science concepts are found in national and state K-12 education standards because soils are a vital part of biogeochemical cycling, water sustainability, food production, and the management of land-applied wastes. Soil science education for preservice (in-training) K-12 teachers plays a role in preparing future educators to adequately convey the importance of soils to new generations of learners. This presentation discusses experiences and insights developed from teaching soil science at the college level to students enrolled as science education majors. These college students will be entering the workforce as future K-12 science educators. We discuss curriculum development strategies aimed at helping preservice teachers see how soil science can be used in both urban and rural classrooms and to develop content knowledge in soil science.