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Ecton Hill Field Studies Association |
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This Hill is Alive |
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Geology at Ecton |
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Introduction The Ecton Hill Field Studies Association (EHFSA) has prepared a number of workshops for AS and A2 Geology courses. These are offered to schools which bring groups of students for the day to Ecton Hill, in the North Staffordshire part of the Peak District. The writers have used the new Specifications (for first examination at AS Level in 2009, and at A Level (A2) in 2010), from the only two Awarding Bodies to offer Geology at these levels. These are Oxford, Cambridge and RSA (OCR) and the Welsh Joint Education Committee (WJEC). The assessment of practical skills in geology, through students’ investigative activities, forms a significant part of the qualification, for both Awarding Bodies. Ecton Hill is ideally placed to offer considerable scope for such activities, whether assessed by the visiting teacher at the time or not. The workshops are intended to make full use of the unique Ecton site to bring to life topics which can only otherwise be covered in theory at school. They are designed to be of variable length, so that teachers visiting with their groups can opt for a mix and match basis, according to the perceived needs of their students. In addition to preparing its own courses, the EHFSA is in discussion with the university sector about specialist input from their Earth Sciences/Engineering Departments. Thus, a university might provide a full day to enable students to handle modern geophysical or geotechnical equipment for themselves and to see how the results may be interpreted. The workshops have been prepared by specialist team members, who bring to bear many years of experience in geology, mining geology, geophysics, geochemistry, chemistry and biology. The members all have considerable experience in teaching, at school level, university level or in teacher education. A compendium has been prepared for the guidance to EHFSA tutors. The package presented here is extracted from the compendium, to enable visiting teachers to select which workshops they would like, and to download appropriate sheets prior to their visit. Not included in this package is a series of exercises centred on the classic folding at Apes Tor, which is accessible to the public. A teaching package was developed in 2005, under the auspices of the UKRIGS Education Project: Earth Science On-Site and posted on the website: www.ukrigs.org.uk This is aimed at students taking GCSE Science, and fulfils its purpose very well. We have assumed that access can be obtained to this website and have taken it as a starting point for the development of some of our A Level Geology activities. Only the minimum of information is provided directly on this website. All other information is in the form of pdf files and can be obtained by simply clicking on the link (or heading etc.) You will need a copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader© to use this material. Background information Information about Ecton Hill is in three parts: A. The Stories at Ecton Hill provides an outline map and cross section of the hill. Ecton tutors have a very full version in their compendium. B. The Geological Setting of Ecton Hill outlines the relationship of the area to the rest of the South Pennine block and suggests several localities where this can be examined en route to Ecton. C. A Tour of Salt’s Level, Ecton Hill. Salt’s Level is the remaining readily accessible part of the mine complex which is used by students. It contains a great deal of interest, both in scientific terms and in its history. Virtually all groups will experience a mine visit during the day and teachers will need to download this map of Salt’s Level for students to plot data onto when they are underground. Ecton tutors have a full version in their compendium. Summaries of the material covered in individual workshops are provided on this page. |
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EHFSA |