Creative writing assignments can better reach students with differing learning styles. The incorporation of creative writing exercises into introductory chemistry courses and their effects on student performance will be described.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Creative writing is an effective way to cement understanding of chemistry concepts; 2. Engaging in creative writing leads to better exam performance; and 3. Creative writing exercises increase critical-thinking skills.

SPEAKERS:
Donald Carpenetti (Craven Community College: New Bern, NC)

Geo-SPARCC’s online physical and historical geology courses initiate the Geosciences pathway for rural and underrepresented students. Courses require only Mississippi experiences as prerequisite content.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Online geosciences courses can reach rural students attending local community colleges; 2. Online geosciences courses effectively incorporate local landscapes and student-directed research; and 3. Students report satisfaction with place-based geoscience courses.

SPEAKERS:
Renee Clary (Mississippi State University: Mississippi State, MS), Athena Nagel (Mississippi State University: Mississippi State, MS), Eric Shows (Jones College: Ellisville, MS)

Discover several strategies for developing well-written multiple-choice questions that can assess higher levels of Bloom’s taxonomy.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Multiple-choice exams can assess higher-order cognitive skills and increase student learning gains; 2. Developing these types of multiple-choice questions is easier than you might think; and 3. Our higher-order multiple-choice questions are practically "Google proof,” making them ideal for online exams.

SPEAKERS:
Tarren Shaw (The University of Oklahoma: Norman, OK), Donald French (Oklahoma State University: Stillwater, OK)

This presentation discusses the versatility and usability of Google Earth to bring active learning and field-based discoveries to the online geology classroom.

TAKEAWAYS:
1. Google Earth can be used for self-directed investigations in several types of geoscience classes, both online and face to face; 2. Google Earth can provide a robust opportunity for learning as it is an easy-to-use, free software; and 3. Many students prefer using Google Earth when given a choice of other software or mechanism to collect data.

SPEAKERS:
Athena Nagel (Mississippi State University: Mississippi State, MS), Renee Clary (Mississippi State University: Mississippi State, MS)