Cilia, D. P., 2010. A student’s guide to the geology of the Maltese Islands. Unpublished B. Ed. (Hons) dissertation, University of Malta; 228 pp.
Abstract: The lack of geological education and related literature in the Maltese Islands has meant that a large number of resources, in the field and in theory, are not being exploited to the full by Maltese students. A guide to the geology of the Maltese Islands was presented to a number of students (five) and final-year science student teachers (nine) in an attempt to gauge its motivational value and effectiveness. This guide was built on a constructivist pedagogy to allow the student to develop and proceed at one’s own pace. Evaluation by the students and the student teachers was positive and most criteria for a constructivist method could be assessed. Most respondents said that motivation indeed existed, but there were few accessible resources to back up this interest. Geological education, if introduced, could be incorporated into the current plans for a Co-ordinated Science syllabus. In addition to cognitive skills geology has been seen to enhance the affective attitudes towards the environment as well as increase scientific literacy through psychomotor skills.
