The Barometer Online

Issue date: 5/27/08 Section: News

Dr. Steve Cook, a senior instructor of geosciences, has taught the popular GEO 300 class on Environmental Conservation and Sustainability at OSU for 11 years.

Many professors teach through lectures and multiple choice exams, but Steve Cook does things his own way.

Cook is a senior instructor of geosciences and teaches GEO 300, Environmental Conservation and Sustainability. This class teaches students to make a positive impact on the environment.

GEO 300 is a Baccalaureate Core course that attracts students from many different majors. Approximately 200 to 300 students take GEO 300 each term, but John Klock, a teaching assistant for the class, says Cook is able to connect the topic to many students and learning types.

"I think the key to his approach is that he has the energy," Klock said. "It's really hard to do that when you've got so many students and so many classes."

"It's a challenge for me to engage students, and I find it a continuing challenge," Cook said.

However, one of the several reasons Cook enjoys GEO 300 is because he can teach on a variety of topics relating to conservation and sustainability. He said this allows students from all disciplines to apply what they learn to their majors and lives.

"Occasionally we need classes that allow students to make connections," Cook said of the wide range of topics he covers.

"It's fun - I get to talk about the things I'm interested in."

Cook has been teaching GEO 300 at OSU for 11 years. He said he had "done a million things" for jobs before becoming a professor later in life.

"I decided when I was 40 years old I wanted a Ph.D. so I could teach at the college level," Cook said. "I like being around young people."

Klock said that Cook's interest in helping students learn is what makes him stand out.

"He's a student professor," Klock said. "He follows all types of active learning for students to get them involved in things."

Each term, students from all sections of GEO 300 participate in 35 to 40 service projects. Students dedicate four hours per term to their project, then in a group write a paper and prepare a class presentation about the experience.

"I feel really strongly that we all should be giving back," Cook said. "I've taken it down to the level of students."

Continued...

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