In 1970, students travelled to the Ottawa Valley to complete their fieldwork, travelling around Renfrew county to meet with local officials and observe different geographical features. (Photo courtesy of Professor Emeritus Hugh Gayler)To mark Brock’s 60th anniversary, The Brock News is running a monthly series looking back at the University’s history through photos.
For nearly 60 years, students in Brock’s Department of Geography and Tourism Studies have been heading into the field to immerse themselves in their work.
This time-honoured tradition continued last month, when students participated in a field course in Peterborough over Reading Week.
Back in Brock’s second year, 1965, Practical Geography was offered for the first time and featured a required fieldwork component. By the following year, the Department’s curriculum included a mandatory field course for its first-ever third-year students. This key learning experience has been an annual feature ever since, offering students of physical geography, human geography and tourism studies opportunities to engage in field-specific research.
The scope of field courses in the Department of Geography and Tourism Studies has expanded over the decades, with courses and even full semesters offered in Vancouver, B.C.; Chicago, Ill.; England; Thailand; Croatia; New Zealand and many more. Other Brock departments also prioritize fieldwork, bringing students as far afield as Trinidad and Tobago, Iceland and many other destinations.
Field courses are among the many experiential education opportunities offered in programs throughout the University. Learn more at brocku.ca/ccee
In 2023, Associate Professor David Goldblum (right) observed the cave system at the Warsaw Caves Conservation Area near Peterborough, Ont., with students Alyssa McInally (left) and Ashley Edgeworth (centre).
