Course: Applied Methodology
UW’s is back to its usual self these days after Christmas break and our students have returned to the classrooms.
The first course of the spring semester is in Applied Methodology. The course provides students with knowledge, skills and competence in applied methods. The course explores key methods used in coastal studies and covers topics such as sampling design, data collection, processing and interpretation. Strengths and limitations of relevant methods are discussed. The course includes a series of guest lectures presenting the range of methods used in the field. In addition, connections among methodologies and theoretical issues are addressed.
In practical sessions, students discuss research articles in relation to coastal studies and their methods. Throughout the course, students apply different methods and acquire the tools for conducting a scientifically sound survey.
This time around, three instructors are teaching the course.
Dr. Brack Hale is the Academic Director of the Coastal and Marine Managment program at UW. Brack holds a Ph.D. in Land Resources from University of Wisconsin-Madison and a M.E.M. degree in Water Resources from Duke University. Before joining us at UW, he was a full professor of Biology and Environmental Science, and division chair of the Division of Environment, Math, Psychology, and Health at Franklin University Switzerland. He also served as interim Dean of Academic Affairs for one semester before coming to UW. Dr. Hale has extensive experience in academic administration, curriculum development, teaching and quality assessment, as well as leadership and management. He has been engaged in various collaborations with UW since 2014, bringing student groups and spending a semester on sabbatical at here in 2017.
Morgan Greene is the Academic Director of the masters' program in Coastal Communities and Regional Development. He holds an MSc in Energy Science from Reykjavík University and is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Business and Economics at Reykjavík University. Morgan Greene's research interests include public perception, the politics of the energy transition and participation in energy markets. Prior to his job as Academic Director, Morgan Greene worked as a program and development manager for the Iceland School of Energy at Reykjavík University
Dr. Matthias Kokorsch is a Research Specialist and Project Leader at UW, working on the projects LostToClimate and ARHAIC. He studied geography and social sciences, as well as pedagogy, at the University of Duisburg-Essen, graduating in 2013. In 2018, he completed his doctoral degree in geography from the University of Iceland.
It's good to get some life back in the building after the Christmas break and we look forward to the upcoming semester with the master's students and all the field schools that will visit UW in the coming weeks and months.