STEPHANIE TANIZAR
Staff Writer
Anticipation tightened in the air as the freshmen made their way down to the docking bay. They were more than ready for their field trip to Malibu Lagoon.
This field trip is the freshman seminar’s third this semester. The trip to Malibu Lagoon allows students to examine marine algae. An earlier field trip went to the site of a fire last spring to study fire ecology.
The trips are not predetermined before the students arrive, but instead springboard off topics the students choose to present on..
“It’s interesting to see what they come up with,” said their teacher, Professor Stephen Davis.
It’s all part of Dr. Davis’ popular freshman seminar class.
A distinguished professor of biology at Pepperdine, Davis received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Abilene Christian University. He earned his doctorate from Texas A&M University, where he was a botany instructor. He joined the faculty of Pepperdine in 1974.
Davis has authored a number of writings for publications such as the American Journal of Botany and the International Journal of Plant Science and Ecology. His research centers on plant physiology. In 2002, Davis received a $300,000 grant to study chaparral— the largest National Science Foundation grant ever awarded to Pepperdine— and was named professor of the year.
Currently, Davis teaches courses in plant physiological ecology, plant biology, plant ecology, tropical forest ecology and a freshman seminar about plants and the environment.
Davis’ freshman seminar’s purpose is twofold. First, it attempts to introduce freshmen to college life. Pepperdine’s history is introduced to the students along with events and services open to them around campus. Second, an examination of plant ecology, which forms the core content of the course. Plants are scrutinized in the context of their environment— in this case, the Santa Monica Mountains and coastal regions of Southern California.
Students are required to attend lectures and read literature for the course, in addition to the presentation they must make based on the information gathered from their field trips.
Davis admits allowing students to set the presentations can be unpredictable, but the students seem to enjoy themselves. They joke and chat as they walk along the marked path of the Lagoon.
The weather was sunny without the hint of a cloud, though wind blew in from the sea. Davis stopped the group after a short trek, asking for a knife. As rule-abiding Pepperdine students, no one had a pocket-knife.
“I lose all mine at the airport,” joked Davis.
A blade was produced eventually, and cross sections of bulrush stem were distributed to the class. Students were told to observe the inside of the stem and note its spongy center, an adaptation to survive the coastal marshes.
The adaptations of other plants were briefly sketched: sedge, saltbush, salt grass, and pickleweed. Students took notes as Davis pointed out the different species of vegetation as well as their growth patterns. Putting the plants into context meant expounding on the fauna and the impact of the ecosystem in the wider scheme, an exercise that had all the students paying attention.
Sunlight glimmered off the surface of the algae-rich water of the marsh, the very reason for the field trip. A net was tossed over the railing to collect samples of plankton and algae. As Davis explained the significance of the coastal marsh within the ecological sphere, a coot dived under the water, ignoring the watching students on the bridge.
As the group approached the beach, small children were dragging spindly branches twice their size to the ocean. Here the students dispersed to collect more algae samples.
“It looks like sand in a bottle,” remarked one of them in surprise, ostensibly expecting something more.
“That’s enough for a thousand students,” said Davis. He then sent his seminar to look out for seaweed on the rock shore.
On the rocks a mass of thick green-brown seaweed glistened under the sun, easily mistakable for mermaid’s hair from afar. Trying to drag it from the rocks proved impossible: the seaweed had anchored itself. After some futile effort, the students scattered in search of more portable samples of seaweed.
“My brother said some great things about the professor,” said Reese Cargioli. “He was highly recommended.”
Biology major Caitlin Ishiboshi chose the seminar because it looked fun. “It’s a really interesting class,” she said. “I definitely don’t regret picking it.”
Fun appears to be the operative word of the seminar. With plenty of hands-on activity in addition to knowledge for its own sake, students had few complaints about the field trip even though it was slightly longer than expected. Davis appears to share a good rapport with his students, who peppered him with questions on the way back to campus.
“You take what nature gives you,” said Davis.
Nature appears to have brought the seminar together as a seamless group, one able to indulge in the lighter aspects of teamwork as well as the academically grounded.
12-06-2007
