The lmportance of Geotraverse Trips in Application of Geoscientific Disciplines

Abstract

Geotraverse trips have been considered as important and compulsory practical training in geology of the Sudan at El Neelain University. This tradition has been inherited from Department of Geology, University of Khartoum since nineteen sixties and introduced to El Neelain University by Badr El Din Khalil Ahmedwhen he joined El Neelain University (1997). lt is considered part of the curricular for all geoscientific disciplinesof the fourth Academic Class (semester 8). The geotraverses are generally planned to dissect most of, if not aU of the geological prominent features of the Sudan within a period of four weeks The terrains of this activity include Southem Kordofan (Nuba Mountains), Blue Nile (Umm Sagata and Qala El Nahal and lngassana terrains), Red Sea lliUs and Red Sea Coast strip, and the Nile and Northemstates terrains. Such geotravere trips need harmonic collect of stali members including academic supervisor and administrating supervisor and instructors of different specialties in geoscience. During the trip apart from the practical training geology, students are trained in techniques to conduct geological research worlr. Moreover, they are also subjected to introduction of fundamentals of camping; conduct and behavior, concept of safety and protection of environment. Students are accommodated irrespective of their ethnics, specialty and beliefspurposely to create harmony in their future professional lite. This is considered to be the most important positive output of the trip. At the end of the traverse student are evaluated according to their conduct in field, their field notebooks and their responses in oral examination. A part of all the positive impacts revealed above students will be introduce to dillerent cultures, ditlerent etlmics group of people, dillerent climate and history and different socioeconomic features of their country.