The best-selling text, built for today's students
Explore the demo chapter
In the exciting new Eighth Edition of Essentials of Geology, Stephen Marshak connects course content to issues that affect students, including energy resources, climate change, fracking, and natural disasters. Throughout the text and resources, students see the importance of geology in their daily lives and broader communities, while the interactive ebook has students doing geology through videos, GIFs, and virtual fieldwork.
Think like a geologist with virtual fieldwork
Guided Learning Explorations in Smartwork provide scaffolded, auto-graded activities that simulate virtual fieldwork, giving all students—including remote learners—the chance to think like geologists as they investigate real-world sites and phenomena.
Using AI in the geology classroom
Authored by Dr. Christine Clark, the new Guide to Navigating AI in the Geology Classroom offers quick and effective tips and activities to adjust your syllabus and is available at no cost to adopters.
Make geology personal for your students
Why It Matters and Doing Geoscience features show the relevance of geology and highlight real people working in geology. Students will see firsthand how geology can help them address climate change, natural hazards, and sustainability.
Stephen Marshak
Stephen Marshak has a passion for geology education. He is the author or co-author of six best-selling geoscience textbooks published by W. W. Norton. He is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Earth Science and Environmental Change and Director Emeritus of the School of Earth, Society, and Environment at the University of Illinois, where he received multiple campus-level teaching awards. He was also honored with the Miner Award from the National Association of Geoscience Teachers for his “exceptional contributions to stimulating interest in Earth Science.”
What instructors are saying
Instructors, get access to a preview of the ebook and online resources
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Meet your marketing manager: Stacy Loyal
Hi! I’m Stacy, and I’m passionate about collaborating with geology educators to find the right tools that meet their course needs and inspire students. There's nothing more rewarding than helping instructors bring their unique teaching visions to life with the right resources. I also enjoy partnering with our authors, working closely to transform their innovative ideas into engaging, impactful materials.
Whether it's through thoughtful consultation with educators or supporting authors in their creative process, I’m excited to be a part of helping students understand our Earth and their place in it.