The Future of GIS in the Classroom
This chapter reflects an overview of the findings of this research as it has moved beyond the pilot study and developed into a multi-year project. The past two years of SEP activities have only confirmed what many knew intuitively -- GIS has definite potential for pre-collegiate education. The question really is not if GIS has a role in the schools, but when and how it will be best manifested in that educational environment. Is GIS still too complex conceptually and materially for serious use in the schools? As with many important questions, this query could be answered variously depending on the perspective of the respondent.
The results of this research indicate that the questions of when and how are still to be resolved, but an initial GIS presence in the schools is appropriate now. The question of when will be better answered in the context of efforts to resolve key issues related to the use of GIS in the classroom. As these issues related to technology (hardware and software) and the education and scientific communities (data, curriculum materials, teaching and learning strategies, understanding and adoption, and support structures) are resolved, the impact of GIS on the schools will increase significantly.
To put the "how" question into perspective, it is helpful to identify the potential roles GIS might play. Some of the main functions which GIS will perform in secondary (and eventually in primary) level instruction are examined below. Structural and technological barriers to the use of GIS in these roles are explored. Finally three strategic initiatives are suggested and additional research questions are summarized.
Roles of GIS in the classroom
Technology Showcase
Students are being asked to adapt to an increasingly
technological world. There is a continuous stream
of new innovations in the use of computers and other
technologies which are intended to improve the way
we work, play, and resolve the world's problems. Often
these innovations are more barrier than bridge. To
clear the path for the intended use of these "improvements",
there is often a need for structured exposure to them
and instruction in their use. In many cases, the schools
are the most logical environment to begin to develop
an appreciation and understanding of the use of these
modern technologies.
GIS in either its more basic or more advanced forms, coupled with associated resources such as satellite images, aerial photographs, maps, and all types of spatially referenced data, can give students a vision for the complexities of the world in which we live. The effect of access to images and data on decision making is profound. For example, it could be argued that those first views of the Earth from space, the result of the 1960s space race, were key contributors to the nascent environmental movement of that decade.
GIS in this role is the exemplar of the use of modern technology to help solve the world's problems. The manifestations of GIS in this role might include discussion of its use as a special topic in a class. This could be coupled with either a field trip to a university or a public agency to observe its uses in those environments or with a guest speaker from the GIS using community. It could appear in a special unit on the use of computers in scientific research or environmental management. The teacher might utilize simple manual exercises emphasizing the use of spatial information and analysis techniques as an introductory example of the use of advanced GIS software. Less complex GIS and related geographic simulation and modelling software could also be used to emulate the analytical power of GIS.
Instructional Invigoration
The focus of the Technology Showcase role is to highlight
the uses of GIS technology in the outside world, but
GIS software and concepts as well as less powerful
software with some GIS functionality have a more direct
role in the school curriculum. GIS can serve as a
unique educational tool in which the analysis and manipulation
of spatial data can support various teaching methods.
At the K-12 level, the mode of GIS use is still being determined, but it is apparent that many of the trends in education call for new strategies that may find GIS a natural ally . GIS represents great promise as a means of invigorating instruction in geography, environmental education, science, and technology. For example, the visual presentation of data in a spatial structure may hold the interest of students better than traditional presentations of scientific data. The ability to rapidly manipulate and analyze data will enhance problem solving skills. In some cases, group projects will benefit from the familiarity of using data on local problems whether hypothetical or real. Already students and teachers in concert with natural resource management agencies are using GIS to monitor their local environments. Many of these GIS-based problem-solving activities will be necessarily interdisciplinary.
The aspect of spatial learning inherent in GIS activities may turn out to be the most significant. Although spatial skills are fundamental in our early childhood ordering of the world, emphasis on their development is quickly supplanted by language acquisition and the quantification of our world through counting and math. A renewed emphasis on developing spatial skills, in concert with literacy and numeracy, as students move through the schools would most likely draw on GIS as an important aid to this form of learning (Goodchild and Palladino, 1993). Despite this speculation, the actual cognitive implications of the spatial perspective provided by a GIS view of the world are just beginning to be studied. (Audet, 1993)
Content Delivery
Not only can GIS activities provide a creative mode
for learning, but they can also be the conduit of information.
Like a textbook, a GIS derives its usefulness from
the data contains (or can easily access); however,
a GIS has the advantage of being able to utilize media
that can store enormous quantities of information.
In fact, a GIS can often be connected to electronic
networks which can provide access to even greater quantities
of data. A unique feature about a GIS is the ability
to append the database with additional information
off maps and from tabular spatial data records. Finally,
a GIS can also create new data through the integration
and manipulation of existing data.
Geography might be the most obvious discipline to benefit from a GIS both as a source and analyzer of information, but many other disciplines would also benefit from the many types of information capable of being stored in a GIS. For earth science and environmental studies, physical characteristics of the land can be displayed in both 2-D and 3-D by many GIS packages. History courses could benefit from analysis of changes in resources and ethnic makeup of countries as political boundaries change. Since data sets for many subjects either explicitly or implicitly have a spatial component (e.g., forecasts for our economy are often tied to a spatial area such as "midwest home building"), a GIS may be able to be used in just about any course.
Introductory Practice
Another function that GIS and related activities may
serve in the classroom is as an introduction and early
preparation for uses of spatial technologies in later
life. Most occupations are beginning to employ computers
as the primary tool of their endeavor and many are
utilizing GIS. Graduates with competence with computers
and a familiarity with GIS will be better prepared
for many positions. Although many of these careers
will require a post-secondary degree, there will likely
be some demand for high school graduates that have
skills related to GIS.
For students who matriculate, exposure to GIS in the schools will prepare them for use of that type of software in learning and research modes in various courses at their university or college. GIS experience may encourage some students to enter disciplines that focus on spatial analysis and the use of GIS software (e.g., geography, geology, oceanography, anthropology, sociology, botany, ecology, environmental studies) or those that focus on the development of the technology (e.g., computer science, engineering, mathematics).
Students that do not opt to enter the four-year universities and colleges, may continue on in a GIS-based program at a two-year community college or technical school. One of the key mandates for these institutions in the future will be to train and retrain workers for the modern high-technology, information-based economy. In this environment, the training of GIS technicians will likely be emphasized in addition to instruction in basic geographic information science concepts for both the technicians and those students transferring to universities.
Key Issues
Hardware
When considering the use of current GIS software in
the schools, there is often a mismatch between computing
power and software requirements. Many schools, especially
K-6, still rely on the Apple II family of computers
(Becker, 1991) There are no contemporary GIS software
packages developed for these machines; however, some
simple concepts related to GIS have been demonstrated
on the Apple II. Kirman and Jackson (1993) discuss
the use of a simple Landsat image display program by
sixth grade students on the Apple II.
Old DOS based machines (ATs, XTs) are still used in some schools. As GIS software has developed, there have been some basic programs designed for these machines. They often are not available commercially, but were written by GIS researchers attempting to demonstrate various methods of processing spatial data. These lower power machines could potentially be used with these programs in the schools, especially in a mathematics or computer studies context; however, with the limited graphic display capabilities, command line interfaces, and slower operating speeds, they are not likely to be favored by teachers and students.
Many schools have begun to invest in more powerful computers. Common models include Macintosh Plus, Classic, and LC models and IBM personal computers (and clones) based on the Intel 80286 and 80386 chips (Becker, 1991) Although many schools have some of these computers, their availability is often very limited. At a minimum, however, most schools would probably be able to make at least one of these machines available to a teacher for short-term use. This may require some persistence on the part of the teacher. A few schools do have labs of these computers which the teachers can use. Some teachers in some schools will have one or even a few of these machines dedicated to their classroom, although this situation is more rare. There are GIS software packages that run on these machines. They include IDRISI, OSU-map, Map II, MacGIS, AtlasPro, MapInfo, and others. One that many teachers are receiving is ARCVIEW. Unfortunately since it is a power intensive application, its performance on even the more advanced machines commonly available in the schools is mediocre at best.
Most schools replace computers on a schedule that is very slow compared to most of the rest of the using market. Schools are often stuck with computing equipment bought a decade or even more earlier. The dramatic changes in personal computing have left these schools behind. Despite this constraining factor, there are schools and teachers committed to computers in their classroom that are acquiring the more powerful Macintosh (II series, Centris, Quadra) and IBM/clone machines (80486-based). Some are trying to find unique sources of funding to purchase a 486 machine in order to run the ARCVIEW software they have received. Beyond these maverick schools and teachers, it is reasonable to assume that many schools will continue to be limited to the less powerful Macintosh and 80286/386 models.
Suggested minimum hardware and operating system characteristics to run future GIS software for schools are: 1) window-based user interfaces such as MS WINDOWS and the Mac Operating System, 2) computers based on the Intel 80386 and Motorola 68030 chips, 3) four or more megabytes of RAM, 4) forty megabyte hard drives, 5) a 3.5" disk drive, and 6) color monitors (640 by 480). A larger hard drive may be preferred, since spatial data (especially images) can be space intensive. Since much data is being distributed on CD, a CD-ROM reader would also be useful. Although these requirements outstrip many of the present computers in the schools, in a couple of years when these new software packages are available any lesser standards would be anachronistic.
Optional hardware that would help teachers get the most out of GIS software include a scanner and/or digitizing tablet, an overhead display panel, and a laser printer. Students could use the scanner or digitizer to input new spatial data, perhaps of their local area. Although more basic GIS activities might not need this form of input, the ability to choose data (especially local data) will give students a greater sense of ownership when working on a GIS exercise or group project. An alternate form of data input is to perform on-screen digitizing using a transparency attached to the computer screen; however, this technique can severely degrade accuracy. A digitizer gives the GIS user the greatest control over vector data input, but a scanner can be used to input both raster and vector data (i.e., draw vectors on screen over features on scanned image).
Besides individual screen display of data, the teacher and students may want to use an overhead projection panel to display screen contents to the whole class (especially if hardware is limited). For a hard copy presentation of the data a standard laser printer can be used. For higher resolution or color output desired for a final presentation of a group project, a local graphic output service bureau may be used.
An optimum configuration for GIS and other geographic software used as an on-going educational tools would consist of a network of computers (one for every two to three students) connected to a server with a large hard drive to save all of the geographic files. Group work, on the other hand, may only require a few computers. Groups could each work on one computer or even rotate usage. For a teacher to begin to use GIS, however, one computer will serve as a starting point. In fact, some GIS analysis can be done without a computer albeit much slower and often with less accuracy.
Software
Presently there is a gulf between GIS packages and other
geographic software. GIS packages have for the most
part been designed for use in the workplace, not in
a pre-collegiate education environment. This severely
limits the number of GIS packages that might be easily
used in the schools. There are less complex software
packages that combine maps and data, but incorporate
very little of the functionality common in a GIS package
(e.g., input of spatial data via scanner or digitizer,
map editing, map overlay.) These include commercially
available items such as AutoMap, PC Globe, SimCity,
and the Software Toolworks World Atlas.
Other software has also been used in the schools to teach geography which may express some of the components of GIS (i.e., digital maps, data query) at a basic level without linking data to maps and allowing automated analysis. These packages range from place-name drill and practice programs, to geographic games (e.g., Where in the World is Carmen SanDiego), to graphic design programs for map making (Corel Draw, MapMaker, Aldus Freehand, Adobe Illustrator, and less complex drawing and painting programs). (see Fitzpatrick, 1990; Fitzpatrick, 1993a) Each of these packages may have something to contribute to a progression of computer-based geographic activities for the classroom that eventually leads up to the use of GIS software.
There are a few less expensive and less complicated GIS packages that may serve as the primary terminus for this progression. These include raster packages such as IDRISI, OSUMap, MacGIS, and Map II and vector packages, ARCVIEW, Atlas Pro, and MapInfo. Most have these have been used in the schools, but to such a limited extent that their appropriateness is yet to be determined.
The gulf between GIS and general geography software is just beginning to be breached. The USGS has developed a multimedia GeoMedia CD-ROM (see GIS World, 1993). Although GeoMedia does not include any true GIS functionality, its hypermedia/multimedia environment provides an example for future multimedia materials that do include GIS as one of the elements. Virginia Tech geography and computer science personnel are developing GeoSim. This geographic simulation software designed for the college classroom incorporates some GIS functionality. GeoSim may be useful in the secondary school environment.
GeoSim, however, is not a general purpose GIS designed for pre-collegiate use. Such a software package has been developed in the United Kingdom by the Advisory Unit, Computers in Education. This AEGIS package was designed to meet the requirements in the UK national curriculum for GIS activities. The package allows for input of map features and spreadsheet data, can perform simple GIS analysis functions, and is bundled with a few data sets complete with example lesson plans and a guide to Geographic Information Systems. AEGIS, with some modification, might serve as a general educational GIS (EDGIS) software package for the US schools. If not appropriate in that role, it at least provides a model for an EDGIS package for the US that would highlight spatial data and analysis techniques in the schools.
As the creation of new software with GIS functionality for the schools is considered, there are some important questions to resolve. They include:
1) What view of the world should the software present to students? Raster or Vector? Or a combination?
2) Should the software be a simplified version of a current GIS package, a new GIS package designed from the ground up for the schools, or should the GIS elements be only a part of a multimedia/hypermedia view of the world?
3) What GIS functionality is most important to student learning?
The last consideration could vary significantly depending on the intended purpose of the software package. An attempt to emulate the use of GIS in the scientific and business communities may require a larger set of capabilities. Software designed to teach spatial analysis principles may not require the breadth of functions but may need to have certain components developed in greater detail. General purpose educational GIS software may need to express the range of operations common in commercial GIS packages and have some data import/export components.
A list of suggested elements of an EDGIS package follows with each element listed adding complexity:
The following are advanced analysis and data manipulation functions for software that either closely models advanced GIS software or software designed for a specific curricular use which requires some subset of the following functions:
A more detailed examination of the requirements for and specific uses of EDGIS packages is left for future study.
Data
In the eyes of teachers and students a GIS or EDGIS will only be good as the
data that is available. Depending on the course and specific lesson, teachers
might desire a wide range of data. For social studies courses, the demand
might be for socioeconomic and political entity information. An earth science
or environmental studies lesson, on the other hand, may require the physical
characteristics of an area. Teachers may be interested in data at different
scales: global and multi-nation regional, national, sub-nation regional, local.
They may desire to have a broad range of data for their own area or may want
data reflecting a case study of a specific problem either in a particular
area (e.g., deforestation in South America) or independent of locational criteria
(urban transportation and development patterns).
To encourage wide use of GIS in the classroom, data embedded in a tested, well-defined set of curriculum materials may be required. Some teachers, however, will have the motivation to build materials around data not already worked into teaching materials. Thus data availability will benefit both curriculum developers and individual teachers. When GIS activities have caught on, there will be a continuing demand for all types of spatial data especially local data sets. For GIS activities to gain popularity, however, teachers will have to be convinced that the activities can provide the content support the teachers need. This will in a large part depend on the data availability within a GIS. Herein lies a key impediment to the use of GIS in the schools. Adequate hardware and software already are accessible for some schools, but data lags behind. The issue of available and appropriate data may continue to be the bottleneck in the process of introducing GIS to the schools.
The data bottleneck refers to existing data sources. Most GIS packages come with a set of example data, but often of limited instructional value (e.g., business oriented data for address matching.) Users of the software often have created additional data sets in the format of the particular GIS, but these often are not formatted for or made available to the schools. Software independent sources of data also exist, often on CD-ROM, but can only be used with a GIS if it has the appropriate import function.
In addition to relying on these pre-existing data sets, teachers and students have the option of creating their own data sets. Students can use digitizers or scanners to input map features into their GIS data base. If students can access the study area, they can gather field observations and input them into a data base as attribute information. In the near future, students may also gather locational information using Global Positioning System receivers enabling them to make highly accurate maps.
In addition to self-collected local data sets, in the future there will likely be a wealth of spatial data which would allow teachers and students to select specific data sets of interest for locations out of their reach. These data sets may be available from the software vendors, from various organizations, or from other teachers and students around the world (e.g., the NGS Kidsnet in which classes around the world do collaborative projects in which data is shared.) Allowing students and teachers wide access to various types of data may help lessen the effect of power concentrated in the hands of the few who traditionally controlled information dissemination.
A unique characteristic of spatial data in a GIS is that it is georeferenced. Each map feature in the data base (whether shown as a point, line, or area) has either absolute locational coordinates (e.g., Latitude/Longitude) or at a minimum has relative locational coordinates that can be converted to absolute coordinates if there are adequate source materials (e.g., a local map may be digitized creating a group of map features with x,y coordinates which can be converted to Lat/Long with help of a USGS topographic map.) Attribute data is linked to these georeferenced features and is thereby also georeferenced.
Since student data collection and data base creation is extremely time intensive, many teachers will want to utilize pre-existing data sets. Unfortunately many vendor provided data sets are not well suited for the curricular needs of the schools. This situation is being remedied, however, as data sets proliferate mainly through the mechanism of the Internet. Some examples of current georeferenced data sets are highlighted below.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) has a series of digital data products available. They include digital elevation models (DEM), digital line graphs (DLG), and the newest, the digital orthophotoquads (DOQ). All of these are based on the hard copy topographic quadrangle maps (quad) which the agency has been producing over the years. DEMs show the elevation data from a quad in a raster format. DLGs show the roads, cities, and other non-elevation data on the quad in vector format. The DOQs are orthographically corrected digital versions of aerial photos of a quad area. All of these products may be of some use to teachers using GIS in the schools, but most will probably only use them if they are already found in the software package and can be viewed with minimal effort. Already some of these resources are available on the Internet. In time, teachers and students may use this network to regularly download the USGS quadrangles for their local area.
The US Census Bureau collects a massive amount of socioeconomic data in its decennial census. This information is tied to TIGER files which contain the complete road network and census enumeration area boundaries for the US. Thus, all of this information is georeferenced. Unfortunately use of the TIGER files directly from the Census with GIS packages can be quite difficult; however, second party companies have been taming the TIGER files making them easier to use with the census data in a GIS. The products produced by these companies tend to be expensive, which may put them out of the reach of most schools. Some GIS software either comes with subsets of the census data or has them available at an extra cost. One example is the bundle of CD data sets included with the ARCVIEW software that is being distributed to many teachers. The CDs include US census data and world data. ARCVIEW allows teachers and students to display this data on maps of the US down to the county level. Although display of this data with ARCVIEW is very useful, the benefit is lessened a bit by the rather obscure names for each of the data types (e.g., 40-60_BLK_M_EMPL refers to percentage of black males between the ages of 40 and 60 that are employed.)
Remotely sensed digital images from satellites and planes are commonly used
in raster GIS packages. These include the images from the Landsat series of
satellites. Here too, students and teachers might enjoy viewing and using
these data sources, but for most teachers they will have to be part of a developed
exercise. There is a nationally funded effort to make remotely sensed images
available to teachers. This Joint Education Initiative (JEI) has bundled earth
and planetary imagery with viewing software on a CD for use by teachers. It
also is making imagery available across the Internet for those teachers that
have access. It holds workshops for teachers to train them in the use of image
processing software and for them to develop lesson plans focussing on the
imagery. Up to now, however, the focus of JEI has not been on the use of imagery
as one of the layers in a GIS analysis. It is likely that teachers will want
to use images in their GIS activities, but there are still issues of accessibility
to resolve.
Various government agencies and NGOs have compiled data which are often available
on CDs. Examples include USGS geophysical data, NOAA oceanographic data, EPA
toxic release inventory data, and the DMA Digital Chart of the World. In addition
to data with explicit geographic coordinates, there are many digital data
sets of tabular data referenced to political entities (e.g., AIDS cases in
various US cities.) This tabular data can be linked to the geographical representation
of the political entities in a GIS. Most of these data sources were not created
with the schools in mind, and thus may be too complex or esoteric; however,
in some cases the data can be worked into a format useful to the schools.
In addition to data sets designed for general distribution, there are thousands of local businesses, government offices, and research labs that have created GIS data sets for their own use or study. Depending on the format, some of these may be utilized with GIS software in the classroom. This might give teachers access to local data. The main GIS software presently found in the schools is ESRI's ARCVIEW. This package provides access to data created in the much more complex and expensive GIS package ARC/INFO. The widespread use of ARC/INFO, one of the most popular GIS packages, provides an opportunity for teachers to acquire additional ARCVIEW compatible data sets from an organization in their local area.
The Internet is increasingly used as a source of data by many GIS professionals and researchers. Teachers are beginning to gain access to the Internet. As schools come on line, this may also serve as a key source of spatial data for use in GIS activities in the schools. If Vice President Gore's vision of Information Super Highways is realized, students and teachers will have access to a wide array of data via computer networks.
Although all these sources represent a wealth of data, their formats, accessibility, or cost often limit their usefulness to the schools. There is still a need for data sets developed specifically for use in the schools. This might be accomplished by including more pre-packaged data sets with GIS packages. These data sets could be either general purpose or apply to a specific activity. For example, the AEGIS package comes with four data sets. Each has a corresponding lesson plan; the local field work data does not have much use beyond the accompanying exercise, but the world development data set can be used for many more studies than are outlined in the lesson plan. In some cases, it might be worthwhile to develop general data sets, but ensure they would work with a variety of GIS packages (e.g., a global environmental data base). This would allow the data to be used more widely.
In summary, data for GIS activities in the schools is fundamental to their success. Four types of data availability should be encouraged: data sets created specifically for GIS software used in the schools, pre-packaged subsets of data compiled for the greater GIS community, repositories of a wide range of data accessible to teachers for building custom data sets, and support for student input of their own data.
Curriculum Materials
As indicated above, in many cases data will be found in the context of a prepared
curriculum module. Many teachers will not begin to consider using GIS software
if there are not clearly defined materials available. In most cases the teachers
will be more likely to use GIS if it can help teach some component of the
established curriculum. In this case, the teacher will be looking for materials
that emphasize the Content Delivery and Instructional Invigoration roles of
GIS in the classroom. Some teachers might use GIS curriculum materials that
are based around interesting topics (e.g., managing disaster recovery for
events such as the midwest floods, southeastern hurricanes, and western fires
and earthquakes) that don't fit neatly into the existing curriculum. These
are examples of teaching with a GIS. Some teachers may also want to teach
about GIS to enhance the Introductory Practice and Technology Showcase roles
of GIS.
There are presently very few curriculum materials designed for GIS activities in the schools. As materials are developed, choices will have to be made whether to stress the development of GIS curriculum materials or curriculum materials utilizing GIS. The latter form of materials would probably gain favor with a larger group of teachers, since they would not stress the technical elements of GIS.
The NCGIA Core Curriculum was designed to serve the former function, to educate students (primarily undergraduates and graduate students) about GIS (Kemp and Goodchild, 1991). Although it is too detailed for use in most schools, a subset of the Core Curriculum has been extracted for use in explaining GIS to school teachers (Palladino, 1993a). This GIS short course found in the NCGIA "GIS in the Schools" Workshop Resource Packet may also be modified further and used by a teacher to help students doing GIS projects understand the basic concepts. The NCGIA has also created some additional university level GIS curriculum materials which may serve as models for materials in the pre-collegiate environment (see Dodson, et al., 1991; Dodson, 1991a; Dodson, 1991b; Veregin, 1991; Ruggles, 1992) Other materials created by the NCGIA SEP in addition to the Workshop Resource Packet include an introductory digital data viewer (Palladino, 1993b) and a small pamphlet for secondary school students developed by the Maine site which describes geographic information based careers.
The other GIS curriculum materials that exist are either designed for university-level education or have been created to complement specific GIS software (see Dodson, et al, 1991; ESRI, 1991; CCGISE/IGISE, 1990). Some of these might have some limited use in the schools. They would mainly serve as resources to increase teacher knowledge of GIS. The AEGIS package includes a short overview of GIS as part of the materials provided to the schools with the software package. This would be useful to a teacher trying to explain how a GIS functions, but is limited in scope. ESRI has an individual assigned to K-12 uses of the software who has developed a hypertext introduction to GIS and the ARCVIEW software package. Again the information covered is quite limited.
In time, comprehensive materials that cover GIS at a level appropriate to the schools may be developed. Developing instructional materials that can use the power of GIS in the context of existing school curricula is of higher priority. Some software packages do come with examples or lesson plans which could be used by teachers to teach geography, history, earth science, etc. As noted in the last section, the AEGIS packages comes with four example lesson plans and the required data. The GAD package has also been used in the schools and has a couple of learning modules developed for it. A few teachers have adapted university level IDRISI exercises for their own use. Curriculum materials are being developed for the ARCVIEW software by a few groups. Teachers and geographers are working with support from the NCGE and ESRI to create lesson plans, Drs. Merrill Ridd and Cliff Craig in Utah are working under NSF funding to create GIS curriculum modules focusing on the global environment, and the NCGIA SEP is creating modules similar to those of Ridd and Craig but with a human geography focus.
Although these efforts represent a starting point in giving teachers the support required in order to incorporate GIS activities into their teaching, there is much to be done. More discussion needs to take place on the specific course curriculum objectives that can be enhanced with GIS activities. The existing and currently being developed materials are still only a very small number. They are also mainly being developed for traditional GIS software rather than for future EDGIS packages. As EDGIS packages are produced, curriculum materials can be concurrently or subsequently developed for them.
Instructional Environment
It would be a vain effort to purchase hardware and software and acquire curriculum
materials for GIS use classroom, if no thought were applied to the challenges
presented by a classroom full of students. Effective teaching strategies need
to be identified based on the operational requirements of the classroom and
on the learning strategies of students using GIS.
Teaching strategies need to be investigated in respect to the various roles GIS may play in the classroom. If it is intended to serve as an on-going aid to daily instruction, how will that be carried out? How will students be grouped to work with the computers? When should students use the computer versus hardcopy materials? For GIS activities, should the didactic form of instruction be eliminated? How should GIS project work proceed? These and many other questions will be answered as teachers experiment with GIS in the classroom. As is the case with all forms of instruction, methods and results will vary greatly from class to class, age to age, teacher to teacher, and school to school. Mechanisms for teachers to communicate their findings on the use of GIS in their instruction should be utilized (e.g., Journal of Geography and NCGIA Secondary Education Progress Reports).
Other areas to be examined include: the progression of concepts and software that should be employed in the classroom to lead up to the use of GIS; the courses that could most benefit from a GIS view of the world and the specific units in those courses that could be linked to GIS activities; and the use of GIS to foster interdisciplinary, team teaching, and interscholastic activities. The use of a progression of software tools fits the vision of the multimedia classroom of the future. As is the case for the effectiveness and appropriateness of computers in instruction, the advantages of the multimedia classroom are still being determined.
Dr. Richard Audet (1993) questions the propriety of moving GIS into the classroom before the cognitive benefits have been clearly identified. As continues to be true for computers in the classroom, however, forward momentum and the undeniable reality that students need to be exposed to the tools of the modern world have resulted in the increasing use of computers in the classroom. These same forces are likely to continue to propel GIS activities into the classroom. This is occurring long before educational researchers have sorted out how best to design activities to match the cognitive strategies employed by students when using a GIS. This research is important and will actually benefit from the existing use of GIS in the classrooms. These classrooms can serve as "laboratories" for their studies.
The first versions of EDGIS software and the initial curriculum materials should be developed in light of the most current knowledge of learning strategies relating to computers and geography. The use of these prototypes can be studied and the findings can be incorporated into the next generation of software and instructional materials.
Understanding and Adoption
Ultimately it is the individual teacher that will be the determining factor
in bringing the benefits of GIS instruction to the classroom. "The real
agents of change are the teachers-not the textbooks, not the curriculum packets,
not the multi-media, high-tech classroom units. It is the teachers who make
the world come alive-or die-once the classroom door is closed." (Salter
and Riggs-Salter, 1993, p155) For teachers to enthusiastically use GIS in
the classroom, they will first need to become aware of its existence and then
of its relevance. The resulting exposure will need to be supported with activities
which will give teachers confidence in the use of GIS in their teaching. Some
teachers will not be interested in changing the status quo. Steven Jobs, one
of the creators of the Apple computer, noted with respect to those who are
afraid to use computers, "the fearful generation will eventually pass
away and a technologically literate generation will replace them (Jobs, 1994)."
Encouraging teachers to use GIS in the classroom will aid in the creation
of this technologically (and geographically) literate generation.
The impetus to utilize GIS as a teaching tool can originate from many sources. Word of mouth and examples of other teachers using GIS will add some teachers to the ranks, especially if they can gain access to ready-to-use curriculum materials. The development of teacher support materials will also encourage teacher use of GIS. These materials may include teachers guides and other resources such as the NCGIA Workshop Resource Packet (see Palladino, 1993a). As the presence of GIS in the National Geography Standards trickles down to the curriculum planning of state education departments and local school districts, more teachers will be expected to use GIS (Geography Education Standards Project, 1993). Nothing, however, can replace direct experience for encouraging adoption and more importantly fostering understanding.
Direct experience can be made available to teachers through in-services, weekend seminars, and summer workshops (like those offered in the past by the NCGIA). New teachers can receive instruction on the use of GIS as part of their pre-service teacher education. Some of these newer teachers will have had the opportunity to use GIS in their collegiate education. Eventually, the circle will be made complete as students who were first exposed to GIS in their K-12 education go on to become teachers who use GIS and similar tools in their teaching.
In the end, adoption and understanding will be based on many factors including access to hardware, software, data, curriculum materials, training, and support from the on-site and off-site communities of educators, scientists, administrators, and business people.
Support Structures
No matter how excited a teacher is or what resources he can put together,
efforts to incorporate innovative teaching strategies in his classroom will
only be possible if the school administration is behind him. Not only will
teachers need to be exposed to GIS, but so too will those who wield power
over instruction in the schools. This may include principals, superintendents,
administrators in charge of curriculum or computing resources, school board
members, department chairpersons, and campus computer support personnel. Giving
the teacher, wishing to adopt GIS activities, information and resources to
convince others in his school of the value of these activities will be important
especially if the teacher intends to use GIS as more than just a passing item
of interest.
Beyond administrators willing to accept the GIS activities, the teacher would benefit from active support. This might occur in funding for hardware and software purchases. The help of a campus computer support person would probably greatly improve the success ratio of computer-based GIS activities in the schools. The more knowledgeable this individual is in regards to the use of computers, the more challenging the GIS activities can be.
Another avenue of support for teachers can be from outside the school. There are many GIS users in various industries, government agencies, and universities. These GIS users can provide interesting examples for the teachers to relay to their students. The opportunity for field trips and guest speakers can result from these contacts. These individuals may be able to help teachers understand more about the software and its uses outside of education. They may provide access to their resources and data sets which could be a great aid to teachers attempting to use GIS for spatial analysis projects. They also may prove to be the bridge to the future when GIS materials and software for the schools are easier to find and use.
Support could also come from the national, state, and school district levels. This may be in the form of funding for workshops, curriculum development, and software design. It may occur as structural support (e.g., National Geography Standards, state curriculum mandates). Access to the Internet and other avenues of communication may also help teachers find ideas and data for their GIS activities. The GIS industry can take part in these support efforts too. Trade magazines and other informative materials can be offered to teachers at low or no cost. Software companies can support teachers attempting to use their software and perhaps even help create the EDGIS packages. An example of this type of industry support is ESRI's ARCVIEW Adopt-a-School Program (Fitzpatrick, 1993b).
Strategic Initiatives
Some of these key issues will be resolved as technology evolves and teachers become more comfortable with the use of computers in the schools. Hardware that can support GIS activities will likely become increasingly common in the schools over the rest of the decade, even if schools are a bit shy about computer capital acquisitions. An emphasis on hardware initiatives might be misguided since the products, computers and peripherals, are not transferable or easily replicated as are software and curriculum materials. The exception to this, might be a focus on uncommon peripheral devices that support GIS work such as digitizing tablets. In this case, lobbying the vendors of these devices for special educational discounts might be useful.
In the end, hardware will likely prove to be a less important consideration. For the inherent learning benefits of spatial information and analysis available with GIS to reach the classroom in the near future, efforts will need to occur on many other fronts. Three potential initiatives identified below focus on software, curriculum materials, and teacher exposure. Although these initiatives are defined separately below and may eventually be funded as individual activities, they are highly interrelated.
Software Development
Although there are GIS software packages that can provide an adequate introduction
to GIS at the K-12 level, they were not designed for use in the schools and
thus have significant limitations. Widespread use of GIS to enhance instruction
will require the reworking of present software so that it is more school-friendly
and more importantly, the creation of new GIS software (EDGIS) designed expressly
for the schools. A third type of software development that would help teachers
use computer-based spatial analysis in their teaching is the production of
transitional software-that which establishes a clear progression from the
simple electronic atlases and world fact hypertext stacks to the more advance
GIS software packages. It is possible that a well designed EDGIS package will
be able bridge much of this gap, but there is still room for the development
of innovative geography software.
As consortia of software companies, university educators and GIS researchers, and teachers develop these software packages, they will need to identify what GIS functionality to include, what hardware configuration to support, and how to provide access to data. They will also need to develop manuals that not only explain the operation of the software in clear language and diagrams, but that also include explanation of spatial analysis and GIS techniques. The manuals should also indicate how the software can be used in the classroom (i.e., a minimum of a couple of lesson plan outlines.) The AEGIS manuals provide a good example. Concurrently and following the software development, curriculum materials that make use of the software need to be produced. Teachers will also need support in learning how to use the software in their instruction.
Learning Materials Creation
Although some instructional materials have been included with a few existing
GIS packages, they represent only a starting point. Most teachers are unlikely
to adopt GIS activities unless there are well designed materials that mesh
with their curriculum. Materials need to be created not only for existing
packages like ARCVIEW, but also for the EDGIS packages that will be developed.
Materials will be of greatest use if they are bundled with data sets or can
be used with readily accessible data sources.
Two types of materials need to be created. One set are those that explain spatial analysis techniques, the functionality of GIS, and its uses in research and in the workplace. The other set will be designed specifically to use the power of GIS to achieve existing curricular objectives in a variety of classes. Both types of materials could be created by teams of teachers, GIS experts, curriculum development specialists, and other educators. Materials should be developed with the input of research findings on best teaching and learning strategies related to the use of GIS in the classroom.
Teacher Enhancement
In order to apply the software and learning materials to their instruction,
teachers will need a variety of support activities. These may include afternoon
and day long in-services, special seminars, and summer workshops. These opportunities
will give teachers access to GIS software, teaching materials, and teaching
strategies. The longer events will allow teachers to learn about GIS, use
the software, explore the impact of GIS on their teaching in greater depth,
and to observe its uses for planning, management, and research. Before a large
impact can be made on a broad spectrum of teachers, it would be helpful to
have a cadre of GIS-literate teachers. These GIS resource teachers would run
the in-services and help out with workshops and seminars.
The NCGIA GIS in the Schools workshops provide a model for this type of teacher enhancement activity. Similar workshops on a national level are needed to create a critical mass of teachers with significant GIS exposure. An intensive set of regional workshops for exceptional teachers could result in a group of GIS teacher-consultants similar to the geography teacher-consultants trained in the Geographic Alliance summer institutes. These key teachers would go back to their home states and local areas and give in-services and presentations, greatly increasing the number of teachers exposed to GIS. After the first round of intensive workshops are held and a significant number of GIS teacher-consultants exist, a second round of activities can be designed to meet the needs of other teachers, some of whom may be less technologically-literate and not as innovative.
Conclusion
As these general outlines of initiatives suggest, there is still much work to be done to propel GIS to its full potential in the schools. Both these initiatives and the general effort to bring the power of GIS to the schools will benefit from additional research. Some research topics that would extend the work of this thesis were suggested in the review of key issues and would be incorporated in the initiatives suggested above.
These topics are:
Research is also needed on:
In order to maintain relevance to society, future classrooms, at all levels, will make even greater use of computers and other multimedia technology. Whether or not multimedia and student-directed learning activities take the place of the traditional didactic form of education or not, an increased role for GIS software and concepts is likely. GIS will be the cornerstone of the geographic technologies that will be employed both to provide a link to a student's future education, employment, and daily living uses of geographic information and to promote a spatial analytical perspective in investigations of traditional curriculum content.