Multimedia Guided Writing Modules for Introductory Human Geography

Abstract

This article describes a pilot project initiated in the fall term of 1993 that implemented and tested an interactive system of multimedia computer learning modules for an introductory human geography course. Modules actively involved students in learning and collaborative writing about topics illustrative of the breadth of contemporary human geography. Evaluation was achieved by means of analysis of student essays, electronic logs of student time spent in various portions of the system, and a comprehensive survey administered to students at the end of the term. This information suggests that the use of interactive multimedia lab modules can greatly enrich the learning environment for a wide range of students taking introductory human geography courses, though careful attention must be paid to ensure ease of use. The modules are now being refined based on these results; our hope is to make them available to other geography departments in the near future.     

Index to Volume 100

Abstract

The integration of GIS into the secondary curriculum can aid student learning of geography. Through a partnership between a local high school and our university, high school students received nine hours of classroom instruction and field-based training on GIS and GPS to complete a mapping project. Upon completion, a test based on seven geography core curriculum units was administered to these students and to a group of university students who did not receive GIS training. Results of the test revealed that high school students significantly outperformed the university students, suggesting that GIS does aid in the learning of geographic principles.     

Individualized Learning in An Open Geography Classroom

Abstract

In the last few years a great deal of educational literature has been devoted to the concept of individualized learning in an open classroom, i This approach is based on the premise that students are capable of analytical and creative thought when given the opportunity to work on their own initiative and at their own rates. It is an alternative to the traditional teacher-centered classroom and is justified by the belief that the student learns more effectively when he is interested; that the student develops greater responsibility; that the slower, generally passive student is brought into a position of active participation in the learning process.

Little has been written about the applicability of such an approach to the field of geography. Interest in this method prompted the author to experiment with such a program in her own classes during her first year of teaching. This article describes the results of individualized learning in two ninth grade physical geography classes conducted at Western Illinois University's Laboratory School.     

Demographic Transition: Threat to Developing Nations

Abstract

As computers become commonplace in the nation's schools, interactive maps are finding their way into the geography classroom. Students can use electronic atlases to access information as well as use authoring software to produce their own interactive maps. Does this change in media correspond to better geography education for our children? This article addresses whether using interactive maps for gathering and presenting information can have a positive influence on learning geography content. A two-week experiment was conducted in five 7th grade classrooms. Students in four of the classes researched and produced map products using both traditional and computer-assisted techniques. The fifth class was a control group. A pretest and two post-tests were given to quantitatively assess student learning after each project. Also, students were given a qualitative questionnaire to determine their attitude towards the different techniques. Quantitative results of the study indicate that there was no significant difference in student post-test performance after using each of the techniques, but qualitative results suggest that students prefer using the computer techniques over the traditional methods for gathering and presenting information.     

Internet-Based GIS in an Inductive Learning Environment: A Case Study of Ninth-Grade Geography Students

Abstract

This article reports the results of a qualitative case study that explored the use of Internet-based geographic information systems (IGIS) with ninth-grade geography students. The students worked in teams to examine the geography of Africa using IGIS resources with the instructional goal of developing a presentation on a significant issue facing one region or country. The purpose of this study was to explore the use of IGIS as a tool for integrating geospatial technologies into ninth-grade geography curriculum and instruction within an inductive learning environment. The findings for this study indicate that IGIS can be a successful tool for geography education in an inductive learning environment. Based on qualitative data collected through classroom observations, focus group interviews with students, student work samples, and a teacher journal, two assertions are offered: students perceived expanded freedom as a positive aspect of this IGIS project and IGIS projects such as this can lead to gains in students' cultural awareness and empathy for distant others.     

Experiential Learning,Spatial Practice,and Critical Urban Geographies

Abstract

Experiential learning pedagogies are being adopted across undergraduate education and touted as an effective strategy for enhancing student learning. This paper develops an explanation for how and why such pedagogies can foster students' critical thinking and learning. Drawing on data collected from first-year students in “field based” urban geography courses at an urban university, I show how students' existing knowledge of urban spaces and specific parts of the city is constructed from a variety of sources and experiences, and can be incorporated in experiential learning activities in ways that foster critical learning. Such an approach is crucial to creating learning environments in higher education that include a greater diversity of student identities and life experiences.     

Applying Geography Course Projects to Issues in City Resilience and Global Connectivity

Globalization would appear to be a subject that easily could be addressed in geography classrooms, yet this is not always the case. In terms of pedagogy, many geographers are concerned whether the field has been adequately engaging various components of this topic (e.g., connectivity, core-periphery), especially in terms of making the subject matter relevant to students. This article presents the results of a recent course project situated at the intersection of city-level resilience to hazards and connectivity with the global economy, utilizing SWOT analysis. The student projects demonstrated that this comparatively simple analytical tool was a useful means for exploring and integrating key topics in globalization and urban-economic geography, while also facilitating a problem-based learning environment.     

The Digital Versatile Disc as a Learning Support Medium in the Teaching and Learning of Map Work

Abstract

This article describes the results of a study where the digital versatile disc (DVD) was used as a variant of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in order to aid in the teaching and learning of map work in geography at secondary school level. A group of grade 10 learners of a previously disadvantaged school in South Africa comprised the target group for the project. A case study was conducted and data was gathered on the implementation of the DVD and the learners' perceptions thereof. Qualitative analysis techniques such as field notes, observation, interviews with the learners, and questionnaires were used to analyze the effectiveness of the implementation of the DVD as well as the learners' perceptions regarding the use of the DVD in geography education. The results of the study indicated that the geography learners demonstrated positive attitudes towards the implementation of the DVD as a learning support medium. To determine the contribution of the DVD project towards the achieved results of the learners in map work, both the experimental and control groups participated in a pre- and post-test at the beginning and conclusion of the project. Effect size was used to determine the significance of the differences between the two groups and indicates a strong practical significance regarding the contribution of the DVD project towards the achieved test results of the learners.     

Learning styles among geography undergraduates: an international comparison

Growing diversity is focusing attention on the range of different student learning styles. This study assesses whether geographers have a predominant learning style and whether this varies between and within countries. The findings are based on over 900 geography students from 12 universities in Australia, New Zealand, the UK and the US, who completed Kolb's Learning Style Inventory (LSI). The implications for curriculum design and student learning strategies are discussed. It is suggested that departments should aim to produce balanced learners with a full range of learning capacities rather than simply matching teaching to existing learning styles.     

The Establishment of the Validities of Experimental Materials in Geography

Abstract

This paper describes the various procedures followed in validating some research tools to be used to investigate pupils' attitudes toward and achievements in geography taught by programmed instruction. The research tools consist of learning materials and measuring instruments. The learning materials include five geography programmed texts, five conventional texts in geography, and a familiarization program in civics. The measuring instruments also include a geography achievement test, and two attitude questionnaires designed to measure attitudes toward geography and programmed instruction. The paper highlights the roles of formative evaluation in preparing curriculum materials in geography.     

Shared Learning: Feminist Student Research on Household Reuse Behavior

Abstract

This paper describes collaborative student research on waste management that first compiled home interviews with women professors in Oxford, Ohio, USA, and Beijing, China, on household reuse for a graduate thesis and then communicated the findings in a handbook for undergraduate students. The women participants described diverse household reuse activities and important differences in how items enter and leave their homes. Reuse behaviors were derived intuitively from local contexts but could also be learned through cross-cultural education. These projects show positive links between feminist research and pedagogy in geography that encourage shared learning and promote women's contributions to environmental conservation.     

Observing Metropolitan Atlanta,Georgia: Using an urban field study to enhance student experiences and instructor knowledge in urban geography

Abstract

In urban geography courses, knowledge of a local area is especially useful for demonstrating geographic principles. These classroom examples are further enhanced when students conduct their own field observations, with direction from the instructor. This paper describes a field study of the metropolitan Atlanta area that is used in an intermediate geography class, in which students compare their observations of Atlanta with urban geography models and theories. I argue that the preparation of the project, and the completion of it by students, represents a valuable firsthand observation experience for both the instructor and the students.     

Building a sustainable urban future: An Auckland experience

Abstract:  The Untouched World Sustainable Cities Youth pilot project was held in Auckland in July 2005. This article outlines the activities that school students were involved in during the week and reflects on the nature of the learning experience. Whilst not specifically targeted at geography students or teachers, the project does support the outcomes of senior high school geography programmes.     

Combining Geography,Math, and Science to Teach Climate Change and Sea Level Rise

This study examines the effectiveness of integrating geography into existing math and science curriculum to teach climate change and sea level rise. The desired outcome is to improve student performance in all three subjects. A sample of 120 fifth graders from three schools were taught the integrated curriculum over a period of two to three weeks. They were given a pretest and posttest comprised of questions measuring knowledge relevant to the lesson in terms of geography, math, science, and spatial skills. Paired-samples t-tests were conducted to determine significant differences in student performance. These t-tests indicate statistically significant improvements in all but one instance across all subjects, at all schools for both boys and girls. No statistically significant results were observed for a control group of an additional twenty-seven fifth graders. These results demonstrate the value of combining geography with math and science to improve student performance in STEM knowledge.     

An Investigation of the Use of Real-Time,Authentic Geospatial Data in the K–12 Classroom

Abstract

This article situates geospatial technologies as a constructivist tool in the K-12 classroom and examines student experiences with real-time authentic geospatial data provided through a hybrid adventure learning environment. Qualitative data from seven student focus groups demonstrate the effectiveness of using real-time authentic data, peer collaboration, and geospatial technologies in learning geography. We conclude with recommendations about geospatial technology curricula, geospatial lesson design, providing preservice teachers with geographic technological pedagogical content knowledge, and encouraging further research to investigate the impact, affordances, and pedagogical implications of geospatial technologies and data in the K–12 classroom.     

基于GIS的探究式自然地理学野外实习平台系统

为更好地在自然地理学野外实践教学中贯彻以学生为本的教学理念,提出利用GIS技术开发探究式自然地理野外实习平台系统。该系统变革了传统的理论验证型和认知型实习模式,提高了学生实习的自主性和能动性。对探究式自然地理实习平台系统需求进行了分析,并根据该需求,对平台系统框架和功能进行了设计,对研制该系统的核心技术进行了深入研究,最后以庐山自然地理野外实习为例,对该系统进行了验证。验证结果表明该平台系统能够提高实习质量,增强学生学习自主性,具有重要的应用推广价值。     

Student Learning of Place: Learning Progressions Can Help Fill the Gaps

This commentary is a response to Larsen and Harrington's article titled “Developing a Learning Progression for Place” (2018). The commentary includes a discussion of the benefits to other content areas that research on student learning of place can provide. The commentary also describes the coherence that learning progressions can bring to research on student learning of complex, interdisciplinary domains of study.     

The Collage: Its Use in Geographic Learning

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to introduce the use of the collage as a teaching technique to teachers of geography. The collage is presented within the context of a teaching unit in which emphasis is placed upon unit objectives, teaching techniques, and evaluation methods. Methods used to relate the college to subject matter content are stressed. It is demonstrated that the collage stimulates and increases student participation in the learning process and enhances the possibilities of meaningful, learning experiences. It is concluded that the collage has great potential as a non-verbal medium of communication, considerable usefulness at almost any instructional level, and applicability to a large range of geography and social science subject matter.     

Geography and Multiple Abilities Program: Innovations in Teacher Education-Reconnecting Teaching to Students' Needs

Abstract

The University of Alabama is now offering a new and innovative, five-semester program that provides preservice teachers with both knowledge of and skill in using strategies and teaching methods associated with general and special education. The goal of the Multiple Abilities Program (MAP) is to enable teachers to accommodate the wide range of learning styles and developmental readiness for instruction of all learners in a given classroom, regardless of the labels with which the children are identified. This article describes MAP in light of the geography strand of the MAP curriculum. MAP students work with five topics in geography, which they use to develop a greater understanding of how authentic teaching and learning of geography are mediated by cognitive, affective, and social needs of children. MAP students take a particular topic in geography and design and implement instruction for it by creating authentic learning activities that offer elementary school students an opportunity to explore the topic. The variety that is systematically planned into the activities is the major means of accommodating differences in cognitive ability, learning style, level of physical and social development, and cultural, ethnic, and socioeconomic diversity.     

The World's Import Trade and the United States' Share Therein

Abstract

Many student geography organizations or clubs associated with colleges and universities undertake community service projects each year to meet local needs and to gain recognition within the community. A uniquely geographical project of playground map painting provides a great community service and goes one step further by incorporating elements of quality service-learning for the geography club members. Painting projects for large school playground maps of the world, United States, or home state are student-planned and student-run. The final painted map can be used for geographic education in elementary schools by conveying basic spatial and geographic relationships. This article will detail a proven method of producing a colorful, useful playground map that can be employed by geography clubs as a service-learning activity and used by educators in elementary schools.