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Apresentação spatialthinkingi cologne_26ag09-12
This document discusses a research project that aims to promote and assess students' critical spatial thinking skills through the use of geospatial technologies. The project seeks to determine if geospatial technologies can effectively develop and evaluate critical spatial thinking in the context of education for sustainable development. The methodology involves a literature review on spatial and critical thinking, focus groups with specialists and students, developing learning goals involving geospatial technologies, and assessing critical spatial thinking through fieldwork activities. Preliminary findings from focus groups with students indicate that geospatial technologies help promote competencies like environmental responsibility and allow students to explore places they have never been to before. Students also felt they had fun while learning through this approach. The researchers conclude that further focus should be placed on the "
Apresentação spatialthinkingi cologne_26ag09-12
- 1. Promoting and assessingstudent´s Critical Spatial Thinking skills for significant learning in ESD through geospatial technologies Vânia Carlos (University of Aveiro) | vania.carlos@ua.pt Norberto Santos (University of Coimbra) | norgeo@ci.uc.pt
- 2. Example ofa cycle.. The Action/Research Project
- 3. Geographical Teachingand Learning strategies supported by geospatial technologies promote significant learning in ESD through Critical Spatial Thinking Hypothesis http://vampcat.wikia.com/wiki/File:ArcView_GIS_Spatial_Analyst.gif
- 4. How topromote and assess Critical Spatial Thinking, on the scope for ESD? Does the use of geospatial technologies promote the development and assessment of Critical Spatial Thinking? What are the main difficulties to promote CST skills? Goals and research questions
- 5. Literature Review Focus Group (specialists researchers) Learning goals with Geographic Information Technologies Assessment of Critical Spatial Thinking skills through fieldwork (geographic enquiry) Focus Group (students) Methodology
- 6. Taxonomies ofSpatial Thinking - National Research Council (2006) - Jo, I., Bednarz, S., & Metoyer, S. (2010) - Janelle, D. G. and M. F. Goodchild (2011) Literature Review http://www.teachspatial.org/finding- spatial/6485&docid http://www.teachspatial.org/fi nding-spatial/449&docid http://www.teachspatial.org/finding- spatial/6486&docid
- 7. Taxonomies ofCritical Thinking Literature Review http://pegiflynt.com/images/criticalThinkingSkills.png
- 8. Focus Group (specialists) CTattitudes - Try to be well informed - Having an open mind - Take a position (and change) CT capabilities - Focusing on one issue - Analyze arguments - Make and evaluate inferences ST concepts - scale, space, territory, place - distance and routes - location - spatial dependence - “thirdspace” or lived places ST reasoning processes - scaling and levels of conceptualization - generalization and relativisation, - spatial perception - summarizing
- 9. Focus Group (specialists) Geographicalcompetences - The development of the ability to think geographically - The correct use of graphic and cartographic techniques - The predisposition to be geographically well informed - The relativization of the importance of the place where the individual lives Geographical learning goals - The student develops fieldwork for the collection of data needed to understand places and physical and human phenomena - The student identifies and uses arguments based on the discussion of environmental and social issues - The student evaluates alternative views on interventions in the territory
- 10. Spatial Thinking– fundamental concepts - Spatial primitives (LG1 - LG3) - Simple spatial concepts (LG4 – LG7) - Complex spatial concepts (LG8 – LG12) Geographic Enquiry and Spatial Thinking process - Intern (LG13 – LG14) - Extern (LG15 – LG21) Geographic Education and Transdisciplinarity - (LG22 – LG29) Learning goals with Geographic Information Technologies
- 11. Group I -LG1 - Uses formal and informal methods to determine "where" through Reference System coordinates (Location) - LG15 - Speak, write and think spatially, through the use of spatial language (limit, boundary, region, area, location, direction, distance, ...) - LG19 - Represent geographic phenomena using geometric shapes (points, lines and polygons) - LG23 - Values socio cultural and biological diversity - LG27 - Combines the use of TIG with traditional resources (books, atlas, globe, photography) Learning goals with Geographic Information Technologies Group II - LG1 - Uses formal and informal methods to determine "where" through Reference System coordinates (Location) - LG2 - Recognizes the identity and uniqueness of places and territory space (Space, Place, Territory) - LG15 - LG23 - LG26 – Uses GIT to collect data and to present and analyze the data collected in the field - LG29 - Is motivated with articulated strategies in with ICT, Art, TE, Mathematics, Natural Sciences, etc.
- 12. Factual enquiry/ Values enquiry - Observation and perception - Definition and description - Analysis and explanation - Prediction and evaluation - Decision-making Personal evaluation and judgment Personal response General attitudes - Curiosity - Respect - Attention - Engagement Levels: 1.Beggining 2. Developing 3. Accomplished 4. Exemplary Assessment of Critical Spatial Thinking skills through fieldwork and geographic enquiry
- 13. Group I Valuesenquiry : - Analysis and explanation - Prediction and evaluation Transversal attitudes: - Curiosity - Respect - Engagement Assessment of Critical Spatial Thinking skills through fieldwork and geographic enquiry
- 14. Assessment of CriticalSpatial Thinking skills through fieldwork and geographic enquiry Group II Factual enquiry : - Observation and perception - Definition and description Transversal attitudes: - Curiosity - Respect - Attention - Engagement
- 15. Does theuse of Geospatial Technologies (GT) promote the development and assessment of CST? - Purpose: ‘see if there were changes or not’, ‘know if there´s a connection between man and nature’ - Competences: ‘sustainable consumption’, ‘environmental responsibility’, ‘entrepreneurship and innovation’, ‘civic participation’ - GT and (C)ST: ‘get to places where I have never been’, ‘explore’, ‘find things, know more about them and why they are there’, ‘without GT we couldn´t mark places and we couldn´t know where we had passed´, ‘preserve’ - Best: ‘had fun and learned at the same time’, used new technologies’, ‘shared different ideas’, ‘we were not taking classes… we were, but in a fun way’ Focus Group (students / Group I)
- 16. Focus Group (students /Group II) Does the use of Geospatial Technologies (GT) promote the development and assessment of CST? - Purpose: ´go to the reserve of oleander’, ‘Explore, choose the paths, discover new ways´, ‘Take pictures of what we found most important’ - Competences: ‘critical thinking and solving problems’, ‘entrepreneurship and innovation’, ‘environmental responsibility’, ‘civic participation’ - GT and (C)ST: ‘Mark paths, record routes’, ‘Find places, with GPS’, ‘take pictures, notes, descriptions’, ‘know the distance between the reserve and the school’, ‘to travel’, ‘ít´s like a touristic center, we go there (Google Earth) and check if we would like to go to some place or not’
- 17. Focus Group (students /Group II) Does the use of Geospatial Technologies (GT) promote the development and assessment of CST? - Best: ‘In class we can only hear how it is, and here we actually experienced it’, ‘We had various disciplines at the same time without realizing it’, ‘some subjects we don´t like, here we enjoyed (mathematics)’, ‘never had crossed the river, and did not even know that there were trout and barbel’, ‘Knowing the oleanders, never had there been’ - Relevance of (C)ST: ‘to think about where we are’, ‘why is it reserve?’, ‘In what other places there are oleander?’, ‘why only there?’, ‘To outsiders this is a surprise. For us is not much, because we see it so often…’, ‘to know the tourist and economic value’ - Fieldwork: ‘If we go there with a purpose, we find better things. When we just walk we are distracted’ / ‘When we go there with no goal we can discover no more goals’
- 18. Spatial thinkingand GT » focus now on the “Critical” Design strategies/materials (scripts) for the promotion of CST skills, as examples… Evolve students in their own evaluation process… Conclusion and further development
- 19.
Editor's Notes
- #2 My name is Vânia, I´m from Portugal, from the Department of Education of the University of Aveiro. I´m conducting my PhD research, in Multimedia in Education, and my academic backround is a graduation in Geography and a masters in GIS. I´m very pleased to be here, presenting in this communication some of the preliminary results this study, in one of it´s dimensions,the students point of view, about the promotion and assessment of their critical spatial thinking skills in ESD through geospatial technologies! And feel specially honnored to be here discussing this issues with colleagues that really designed some of the conceptual framework that we based our research on, such as professor Sarah Bednarz…
- #3 From this project, which goal is to conceive and implement significant T/L strategies supported by geospatial technologies to promote CST skills on ESD. So, it´s important also to say that this is a transdisciplinar action/research project, developed with teachers from different disciplines, that collaboratively conceive strategies and that it occurs within a Teacher Training Course…! Well, as I was saying, it´s and action/research project, and we now are ending the first cycle… The main elements of an action/research project is: - The investigation of the current situation, and for that we gave the teachers a questionnaire, that collected their representations and knowledge and attitudes towards ESD as well as for the use of Geospatial technologies in education, …and we also conducted a Focus group interview before starting the teacher training sessions, to discuss their answers at the questionnaire, as well as to establish the first guidelines to the T/L strategie´s conception. Introduced some changes: conceptual framework of CT, ST and ESD was given to teachers, as well as guidelines for transdisciplinar conception of strategies, for the definition of the learning goals, strategies and resources… Some instruments were conceive to characterize the pedagogical practice of teachers during the strategie´s implementation, as well as the students learnings accomplishments through geospatial technologies… We are now at the forth step were we analyse data to report how the process went and discuss with teachers at the beggining of the next cycle… We still have one more complete cycle, and then just a cycle to monitor the continuity of the strategie´s implementation, after the sessions are over! The school is within a natural reserve, and it´s about to construct an interpretation center for the reserve within the school, and they need to produce multimedia information of the reserve, such as defining and characterizing the routes, using PDAs with GPS (a software ActiveTrack). They also intend that students will be the tourist guides, showing the reserve to students from other schools, for example…
- #4 The hypothesis that we start for this presentation, considering the student´s point of view, is that…
- #5 To verify this hypothesis we need to start answer questions like…
- #6 To answer this questions… - we have of course conducted literature review to obtain the theoretical framework… We conducted a FG interview with specialists to discuss the notion of CST and to define the most important concepts and learning goals that should be worked with students… Conceived 2 instruments to assess CST skills using fieldwork strategies with geography enquiry and assess how geospatial technologies were significant in the learning process We also conducted a FG interview to discuss with students their learning process, at a metacognition level…
- #7 Considering the central framework of our research, spatial thinking, …
- #8 We also analysed different taxonomies of critical thinking, and we dedided to adopt Ennis taxonomy, that defines Critical Thinking as “a form of rational, reflective thinking, focused on deciding on what to believe or do” , because his taxonomy involves as many abilities (that refer to the more cognitive aspects), as dispositions (that are more affective), what is significantly relevant when we want to promote significant learning… So, critical thinking involves a set of intellectual tools to be well mobilized in the context of problem solving, decision making and in the context of interacting with others. This includes abilities, like arguing and analyzing arguments, judging the credibility of a source, making inferences (reaching conclusions based on sound evidence and reasons) and deciding on action, as well as dispositions which define critical spirit.
- #9 From the FG with specialists (researchers and teachers) some aspects were stressed, such as…
- #10 And that allowed us to select the most relevant geographical competences and learning goals to promote CST on the scope for ESD…
- #11 This is the main structure of the instrument. It´s a check list, with learning goals within categories, and comments on how the tools of representation/geospatial technoogies promoted learning?
- #12 The main learning goals achieved with the strategies implemented by the teachers and assessed by them, were, for each of the groups…
- #13 Instrument to assess CST skills achieved through fieldwork and geography enquiry…
- #15 This different results are coherent with the strategies designed because one group really collected data, and the focus was on factual enquiry, and the other was on collection student´s representations, so it was more values enquiry…