This document summarizes a course at Brock University that used scenario-based group projects and open data in ArcGIS to teach economic geography. It describes how the instructor wanted to integrate GIS and economic geography, train students to use open data to examine local economies, and design fact-or-fiction scenarios supported by multiple data sources. With help from Brock's data and map librarians, the scenarios were developed using local and geographical open data sources, labs were designed to provide skills to analyze each scenario, and technical assistance was provided to students.

1. Fact or Fiction?
Scenario-based group projects
using open data with ArcGIS
10.2 in GEOG 3P98: Niagara’s
Changing Economic Geography
Jeff Boggs Jeff Boggs
Associate Professor
Department of Geography

2. What was the problem?
1. Pedagogically, needed a course that
integrated economic geography and GIS.
2. Professionally, I lacked highly-qualified
personnel (HQP) with familiarity using
GIS to examine local economies.
3. Pragmatically, Statistics Canada’s 2011
National Household Survey debacle
produced statistically-unreliable
publicly–available local economy data.

3. What did I want?
1. Collaborators in designing scenarios
supported by available open data.
2. Technical assistance in designing,
sequencing & delivering labs to provide
skills needed to analyze the scenario.
3. Projects that required students to
combine or overlay data from multiple
open data sources, not just Statistics
Canada’s Community Profiles.

4. The solution?
Fact-or-fiction scenarios
Each scenario contains:
Arguable claim
Data sources
Keywords
Taken together,
a scenario
provides
“breadcrumbs”
to follow.

5. Fact-or-Fiction example
CLAIM: Niagara’s biggest problem is its loss
of talented youth to Alberta.
SOURCES: Statistics Canada National
Household Survey 2011; Statistics Canada
Long-form Census 2006, 2001.
KEYWORDS: Brain-drain; migration; human
capital; returns to education; residential
choice; life cycle.

6. Fact-or-Fiction example
CLAIM: In Niagara, ‘neighborhood is destiny’
when it comes to school test scores.
SOURCES: Education Quality Assessment
Outcomes http://www.eqao.com/results/
Ministry of Education School Finder
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/sift/
Statistics Canada Community Profiles 2011
KEYWORDS: neighborhood; neighborhood
effect; strong ties vs. weak ties; student
achievement; culture of poverty.

7. How did Brock’s data &
map librarians help?
1. Co-developed scenarios so they were
local, doable and geographical.
2. Located appropriate open data.
3. Provided weekly technical assistance in
designing labs.
4. Designed and delivered lab on geocoding.
Impossible task
without librarians’ help.

8. Thank you!