CLASSROOM USE OF GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION systems (GIS) is increasingly feasible as teacher sophistication in the use of technology increases. This article will address what GIS is, how to locate further information on GIS and use of GIS by the teacher to further student higher level thinking in the classroom.The examples below illustrate how a student might merge data with a map to give a spatial view, that may be more informative than a spreadsheet.

GIS includes the computer hardware, software and data needed to merge real life information about population, economics, earth science, agriculture and other data with maps to present a spatial representation of the data.
Data can be shown in layers. The representation can be "as is" based on actual data or can be hypothetical in part, to answer a "What if..." question.
Software is available from several sources, some free for education uses. Data for use with GIS software may come with some software packages and is available from government and other Internet sources. Users may also generate their own data.

Because websites often become inactive over time, the most useful advice for obtaining further information on GIS and its use in the classroom is to do an Internet search using the simple terminology, "geographic information systems." Use two of your favorite search engines and a metasearch engine for a useful crosscheck.
A book search can be conducted online through a library as well as online bookstores.

 

The data overlaid on the map of the 48 states represents the percentage of African Americans by county. The darker purple represents the higher percentages of the population. This legend shows how population data is represented on the above map. The map shows the percentage of population that was African American in 1990 by county in the 48 contiguous states.

Because the field of Geographic Information Systems is growing rapidly in the public and private sphere, many university programs offer undergraduate majors, advanced degrees and/or certificates in GIS. San Diego State University offers certificates in Geographical Information Sciences and Geographical Information Systems. GIS has gained more than a toehold in K-12 geography, social science, and math. 

This map of the world represents the per capita wealth of each nation according to the shaded color.This legend defines the

To find lesson plans, a search using your two favorite search engines and a metasearch engine and the phrase "k12 lesson plans for geographical information sciences" will unearth many resources. This author's usual search engines of choice are Google and AllTheWeb plus Dogpile.

Ron Pettis, K-8 teacher