Abstract
While the theory and implementation of geographic information systems (GIS) have a history of more than 50 years, the development of dedicated educational tools and applications in this field is more recent. This paper presents a free and open source software (FOSS) approach for education in the geospatial disciplines, which has been used over the last 20 years at two Italian universities. The motivations behind the choice of FOSS are discussed with respect to software availability and development, as well as educational material licensing. Following this philosophy, a wide range of educational tools have been developed, covering topics from numerical cartography and GIS principles to the specifics regarding different systems for the management and analysis of spatial data. Various courses have been implemented for diverse recipients, ranging from professional training workshops to PhD courses. Feedback from the students of those courses provides an invaluable assessment of the effectiveness of the approach, supplying at the same time directions for further improvement. Finally, lessons learned after 20 years are discussed, highlighting how the management of educational materials can be difficult even with a very open approach to licensing. Overall, the use of free and open source software for geospatial (FOSS4G) science provides a clear advantage over other approaches, not only simplifying software and data management, but also ensuring that all of the information related to system design and implementation is available.
Highlights
The theory and first implementations of geographic information systems (GIS) date back to the 1960s, but the first complete software that could perform a variety of analyses appeared only in the 1980s: the first versions of GRASS and ArcInfo were both released in 1982, followed by Mapinfo (1986) and IDRISI (1987)
We aim to describe the advantages and disadvantages of using FOSS4G in education based on 20 years of teaching experience, during which we developed and implemented tools for teaching diverse audiences, from undergraduates to professionals all over the world
Education dedicated to GIS science and, in general, to the theory and systems used for spatial data management and analysis is currently essential for a wide range of disciplines and application fields
Summary
The theory and first implementations of geographic information systems (GIS) date back to the 1960s, but the first complete software that could perform a variety of analyses appeared only in the 1980s: the first versions of GRASS and ArcInfo were both released in 1982, followed by Mapinfo (1986) and IDRISI (1987). Avoiding the cost of licenses allows even developing countries, small enterprises or research groups to use the state-of-the-art tools provided by FOSS4G. All of these advantages have an effect on research and education at various levels. Most of the literature on PBL and GIS education using open source software focuses on the skills acquired by students, while this work takes into account the challenges (in terms of effort related to material preparation and updating according to student feedback and to the continuous software upgrades) faced by educators who choose to use FOSS4G. We aim to describe the advantages and disadvantages of using FOSS4G in education based on 20 years of teaching experience, during which we developed and implemented tools for teaching diverse audiences, from undergraduates to professionals all over the world.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
