Rethinking Laboratory Education for an Introductory Course on Geographic Information

Abstract

The potential of geographical information science (GIScience)1 to attract new students to geography has not been fully realized. Faculty attitudes about the role of GIScience in the geography curriculum, along with logistic constraints imposed by the conventional model of laboratory instruction, conspire to limit enrolment. Attitudes are changing, however, and alternative instructional models exist. This essay presents the rationale for an instructional delivery model designed to accommodate large enrolments in both resident and distance versions of an introductory GIScience course. The course-a social-science general education introduction to geographic information-emphasizes students' understanding of, and ability to articulate, the unique properties of geographic information and the social contexts in which it is produced and used. The alternative model divides laboratories into two components: discussion sessions that foster collaborative learning in small groups of students, and computer-based activities developed specifically for independent student use on personal computers ('homeware'). It is argued that the alternative model not only overcomes logistic constraints on enrolment, but is desirable on pedagogical grounds as well.