Page Comparison

GeoInquiries are (https://community.esri.com/groups/k12-instruction/projects/geoinquiries) are short, simple instructional packages (a map plus a 2-page set of instructions) for K-12 education, covering a wide range of content areas and grade levels. I've picked out a couple to highlight. Again, please open links in new tabs.

• Upper Elementary
• Environmental Science
  • MegaCities
    • PDF with instructions
    • map
• Earth Science
  • Fluid Earth: Winds and Currents
    • PDF with instructions
    • map
• Human Geography
• US History
  • Underground Railroad
    • PDF with instructions
    • map
• World History
• Government
  • Foreign Aid
    • PDF with instructions
    • map
• American Literature
• Mathematics
• Mapping Our World (ArcGIS.com materials to support the book of the same name)
• Thinking Spatially With GIS (ArcGIS.com materials to support the book of the same name)
• Level 2 GeoInquiries

After exploring the selected examples, discuss

• What was easy / fun / useful when using these instructional packages? What was hard / frustrating / confusing about them?
• Why do they come in two components: A map and a set of instructions? Why not just one component? Three or more components?
• What is Esri's purpose in creating these GeoInquiries? Is it the same as your purposes as a classroom teacher?
• Would you use one of these in your classroom? If so...
  • Would you use it as-is or would you want to modify the map and/or the instructions? 
  • What background content might you want to bring up beforehand or afterwards? 
  • Would you want students to use these materials hands-on (working individually or in small groups) or only through a teacher-controlled, whole-class discussion?
    
    • If you want students to use it hands-on, what introduction to the technology (interface, features, etc.) would be required? 
  • How would you assess students' learning from a GeoInquiry?
• GeoInquiries are a great example of (geospatial) Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge enacted. Assuming that you know this term, try to unpack one of the GeoInquiries
  • What is the content addressed?
  • What is the pedagogical strategy used? 
  • The technology used is obvious enough: an online GIS map and a text document. The interesting questions are...
    • How does this technology – as applied to this topic – create or constrain students' opportunities to understand the content, compared to more traditional teaching strategies?
    • How does this technology – again, as applied to this topic – create or constrain the teacher's pedagogical options, compared to more traditional teaching strategies?
      • If you're feeling ambitious, think about the impact on the options for your assessment of students' learning!
  • And reflect upon yourself: After seeing these GeoInquiries, do you have new understandings or new questions about...
    • The technology used?
    • The content addressed?
    • Teaching strategies?
    • Assessment strategies?