Computer Assisted Computer Assisted Learning of GISLearning of GIS

at University of Tartu:at University of Tartu:reviewing the last ten yearsreviewing the last ten years

and outlining the futureand outlining the future

Jüri RoosaareInstitute of geography University of Tartu

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Structure of presentation:Some words about our background Our vision in 19952004 – reviewing last ten yearsOur vision in 2004Discussion

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Who we are…an old traditional Universitas

university founded 1632geography as a separate department 1918always relatively small

in a small country under different Rules1918-1940 Granö, Tammekann, Kant1944 – to restart geography with school teachers

coming from the soviet sciencehuman geography falsifiedcartography concealed and distortedemphasis on natural sciences and complexity

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Who we are

geography and computersquantitative geography in 1970iesplatonic interest in geoinformatics 1972-1982

information management for territorial planning computer-aided mapmaking (homemade analogs of SYMAP)spatial analysis (homemade analogs of FRAGSTATS)

emergence of geoinformation science in Soviet Unionmeeting in Kääriku 1982university science in Moscow, Tartu, Vladivostok, …labs of geoinformatics

• in Tartu 1986• in 1989 we got a PC

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Who we are

reestablishment of national cartography1989 – first PC Arc/Info in Estonia; first own map printed1991 – first private mapmaking company; in 1994 it is using 100% digital technology1991 – Estonian Land Survey

massive foreign aiddifferent (mostly old) hardwarediverse (mostly noncommercial) softwareEstonian Base Map (1993-1996, Sweden)

start of GIS coursesBasics of geoinformatics 1992

updates according to NCGIA Core Curriculum 1993First (donated by UNITAR) GIS package (Idrisi 3.2)Baltic University GIS course 1994

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19951995After different reforms in the university education we had:

a system of4 years (BSc) +2 years (MSc) +3 years (PhD)

including cartography and geoinformatics25-30 geography students per year, incl. 5-10 interested in geoinformatics and cartographysome irregular teacher training

Open University came into being at the Univ. of Tartu“GIS for everybody?”

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Conception on GIS education (state of 1995)

“A limiting factor at the moment is lack of people, capable not so much of using a concrete package, as of setting up a GIS”.

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Conception on GIS education (state of 1995)

“A limiting factor at the moment is lack of people, capable not so much of using a concrete package, as of setting up a GIS”. “…geographer will work in an interdisciplinary team. Often not as a narrow GIS-expert but as an 'educated specialist' who has to answer new questions, rising in the course of work.Therefore the diversity of geoinformatic environment (different software, platforms, data formats, problems to be solved etc.) is one of the central preconditions for developing students' ability for self-improvement.”

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Conception on GIS education (state of 1995)

“A limiting factor at the moment is lack of people, capable not so much of using a concrete package, as of setting up a GIS”.“…the diversity of geoinformatic environment (different software, platforms, data formats, problems to be solved etc.) is one of the central preconditions for developing students' ability for self-improvement.”REGIO (a leading GIS company in Estonia) as important place for students' practiceProblems perceived:

not enough computers (in class-rooms) for basic coursesnot enough (legal) software for advanced coursesno remote sensing data about Estonia

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First lessons obtained: “…the students' first expectations for geoinformatics are mostly limited to desktop mapping and they do not like Idrisi… and do not think territorially”.

theory and practice but practice first – start with the desktop mapping

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First lessons obtained:students‘ computer skills are different

their progress working in the computer class-room is different and they need tutorials enabling independent work

“It is problematic, how detailed should be the tutorials to enable even a weak student to take his/her own line but at the same time to avoid routine press-the-buttons by a more clever one.”

This is a key question for me until nowNow – exercise descriptions separated from instructions and explanations

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Emerging problems:how to evolve from tutorial exercises to real projects?

students‘ inability to solve real problems – they are tangling in technical details of different hardware and software

data import/exportlow quality of existing data (errors in attributes, missing or wrong topology,…)

how to extend teaching of GISelective courses for students of other specialitiesfurther training for geography specialistsintroducing GIS into school geography

teachers’ trainingolympiades…

how to use Internet

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The updated conceptGIS community as a pyramid

Creators

Mediators

Customers

Doers

Users

Viewers

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Doers

Users

ViewersGIS community as a pyramidConstruction of this pyramid should go from bottom to top:

digitally literate, critically thinking viewersskilled usersboth form the set of customers to define how many GIS professionals a certain community could afford

“local” GIS professionals in Estonia: small groupmain route of their professional development goes via postgraduate studies at a universitymuch of their professional activity has European and/or broader international context

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GIS community as a pyramid“local” GIS professionals in Estonia

Doers educate themselves mostly as members of the global GIS professionals’ community

Viewers are practically all Internet usersmap images and hypermaps of electronic presspublic map servers offering spatial searche-services of public administration will include more and more applications of GISslogan: about GIS for everybodyabout GIS for everybody

Doers

Users

Viewers

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GIS community as a pyramid“local” GIS professionals in Estonia

Doers educate themselves mostly as members of the global GIS professionals’ community

Viewers are practically all Internet usersmap images and hypermaps of electronic presspublic map servers offering spatial searche-services of public administration will include more and more applications of GISslogan: about GIS for everybodyabout GIS for everybody

Doers

Users

Viewers

A simple, attractive, public and vernacular web page about GIS for everybody with links towards advanced study guides, data and tools.

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GIS community as a pyramid

young people as most important group among VIEWERSplace of geography in their worldviewelectronic textbooks as complementary to traditional onesGIS-related eActivities to engage advanced pupils, e.g. different contestsslogan: understand the World and its problems with understand the World and its problems with GISGIS

Doers

Users

Viewers

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Doers

Users

ViewersGIS community as a pyramid

USERS are the most diverse part of the GIS community expertise in an application area certain role in the process of decision-makingprovisionally they may be divided into two groups:

“researchers”“municipal officers”

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GIS community as a pyramidtypical researcher

knows Englishhis/her own aimis oriented to find partners from other parts of the Worldneeds some introductory help and then prefer self-study with consultation as appropriateis interested in some narrow areas of analysis to see what is behind the buttons in GISslogan may be: GIS helps you understand moreGIS helps you understand moreTheir education in Estonian conditions may be based on university course materials using the possibilities of the virtual campus, until this group is not large enough

Doers

Users

Viewers

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GIS community as a pyramidtypical municipal officer

knows local conditions very wellhas some occasional GIS skillshas sometimes-mythical knowledge about GISdoes not like to deal with theory and with materials in a foreign languageslogan may be: a degree in GIS a degree in GIS –– for your successfor your success..In Estonian conditions, this group is under special attention of GIS companies as customers of customized software and value-added spatial data.There is potential for universities in the future, depending on what kind of certificate a university will offer for successful completion of the study.

Doers

Users

Viewers

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GIS community as a pyramiduniversity students will start to ascend the pyramid as viewers and will

stay on the first level- science teachers of secondary school

second level- landscape ecologists, human geographers, geologists etc.

try to conquer the top- postgraduates in cartography and geoinformatics

Doers

Users

Viewers

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Example 1creating the own, original software for teaching geography

CD-ROM on Estonian Geography

A good example is the project named

EGCD

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carried out in 1997carried out in 1997--20002000at the Institute of Geography of Tartu Universityat the Institute of Geography of Tartu Universityunder the support of the Open Estonia Foundation under the support of the Open Estonia Foundation and Tiger Leap Foundation and Tiger Leap Foundation

electronic textbook that fully meets the requirements of the programme in form 9consists of interactive texts, maps, photos, lists of data, and graphical schemas organized on four different levels

Juku - for ordinary pupil,at least interactive,to have knowledge,

required for examination

Juhan - offers manydifferent oportunities for

studying geographyin depth

Johannes is designedfor teachers

(material is organizedsystematically)

Kaardi-Juts is for thoseinterested in

(computer) cartographyand GIS

Now, this level is set up also in the Internet for

free use

Now, this level is set up also in the Internet for

free use

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carried out in 1997carried out in 1997--20002000at the Institute of Geography of Tartu Universityat the Institute of Geography of Tartu Universityunder the support of the Open Estonia Foundation under the support of the Open Estonia Foundation and Tiger Leap Foundation and Tiger Leap Foundation

electronic textbook that fully meets the requirements of the programme in form 9consists of interactive texts, maps, photos, lists of data, and graphical schemas organized on four different levelsincludes dictionary of terms, help tool, map data (to be used by ArcExplorer), worksheets (MS Word), tests (APSTest)

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carried out in 1997carried out in 1997--20002000at the Institute of Geography of Tartu Universityat the Institute of Geography of Tartu Universityunder the support of the Open Estonia Foundation under the support of the Open Estonia Foundation and Tiger Leap Foundation and Tiger Leap Foundation

EGCD also includes an ActiveX component enabling (in addition to the standard multi-media possibilities) to browse multi-layer vector mapsThis component is based on the possibilities of ESRI'sMap Objects LT and consists of two parts:

• EGCD.Map.View object in the HTML-document controlling the properties of the map window. It allows individualizing each call of the map window

• map window, which uses the spatial data compatible with ArcView and ArcExplorer, and has common for spatial data browsers functionality

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Example 2SAAGIS - a project directed to the development of GIS learning environment and includes

introduction of softwareprovision of teaching/learning materials for different levelspreparation of maps to be offered via the ArcIMS based service

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Example 2this project is suspended at moment

too widetoo expensivenot sustainable

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20042004According to new reforms (the Bologna process) in the university education we will have:

a system of3 years (Bachelor of Natural Sciences) +2 years (MSc) +3 years (PhD)

Almost every student has his/her own computereverything is computer-assisted (and mobile-assisted)data security is very acutepublic computer class-rooms are becoming more and more problematicsoftware problems are becoming more and more important

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20042004Future challengesODL and WebCT (or any other virtual learning environment)

to have one good environment instead of many satisfactory onesextensive workload to achieve new level of quality

co-operation? – language problemto compete with the ESRI Virtual Campus and UNIGIS?

problem of tutorsnew technologies

SPM (social positioning methods)after computers and Internet will spring up …

computer-assisted cartography – GIS – GISc – GIT – …technology will be taught in the Institute of technology“spatial thinking” will remain as important constituent of geography

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Thank you for your attention!