Emily PETERSON, American University, United States
David UTTAL, Northwestern University, United States
Spatial skills are critical for success in geography, and have been shown to be malleable with appropriate training (Uttal et al., 2013). However, spatial interventions are typically examined in laboratory settings, and spatial thinking is infrequently taught in schools (NRC, 2006). In the present study we examined the effects of taking a year-long high school course, the Geospatial Semester (GSS), during which students engage solving in real-world spatial problems using GIS (Geographic Information Systems) technology. We conducted two longitudinal studies with secondary school students to investigate the impact of taking the Geospatial Semester relative to a comparison course. In Study 1 (N=53 ; Jant et al., 2020), students explained how they would solve problems at four points during the course. Results indicated that students who took the GSS course used more spatial language (e.g., “between”, “near”, “buffer”) and had higher quality explanations by the end of the year than students enrolled in the comparison course. Study 2 (N=190) replicated the results from Study 1, and also investigated changes in students’ performance on a spatial skills test with geography content as well as their spatial habits of mind. Surprisingly, there were no significant differences in students’ performance on a test of spatial skills that integrated geography content. However, we found that students who took the GSS course demonstrated a greater increase in spatial habits of mind. Additionally, females enrolled in GSS had a greater rate of increase in spatial habits of mind compared to males in GSS or students of either gender in the comparison course. Together, these findings indicate that courses such as the Geospatial Semester may provide a meaningful way to increase some types of spatial reasoning through the use of geospatial technologies within the secondary school classroom.
Mots clés : Spatial thinking|Spatial habits of mind|GIS|Gender differences
A102637EP