Paper/Workshop on Teaching Spatial Thinking at the Undergraduate Level

Barnes/Garo Proposal for SPACE Workshop/Conference Funding

Paper/Workshop on teaching spatial thinking at the undergraduate level :

GIS for Social Sciences at HBCU’s by Claude Barnes and Laurie Garo

Please submit the following in a single file:

 Evidence of achievement in meeting instructional goals to implement spatial approaches in your undergraduate course(s) or programs.

Examples might include a new syllabus, the creation of curriculum development or assessment resources, a superb example of a student course project, and efforts to enhance the diversity of students who benefit from spatial perspectives. Please specify what you see as the beneficial impacts of your work in undergraduate education.

Following the SPACE workshop held at University of California- Santa Barbara, Summer 2005, two attendees, Dr. Claude Barnes and Laurie Garo, created new GIS for Social Science courses at HBCU’s in North Carolina. The courses incorporated GIS technology, spatial analytical thinking, and utilized teaching materials that were conceived while at the SPACE workshop. The courses were:

I. GIS for Social Sciences at North Carolina A & T University, taught by Dr. Claude Barnes

II. GIS in Criminology for Social Sciences Criminology majors at Johnson C. Smith University, taught by Laurie Garo

About the course:

GIS in Criminology was designed for purposes of teaching criminology students how to spatially analyze crime and related data (demographic, socio-economic, education, locations of sites where crimes take place, etc). It was taught for the first time, thus the syllabus and all materials were created specifically for the course. The students had no experience with GIS so the labs were created to teach basic GIS skills as well as spatial analysis for criminology. Course content included the lab exercises that were initially conceived of at the SPACE workshop, whereby students would map drug arrests by 4 different methods (point locations, hot spots, total arrests per Barnes/Garo Proposal for SPACE Workshop/Conference Funding neighborhood, and the drug arrest rate per neighborhood) and compare the information content and limitations in each method. Students also collected crime data with GPS, created and queried crime databases, learned map design, and prepared bi-variate map overlays to show potential correlations between locations of crime and socio-economic conditions e.g., child neglect and the high school dropout rate. In addition to the GIS exercises, students carried out a final project in which they analyzed spatial patterns for selected crimes in 3 neighborhoods and were asked to discuss the potential factors contributing to those crime patterns based on evidence mapped with GIS. In all exercises, students are asked to discuss the spatial patterns they saw, and to think about the limitations of the analysis methods being used and what additional data and/or techniques might be needed.

 A statement of how the SPACE workshop inspired and / or supported your achievement.

While at the SPACE workshop we had the opportunity to initiate the creation of GIS modules using social science data for encouraging students to think spatially about their social environment. The SPACE classes, discussions, and demonstrations of spatial thinking with GIS and of pedagogy for undergraduates in social sciences were extremely helpful in the preparation of our own modules. Discussions on difficulties of introducing GIS, both technologically (hardware/software installation and maintenance) and in teaching it without losing sight of it’s analytically capabilities, were also insightful, especially given that GIS is in it’s very early phase of introduction at the HBCU’s where the modules were introduced.

 Commitment to prepare a short case study or example of your achievement for posting on the SPACE website.

We agree to prepare examples of our achievements for posting on the SPACE website.

 A description of how you would use the expense allocation of up to $1500 to enhance your instruction of spatial approaches or to help in the dissemination of spatial methodologies to students and colleagues.

The conference we are proposing to present at is the Thirteenth National HBCU Faculty Development Symposium, October 19-21, 2006 Houston, Texas (travel to Houston on October 18 to be ready for conference start at 8 am on Oct. 19). Expenses per person are: Barnes/Garo Proposal for SPACE Workshop/Conference Funding

Expenses for Claude Barnes:

Airfare (approximate): Greensboro – Houston $350

Related Travel Expenses (airport parking, shuttle/taxi, etc) $50

Accomodation at Conference Hotel (Oct 18-20) @ $109/night + est. taxes): $375

(returning Oct 21, evening)

Conference Registration: $275

Pre-Conference Workshop (Oct 19) $75

Per Diem: $34 per day for 4 days $136

______

Total: $1261

Expenses for Laurie Garo

Airfare (approximate): Charlotte – Houston $350