Prior Technology Exposure Impacts High School Students' Enrollment and Outcomes in a Technology-Rich Geospatial Science Course

• In Event: 66.031 - Promoting STEM Learning and Engagement Through Rich Technological Experiences

Abstract

Spatial thinking is a well-documented predictor of student success in STEM fields (Wai, Lubinski, & Benbow, 2009). However, spatial thinking is “formally and systematically taught nowhere” in the U.S. K-12 education system (NRC, 2006, p. 131). Technology-rich learning environments, such as Geographic Information Systems (GIS) present a unique opportunity to teach spatial thinking within the context of academic classes (NRC, 2006; Kim & Bednarz, 2013). To better understand students’ decisions to enroll in GIS courses and the impact of these courses on spatial thinking, we investigated (a) how students’ prior experiences with technology predicted their enrollment in a technology-rich geospatial science course, and (b) whether exposure to technology prior to taking the course impacted students’ end-of-year outcomes across a range of measures of spatial thinking.

High school juniors and seniors (N=190; 31.6% non-white) from six Northern Virginia schools completed measures before and after they completed a year-long technology-rich high school course that uses GIS to teach spatial problem solving (i.e., the Geospatial Semester course; n=79) or an alternative science elective course (n=111). Measures included surveys about technology use and a Spatial Habits of Mind Inventory, which measures how frequently people engage in spatially-oriented problem solving (Kim & Bednarz, 2013). Students also completed a battery of spatial thinking assessments, including a geographic science domain-specific Spatial Thinking Test (Lee & Bednarz, 2012) and measures of general spatial thinking skills (e.g., Embedded Figures Test, Walter & Dassonville, 2011). Propensity score weighting was applied to ensure equivalence among the groups at pretest (Pan & Bai, 2017).

After controlling for gender and prior academic achievement, the odds of enrolling in the Geospatial course were 4.38 higher if students had previous exposure to GIS technology (χ2=19.55, p<.001). Other measures of technology use (i.e., videogame play, self-efficacy for technology) did not relate to students’ course enrollment. Post-test Spatial Habits of Mind were positively predicted by completion of the Geospatial Semester course, β=2.44, β*=.21, p<.05, even when controlling for pre-test Spatial Habits of Mind and gender, R2=.45, F(5, 163)=20.91, p<.001. There was no main effect of GIS exposure and the interaction between course enrollment and GIS experience was non-significant. While there was no main effect of course or GIS exposure on the Spatial Thinking Test, there was a significant interaction, favoring students who were taking the Geospatial Semester course and had prior GIS exposure, β=2.20, β*=.36, p=.03). There was also a significant effect of taking the Geospatial course on the Embedded Figures Task, β=.02, β*=.20, p=.04, but no significant main effect of GIS exposure and no interaction.

These results provide evidence that a technology-rich course aimed at improving spatial thinking within the context of high school STEM classes may uniquely benefit certain spatial skills and spatial habits of mind. Further, GIS exposure is an important factor to consider in students’ enrollment in an elective geospatial course, and, for some spatial skills, outcomes related to the course were moderated by prior experience with GIS technology. Together, these results underscore the importance of students’ opportunities for exposure to GIS technology.

Authors

• Emily Grossnickle Peterson, American University

• Bob Kolvoord, James Madison University

• David Henry Uttal, Northwestern University

• Nhi Dinh, Georgetown University

• Adam Weinberger, Georgetown University

• Adam Green, Georgetown University