Advancing Geospatial Thinking and Technologies: Citizen Mapping, Community Engagement, and Career Preparation in STEM

• In Event: 21.056 - Creating a Diverse and Data-Capable Workforce Through Innovative STEM Programs

Abstract

The purpose of our research was to create an experiential inquiry learning model that integrated students’ geographies and introduced them to the value of spatial thinking and geospatial technologies for addressing challenges in the community that they care about (Schlemper, Stewart, Czajkowski, & Shetty, 2018). We used problem-based learning (PBL) to engage students in critical thinking and student-centered, open inquiry (Schlemper, Athreya, Czajkowski, Stewart, & Shetty, 2018). The aim was to prepare them to be active citizens in their community, while also raising their awareness of careers in STEM. For this project, we used citizen mapping as a PBL method to illustrate the value of spatial thinking and geospatial technologies in exploring community challenges (problems) and proposing solutions. In short, citizen mapping is a form of citizen science where individuals collect data and create maps in order to enact political, socio-economic, or social change.

Using a critical geography approach, our research involved working with students of traditionally underrepresented groups in STEM living in urban areas that engaged them in experiential learning in the neighborhood around their high school. A critical geography perspective supports a collaborative, participatory approach, where researchers and research subjects work together to discover community issues and potential solutions. Pain (2003) suggested that participatory approaches align with the goals of critical geography because they provide opportunities “for excluded groups to highlight and act upon their own concerns” (p. 653). We were interested in how students interact with their local environment and their perceptions of social justice issues in the community. Student groups collaborated to identify and investigate topics of their choosing in order to produce and present their findings and recommendations to community stakeholders.

In order to understand students’ perspectives, we used spatial narratives as a means to “unpack” their interactions in and perceptions of the community. Spatial narratives consist of how we perceive various places, and how we interact (or don’t) with these places and why. They can reveal spaces that we are familiar with and places we avoid. We collected data from these students through case studies, sketch maps, a transformative experience questionnaire, daily exit slips, and interviews.

Data collected revealed an increase in knowledge about the community, particularly as it related to the topics the students explored, such as parks & community gardens, crime, employment opportunities, and housing. Students recognized the value of thinking spatially and using geospatial technologies to understand, visualize, and propose potential solutions. Students were able to think critically, collect appropriate primary and secondary data, synthesize information, work collaboratively, and report their experiences formally in a public setting. While the workshops were conducted during summer workshops at the local scale, the aim was to create a framework that will enable students to explore similar issues at larger scales. We used what we learned from the students, including the topics they proposed and their experiences with the research process and technologies, to create curriculum modules, which were piloted in our teacher advisors’ classrooms and can be used in a variety of learning environments.

Author

• Beth Schlemper, University of Toledo