The understanding of maps drawn or significantly influenced by American Indians fosters critical thinking, cultural diversity, and awareness of a much-neglected topic in cartography. Line styles, scale depiction, and the sizing of individual entities are discussed in the context of applying principles from mental maps to American Indian maps and…

The traditional important role of maps used for educational purposes has gained further potential with recent advances in GIS technology. But beyond specific courses in cartography this potential seems little realized in geography teaching. This article investigates the extent to which any learning benefits may be derived from the use of such…

Over 3,900 trees on a university campus were inventoried by an instructor-led team of geography undergraduates in order to quantify the carbon sequestration associated with biomass growth. The setting of the project is described, together with its logistics, methodology, outcomes, and benefits. This hands-on project provided a team of students…

One of the primary missions of our university is to train future primary and secondary teachers. Geospatial sciences, including GIS, have long been excluded from teacher education curriculum. This article explains the curriculum revisions undertaken to increase the geospatial technology education of future teachers. A general education class…

Maps are often understood as the primary tool in geography; however, recent research indicates that the number of students taking map interpretation courses has declined. As geography students are expected to master the uses of maps, this study investigates the materials available in introductory collegiate textbooks that promote the development…

This article discusses modern stereoscopic displays for geographic education, focusing on a large-format display--the GeoWall. To evaluate the potential of the GeoWall, geography instructors were asked to express their reactions to images viewed on the GeoWall during a focus group experiment. Instructors overwhelmingly supported using the GeoWall,…

Mental image and place-preference maps of college students in Florida were created through a two-part lesson. The patterns revealed by these maps were linked to students' life experiences, census data on migration and income, and similar studies conducted in other states. Students prefer states with established migration links to Florida and…

Maps are fundamental in geographic explanation and education, but as map-making becomes firmly entrenched in the GIS lab, it becomes harder for students to imagine how they can make maps for their papers. Students need to illustrate papers with maps: among other things, maps provide clarity, links to real places, and insights into patterns and…

The purpose of this research is to identify and analyze the mapping strategies of individuals by videotaping participants during a cognitive mapping test and by conducting follow-up interviews. Analyzing map-drawing processes using videotapes provided more information than did the analysis of finished paper maps. For example, even though finished…

There are perhaps 10,000 technicians in the United States who work in the field known as cultural resource management (CRM). The typical field technician possesses a bachelor's degree in anthropology, geography, or a closely allied discipline. The author's experience has been that few CRM field technicians receive adequate undergraduate training…

As a result of advances in GIS, students from a range of disciplines (epidemiology, public health, medical sociology, and anthropology) are seeking to learn how to apply a mapped, spatial perspective to issues of disease and health. This paper describes a pilot program whose intent has been to develop an interdisciplinary, skill-based course in…

An exercise to help improve the geographic skills of preservice teachers was developed and tested during a six year period on over 500 students. The exercise required these students to map two arrangements of roads and facilities within a small neighborhood. A set of special-temporal primitives (place, size, shape, distance, direction,…

The Sanders housing lawsuit in Pennsylvania provides a case study of how to incorporate current events into the teaching of cartography or population geography at the high school or college level. Settlement of the Sanders case resulted in the release of information about the segregation of public housing by race in the Pittsburgh area. The issues…

Pairs of students from two age groups made choropleth maps using Arc View. Evidence from their discourse is used to assess aspects of their cartographic understanding as well as the nature of their collaboration. Students from both age groups spent a high percentage of their time talking about cartographic strategy and a low percentage of time on…

Reports on a survey of students from 11 countries around the Pacific region who were asked to draw and label a freehand map of the Pacific region, to respond to questions about the emergence of a Pacific community, and to indicate whether they see themselves as a part of that community. (DSK)