Rachel Bruce

Lisbon Regional School

GIS Classroom Implementation Plan
21
st
Century Technologies Course

I.

1. What courses do you teach?

At Lisbon Regional School, a K-12 school, I am a high school online educator and facilitator,
technology integrator, and a K-12 videoconference coordinator. I also teach an online course for
Virtual High School; Game Design Using Game Maker. In addition, I teach three face-to-face
courses for Lisbon Regional High School; Introduction to Game Design and Development, 21
st

Century Technologies, and the blended learning course, Information and Communications
Technology. I have also been involved with the implementation and development of digital
portfolios for our high school students. These portfolios are used by students to exhibit
completed work that meets the exit outcome requirements for graduation.

2. What specific skills or content do your students need?

My students need to meet the ICT state requirements, ISTE standards, and the schools online
course graduation requirement. In addition, students need to become proficient in critical-
thinking, problem-solving, and analytical skills. Curriculum must also align with
Common Core Standards. My students need to be able to demonstrate proficiency in the
following:
Develop knowledge of ethical, responsible use of technology tools in a society that
relies heavily on knowledge of information in its decision-making;
Become proficient in the use of 21
st
century tools to access, manage, integrate,
evaluate, and create information within the context of the core subject areas.
Use 21
st
century tools to develop cognitive proficiency in: literacy, numeracy,
problem solving, decision making; and spatial/visual literacy.
Use 21
st
century tools to develop technical proficiency at a foundational knowledge
level in: hardware, software applications, networks; and elements of digital
technology.
Create digital portfolios which address the following components:
1. Basic operations and concepts
2. Social, ethical, and human issues
3. Technology productivity tools
4. Technology communications tools
5. Technology research tools
6. Technology problem solving and decision-making tools
Represent proficient, ethical, responsible use of 21
st
century tools within the
context of the core subjects

Rachel Bruce
Lisbon Regional School
3. What major projects are already in your curriculum that you will be teaching next year?

The major projects already in my course curriculum include: game design and development
projects specific to various game genres; oral/written/visual thesis presentations based upon
online course content; digital portfolio development; collaborative thematic navigation exercises
using GPS; construction of robotic models and navigational programming; development and
application of a phone app; building a virtual computer and labeling its components; and a
videoconference production using green screen effect software.

4. Which of the skills, content areas or projects do you feel would be enhanced through the
use of online GIS or GPS?
Including GIS lessons and projects into the current GPS unit would enhance and advance student
learning in GPS, while introducing students to GIS. Using ISTE and state standards, students
would gain skills in the use of 21
st
century tools that access, manage, integrate, evaluate, and
create information and help students to develop cognitive proficiency in literacy, numeracy,
problem solving, decision making; and spatial/visual literacy.
II.

Support the use of supplementing your classroom instruction with the use of GIS. Based on
your course readings (include parenthetical citations) and what you have learned during
the institute:

1. Identify the advantages of using GIS/GPS in the classroom.

As demonstrated throughout the Geospatial 101, ARCGIS Online, and Curriculum Days
workshops, there are several advantages of using GIS/GPS in the classroom. First, teaching
about GPS/GIS expands student knowledge in a way where they can see the world around them
in a real and interactive way. Students can learn about their own communities (school, county,
state, and country) through geography, various data samples, and the use of existing data. They
can understand spatial relationships, compare and contrast changes over time, as well as examine
and analyze data related to populations, weather, environment, etc. Using GIS/GPS in the
classroom expands student learning by exploring, discovering, inquiring, and analyzing
information or data. Teaching about GPS/GIS gives students a deeper understanding of the real
world around them. The learning that is taking place is authentic and applicable to the real world.
Students who learn about GPS/GIS can learn how to use and apply valuable data to other areas in
their life (Internet-Based GIS Mapping).

2. Identify some possible obstacles to implementing GIS/GPS in the classroom.

Considering obstacles that could cause an issue with implementing GIS/GPS in my classroom, I
think the obstacles would be minimal. First, with using any technology, good preparation and
planning prevent major complications in the classroom. It is important to have the technology in
place and make sure everything is working in advance of implementation. I have a computer lab
with computers that are adequate for use with GIS online software. Our school has fiber optic
Rachel Bruce
Lisbon Regional School
cable connectivity and a T1 line. Our bandwidth speed is excellent, so there shouldnt be any
hardware or software issues. In addition, as with any technology, sometimes it just does not work
because of unexpected events (server is down, power outages, etc.), so having a back-up plan
that does not depend on technology is important. Lastly, as students are introduced to new
technology and concepts, giving detailed, step-by-step instructions and review will reduce
student frustration and anxiety. They will be more likely to focus on the information and not be
distracted by the problems. Good planning and delivery saves time because when classroom
plans are implemented carefully and effectively, time consuming problems can be avoided.
Lesson preparation and implementation will take time. However, building time into my schedule
to teach about GPS/GIS will prevent unnecessary stress for my students and for me. Therefore,
lesson and activity implementation is more apt to be successful (GIS in the K-12 Curriculum).

3. Evaluate the opportunities that GIS/GPS provides your students, and support whether
or not the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.

There are minimal disadvantages to teaching about GIS/GPS, so the opportunities do outweigh
the disadvantages. Considering the minimal disadvantages to teaching GIS (described above),
the opportunity for students to gain awareness of their world in a productive and engaging way
far outweighs any negative impacts on learning or preparation time. Exposing students to
GIS/GPS gives them valuable foundational knowledge they can continue to use and build upon
in other subject areas, as well as for personal use, professional use, and/or in college (Internet-
Based GIS Mapping).

III. Set a Goal to incorporate GPS or GIS in your classroom.

My goal to incorporate GPS and GIS in the classroom is to teach a unit on the Global Positioning
System and Geographic Information System. The unit will include a series of lessons and
activities, which will be implemented to students over a four week period. Students will begin
learning the basics of GPS, and by building upon their skills and knowledge, they will progress
to a final project. The final project is an inventory map of the street lights in the community of
Lisbon, NH. The map will be created using ArcGIS Online.

Student learning objectives:

to use GPS receivers to navigate to a specific location
to use GPS receivers to mark locations and collect waypoint data
to organize waypoint data using Excel spreadsheets
to create a map to communicate information using ArcGIS Online
to investigate a problem in the community and accurately report findings and share
information

Assessment:

Students will demonstrate mastery of GPS and GIS unit content through the successful
completion of the final unit project.

Rachel Bruce
Lisbon Regional School

IV. Develop a Plan

1. What do you plan to do?

I will implement a final GPS and GIS project at the end of my unit; Street Lights in Lisbon.
Students will need to answer the question; does the town of Lisbon have enough street lights to
improve safety for community members at night, and are the street lights properly located and
working? To do this, students will need to be broken into smaller groups and assigned to specific
precincts in town. Student will navigate to their assigned areas marking and gathering waypoint
data of all the street lights in their designated area. Using GPS receivers, students will mark the
location of each street light. They will note each street lights condition and describe its location.
Next, students will take the data they gathered and create an Excel sheet. They will need to
convert the Excel sheet to a csv format. Students will upload their waypoint data to ArcGIS
Online and create mapnotes for each street light waypoint. After creating an inventory map of the
street lights in Lisbon, students will discuss and decide which areas of town need more lighting,
and possibly, less lighting. Based upon their findings, additional mapnotes and symbols will be
placed. In addition, the class will write or email town officials with their findings including any
lights that are in need of repair.

The final project is aligned to the ISTE-NETS-S standards and competencies.
Creativity and innovation.
Students use technology and their existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes.
Communication and collaboration.
Students work collaboratively, both in person and at a distance, and to communicate ideas effectively to
multiple audiences using new media.
Research and information fluency.
Students use a variety of digital media to locate, organize, analyze, and evaluate information from a
variety of sources.
Critical thinking, problem solving, and decision making.
Students define problems, plan and conduct research, and identify solutions or appropriate decisions using
digital tools and resources.
Digital citizenship.
Students take responsibility for their own lifelong learning and should practice safe, legal, and ethical use of
information and digital tools.
Technology operations and concepts.
Students understand technology systems, select and use technology applications effectively, and are able to
troubleshoot systems and applications.


Rachel Bruce
Lisbon Regional School


2. How does it meet your current teaching requirements/curriculum and your student
needs?

I already implement a basic unit on GPS. However, I want to advance student learning of GPS
and integrate GIS. The classroom implementation plan allows me to advance and reach my
teaching goals. The lessons align with the curriculum standards (described previously).

3. How do you plan on incorporating the Geographic Inquiry Process into your teaching?

I will introduce students to the Geographic Inquiry Process by asking, and then finally
answering, the following question; does the town of Lisbon have enough street lights to improve
safety for community members at night, and are the street lights properly located and working?

I will use the following resource as a reference guide:
https://sites.google.com/site/nhinstitutes/geospatial/gis-and-geographic-inquiry

4. Identify who needs to be involved in achieving your goal.

I will consult with our schools IT coordinator to ensure the schools filter does not block the
websites and resources I will need to use to implement my GPS/GIS curriculum unit. I will try to
find funding through grants and our Education Foundation to purchase five more GPS receivers
and 4 mini-iPads. In addition, I will consult with the science department to see if I could borrow
some of their equipment for data collection.

5. Describe how you will evaluate successful integration of GPS/GIS in your classroom.

I will develop an Understanding by Design unit template, which will include formative and
summative assessments of learning. Rubrics will be used to assess learning. As students
complete assignments and activities, I will modify and reteach lessons and activities as needed to
reinforce concepts and skills to improve learning. Lastly, at the beginning and at the end of the
GPS/GIS unit, students will be given a writing exercise with the same prompt; explain what GPS
and GIS are and how they are used? Give some examples. Comparing the pre and post unit
writing samples will give me concise information about student knowledge and growth. In
addition, students will complete a final unit project; Street Lights in Lisbon. Students will
demonstrate understanding through the successful completion of this final project.