Abstract
Integrating GIS and Remote Sensing into an Environmental Science Course
Track: Teaching with GIS in Higher Education
Author
One of the great challenges in undergraduate science courses is getting students to see the relevance and immediacy of the course content. Too often, texts emphasize global issues and general processes at the cost of topics with local context. This paper presents an effort in an introductory Environmental Science course to increase local geographic awareness and literacy through inclusion of basic GIS and Remote Sensing material. A Learning Unit was developed using Landsat data, ENVI, ArcGIS, and field work(!) to examine land cover changes and associated impacts in an urban watershed in Charlotte, NC. Geospatial skills, terminology, and concepts are presented seamlessly with those of ecology and policy. Pedagogically, critical thinking and independent problem solving skills are emphasized. This work is part of the Integrated Geospatial Education Technology and Training (iGETT) project.
Reed Perkins
Queens University of Charlotte
1900 Selwyn Avenue
Charlotte, North Carolina 28274
United States
Phone: 704-337-2393
E-mail: perkinsr@queens.edu