The Advantages of Software

The acronym GIS stands for Geographic Information Systems. This soft ware allows people to use their computer to capture, manipulate, analyze, and display data on specialized maps that can ... See More

The acronym GIS stands for Geographic Information Systems. This soft ware allows people to use their computer to capture, manipulate, analyze, and display data on specialized maps that can layer over areas of the globe. This is not a new concept but it has many useful applications for students. Aside from learning about GIS there is a study done to two groups. One group experiences a 5E lesson plan without GIS software and the other group gets a similar lesson using the GIS software. You will have to read the article to see how they compare.

Using Computers to Teach Earth Science

This article focuses on how to effectively use computers to teach Earth Science using the Geographic Information System (GIS). I really liked that this article outlined the lessons using th... See More

This article focuses on how to effectively use computers to teach Earth Science using the Geographic Information System (GIS). I really liked that this article outlined the lessons using the 5E model and provided step by step instructions for implementing in a classroom. Lesson plans and student activity sheets are included at the end of the article. Unfortunately, two of the internet links included in the resources section of the article are no longer active. These links are necessary to conduct this lesson; however, educators should be able to find active websites with similar information and modify the included instruction materials to use the active sites.

GIS

This article gives a nice introduction on how to use GIS software using a 5E lesson plan. Its testing results indicated that GIS software was more effective in teaching certain geographical... See More

This article gives a nice introduction on how to use GIS software using a 5E lesson plan. Its testing results indicated that GIS software was more effective in teaching certain geographical concepts. One major problem is that most of the websites no longer exist. A teacher would have to research in order to find alternate websites.