Google Earth Survey Results

A recent survey conducted on behalf of Digital Explorer shows that Google Earth has a significant positive impact on teaching and learning.

The survey was sent out to 481 geography teachers across the UK who had attended Google Earth training courses.

80% of respondents noted an increase in pupil attainment and their understanding of geography since using Google Earth in the classroom.

Similarly, 80% stated that their pupils were more engaged and 90% were likely or very likely to recommend Google Earth as a teaching tool.

“These figures are fantastic and back up what we have heard from teachers anecdotally,” commented Jamie Buchanan-Dunlop. “When we first started using Google Earth and training other teachers, we thought it was an amazing way to engage young people in environmental and global issues and we now have the evidence to back that up.”

Digital Explorer first used Google Earth on an expedition to Morocco in 2006 and since then has trained over 500 teachers to use Google Earth on their own field trips and in the classroom. The software has the ability to make “international learning more real” and “brings the wider world into the classroom” according to teacher comments as part of the survey. Others mention that they “can’t use it enough” and through it “geography is made more accessible and personal”. However, teachers also highlighted that school networks and ICT infrastructure can be a barrier to the widespread use of technologies like Google Earth in the classroom.

“I loved the Digital Explorer training and was full of ideas when I came back to school. The number one factor holding me back is the school network. Images loaded into Google Earth do not load in time and if I put a class on Google Earth it grinds to a halt. All very sad! I have high hopes for better results when we get a new school!” explained one course participant.

The survey was designed and conducted by Sandy Beatty of Sandy Beatty Services Ltd on behalf of Digital Explorer. 481 survey invitations were delivered to the email addresses of the participants of Digital Explorer Google earth training courses held between January 2007 and July 2009.

A full copy of the report can be downloaded from:

http://digitalexplorer.co.uk/press/google-earth-in-the-classroom.pdf

Coronation Street

Coronation Street has been added to Google Street View.

View Larger Map

Could be a useful place to visit with students, perhaps for a literacy task ?

Are there any other soap opera locations in Street View ?

Via Twitter.

Google Earth in Primary Classroom

A new resource created and shared by Graeme Eyre, from the Anglo European School in Essex.

Graeme is also one of the GA's Primary Geography Champions.

Using Google Earth In The Primary Classroom

View more documents from Graeme Eyre.

Language of Landscape Survey - prize draw

The Ordnance Survey Free Maps for 11 Year Olds are arriving in schools - you may already have had yours...

When you get the maps, you will also find a couple of (much sought after) hard copies of a publication called "The Language of Landscape"

The booklet is supported by a series of downloads from the NATURAL ENGLAND website.

I have created a SURVEY MONKEY SURVEY for those who have got their maps, and have also made use of the "Language of Landscape" to help students use the maps: whether inside or outside the classroom (or ideally both...)

Click Here to take survey

If you have used the maps and the book, please fill in the survey.

All completed questionnaires by 1st of December will be entered into a Prize Draw to win a copy of the KS3 Teachers Toolkit title: "Look at it this Way", a copy of the Geography Collective's "Journey Journal" and a few other geographical goodies....

Don't forget to use Google Earth with your OS maps...

Latest Sightseer

The latest version of Google Earth 5 is now available to download: via GOOGLE SIGHTSEER.

Make sure that you have this up to date version....

Also included is a wider range of 3D cities.

Also mentions some GOOGLE HEROES.

A nice additional VIRTUAL TOUR has been put together by VR WEB design.

This shows LONDON.

Collaborative document

Now up to 24 ideas in this collaborative document started by Tom Barrett...

Climate Change Resource on Google Earth

Thanks to Ollie Bray for the tipoff to a resource for Google Earth which is being launched in time for Copenhagen climate change conference in December.

Watch the video for more details...

The Google Holodeck

Via Twitter



Cool...

New GA website now live....

Not directly Google Earth related I know, but....

The GA web team: Anne Greaves and Ben Major, have been working away for months with designers Ledgard Jepson on a new website for the Geographical Association, and it is now live, after several weeks of beta testing and tweaking. Visit the GA URL http://www.geography.org.uk to see the new site.

The site looks a lot brighter, clearer and easier to navigate, and uses more of the screen’s width. Thanks to a major effort on tagging the resources, it is also easier to find things using the ‘Search’ function if they are not immediately obvious from the home page, and a new ‘Resource Finder’ should help you find something appropriate to the key stage and topic that you are interested in quickly, or items written by a particular author.

A one page user guide to the new site and how it’s laid out can be downloaded by following the link (PDF download): http://www.geography.org.uk/download/GA_NewWebsiteGuide.pdf

Members can also bookmark their most useful sections of the website on their own personal homepage. Logging in to the site will provide members with details about their account, and allow access to the journals which you subscribe to.

There are plenty of new items in the shop, which are displayed in a scrolling window, which will also suggest items that might be of relevance to you if you login.

News is easier to find, and has all been updated.

If you are not already a GA member, this is a good time to join and take advantage of the many membership benefits.

The website is also home to all the resources supporting the GA’s manifesto for school geography “a different view”.

Download the latest GA MAGAZINE from the site now

500 million Google Earth users ?

Thanks to @gearthblog via Twitter for the figure, from a presentation available online by Michael T Jones of Google

Google Earth GIS Training

Advance notice of a session on "cheap GIS solutions" that I will be facilitating at 4pm next Tuesday at the Brinsworth Training Centre, opposite CENT near the MAGNA centre....

The event is being organised by the GA Rotherham Branch.

I will be talking about the use of cheap GIS solutions: particularly the use of Google Earth, which could be used in a progressive way to map data and connect it to a location.

I will mention a range of projects, including Noel Jenkins' impressive Wellington Stories project.

Michael Palin and Ben Saunders

Google Earth is a great tool for mapping children's stories...

Noel Jenkins has been developing his Wellington Stories mapping activity...

View Wellington Stories in a larger map

This involves QR codes and also GOOGLE MAPPING.

Earlier this year, Michael Palin was introduced as the new President of the Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers)

There's an interesting article in the Independent newspaper today, which can be read by clicking the link.

A few interesting quotes on what Michael thinks about geography can be found in the article.

"For some reason, geography is not seen as a popular subject in school. It's seen as very unglamorous. Yet when I was at school, I can remember geography offering me the chance to get out and go on field trips and go on walks, and I loved maps, I loved atlases, I loved learning about other countries and places where things were different from our own – and that's all covered by geography."

Good to hear the interest in 'the Boss' too....

Ben Saunders is an Honorary Vice President of the Geographical Association.

Ben Saunders from Ben Saunders on Vimeo.

Follow Ben on Twitter @polarben is his account

A recent tweet by Ben lead me to "The Wilderness of Childhood" by Michael Chabon: an article from the NY Review of Books...

This contains an interesting exploration of the importance of place and exploration in children's lives: a theme that was also picked up in the Michael Palin interview.

All of this fits in completely with many of the projects that are currently underway at the Geographical Association, investigating local area using mapping, GIS and technology. These are certainly "interesting times" for geography.

To finish, a quote from the Michael Chabon article:

"Childhood is a branch of cartography"

Map of the Day

Powered by Google Earth Hacks | More info about this file

“They shall grow not old as we that are left grow old
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.”

Thanks to Keir Clarke

Google Earth and beyond...

An article in yesterday's "Education Guardian" mentioned a few of the GA's current projects.
There was a plug for YOUNG PEOPLE's GEOGRAPHIES, particularly the work done in Nottingham.

One exciting trend is encouraging young people to help shape subjects with teachers. As a part of the Young People's Geographies project run by the Geographical Association, key stage 3 pupils from three Nottingham schools used handheld devices to capture their experience of the city's market square. Pupils recorded their own narrative while answering a range of more conventional geographical questions about the area. Elizabeth Barratt, director of humanities at the Nottingham Emmanuel school, says: "They were able to capture places and spaces in a more immediate and personalised manner."

There was also mention for the work that is being done in Rotherham as well, with hand-held devices by Tony Doddsworth and colleagues.
Also interesting to see Barrie Morgan from CENT in Rotherham talking about the podcasting work that he's been doing with a primary school in Rawmarsh.

More on this to come...

Geography training - Google Earth too...

Geography training has a new face: well, two new faces actually...

From 1st June 2009, a new geography CPD provider is available.

Launching today is a new CPD training opportunity for colleagues in the UK, and beyond...
GEOGRAPHY TRAINING joins together the Geographical Association's own Alan Parkinson, with International Baccalaureate specialist, and creator of Geography all the Way: Richard Allaway.
In addition to the existing face-to-face and online CPD opportunities available from the Geographical Association, we offer a tailored service, with training to match your needs, at a venue to suit you.

Areas of speciality:

• Creative approaches for the teaching of Geography
• The use of Information and Communication Technology in Geography teaching
• Recent changes to the Key Stage 3 and GCSE programmes
• International Baccalaureate Geography - including the 2009 syllabus change
• IGCSE Geography
• Training focused upon application such as Google Earth, GIS applications, web2 tools etc

If you are interested please get in touch to discuss our availability and the necessary fees.