A European Comenius Network connecting those using Spatial

(Geo-)Media and Geoinformation in school

Digital Earth in Media and

Learning

Advanced technological landscape evolved

Large organisations getting information into the hands of billions of citizens

Estimated 70-80% has a spatial component (Downs and DeSouza 2006)

Lives inundated with spatial information

People finding many uses – Flickr, Twitter, Facebook and Wikimapia

Learning and geo-media

Downs, R. and A. DeSouza (2006). Learning to Think Spatially. Washington D.C., National Academies Press.

Geo-information

Live real-time maps User-generated content Volunteered geographic

information Crowdsourcing Citizen Scientist Crisis response

Geo-media information

European societal challenges ◦ CORINE (Coordination of Information on the

Environment) project ◦ ‘Global Monitoring for Environment and Security'

(GMES) – 2004◦ INSPIRE Directive - 2007

Open governance – new opportunities for citizens to interact

Open data availability – freedom of information (Neelie Kroes, 2011)

Education & Training 2020 - Digital Agenda

European dimension

Visionary engineering-genius, Buckminster Fuller – GeoScope

Articulated in 1992 by former US VP Al Gore

Digital Earth

Digital Earth concept

Huge scientific movement Technology available Exceptionally rich opportunity Not yet expressed in education

systems

Digital Earth

ArcGIS Explorer Onlinehttp://explorer.arcgis.com/ Real-time maps

http://www.eurogeography.eu/digitalearth/digital-earth-real-time-maps.html

focuses on ....1. Concepts of space and place2. Tools of spatial representation: visualisation 3. Understanding of factors, relationships and

processes in different ways – simulation/model4. Reasoning processes involving spatial

interpretation, extrapolation and interpolation, and

5. Pro-sumers make decisions based on geo-media and spatial information

Digital Earth

15

Personal Learning Environments - Jeremy Hiebert (2006)

Hiebert J (2006), Personal Learning Environment, HeadsPaceJ, http://headspacej.blogspot.com/2006/02/personal-learning-environment-model.html

Digital Earth has a ‘geo-media’ orientation Media with a strong spatial-temporal

componentWhat competences are needed? Spatial thinking essential to learning

about the world we live in (Golledge et al. 2008)

Geo-Media and Learning

Golledge, R., Marsh, M., and Battersby, S., 2008. A conceptual framework for facilitating geospatial thinking. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 98 (2), 285-308

Spatial citizenship is a role for citizens to fully participate in society (Gryl, Jekel and Donert, 2010)

It offers us links between spatial representations, and therefore, geo-media and society

Access to a way of thinking about problems from a spatial perspective (Goodchild, 1992)

Geo-Media and Learning

Gryl I, Jekel T and Donert K (2010) Spatial Citizenship,3-23, in Jekel T, Donert K and Koller A (eds.) (2010), Learning with GeoInformation V, Berlin, Wichman VerlagGoodchild, M., 1992. Geographic information science. International Journal of Geographical Information Systems, 6 (1), 31-46

Citizen Scientist

Augmented Reality

Navigating spaces and places

European network – goals: Create a European Centre that will:

◦ Hold meetings, workshops and conferences◦ Build a Community of Practice◦ Research and produce a European ‘state of the

art’ - publications and guidance◦ Accredit and coordinate a network of Centres of

Expertise across Europe

digitalearth.eu Network

Create a Digital Earth community: dedicated to building a global commons (sharing) promoting down-to-earth solutions based on the

cooperative use of resources, curricula, and tools collaboration to enable future generations to have

technical and educational facilities for: ◦ exploring the Earth, ◦ better understanding its systems, and ◦ investigating impacts of human activities

digital-earth.eu Network

(http://www.isde5.org/)

Rooted in Citizenship education Based in the geo-sciences Strong use of ICT EC Priority 4:

◦construction of digital learning environments for the acquisition of key competences

What about the Digital Agenda 2020?

digital-earth.eu Network

1. Resources, data, technologies and geo-information

2. Learning and teaching3. Teacher education and

training4. Curriculum aspects

Four working groups

A European Comenius Network connecting those using Spatial

Media and Geoinformation in school

The NetworkOnline

http://www.eurogeography.eu/digital-earth.html

http://gis-analytics.eu/index.php/en/digitalearth/11-questionnaire

Online resource database

http://www.eurogeography.eu/community/

Digital Earth already plays an important role in addressing

social, economic, cultural, scientific and technlogical challenges affecting

mankind

Conclusions

Education for Digital Earth is to understand our earth system

Unique set of skills needed to successfully navigate our world

Convince education stakeholders Contributions for media experts Visit www.digital-earth.eu for more information and how to participate

Conclusions