Abstract: This project is focused on the use of GIS for environmental education through the Schools and other resources. Schools have an important responsibility to introduce environmental education. GIS can be an important tool for visualising the environment in relevant layers. More importantly it can be an active learning environment, where students and teachers can not only consume information but actually produce knowledge, feel proud and engage collaboratively across schools breaking the barriers of language.

The site is a Geographic Information System (GIS) which provides access to a wide range of information related to location. Unlike a fixed paper map, you can change the content of the maps presented on screen, by turning “layers” on and off, you can change the scale of the map by “zooming” in and importantly objects in the map are linked to further information, either held in databases or via hyperlinks to other websites. You can search for streets, individual addresses, schools or parks, and view aerial images as well as access a wide range of local information, such as schools, theatres, hospitals, cinemas, art centres, sports facilities and activities for children and young people.

e.g. Students can add the information(graphically & also textually) and analyse the collated data, co-relate different layers etc. Take the example of Bio-diversity monitoring and data collection, students can start with A3 size maps of all the gardens, waterbodies and riversides. Mark the species, data regarding every plant and thus prepare the ground for planning future planting efforts etc. Similarly, students can help community be better aware and prepared for disaster management.

Objectives:
The specific objectives of this project were to:

• Explore conceptually how a GIS application could further the educational mission of the PCMC
• Determine which types of data would be most useful to package with this GIS application
• concurs with and advances the educational objectives
• provides multiple base layers for comparison and analysis
• Collecting and marking data about species, data regarding every plant and preparing ground for planning

The application called ENV-School GIS could be a very useful tool for curriculum work in primary schools as well as for school administration.

WHY USE A GIS in schools ?

The benefits:

• Learning by doing
• Visualisation
• Knowledge production
• create animations
• update websites
• Data collection (like maps, info. etc)
• Understand decision making and administration
• Fun and flexibility
• Very engaging for pupils
• An opportunity to add more creativity to teaching
• Can create educational exercises (in the fields of geography, demography, history…)
• Effective application to support ICT in Geography
• etc...

Using School-GIS application, the pupils could learn how to:

• See a map
• Modify maps
• Add data
• View the aerial image and compare with the paper or survey map.
• Estimate a distance and check it on the map with the distance tool.
• Learn about scale, coordinates, orientation…
• Measure a distance between different locations (ie school-home) or a defined area (football pitch)
• Study the local area in regard to the amenities (stations, bus routes, Schools, sports activities, art and entertainments), study local demographic data (population, household, % of unemployed people, deprivation, environment data (recycling sites…), planning restrictions…
• Learn about the local geography in detail:

• Number the trees (older than 5 years) and find the density of trees
• Compare trees to human ratios in identified different boundaries.
• number

• Produce annotated and thematic maps using a variety of text, line and area tools.
• Digital photos or other documents could also be linked to the information mapped.

We could also get historical images dating back from 1962 or earlier to analyse changes , urbanisation, transformation of the land, location of industrial sites….

Ideas for Teachers:
Integrate GIS into problem solving, and lead students through the process of GIS analysis:

• Get them to think about a place or a topic
• Ask them a question about it
• Get them to build a map
• Explore the patterns that appear

By using GIS, teachers encourage students to explore and analyse issues more thoroughly. The students will start to think more creatively and analytically, and develop skills which will stay with them for life.

Basic Features:

• Basic navigation tools to zoom in/out/to full extent/pan.
• Search(in English & Marathi language) to zoom directly to an address/road/postcode/park/school/garden
• Query for getting detailed information about school/garden/park/road etc.
• Print the map at different scales and illustrate a document.
• Layers of information you click ON or OFF.
• Whole application using Free & Open Source Software.

Last year a national survey about the use of GIS in schools stated that the reasons why GIS couldn’t be fully deployed in schools was because of

• Insufficient computer resource
• A lack of affordable GIS software
• A lack of teacher training opportunities