Sustainable Development Goals Challenges in mapping our world with geography education

Karl Donert, President EUROGEO, Director: European Centre of Excellence: digital-earth.eu

Director: Innovative Learning [email protected]

Sustainable Development Goals Challenges in mapping our world

with geography education

Presentation Aims: SDGs• What opportunities and challenges?

– Capabilities and Powerful Disciplinary Knowledge

– Open Access to Information– Learning Lines and Geospatial Thinking– Spatial Citizenship– Empowering Young People

Sustainable Development Goals

• 17 steps to a better world

How will we recognise and

measure progress?

Sustainable Development Goals

• 17 steps to a better world

How will governments be

made accountable?

• Meet societal challenges – need data– CORINE (Coordination of Information on the

Environment)– Global Monitoring for Environment and Security

(GMES) – 2004 – INSPIRE Directive – 2007 – interoperability– Open data, Open Science, Open research

• Open governance – new opportunities for citizens to interact on policy

• Open data – freedom of information (Kroes, 2012)

• Meet societal challenges – need data– CORINE (Coordination of Information on the

Environment)– Global Monitoring for Environment and Security

(GMES) – 2004 – INSPIRE Directive – 2007 – interoperability– Open data, Open Science, Open research

• Open governance – new opportunities for citizens to interact on policy

• Open data – freedom of information (Kroes, 2012)

Geographic information is

transforming decision

making

SDGs provide crucial links between nature and society

Nature: Physical equations Describe processes

Society: Decisions on how to Use the Earth´s resources

What sort of education do

we need?

UNEP initiative

http://www.geocapabilities.org

GeoCapabilitiesNSF and EU-funded project aims to improve the quality of education and training in Geography support for dealing with complex issuesGeoCapabilities encourages us to think and reflect on EDUCATIONAL GOALS and the value of geographical knowledge for attaining human potential and well-being

Twycross School


GeoCapabilities asks what sort of geography: develops knowledge that empowers individuals to identify, select and make informed, defensible choices about how to live (for the best) based on citizenship and sustainability?

Life itself; bodily health; bodily integrity (including the freedom from assault from others); the freedom to use and develop the senses, imagination and thought; emotional health; to engage in practical reason; affiliation; respect for other species and nature; play (including enjoyment and laughter); control over one’s material and political environment. (Nussbaum 2000)


Powerful Disciplinary Knowledge

One idea that underpins GeoCapabilities is the need to understand and value geographical knowledge as ‘powerful knowledge’ - or powerful disciplinary knowledge (PDK) – see Lambert, Solem and Tani, 2015.

Lambert, D., Solem, M. and Tani, S., 2015. Achieving human potential through geography education: a capabilities approach to curriculum making in schools. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 105(4), pp.723-735.


• Why would we use this image in geography teaching?Why would we use this image in geography teaching?• What would we want students to learn from it?What would we want students to learn from it?• What would be the benefits for your students?What would be the benefits for your students?• How might students be How might students be depriveddeprived by looking at this by looking at this

image without geographical knowledge?image without geographical knowledge?


GeoCapabilities Activity

“What are your educational goals for students?”


Results: Geography Teachers in England


GeoCapabilities

“What are your educational goals for students?”

Q. Are there major clues/themes/ideas here to help us identify powerful geographical knowledge?Q. If the survey had been conducted in your country, would the word cloud contain different themes/ideas?


GeoCapabilities argues that human capability is diminished without access to the powerful disciplinary knowledge that enables individuals to extend and deepen their thinking beyond their immediate ‘everyday’ experiences.

We think that the absence of geographical knowledge in formal education deprives young people of some vital perspectives, ultimately undermining their capabilities as global citizens

What is GeoCapabilities?



• more than the acquisition of ‘facts’• you develop the means to understand

and interpret the world … in ways that are distinctive (eg scientifically, artistically, historically and in the case of GeoCapabilities, geographically).

• studies should support the development of students to think geographically

http://www.geocapabilities.orghttp://tinyurl.com/zyt5lap



GeoCapabilities Course



http://geocapabilities.org/

http://geocapabilities.org/

• a new geotechnological paradigm (Kerski, 2015) • defined as a new way of doing school subjects• derived from technological advances • the huge increase in availability of spatial data

(big data, mining data, crowdsourcing etc.) • tools and data available to citizens • awareness of data quality now essential

Linking geospatial thinking to GeoInformation

Kerski, J.J., 2015. Opportunities and Challenges in Using Geospatial Technologies for Education. In Geospatial Technologies and Geography Education in a Changing World (pp.183-194). Springer Japan.

need geo-information for

decision-making …

but almost invisible in

education

http://www.gilearner.eu

A spatially literate student …

…. has the following characteristics•Habit of mind of thinking spatially – knows where, when, how and why to think spatially•Practices spatial thinking in an informal way – deep and broad knowledge of spatial concepts and representation…•Adopts a critical stance to spatial thinking – evaluates the quality of spatial data, uses spatial data to construct …

National Research Council, 2006, Learning to think spatially: GIS as a Support System in the K-12 Curriculum, Washington DC, National Academy Press

• way of mind, to help navigate the world – visualisations, information

• how we use/organise space around us• crucial to solving problems, big &small

Learning Lines (Flemish National Curriculum)

learning lines

Fieldwork Working with

images

Working with maps

Working with statistical material

Creation of knowledge

Level 1 Perception – knowledge of facts

Level 2 Analysis – selection of relevant geographic information

Level 3 Structure – look for complex connections and relationships

Level 4 Application – thinking problem solving


GI Learner competences


• Critically read interpret cartographic and other visualisations in different media

• Be aware of geographic information and its representation

• Visually communicate geographic information

• Describe, use examples of GI in daily life• Use freely available GI interfaces


• Carry out own (primary) data capture • Be able to identify and evaluate (secondary)

information• Examine interrelationships through

information• Synthesise meanings from analysis• Reflect and act with knowledge

GI Learner competences

http://eryica.org/page/principles-online-youth-information

How to empower youth to become engaged & make an impact on EU youth policy?

http://www.youthmetre.eu

Professor Karl Donert, President EUROGEO

Eurobarometer Surveys• Examined active engagement of youth

http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/flash/fl_408_en.pdf

Increasingly distanced from policy making and decisions

Key Stakeholdersyoung people

local authorities, local government

formal educationinformal education, civil society

policy makers operating at

different levels

EuropeanNationalRegional

Localscales

How well are EU countries doing?

http://ec.europa.eu/youth/dashboard/index_en.htm

monitoring and accountability

How well are EU countries doing?

transparency and open data


How well are countries doing?


How to empower youth to become engaged & make an

impact on policies they need?

http://www.youthmetre.eu

Study Groupshttp://youthmetre.eu/study-groups/

YouthMetreKey features:•a dashboard of European data on Youth•a database of good practice initiatives put in place by European public bodies, as perceived by young Europeans•a high profile launch event •training of multipliers

The YouthMetre

Map of relative success of youth policy

5 data features1.YouthMetre Index2.Data review3.Good Practices4.Map of Indicators5.Youth preferences

The YouthMetre

5 data features1.YouthMetre Index2.Data review3.Good Practices4.Map of Indicators5.Youth preferences

Data dashboard of young people’s perceived needs

http://youthmetre.eu/youthmetre/

http://youthmetre.eu/youthmetre

Youngsters input is needed

http://youthmetre.eu/study-group-surveys/

Opinions Crowdmapping ideas

Youngsters input is needed

http://youthmetre.eu/study-group-surveys/

Web: http://www.youthmetre.eu News http://tinyurl.com/YouthMetre1Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @youthmetre

http://www.youthmetre.eu/

https://www.facebook.com/youthmetre/?fref=ts

https://twitter.com/YouthMetre

https://www.instagram.com/youthmetre/

Conclusions• Sustainable Development Goals are critical for

our future• Very challenging for teaching …. • Learning should be transformative - promote

action• Use of geographic information essential• SDGs = Powerful Disciplinary Knowledge +

meaningful approaches • Learning lines leading to participation

International Year of Global Understanding Competitions

http://go.esri.com/IYGU-Competition

For pupils (aged 15-19)

For students (aged 19+)

http://go.esri.com/IYGU-Competition

International Year of Global Understanding Competitions

Karl Donertwww.innovativelearning.co.uk

[email protected]@karldonert

Sustainable Development Goals Challenges in mapping our world with geography education

Education

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