Incorporating GIS, GPS and Satellite Data in Classrooms

TwiST Workshop

Teaching with Spatial Technology (TwiST) — Empowering Student Discovery Through GIS is designed to teach K-12 teachers and college faculty members in the United States how to teach with Geographic Information Technology (GIT) in the classroom. The TwiST Workshop started in 2001 as the Conference on Remote Sensing Education (CORSE). Due to changes in technology and devoting more time throughout the event to geospatial technologies that use and advance remote sensing data, the title was changed in 2008. Each year the TwiST workshop has been modified to incorporate some of the newest technolgies to enhance the individuals' experiences.
The focus for the 2011 TwiST workshop is on using geospatial technologies to conduct a commuinty mapping project. This year we are working with the Auburn Business Improvment District to improve tourists experience in Auburn. In 2010, we worked with the Owasco Watershed Network to map components of the Owasco Lake Watershed. It is through this project and activites covered in the workshop that participants learn how to use GPS and GIS software to develop and carry out their own community project. Aspects of the project are connected to state education standards to see how these technologies can be used in classes from science to history and the humanities.
The workshop will be held in Auburn, NY June 28 - 30, 2011. There will be a single track this year, with separate breakout sessions for those wanting to explore some more advanced geospatial topics.