McMaster hosts sixth annual GIS Day for high school students
More than 350 high school geography students will get a special hands-on look at cutting edge geographic information system (GIS) technology at the sixth annual GIS Day Monday, Dec. 6, 2004 at McMaster University.
Hosted by the School of Geography & Geology and the Centre for Spatial Analysis, this event fulfills part of the Ontario geography curriculum for Grade 9, 11 and 12 students. Eleven high schools from Hamilton and Burlington have registered for the daylong workshop.
GIS Day is a global event that educates people about GIS technology, a computer-based mapping tool that takes information about streets, buildings, water features, and terrain and turns it into visual layers. GIS is used throughout the world to solve problems related to the environment, public health and health care, land use, business efficiency, education and public safety.
During McMaster's GIS Day, students will learn to use GIS to develop maps of Canadian national parks, global earthquakes and seismology, and Mount St. Helen's. These exercises will give them a unique perspective on the forces that shape our world.
Students will also learn about GPS technology and attend presentations by local industry and government representatives.
An annual tradition of GIS Day at McMaster is to encourage high school students to submit posters in a GIS poster competition. These posters explore areas of GIS applications that the students find interesting.
“GIS is used by everyone from farmers to retailers, and from federal civil servants to local city planners,” explains John Drake, director of the School of Geography & Geology. “People in nearly every profession all over the world are reaping the benefits of this extraordinary technology, and GIS Day gives us an opportunity to make students aware of the contributions that GIS is making in the fields of science, technology, information management, and the humanities.”
President Peter George states, “At McMaster, an important part of our high-school outreach program is to make our research excellence more accessible to high school students and teachers. GIS Day highlights our strengths in geographical analysis and systems and enables high-school teachers and students to receive hands-on GIS training and skills upgrading. This is an excellent example of a McMaster priority partnering with our secondary schools to improve the quality of education.”
McMaster's GIS Day is part of the School of Geography and Geology's Geomatics High School Outreach Program, which raises the visibility of the field of geomatics among high school students and their teachers.
Dino Crapsi, head of geography at Westdale High School states, “The McMaster GIS Day has many elements that make it a very worthwhile experience for our students. The guest speakers, and workshops enable our students to get a “big picture” from GIS users out in the real world. The research poster contest also provides our students with the opportunity to showcase their own progress and research problem solving skills using GIS software. All in all, this full day of guest speakers, hands on workshops, and interaction with members of the McMaster University geography and geology department is a rewarding opportunity for our students.”
To access video presentations and GIS Poster Competition images, click here.
