SE MAPS: A HANDS-ON INTEGRATED CURRICULUM PACKAGE INTRODUCING REMOTE SENSING TECHNOLOGY TO THE SECONDARY SCHOOL CLASSROOM

The SE MAPS project (Southeast Maps and Aerial Photographic Systems) is an interdisciplinary middle school program highlighting the geology and geography of the southeastern states. Development was sponsored by the National Science Foundation. Eight state teams have generated a total of twenty-one study areas that use a variety of remotely sensed images and other cartographic products of varying scale as the framework for hands-on student learning activities. Each of the six major physiographic regions of the southeastern United States is illustrated by two or more study areas that contain sites of geological or geographical interest. Six regional base maps contrast physiography, geology, land cover, elevation, political features, and cultural influence. Each study area is assigned a general theme that serves as the focus for student investigations.

A major objective of the project is to help students visualize the relationships between regional geology and geography and the resulting patterns of land use and development both in their local area and regionally. Sample materials were evaluated in classroom trials by teachers in Tennessee, Florida, South Carolina, and Louisiana with excellent results. Teachers lauded the interdisciplinary team approach to learning and affirmed that the emphasis on local and regional concerns would stimulate student interest and involvement and should provide common ground for integrated problem solving.