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SM-ART: Survey Maps - Introduced Reinforced and Tested
Dr. M V Ananthakrishnan
Consultant
Kanwal Rekhi School of Information Technology, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay,
India
Email: manantha@it.iitb.ac.in
Geography and History constitute the Social Studies paper in the ICSE curriculum followed by a large number of schools in India. These two subjects are normally considered as drab subjects and are very often made to look so by the concerned teachers. Students and teachers alike fail to realise that Geography is in fact close to science as is reflected in many of the popular websites.
Maps form an important component of the curriculum and three questions are regularly set to cover the (i) political and physical map of Asia; (ii) the physical, political and product/industry related maps of India;; and (iii) the Survey Map of a specific region covering Rajasthan and Gujarat in India. Survey maps are invariably mid-boggling to the students initiated to it the first time. The various symbols, colour patterns and shades create a sense of awe with the students often left worrying.
The authors have designed and developed a PC-based learning kit that takes the student right through the genesis of a survey map to the final stage where s/he is comfortably able to solve the question set in the ICSE Finals, year after year. The approach to the design of the courseware is based on well-proven pedagogical principles, reinforced with unique graphics and relevant examples of each feature in real life. The entire package has been developed using Macromedia Flash.
The step-by-step learning package is made up of (i) an introduction to how the geographical portions (for the ICSE curriculum) have been selected; (ii) the principal features normally displayed in a map; (iii) the explanation of each feature followed by an illustration from a typical survey map; (iv) the relevance of the colour schemes; (v) the scale and RF; (vi) measurement of distances; (vii) interpretation of features to predict the direction of river flow, human settlements and explicit landmarks, to mention a few.
The teaching methodology is centred around the ICSE curriculum and the learning package and is done in a number of steps viz., (i) allowing the student to explore an assigned section of the course, make notes and identify problem areas; (ii) facilitating joint discussions and clarifications amongst the students: (iii) teacher joining in the exploration of the section and clarifying on the problems online; (iv) extending the approach to all the features of the map; (v) evaluating the learning by giving assignments on a gradually increasing basis both in terms of content and difficulty levels; and (vi) conducting a series of tests based on actual ICSE papers of yesteryears but also ‘simulation’ papers.
The principal author has put more than 1000 students through the methodology in both the long (based on the normal school classroom time table) and short (a daily interaction of 1–2 hours spread over a month) formats. The net outcome has been one of the students getting high marks and the desire to get one copy for use at home to facilitate 24X7 learning. The major gains seen in this multimedia approach are seen in (i) the student gaining confidence in handling the subject; (ii) the understanding of the science behind the study of survey maps; and (iii) the persisting desire to solve as many assignments as possible.
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