The Evolution of the Use of Geospatial Technologies and Their Impact on Spatial Thinking in K-12 Classrooms

Over the last 30 years, geospatial technologies (GST) have found their way into primary and secondary classrooms around the world. In this chapter, the evolution of teacher professional and curriculum development are explored in parallel with the changing technologies available in schools. While there have been a variety of innovative projects bringing GST to content areas across the formal curriculum in schools, implementation has not been widespread, nor has it scaled. In both the USA and abroad, investigators have teamed with teachers to empower and engage students to explore the world with GST; however, the support and funding for these projects has not kept pace with the changes in technology. Research on the impact of GST in education has also been somewhat limited, although there are recent efforts that are validating some of the promise that has long been attributed to these technologies.