PowerPoint Presentation

Spatial Thinking Assessment

An Invitation to ParticipateSEAGA 2012

Robert BednarzTexas A&M UniversityCollege Station, Texas, USA

Jongwon LeeEwha Womans UniversitySeoul, South KoreaGeography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityOutlineWhat is spatial thinking?Importance of Spatial ThinkingSpatial Thinking vs Spatial AbilityAssessing Spatial Thinking (STAT)Use STAT and Contribute to the Data BaseGeography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityPLEASE DO NOT CITE OR QUOTE2Spatial Thinking DefinedNational Research Councils Learning to Think Spatially offers a new conceptualization

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M University3Cognitive scientists, psychologists, and behavioral geographers have studied spatial ability and spatial thinking for decades. Recently geography and geospatial-technology educators have begun to conduct research in this area. Throughout this discussion, I will use the definition of spatial thinking established in Learning to Think Spatially Spatial ThinkingKnowledge, skills, and habits of mind

To useConcepts of spaceTools of representationProcesses of reasoning

To structure problems, find answers, and express solutions to these problems.

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityPLEASE DO NOT CITE OR QUOTE4Spatial thinking is defined by Learning to Think Spatially as the:knowledge, skills, and habits of mind and by habits of mind, I mean the prediliction to use concepts of space (such as distance, orientation, distribution, and association), tools of representation (such as maps, graphs, and diagrams), and processes of reasoning (such as cognitive strategies to facilitate problem-solving and decision-making) to structure problems, find answers, and express solutions to these problems,

Spatial thinking depends upon an understanding of SPACE and the ability to use the properties of space to conceptualize, solve, and express solutions to problems.

OutlineWhat is spatial thinking?Importance of Spatial ThinkingSpatial Thinking vs Spatial AbilityAssessing Spatial Thinking (STAT)Use STAT and Contribute to the Data BaseGeography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityImportance of Spatial ThinkingGeographyOne of two perspectives mentioned by both the National Geography Standards: Geography for lifeOne of two enduring themes of academic geography identified by Turner in Contested identities: human-environment geography and disciplinary implications in a restructuring academyGeography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityThe National Geography Standards (Geography Education Standards Project, 1994), argue that spatial thinking can be framed through two questions: What do students know (about space and tools of representation)? and What can they do (processes of reasoning) with what they know?

The Standards identify one of geographys two key perspectives as the spatial perspective, which obviously requires spatial thinking .

Of course spatial thinking is important across the humanities and social sciences where the spatial turn is apparent, particularly in sociology, economics, and history (Cosgrove, 2004).

6Importance of Spatial ThinkingGeo-spatial technology (GST)Importance of representations noted in Learning to Think SpatiallyRecognition of the role GIS can play as a support system for spatial thinkingNecessity for spatial thinking to exploit the advantages of GSTGrowing opportunities in the workforceGeography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityFrom the definition of spatial thinking presented previously, the significance of representation is probably apparent. In Learning to Think Spatially, however, the Committee leaves no doubt by stating explicitly that [s]patial thinking uses representations to help us remember, understand, reason, and communicate about the properties of and relations between objects represented in space (Committee on Spatial Thinking, 2006, p. 27).

Although the Committee mentions various types of representation relevant to spatial thinking, they assert that GIS had a clearly demonstrated potential as a support system for spatial thinking (Committee on Spatial Thinking, 2006, p. 221).

Sarah Bednarz and I have argued that spatial thinking serves as the foundation for using and understanding geo-spatial technologies (Bednarz and Bednarz, 2008, 254). Frequently training in geo-spatial technologies (GST) is highly technical, but recognition of the importance of spatial thinking in the context of GST is growing. To exploit GST effectively, students must understand: 1) the nature and key concepts of spatial thinking (propositional knowledge); 2) the appropriate application of spatial thinking (procedural knowledge, that is, the skills and cognitive strategies associated with how to think spatially); and 3) when to use these technologies effectively and appropriately (conditional knowledgethe habit of mind and capabilities to use it) (Bednarz and Bednarz 200).

Geospatial technologies has been identified as one of three key 21st century growth industries by the U.S. Department of Labor which has allocated more than six million dollars since 2004 to meet critical workforce shortages in the field (U.S. Department of Labor, 2007). 7Importance of Spatial ThinkingScience and other disciplinesCrick and Watsons model of the structure of DNA as a double-helixInferring subsurface structures from surficial features and interpreting seismic diagrams by geoscientistsUsing graphical analysis to handle the ever-growing volume of data Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityLearning to Think Spatially (Committee on Support for Thinking Spatially 2006, 55) argues that spatial thinking is essential in science: Spatial thinking is deeply implicated in the conduct of science[M]any classic discoveries and everyday procedures of science draw extensively on the processes of spatial thinking. 8OutlineWhat is spatial thinking?Importance of Spatial ThinkingSpatial Thinking vs Spatial AbilityAssessing Spatial Thinking (STAT)Use STAT and Contribute to the Data BaseGeography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M University

Spatial Thinking vs Spatial AbilityAbilityVisualizationRotationPerspectiveTable-top scaleTimed testsGeography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M University10Before there was spatial thinking there were spatial skills and spatial abilities. Much of the work done to determine the nature and importance of spatial ability was done by psychologists.

A review of that research shows a concern with replicability and experimental design performance tasks that were confined small scales using paper and pencil tests that were timed use of small samples or samples of convenience

Spatial AbilityLittle correlation between visualization and rotation and geography-relevant tasksNavigation, performance in geography, GIS or cartography Researchers began to argue for a broadening of spatial abilities

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityGeographers and other earth scientists especially became dissatisfied with the psychological conceptualization of spatial ability because it did not include some abilities relevant to the performance of tasks necessary to succeed in those disciplines.

Researchers often found that high scores on visualization or rotation tests did not account for subjects performance on other spatial tasks important in earth science and geography.

Not surprisingly, they asked if an ability to rotate a 3-D object was related to the skills necessary to operate in the environment or to use representations typical in these fields.

11Ability AugmentedSpatial relations proposedPatterns, correlation, way finding, overlaying, distributions, sketch mapping

Definition remains controversialGeography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityGolledge and Self, among others, argued for additions to the spatial ability. They proposed spatial relations, an ability composed of a large collection of skills.

Obviously, spatial relations is not as narrowly defined as visualization and perspective or orientation. Some think it represents a type of characteristic that is fundamentally different and that should not be grouped with visualization and rotation.

According to Golledge and Stimson, Spatial relations include abilities to recognize spatial distributions and spatial patterns, to connect locations, to associate and correlate spatially distributed phenomena, to comprehend and use spatial hierarchies, to regionalize, to orientate to real-world frames of reference, to imagine maps from verbal descriptions, to sketch map, to compare maps, and to overlay and dissolve maps (Golledge and Stimson, 1997, p. 158).

Is it an independent ability, a collection of skills, or another type of ability?

12Spatial Thinking

An amalgamConcepts (knowledge)Tools (spatial representations)Reasoning (ways of thinking)More inclusive (identifying spatial patterns, distributions, and correlation; way finding; and sketch mapping)Scale

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityIn contrast to spatial ability, spatial thinking is thought to be a broader, more general concept although the two are related.

Recall that spatial thinking is comprised of the knowledge, skills, and habits of mind to use concepts of space (such as distance, orientation, distribution, and association), tools of representation (such as maps, graphs, and diagrams), and processes of reasoning (such as cognitive strategies to facilitate problem-solving and decision-making) to structure problems, find answers, and express solutions to these problems (Committee on Spatial Thinking, 2006).

It is an amalgam of cognitive skills that permits individuals to use space to model the world in useful and powerful ways. Spatial thinking gives individuals the ability to comprehend structures in multiple ways and to represent them in multiple ways to help in remembering them.

13OutlineWhat is spatial thinking?Importance of Spatial ThinkingSpatial Thinking vs Spatial AbilityAssessing Spatial Thinking (STAT)Use STAT and Contribute to the Data BaseGeography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversitySpatial Thinking Assessment

Measuring skills beyond visualization and perspectiveSpatial Thinking Ability Test (STAT)

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityResearchers have argued that it is important to develop new types of assessment tools that can measure what psychometric tests cannot, namely spatial relations skills (Kali et al., 1997).

Libarkin and Brick (2002, p. 453) make this argument when they state, Visualization in a specific topic requires a unique set of skills; visualization of earth processes requires spatial and temporal projections not encountered in available assessment tools. Certainly, the field would benefit from instruments specifically designed for studying learning in the earth system.

15STAT

Two equivalent formsSixteen multiple-choice questionsBoth hard-copy and digital versions

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityTo meet the need to assess spatial thinking skills beyond the established spatial abilities, Jongwon Lee and I developed the Spatial Thinking Ability Test. The Spatial Thinking Ability Test was designed to evaluate students ability to (1) comprehend orientation and direction, (2) compare map information to graphic information, (3) choose the best location for a hypothetical facility based on several spatial factors, (4) imagine a landscape based on a topographic map, (5) correlate spatially distributed phenomena, (6) visualize 3-D images based on 2-D information, (7) overlay and dissolve map layers, and (8) comprehend geographic features represented as point, line, or polygon.

Each of the test items were created to measure a component or a trait of spatial relations proposed by Golledge et al. The Spatial Thinking Ability Test (STAT) consists of multiple-choice questions and performance tasks.

It has proven to be useful in a variety of situations.

16Impact of Teacher Training

Impact of Teachers Guide to Modern GeographyIntroduction of spatial thinking skills into classroomsTeachers showed significant improvement

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversitySTAT was administered to measure students mastery of the content and skills contained in the Association of American Geographers Teachers Guide to Modern Geography (TGMG) project materials. The purpose of TGMG was to improve the ability of geography teachers to incorporate spatial thinking skills into their classes. The project created both print and digital materials for pre-service and in-service programs. STAT was used successfully to assess individuals growth in spatial thinking skills and to determine the effectiveness of the materials in augmenting teachers spatial thinking skills.

17Impact of GIS Learning

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversitySTAT was also administered to university students to determine the effect of completing a geo-spatial technology course (i.e., GIS, cartography, or remote sensing) on their spatial thinking skills. Eighty students completed both pre- and post-tests, before they began and after they completed their semester-long courses. Although all of the students scored higher on the post-test than the pre-test, the students who completed only the GIS course were alone in increasing their scores significantly as a result of the treatment (p = .002). 18Components of Spatial Thinking

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversitySTAT test results were also used to explore the nature of spatial thinking, specifically if spatial thinking was composed of independent or semi-independent components.

Researchers such as Gersmehl & Gersmehl (2006, 2007), Golledge (1995, 2002), and others (Battersby and Golledge, 2006; Marsh, Golledge, and Battersby, 2007; Janelle and Goodchild, 2009) have proposed hierarchies or constituent components of spatial thinking skills and concepts. For example, the Gersmehls (2006, 2007) catalogue of spatial thinking skills, defined as those skills geographers use to analyze real-world spatial relationships, was based on brain activity.

19Components of Spatial Thinking

Students at all levels found the same questions easy or challenging

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityThe scores of 446 test-takers, 52 secondary, 149 tertiary, and 245 university students were used in this analysis. Not surprisingly, university students scored highest; they averaged 10.7 correct answers out of a possible 16. High school students averaged 7.6 correct answers, and secondary students averaged 4.6. Although average item scores for tertiary students exceeded those of secondary students for every test question, average item scores of students from two of the four universities were lower than the scores of tertiary students for a few items.One interesting pattern discovered during the analysis was that students at all levels seemed to have difficulty (or success) with the same questions. Secondary students scored lowest (or highest) on the same questions as the high school and university students. Geography students scored higher than others students, but the difference was not statistically significant (p=0.07). Similarly, although males scored slightly higher than females (10.4 and 10.0), this difference was also not statistically significant (p=0.18).

This pattern suggested that perhaps the skills were somewhat independent, just because individuals mastered some skills did not necessarily mean they mastered others.

20Components of Spatial Thinking

Factor AnalysisSix factors were identifiedLittle support for the hypothesized componentsThree of four questions grouping on the first factor are related to map visualization and overlayFour on the second concern point, line, and area symbolsDiscerning patterns and performing boolean operations characterize the thirdThe final two are determined by single questionsGeography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityA factor analysis was conducted to explore this idea. The goal was to determine if sets of questions were group or cluster based on the scores of the participants.

The analysis offered little support for the hypotheses advanced in the literature. It did, however, generate five factors that can help us understand the nature of spatial thinking skills. Three of the four questions loading on first factor are related to map-visualization and overlay, and four of those loading on the second factor assess the ability to discern the difference between point, line, and area symbols on maps. The third factor is composed of questions associated with comprehending mapped patterns and performing Boolean operations on map-like diagrams. The final two factors result from the high loading of single questions, a navigation task on a street map and the identification of positive spatial correlation, respectively. 21OutlineWhat is spatial thinking?Importance of Spatial ThinkingSpatial Thinking vs Spatial AbilityAssessing Spatial Thinking (STAT)Use STAT and Contribute to the Data BaseGeography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityContribute to the Data Base

Free accessPaper or digitalInternationally administeredGreat Britain, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, GermanyShare your resultsGenderCultureEducation

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M UniversityAlthough the Spatial Thinking Ability Test is copyrighted, geography (and other) educators may use it without charge. In return for permission to use the test, my colleague, Dr. Jongwon Lee and I ask that you share the results from your administration of STAT. Geography educators from around the world have used the test and have helped to begin to build an international database. As the number and variety of test results grows, it will be possible to explore interesting questions related to the cultural, gender, age, and educational background of the test takers. You are invited to help build this database.

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Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M University

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M University

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M University

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M University

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M University

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M University

Geography Education Research ClusterTexas A&M University