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Exploring the Globe with GIS:   The Global GIS Curriculum

• Each of the lessons below is based on one of the series of 7 USGS Global GIS CD-ROMs / 1 DVD ROM covering different areas of the world.
  

• The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the American Geological Institute (AGI) have partnered to make the USGS Global Geographic Information System (GIS) database readily available to educators and the general public in the form of a CD and DVD based world atlas. The USGS Global GIS database contains a wealth of USGS and other public domain data, including global map layers of elevation, landcover, seismicity, and resources of minerals and energy at a scale of 1:1 million. The GIS, which is run on the included Environmental Systems Research Institute's (ESRI) ArcView Data Publisher software, is  produced both by region on seven CD-ROM’s and on a single  DVD.
  

• To order the CDs or DVD, visit the American Geological Institute's web site:

          http://www.agiweb.org/pubs/globalgis/

• For more information on the Global GIS Project visit::

          http://webgis.wr.usgs.gov/globalgis/

          and

• http://www.agiweb.org/pubs/globalgis/description.html

Research Article on GIS in Education Using the Global GIS Data

Article by Dr. Joseph Kerski that provides context for the educational curriculum developed for the Global GIS project by linking it to educational research and progress in spatial technologies in education.    

Overview of Objectives and How To Use the Global GIS Data and Lessons

Objectives, links to educational standards, and overview of GIS in Education using the Global GIS Resources.  

North America

Earthquakes

Exploring Earthquakes

Seven-part lesson where students examine North American earthquakes, including specific quakes, faults, earthquakes in their own region, plate tectonics, landforms, and volcanoes.  

Exploring Earthquakes, Two-Part Lesson

Two-part lesson reduced from the seven-part lesson above.   This was included in the 2003 Earth Science Week packet.

Europe

Exploring Earthquakes

Lessons where students examine European earthquakes, including the June 2000 earthquake in Iceland, faults, earthquakes in specific regions, plate tectonics, landforms, and volcanoes.  

Population

Exploring Population

Lessons where students examine European population, including age structure, population trends, land use, patterns, landforms, and land use.  

Water Resources

Exploring Water Resources

Lessons where students examine European water resources, including lakes, rivers, oceans, and seas, climate, population, and landforms. 

Central and South America

Exploring World and Central and South American Demography

Explore population, birth rate, life expectancy, literacy, and other demographic data around the world with a GIS, with an emphasis on Central America.  

Plate Tectonics

Exploring World and Central and South American Plate Tectonics

Explore plate tectonics, earthquakes, and volcanoes with a GIS, including the 1960 Chile earthquake, with an emphasis on Central and South America.