GIS 150 Introduction to GIS/GPS
03
Tuesday: 5:30-8:00pm
INSTRUCTOR: Toshi Ikagawa, Ph.D.
OFFICE: Naauao 116
OFFICE
HOURS: MFW: 11:30 1:00 pm, TR: 12:30 1:30 pm
TELEPHONE: 236-9216; ikagawa@hawaii.edu
EFFECTIVE DATE: Fall 2008
Windward Community College is
committed to excellence in the liberal arts and career development; we support
and challenge individuals to develop skills, fulfill their potential, enrich
their lives, and become contributing, culturally aware members of our
community.
CATALOG DESCRIPTION
This
is an introductory course in the applications of geographic information systems
(GIS) with a special emphasis on using ArcView GIS.
It includes database construction and techniques for spatial data manipulation,
analysis and display. Students will also gain basic experience with the use of
Global Positioning System (GPS). Applications will be cross disciplinary in
nature, including such fields as the environmental sciences, business
marketing, geopolitical demography, health/epidemic monitoring and real estate
management.
Activities
Required at Scheduled Times Other Than Class Times
None
At the
completion of the course, the student should learn to:
1. Use basic ArcGIS
desktop software functions such as displaying, modifying, and analyzing maps.
(Knowledge & application; assessed by lab exercises and the capstone
project)
2. Independently plan, organize,
and present a GIS research project (Application, synthesis and analysis;
assessed by the capstone project)
3. Use a GPS unit to find locations, and import
obtained GPS data into ArcGIS for further
investigations. (Knowledge and application; assessed by a quiz and lab
exercises; and possibly assessed by the capstone project)
REQUIREMENTS
COURSE SATISFIES
At WCC: Social Sciences
Academic Certificate: Bio-Resource & Technology (elective)
At UHM: Meets Social Science general education requirements (DS).
PREREQUISITES/COREQUISITES
None, however,
familiarity with basic computer operations and databases highly recommended.
RECOMMENDED
BASIC SKILLS LEVEL
Familiarity with basic computer
operations and databases
WARNING!!: Do not buy a used copy of the textbook that has an opened seal
for a program CD disk, unless you have an access to ArcGIS
software at work or at home already.
Textbooks:
(1) Getting to know ArcGIS
desktop, 2nd Ed. (by ESRI Press)
Required
reading available at the WCC Bookstore
(2) Trimble GPS
Tutorial: http://www.trimble.com/gps/index.shtml
Required reading available online
(3) GPS: A Guide to the Next Utility (by Jeff Hurn)
Optional reading available at the WCC Library
Data required:
(1) GIS 150 Class Data: http://www.wcc.hawaii.edu/facstaff/ikagawa-t/GIS150.zip
(2) The above is also available from the WCC Bookstore on CD.
METHOD OF INSTRUCTION
Lecture
and lab exercise
ASSESSMENT
TASKS AND GRADING
Student
Evaluation:
Evaluation
will be based on a total of 150
points allocated as follows:
! Samples of a reading assignment, lab
exercise report and semester project report are available on the GIS150 Examples page (http://windward.hawaii.edu/facstaff/ikagawa-t/GISExamples.htm). They are also accessible from the Laulima (https://laulima.hawaii.edu/portal).
1. Lab Assignments (60 pts) (NOTE:
Because of 2 holidays, Election Day and Veterans Day, we may be able to complete
only 10 labs in Fall 2008)
Twelve (12) computer assignments (5 pts each) will be distributed during this
course. Each assignment must be completed by the due date (See GIS 150 Schedule below). A penalty loss of 1 point per day will be assessed for
all late assignments.
See an
example on Examples page.
Each completed assignments MUST
be saved on the Laulima Assignments page indicated by the instructor. It
is highly recommended that students also save a copy of each assignment on
their own personal floppy disk/CR-RW.
2. Attendance/Participation (10 pts)
Attendance is mandatory and your
participation will be also assessed
by the instructor. Students
missing class regularly (i.e. more than 10% of classes), thus missing lectures
and lab exercises, cannot be assessed for SLOs and therefore will not be able to pass the course.
3. Preparation (20 pts)
There are ten
(10) reading assignments (2 points each) from the textbook (one to three
chapters; see the schedule below). Before each class, a student must submit a
word document that contains screenshot of each exercises final screen, as a
proof of preparation (that is, s/he completed all the exercises of the assigned
chapters).
Each completed preparation files MUST
be saved on the Laulima Assignments page indicated by the instructor. It
is highly recommended that students also save a copy of each assignment on
their own personal computer or floppy disk. etc. A
penalty loss of 1
point per day will be assessed for all late assignments.
4.
Quiz (25 pts)
A quiz on Basic GPS
will be given based on the required reading materials (http://www.trimble.com/gps/index.shtml).
5.
Semester Project (35 pts)
Project Content and Product (25 pts): Evaluation
will be based on the degree to which the project successfully addresses its
goal(s), includes the prerequisite GIS/GPS elements (as defined below) and is
displayed in an appropriate and esthetically viewable manner. A
penalty loss of 1
point per day will be assessed for all late assignments.
See an
example on Examples page.
Class
Presentation (10 pts):
Each project must be presented to the class on the WebCT (Student
Homepage). Each student
must complete a GIS project on a real world problem using the skills and tools
presented in this course. Two (2) students working on a single project may be
permitted by the instructor only under exceptional circumstances. For team
projects, each student will be awarded the same team score.
Each
project must:
·
Be
approved by the instructor and consist of one (1) or two (2) well-defined goals
(Lab exercises are good examples).
·
Contain
a data frame (map display)
with at least three (3) layers
·
Include
at least four (4) of the following six (6) GIS/GPS components:
1)
GPS
data collection (simulated data acceptable with instructor approval)
2)
Appropriate
attribute tables (including both numerical and string fields)
3)
Image
hot links (either scanned images or digital photos)
4)
Appropriate
Table of Contents legends and symbols
5)
Graphics
(chart)
6)
Layout
view
with label(s), table(s),
and appropriate text, scale, north arrow, etc.
IMPORTANT
NOTE:
Semester project will be used to
evaluate each students comprehensive
achievement of course objectives listed above. Students who do not complete the semester project cannot be assessed for these objectives and therefore will NOT be able to pass the
course.
5. Geocaching
(Extra 10 pts):
If
you have your own GPS unit, try geocaching (a
high-tech hide and seek game). You can find a cache near your location at Geocaching.com. Or you can find the following two (2) caches on the WCC campus:
1.
WCC Hoolaulea 2006:
N
21° 24.567 (21.40945)
W
157° 48.862 (-157.81437)
2.
WCC Campus Tour #1
N 21° 24.559 (21.40932)
W 157° 48.713 (-157.81188)
Using
the Laulima Assignments page, you report the name, location (latitude &
longitude), condition and surrounding environment of a cache (5 pts each for a
cache, max. 2 caches). Please note that you can upload your report only once. Due
date is the same as the semester project.
SUMMARY OF ASSIGNMENT TASKS
|
Subject |
Evaluation |
Points |
|
Attendance/Participation |
Attendance
is mandatory and your participation will be also assessed by the
instructor. |
1 pt x 10 = 10 pts |
|
Preparation: Complete the assigned
reading of the textbook |
Screenshots of all exercises |
2 pts x 10 = 20 pts |
|
Lab Assignments: Complete the lab assignment,
and submit the Lab Report (WebCT submission) |
Answer all report questions. |
5 pts x 12 = 60 pts |
|
GPS Quiz |
Go to a testing center, and take the quiz. Not accessible at home. |
25 pts |
|
Semester Project
Presentation: Present the semester project |
In class presentation |
10 pts |
|
Semester Project
Report: Complete the
Semester Project Report (Laulima submission) |
Completed semester project and self-evaluation |
25 pts |
|
Geocaching: Find a cache using GPS (max. 2 caches) |
Report the name, location, condition and surroundings |
Extra points 5 pts x 2 = 10 pts |
|
Total points possible |
150 pts (10 extra pts available) |
|
Course Grading Method:
Each letter
grade and its respective level of achievement is
provided in the following table:
Letter
Grade Definition
A.......... 90 100% of cumulative points
possible
B.......... 80-89% of cumulative points
possible
C.......... 70-79% of cumulative points
possible
D.......... 60-69% of cumulative points
possible
F.......... <60% of cumulative points possible
I.......... Incomplete is a temporary
grade given at the instructors discretion when a student has failed to
complete a small portion of a course because of circumstances beyond the
students control. All required work must be completed by the last day of
instruction of the succeeding semester.
Cr......... Achievement of objectives at
the C level or higher
NC........ Achievement of objectives at
less than C level or higher (formal administrative grade)
N.......... N grade will not be granted in
this class
W......... Official withdrawal occurs
after the 3rd week of a 16 week course and prior to the end of the
10th week. If a student officially withdraws by the end of the 3rd
week of a 16 week course, the record of registration in this course does not
appear on the students transcript.
Academic
dishonesty: (SERIOUS WARNING!!)
Academic
dishonesty such as cheating and plagiarism that may occur in this class will be
severely punished. It most likely will result in immediate dismissal from the
class. In other words, DONT DO IT even if you have noble reasons to do so.
It is NOT worth a try it in this class.
NOTE:
1. There
is NO extra credit work.
2. Make-up
exams will be all essay type.
COURSE CONTENT
GIS 150
Schedule
|
WK |
Lecture Topic |
ArcGIS Subject |