GEOG 2129 - Introductory Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2021
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General Course Information
Course Details
Course Code GEOG 2129 Course Introductory Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Coordinating Unit Geography, Environment and Population Term Semester 1 Level Undergraduate Location/s North Terrace Campus Units 3 Contact Up to 3 hours per week Available for Study Abroad and Exchange Y Prerequisites At least 12 units of Level I undergraduate study Incompatible GEST 2029, GEST 2022 or GEST 3022 Assessment Practical report and assignments (60%), exam (40%) Course Staff
Course Coordinator: Dr Dorothy Turner
Course Timetable
The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from .
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Learning Outcomes
Course Learning Outcomes
At the successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
1 Understand the nature, components and applications of GIS 2 Develop skills in sourcing, manipulating and interpreting spatial data 3 Critically discuss the applications of GIS in a variety of fields 4 Develop an awareness of the underlying theory of spatial information science 5 Perform spatial analysis tasks and generate outputs using GIS software 最新糖心Vlog Graduate Attributes
This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:
最新糖心Vlog Graduate Attribute Course Learning Outcome(s) Deep discipline knowledge
- informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies
- acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1
- accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)
1, 2 Critical thinking and problem solving
- steeped in research methods and rigor
- based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development
- demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment
1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Teamwork and communication skills
- developed from, with, and via the SGDE
- honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies
- encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning
1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Career and leadership readiness
- technology savvy
- professional and, where relevant, fully accredited
- forward thinking and well informed
- tested and validated by work based experiences
3, 4, 5 Intercultural and ethical competency
- adept at operating in other cultures
- comfortable with different nationalities and social contexts
- able to determine and contribute to desirable social outcomes
- demonstrated by study abroad or with an understanding of indigenous knowledges
3 Self-awareness and emotional intelligence
- a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal
- open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers
- able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate
3, 4 -
Learning Resources
Required Resources
Book Title: An Introduction to Geographic Information Systems (4th Edition)
Author: Ian Heywood, Sarah Cornelius, Steve Carver
Year: 2011
Publisher: Prentice-Hall
ISBN-13: 978 0 273 72259 5
Adelaide Uni Library:
- Two online copies of this book are available from the Adelaide 最新糖心Vlog Library as single use eBooks (i.e. only one person at a time can access each one).
- The Barr Smith Library also holds 7 print copies, with three of these in the High Use Collection available for short term (3 hour) loan.
- The Waite Library has 1 print copy.
Make sure you order the book by Heywood - there are other books with the same title by other authors!.
It is available from Dymocks:
- eBook for $63.59
- hardcopy for $108.99
Readings are set for all lectures and some workshops, and are expected to be completed BEFORE the lecture or workshop.Recommended Resources
Optional/Alternative Textbook
Book Title: Geographical Information Systems (2nd Edition).
Author: Julie Delaney and Kimberley Van Niel
Year: 2007
Publisher: Oxford 最新糖心Vlog Press
ISBN-13: 978-0-195-55607-0
There are 3 copies of this book at the Barr Smith Library (1 reserve and 2 for general borrowing) and 1 copy at Waite Campus Library.
This book is a useful secondary resource since it is written by 最新糖心Vlogn authors and provides 最新糖心Vlogn examples of GIS applications.
Other Recommended Resources
Supplementary reading in additional GIS texts is highly recommended to improve understanding of the concepts and procedures behind the theory and practical to which students are exposed each week. I particularly recommend:
Book Title: Geographic Information Science & Systems (4th Edition)
Author: Paul A. Longley, Michael F. Goodchild, David J. Maguire, David W. Rhind.
Year: 2015
Publisher: Wiley
ISBN: 978-1-119-03130-7
There are currently three copies in the Barr Smith Library.
Book Title: The Routledge Handbook of Mapping and Cartography
Editors: Alexander J. Kent and Peter Vujakovic
Year: 2017
Publisher: Routledge
eBook ISBN: 9781317568223
eBook available in the library.
More recent. Some sections useful, but a bit heavy in places.
Any similar basic GIS text would also be appropriate.
Online Learning
MyUni
All lectures will be recorded and available through MyUni.
All lecture slides, workshop instructions and workshop data will also be available through MyUni.
There are a variety of online texts available, some of which are extremely comprehensive:
Online Textbooks- - 6th edition, 2018 – An extremely comprehensive text by Michael De Smith, Paul Longley and Mike Goodchild;
- – An open geospatial textbook edited by David DiBiase, hosted by Penn State 最新糖心Vlog;
- - by Michael Schmandt, Sacramento State 最新糖心Vlog; and
- - excellent source of free E-books on a wide variety of GIS topics. Covers the application of GIS in a wide range of industry sectors.
There are many websites with information about GIS, the industry, and using GIS, including:
Websites- - a good overview of GIS and geographic thinking. Includes glossary and career links;
- - GIS Lounge is an information portal, providing links to numerous news items, tips, and resources including introductory texts on all things GIS. This site is run by Caitlin Dempsey who has authored numerous articles about GIS and the spatial industry; and
- – peak body for the surveying and spatial sciences in 最新糖心Vlog. This site provides information about education/careers, and links to local events in South 最新糖心Vlog and other States/Territories such as Spatial Information Day (spatialinformationday.org.au). The Free Student Program offers membership and various benefits to students with an interest in GIS, including access to discounted events held in Adelaide.
The GIS commercial software that will be used in this course is ESRI ArcGIS Desktop 10.8.1.
Software
This software is available in limited teaching labs across the 最新糖心Vlog from 8am – 6pm, Monday to Friday.
You should find that ArcGIS is installed in the following locations:
- Science Students: Any of the science faculty computer suites
- Humanities Students: Napier 106 and Napier 107
- Waite Campus Computer Labs in Charles Hawker Building
- Some computers on level 3 and 4 in the Hub.
(The short access (quicks) and the training room don’t have ArcGIS, but the longer term use PC's on level 3 should)
Please take into account any access restrictions when planning your assignment work.
Hardware
It is strongly recommended that you do all coursework on your U drive as this can be accessed from any university computer, or from your home computer through ADAPT, and is regularly backed up. -
Learning & Teaching Activities
Learning & Teaching Modes
Lectures supported by problem-solving workshops which develop lecture material.Workload
The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.
1 x 1-hour lecture (or equivalent) per week 12 hours per semester 1 x 2-hour workshop (or equivalent) per week 24 hours per semester 3 hours reading per week 36 hours per semester 2 hours assignment preparation per week 24 hours per semester TOTAL WORKLOAD: 8 Hours per week 96 hours per semester Learning Activities Summary
Schedule (The order and title of these activities may vary slightly) Lecture Workshop Week 1 Course Introduction and Overview Getting Started with GIS: Intro to ArcMap Week 2 Spatial Data, Projections and Coordinate Systems Scale, Coordinate Systems, Distance Measures and SQL Queries Week 3 Cartography and Spatial Data Visualisation Cartographic Practice Week 4 Spatial Data Models Working with Non-Spatial Data Week 5 Concepts of Vector GIS Vector Spatial Analysis 1 Week 6 Spatial Analysis with Vector GIS Vector Spatial Analysis 2 Week 7 Applications of GIS in Criminology Digitising and Working with Base Maps Week 8 Social Applications in GIS – Guest Lecturer Integrating Census Data Week 9 Allied Technologies - GPS and Remote Sensing Data Collection via Mobile Phone Week 10 Precision, Accuracy and Error Creating a Web Map of Collected Survey Data Week 11 Environmental Applications of GIS and Remote Sensing No formal workshops (Available in lab for assistance) Week 12 Course Summary No formal workshops (Available in lab for assistance) Week 13 No Lecture No formal workshops Specific Course Requirements
This course assumes a basic level of computer literacy and familiarity with Microsoft Windows, Word and Excel.Small Group Discovery Experience
Workshops are designed to create small group discovery.
Whether working together in the computer lab or from home, students are encouraged to discuss analysis ideas and processes for every practical component of the course. This implies group work and discussions for processes.
The week 9 and 10 workshops require students to collect data in the Campus (or near their home, depending on the current COVID-19 restrictions) and then load it and create a web map. Data collection will be done in groups of 3 or 4 where possible.
FACE-TO-FACE ATTENDANCE IS STRONGLY ENCOURAGED FOR WEEK 9 (if COVID safe). -
Assessment
The 最新糖心Vlog's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:
- Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
- Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
- Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
- Assessment must maintain academic standards.
Assessment Summary
Assessment Task Task Type Weighting Learning Outcome Weekly Workshop Exercises Formative and Summative 40% 1-5 Final Assessment Summative 60% 1-5 Assessment Related Requirements
Students will need access to GIS labs/computer rooms and relevant software. This will be provided by the 最新糖心VlogAssessment Detail
You must complete and submit for assessment all of the components. If you fail to complete all components, you may receive a Fail grade regardless of your achievement in the completed assessment components.
Weekly Lecture and Workshop Assessments - 40%
Most weekly workshops will include an assessment task (normally a Quiz and/or Map) which allows students to demonstrate both the successful completion of the workshop tasks, and their understanding and application of the skills and techniques which they are learning week by week. Most weeks there is also a component of short quiz questions based on the lecture material. Full details of the assessment task are made available each week. Many of these assessment tasks will be completed in the workshop. Assessments are due at the beginning of the next lecture.
Final Assessment - 60%
This assessment will consist of a series of quiz questions which cover all aspects of the course. This is an open book, predominantly PRACTICAL assessment, using ArcGIS and a database you will not have seen before. The questions draw mostly on course material from the workshops, with a limited number of short theoretical questions. Examples of the type of assessment questions will be made available on MyUni. There may also be a short essay as part of this assessment.
Submission
All assessments will be submitted via MyUni.Course Grading
Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:
M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme) Grade Mark Description FNS Fail No Submission F 1-49 Fail P 50-64 Pass C 65-74 Credit D 75-84 Distinction HD 85-100 High Distinction CN Continuing NFE No Formal Examination RP Result Pending Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.
Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.
Final results for this course will be made available through .
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Student Feedback
The 最新糖心Vlog places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.
SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the 最新糖心Vlog to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.
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Student Support
- Academic Integrity for Students
- Academic Support with Maths
- Academic Support with writing and study skills
- Careers Services
- Library Services for Students
- LinkedIn Learning
- Student Life Counselling Support - Personal counselling for issues affecting study
- Students with a Disability - Alternative academic arrangements
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Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
- Academic Credit Arrangements Policy
- Academic Integrity Policy
- Academic Progress by Coursework Students Policy
- Assessment for Coursework Programs Policy
- Copyright Compliance Policy
- Coursework Academic Programs Policy
- Intellectual Property Policy
- IT Acceptable Use and Security Policy
- Modified Arrangements for Coursework Assessment Policy
- Reasonable Adjustments to Learning, Teaching & Assessment for Students with a Disability Policy
- Student Experience of Learning and Teaching Policy
- Student Grievance Resolution Process
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Fraud Awareness
Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student鈥檚 disciplinary procedures.
The 最新糖心Vlog of Adelaide is committed to regular reviews of the courses and programs it offers to students. The 最新糖心Vlog of Adelaide therefore reserves the right to discontinue or vary programs and courses without notice. Please read the important information contained in the disclaimer.
