Hi my name is Lisa David! I am a sophomore at Penn State and I live on campus. I grew up in Lititz, PA, which is right out outside of Lancaster and about two hours away from State College. I am majoring in Elementary Education. When I graduate, I will be certified to teach pre-kindergarten through forth grade. I would love to become a kindergarten or first grade teacher. This is a required class for my major, but I do like geography. I am a very positive, happy person. I enjoy girly things like shopping, getting my nails done, surfing pinterest, watching Netflix, and going to the beach. I am planning on living in the south because I cannot deal with any more cold weather. I love kids and I am super excited to teach the future of America.
The issue I would like to address is visualization. Maps are a way to illustrate the layout of the Earth. The problem is the world is round and maps are flat. Projection is converting points of the round Earth to a flat map. They help us to effectively understand the layout of the Earth, our country, and even the layout of our town. It is difficult to effectively and accurately translate maps especially with constant construction and the land ever changing. I agree with the problem because it is difficult to always have an up to date map. With my experience, if my parent’s car GPS is regularly updated then the map will not make sense and we will end up lost. It is also just difficult to convert the 3D land onto a 2D map so not everything is accurate. Overall, I think that this is a very important problem to address and I hope to learn more about it as the course goes on.
Hi Lisa! I am also a sophomore studying Elementary Education! My ideal grades are also kindergarten or first grade. Actually, I relate to pretty much everything you said. When I think of geography, the first thing that comes to mind is maps. In a culture that relies so heavily on technology, GPS’s are the “new maps.” I feel as though most people in our generation don’t even know how to read printed maps. In a newer sense, GPS’s also illustrate a distorted view of the Earth. I think this course will teach us a lot about visualization and all of the different forms it comes in.
Looking forward to working with you this semester!http://geog030.dutton.psu.edu/2016/01/15/katie-cuerou-module-1/
Hey Lisa! My name is Christianna and I am a Sophomore also majoring in Elementary Education! Your post caught my attention mainly because we have the same major which is really cool! We both share a love for kids, and the future America which I believe will bring some interesting perspectives to this class especially in the sense of caring about the environment for the sake of our “kids” and other future generations. I too, plan on living in the South or at least somewhere where the temperature doesn’t drop below freezing. After living in PA my whole life I am very much sick and tired of the cold and snow! Not to mention there are tons of teaching opportunities in the South and a need for great teachers 🙂 Looking forward to studying Geography with you this semester!
https://wp.me/p3RCAy-aTD
In my post I also talked about the maps, but on the issue of distortion with it. When I have spare time, I like to simply look at the google map on my phone. I would like to randomly check out random cities, to see how they are planned out, their road network and public transportation network if they have one. Keeping update with GPS is crucial as new buildings are added to the map on a daily bases as well as closed roads and newly constructed subway lines.
Here is my post if you are interested to check out my idea on the issue with distorted maps.
http://geog030.dutton.psu.edu/2016/01/18/m1_learningactivity_wzz5097/
Hi Lisa! I was very interested in your topic about visualization. I have lived seven places in the past ten years and visualization in regards to maps and how they help us helped my family and I when I was moving around so much. I agree with your statement of how even though maps have always been a way for us to navigate to where we need to go, they will never be as up-to-date as GPS’s are. When driving, a GPS also gives you warnings as to how many miles you must take until your acquired destination; unlike a map. Maps have been used for centuries but the idea of 2D versus 3D is also an interesting one especially when considering how certain 3D references can accurately help you remember certain characteristics of a certain place. Finally, the concept of construction and the changing of land you mentioned can be related to my post about human and environment interactions. Check out my link below to find out more!
http://sites.psu.edu/geog30/2016/01/18/getting-to-know-me-6/