This was the first of five labs that I was assigned as a component of Geob 270 – Geographic Information Systems. The purpose of the lab was to review examples of GIS applications, as well as complete an online tutorial from the Environmental Systems Research Institution (ESRI). ESRI provide this basic online course for individuals who may be interested in exploring the field of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Through a series of lessons, videos, tutorials and exercises, this course provided me with an introduction to basic GIS concepts, and also familiarized me with the ArcGIS interface. This first lab would serve as the foundation of the next four labs.
The learning objectives were as follows:
- In relation to GIS software:
- Demonstrate a basic use of GIS software, namely ArcGIS, by completing the online Introduction to ArcGIS provided by ESRI.
- These basic uses included displaying map features, adding data to a map, manipulating data tables, creating a map, and properly saving the map and its associated data files.
- In relation to GIS applications:
- Explore GIS applications posted on the Internet.
- Describe spatial data and geographic analysis for a GIS map.
- Discuss the data integrity and ethical implications for a GIS map.
Upon completion of the online ESRI course, I was awarded a Certificate of Completion.