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Navigating
Place-Based Learning
Mapping for a Better World
Elizabeth Langran · Janine DeWitt

Navigating Place-Based Learning
Elizabeth Langran · Janine DeWitt
Navigating
Place-Based Learning
Mapping for a Better World
Elizabeth Langran Janine DeWitt
Marymount University Marymount University
Arlington, VA, USA Arlington, VA, USA
ISBN 978-3-030-55672-3 ISBN 978-3-030-55673-0 (eBook)

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55673-0
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer
Nature Switzerland AG 2020
This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the
Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights
of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on
microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and
retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology
now known or hereafter developed.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc.
in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such
names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for
general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and informa-
tion in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither
the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with
respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been
made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps
and institutional affiliations.
Cover illustration: © Alex Linch/shutterstock.com
This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature
Switzerland AG
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
To our students… Long may you roam
Foreword: Toward Mapping for a
Better World
Yet, not “forward,” but backward in time, since to understand a place, we

must consider it as a place in time: the logics of time—the chronological
pasts that have constructed it: in other words, the
Geologic
Hydrologic
Geomorphologic
Climatologic
Meteorologic
Ecologic
Paleologic
Archaeologic
Anthropologic
and finally its current Sociologic phenomena, such as settlement patterns,
routes along water: outward to and from it; its drainage patterns, inter-
ruptions, and their impact on habitats and human settlements, high and
low elevations, and relationships to production, economics, and power.
Therefore the maps that represent the preexisting and current conditions
must be consulted in order to construct a “deep map.”
The “deep map” provides the spatiotemporal context that allows
for deeper reflection on the power and potential of change that is of
course, inevitable. While the list of “logics” may seem irrelevant to the
current sociological conditions, the knowing of those preexisting condi-
tions compose the critical knowledge the powerful own and that the
vii
viii FOREWORD: TOWARD MAPPING FOR A BETTER WORLD
dispossessed need, to understand the positioning of current events; and

therefore to provide a basis for better decision-making.
How did humans know where to go? Since we must have water, we
must follow water. Water may lead humans upstream or downstream,
north, south, east, or west; to its source or its eventual destination as
it flows. The tributaries of a river drain mineral, animal, and vegetable
resources to its sediments, depositing new soil, expanding valleys of new
land, and continually doing so until the source waters meet the sea. These
are the lifelines humans must inhabit. Having inhabited them, humans
construct cultural landscapes upon the river and its deposits that give
them life. Understanding the necessary role of water—potable water—
must precede any other interpretation of any place. Who, how, when, and
why was the river bridged, diverted, dammed? Where is it polluted?
Where, then, is the source water of each city? How, when and by whom
was it settled? How did it become a center of activity for the area? For
there are the geology, the layers of occupation, the ultimate resources of
that place. Understanding the underlying geology and infrastructure is
critical to understanding the current conditions of a place. The sources
that become constructed as “resources” must be presented. Where are
the water lines, the roads, the schools, the churches, the health services?
How did these shape the settlement and subsequent history of those who
came to this place, and when, in what order, by which strokes of history
did the place become populated, and what were their relationships? What
do the historic maps of the region reveal about the constraints upon who
lives where?
Pre-Columbian coastal Peruvian city-states were built on the coastal
plain (once much more extensive to the Pacific) as the rivers that
drained the once-glaciers deposited gold, copper, and other minerals
that became wealth. Farm communities up the slopes of the city-states’
Andean elevations, known as Tierras: Caliente, Templada, Fria, Helada, &
Nevada established patterns that endure today. Post-glacial flooding and
mudslides attacked the downstream cities. But the gold? Some artifacts
remain, but the 95-year Incan Empire’s expansion into northern Peru
and Ecuador amassed the gold from the captured city-states, only to be
offered by Atahualpa, the Incan heir, as his ransom to Pizarro and Spain
by 1533. Geologic events both fed and destroyed those cities who, in
response to the floods, had sacrificed hundreds of humans.
In a 1999 middle school project on pre- and Civil Rights Era Raleigh,
NC, historic maps showed students the raw mapping of segregation in
FOREWORD: TOWARD MAPPING FOR A BETTER WORLD ix
the city’s historic Sanford insurance maps. While these students still lived
in the designated southeast part of town, they began to understand what
had come before that, and while by then school choice gave them other
options, the de facto residential patterns persisted.
In the following chapters, the investigations of “place” focus largely in
cities as landscapes of cultural activity. Whose? When and how did these
evolve? How did settlement expand from the central water source by its
inhabitants? Who lives “in the Heights?” Who lives in the dense and low
elevations where flooding occurs and services are absent? In Chapter 3,
the concept of Critical Place-based Inquiry is presented, using Bednarz’
1994 basic geographic inquiry process of:
• Ask Geographic questions

• Acquiring geographic resources (or information)
• Visualizing geodata
• Cognitively develop and process knowledge and produce or process
geodata
• Answer geographic questions
• Present the results of geographic inquiry.
Pushing further from these results, students are asked to develop a critical
lens using Freire’s concept of of “Reading the world”; taking a critical
stance on what is uncovered through this process, for example,
• What are the best features of our community? What could make it
better for all?
What follows is an articulation of a Critical Place-Based Inquiry Model

to stretch beyond the surface toward the social context and dynamics
of the location using “City as Text” and other resources with specific
considerations, suggested devices and strategies as well as recommended
assessments, rubrics, and interpretive strategies such as D.I.V.E.: Describe,
Interpret, Validate, Evaluate. Many other design and strategies and analyt-
ical tools and processes are introduced to support this type of inquiry.
Specific attention and safety precautions are offered under “Inclusive
Mapping: Different Learners Experience Different Challenges,” where
there is an admirable discussion of adapting this type of inquiry for all
students.
x FOREWORD: TOWARD MAPPING FOR A BETTER WORLD
In the not-so-distant last century, the year 2020 was seen as a future
time when all problems would be solved, the earth a healthier planet
than it was then, and when all things would be possible. Instead, we
inherit a confounding and insidious pandemic, the continued and height-
ened awareness of racial injustice and its persistence, and continued polit-
ical impotence for righting the wrongs incurred on the planet. There’s
been plenty of research, enough data to hold down library shelves world-
wide, yet the shining moment predicted as the time we would be better
continues to elude us. There isn’t even a new (impossible?) deadline yet.
In the twentieth century, GIS educators led place-based investigations
in middle and high schools that challenged water quality issues in Flint,
Michigan (only being addressed today), challenged historical race issues
in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Ground Truthed local land areas’ perme-
ability for improved remotely sensed data land classifications for their
USGS partner in Fairfax, Virginia, among other projects. At the time,
the Freireian approach was labeled “Problem-based learning.”
During their work on this volume, authors Langran and DeWitt artic-
ulate the potential of “Critical Place-Based Pedagogy” in the unusual
context of COVID-19 social distancing. In the upheaval of canceled face-
to-face classes, one student found COVID-19 data from Johns Hopkins
and analyzed it with social vulnerability data. Students were learning to
access types of data that were almost immediately picked up by news
outlets in near real time, clearly demonstrating its critical nature.
In this century, the ubiquity of digital image and data-based mapping
options has increased and become more compatible among platforms and
media of all kinds. Cell-phone technologies have proliferated and made
these kinds of studies and learning more productive and sharable. This
volume brings these platforms to the practices of mapping and spatial
literacy from a local-to-critical issue focus incorporating spatial literacy-to-
critical pedagogy, providing articulate discussions and examples of instruc-
tional and educational technology solutions for such critical place-based
inquiry.
In this once future landmark year, the authors responded to unimag-
inable constraints realizing and demonstrating in the doing of Critical
Place-based investigations, the continued need for “mapping for a better
world.”
Cape Cod, USA Marsha Alibrandi

June 2020
Preface
Common Ground: Our Love

for Learning Adventure
When the two of us first met, we quickly discovered several common inter-
ests that were to shape our lunchtime conversations for years to come. We
enjoyed experimenting with the teaching potential of new technologies
and we craved opportunities for getting students outside the four-walled
classroom! Coming from two different disciplines (education and soci-
ology), we found common ground in place-based learning. And although
our formal training was not in the discipline of geography, we were drawn
to geospatial questions out of curiosity and a spirit of adventure. We took
a leap and decided to “play” at teaching—and learn by doing.
Our first joint venture involved applying for a Provost’s grant at our
university—we tested several mobile mapping devices. Although we found
the project intuitive, other faculty at our university questioned the value
of testing a variety of tablets for the purpose of connecting the class-
room with field excursions. Their doubts were not the only challenges we
faced. Like many pilot projects we found that the expense associated with
purchasing enough equipment for an entire class was prohibitive. After
that point we each ventured into different directions—globally networked
learning for Janine and mobile device learning for Elizabeth. In spite of
taking different paths, the classroom activities we designed continued to
pull in place-based inquiry. And we often suggested that our colleagues
xi
xii PREFACE
add a spatial component to their assignments. Without realizing it, we

had discovered the added value of using spatial tools to promote critical
reasoning. We began to consider how spatial analysis could make visible
complex social phenomena. And so—our journey, that started as “just
lunch,” led us to this book.
Arlington, USA Elizabeth Langran

Janine DeWitt
Acknowledgments
Writing a book was as hard as I expected. If it weren’t for the encourage-

ment of my family, I probably would have surrendered long ago. Thanks
to each of you for putting up with this reluctant writer. There are a
number of gifted educators who helped me imagine how to teach outside
a four-walled classroom. Carolyn Oxenford supported our first project
when others couldn’t imagine where we were headed. I learned how to
structure meaningful student excursions by planning global classrooms
with Victor Betancourt, the Director of MU’s Center for Global Educa-
tion. My colleagues, Delario Lindsey and Matt Bakker, sent me home to
write on more than one occasion. You shaped my thinking about critical
pedagogy more than you realize. Seeing the world through the eyes of
my students taught me the value of multiple perspectives. Elizabeth—you
are a great travel companion in every sense of the word, whether we are
en route to Paris or just imagining a new classroom excursion. Through
good times and bad, laughter and tears, you remained steady and certain
that we could harness the potential of place-based learning—you are a
blessing my friend, thank you for inviting me along for the ride.
—Janine DeWitt
xiii
xiv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
It is with deep gratitude that I want to acknowledge the many people who
have offered support during this process:
First, I wish to thank my family and Bruce for their support and
patience as I worked on this for several years. I’m sorry I could not finish
this in time to present my father with a copy—I know he would have
been proud. Thanks to Marsha Alibrandi, for roping me into her world
of geospatial technology in the first place. We surmounted so many chal-
lenges in those early days! I’d like to acknowledge Esri’s education team,
especially Tom Baker and Joseph Kerski, as we pushed the boundaries on
the technology until we found a way to tell the stories of place the way we
wanted to. I am grateful for my students, who creatively tried out these
new technologies. We appreciate the patience and support of our editors
at Palgrave Macmillan as we worked to complete this manuscript through
several personal challenges. I keep having new discoveries that I want to
add to this book, but it is time to send it off. Finally, thank you Janine for
going on this adventure with me. I know the strength of this book is due
to your thoughtful approach and willingness to embrace inquiry in your
own life.
—Elizabeth Langran
Contents
1 Place-Based Learning, Geospatial Literacy, and Maps 1

What Is Place-Based Learning? 2
Geospatial Literacy 7
Mapping 10
The Role of Place in Your Classroom 19
Chapter Conclusion: The Case for Place-Based Education 20
References 21
2 How and Why Placed-Based Learning Works 25

Spatial Thinking 26
The Human Brain: Designed to Learn “On the Go” 27
From Life to Classroom, and Classroom to Life 30
Situated Learning as Learning in Place 32
Critical Pedagogies of Place 41
Chapter Conclusion: The Major Tenets of a Critical
Pedagogy of Place Approach 48
References 50
3 The Design of Critical Place-Based Inquiry 55

A Critical Approach to Place-Based Inquiry 57
General Design Considerations 64
Assessment 82
xv
xvi CONTENTS
Chapter Conclusion: Designing for Success in Critical

Place-Based Inquiry 85
References 87
4 Facilitating Student Learning 91

Facilitation Strategies 93
Inclusive Mapping: Different Learners Experience Different
Challenges 110
Chapter Conclusion: Tensions, Challenges, and Avoiding
Detours 113
References 114
5 Place-Based Inquiry in Action 117

Leveraging Technology with Place-Based Learning Tools 117
Place-Based Inquiry: Projects for Inspiration 124
Place-Based Inquiry in Focus 129
Chapter Conclusion: New Possibilities for Place-Based
Inquiry with Emerging Technologies 135
References 139
6 Conclusion: Mapping for a Better World 141

Purposeful, Authentic Learning 142
Community Partnerships Chart the Path for Student
Activism 144
The Ethical Boundaries of Critical Place-Based Inquiry 148
Place-Based Inquiry for ALL Learners: Access, Positionality,
and Equity 151
Chapter Conclusion: Final Thoughts 152
References 153
7 Afterword 155
Critical Place-Based Pedagogy in the Contemporary Context 155
References 160
Index 161
List of Figures
Fig. 1.1 Mobile mapping: gravesite of P.T. Barnum (Photo by

E. Langran) 16
Fig. 2.1 Cone of experience as adapted to place-based activities
(Source Image by Dewitt & Langran, adapted from Dale,
1969) 31
Fig. 3.1 Critical place-based inquiry model (DeWitt & Langran) 59
Fig. 4.1 Early attempt challenges 92
Fig. 4.2 Esri Survey 123 mobile app 103
Fig. 5.1 Student engaged in place-based learning (Photo by
J. DeWitt) 118
xvii
List of Tables
Table 1.1 Suitability for place-based learning 20

Table 3.1 Critical place-based inquiry activities and assumptions 65
Table 3.2 Planning process for place-based inquiry activities 67
Table 3.3 Place-based learning course planning worksheet 68
Table 3.4 Student tasks for field exploration: before, during, and
after 82
Table 3.5 Sample mapping & information literacy rubric (Modified
from Dursi & DeWitt, 2012) 84
Table 3.6 Sample single-point rubric for community exploration 86
xix
CHAPTER 1
Place-Based Learning, Geospatial Literacy,

and Maps
Place is more than where you go, it’s also why you are there
An excited group of students receive directions to meet at a mysterious
destination at a specific time. The students arrive at a cemetery after dark!
Their excursion is an introduction to a class being offered by The Pioneers
Learning Lab (http://www.thelearninglab.nl), an innovative educational
program associated with the University of Amsterdam. “We go literally on
a journey in which we do not know what the end station is,” explains the
instructor, Thiel Besselink (Smit & van Doorn, 2011, 6:20).
Once on location, Besselink instructs the students to spend their time
as they choose: “You are pioneers. So you decide what you do with your
time…What are you going to do with your time? And life is short. It’s
really short. Tick tock tick tock. So what we’re doing is trying to stretch
the boundaries of education, inside and outside of the classroom…inside
and outside of your life” (Besselink, as cited in Smit & van Doorn, 2011,
7:15). Taking flashlights, they explore the cemetery and then return for a
large group reflection on the activity. Many of the students make profound
connections between this introductory experience and the goals of the
Pioneer program which they are about to begin. In this example, the
location of study—the cemetery—becomes part of the learning journey.
Imagine this same activity where the students were shown slides of a
cemetery or simply asked to think about being in a cemetery.
© The Author(s) 2020 1

E. Langran and J. DeWitt, Navigating Place-Based Learning,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55673-0_1
2 E. LANGRAN AND J. DEWITT
Besselink designed this experiential activity to shift the students’ focus

from a teacher-directed to a student-initiated classroom, modeling the
experience of going to an unknown rather than prescribed final destina-
tion. Being on location played an important role in communicating the
purpose of learning. The connections to the learning outcomes of this
activity are made clear to the students through the instructor’s facilitation
of the group discussion.
When we blur the boundaries of a classroom and expand the locations

where learning occurs, as educators, we create opportunities for students
to explore place as an important dimension in and of itself. The end
result is that students and educators are inspired to imagine adventures
that allow for the transfer of learning from an abstract discussion to a
concrete exploration with “real” world connections. In this chapter we
look at what is known about geospatial literacy and explore the different
traditions from which place-based learning emerged.
What Is Place-Based Learning?

Place-based learning is a type of experiential pedagogy that puts students
in a physical location outside of the school building, allowing the commu-
nity to become the “classroom.” By engaging with the people or the
environment, the students experience learning that is not easily repli-
cated within the walls of a traditional classroom space. The actual process
of exploration enables students to establish connections with a site,
developing a sense of place. In this approach to learning, the loca-
tion, whether it is rural, urban, or in-between, is integral to the desired
learning outcomes. These learning outcomes are not simply getting
to know a geographic location; place-based learning can be a vehicle
for learning other academic content. Beyond learning about a place,
academic coursework related to biodiversity, language, civic education,
design, or sound can be integrated into the experience. Smith (2002)
identifies five themes in place-based education that can be adapted to
different settings: cultural studies; nature studies; real-world problem-
solving; internships and entrepreneurial opportunities; and induction into
community processes. In all of these areas, regardless of the setting, our
ultimate goal is to transform the way that students interact with their
world as well as their willingness to “promote a more just and sustainable
world” (Israel, 2012, p. 76).
1 PLACE-BASED LEARNING, GEOSPATIAL LITERACY, AND MAPS 3
Long before internet access brought the world into our classrooms, the
places where learning occurred were not always limited to the confines
of a four-walled room dedicated to the purpose of schooling. Students
ventured into their neighborhoods to explore, describe, and analyze,
whether it was leaving the one-room schoolhouse out on the prairie or by
taking an urban excursion. As we go back to the writings of John Dewey,
who was advocating “progressive education,” we see a call for teachers to
become “intimately acquainted with the conditions of the local commu-
nity, physical, historical, economic, occupational, etc. in order to utilize
them as educational resources” (Dewey, 1938, p. 40).
The value of place-based knowledge and experiences outside of school
is noted by many who suggest having students apply lessons from school
to everyday life (Buxton & Provenzo, 2011). Both John Dewey (1938)
and Paolo Freire (Freire, 2011; Freire & Campos, 1990) noticed that
what children learn outside of school is often devalued. The key difference
between these two educators is that Freire links the observation to an
analysis of power and privilege. He notes that children from different
social classes will come to the classroom with different sets of experiences,
with educational systems privileging certain knowledge and skills.
Sobel’s work on place-based education (2004) offers a foundation for
understanding how this pedagogy can take advantage of the local commu-
nity and environment “as a starting point to teach concepts in language
arts, mathematics, social studies, science and other subject areas across
the curriculum” (p. 6). Through these hands-on, real-world learning
experiences, the students:
• Develop stronger ties to their community;

• Enhance their appreciation for the natural world; and
• Have a heightened commitment to serving as active, contributing
citizens.
By actively engaging local citizens, community organizations, and envi-

ronmental resources, Sobel advocates for a place-based learning that
contributes to community vitality and environmental quality.
Sobel’s concern for the stewardship of our natural environment is part
of several educational movements connected with outdoor education. The
term was coined to be in-opposition to “indoor” education (i.e., a class-
room) and primarily focused on learning about the natural environment.
Over time, the field evolved to include a range of names and a variety
of purposes: environmental education, camping education, and conserva-
tion education, as well as experiential and place-based education (Quay
& Seaman, 2013). While these approaches share the common feature
of learning in settings beyond the classroom, some of them are closer
to “adventure” education that focus on the personal growth benefits
from overcoming uncertainty and obstacles (Ewert & Sibthorp, 2014).
Others foster students’ connection to place by viewing the community as
a classroom and encouraging students to “read” the landscape.
Courses that have service or community-based learning (Anderson,
2017), field trip, or study abroad components are naturally suited to
place-based learning because they often assume an obvious link to
the physical environment. To be effective, these experiences require a
thoughtful pedagogy that anchors student learning in a specific place
and facilitates the connections between conceptual material and geospa-
tial location. In order to make these learning environments meaningful,
a clear synergy needs to be created between out-of-classroom and in-
classroom or online experiences. Otherwise, students become academic
tourists, passing through their destinations without making connections
or gaining an appreciation for the significance of the place.
To address this need for making these learning environments mean-
ingful, some educators have developed place-based activities. The
pedagogy of place-based learning is applicable across disciplines and
emerged from several different areas. Surprisingly, many of these develop-
ments occurred outside of the field of geography (Israel, 2012). An early
attempt to reach across disciplines was City as Text, which originated
within the Honors Education community. Developed by Dr. Bernice
Braid (Braid & Long, 2000) and shared through workshops held by the
National Collegiate Honors Council, this technique involves the recur-
sive process of mapping, observing, listening, and reflecting (Machonis,
2008). Resulting excursions involve an extensive planning process, which
includes identifying a location and theme, selecting background materials
(texts), and creating several participant assignments. More than just
exploring a city, the goal for City as Text participants is the critical
thinking process that requires students to hone their observational skills
and generate questions that require locating additional information.
While analyzing a city “as text” is more likely to produce deep learning,
it also requires a significant time investment on the part of teachers
creating experiences as well as students participating in these experiences.
In Shatter the Glassy Stare (2008), Machonis devotes an entire section to

ideas for using the City as Text approach on a college campus to build
community among a specific cohort of students or to promote positive
“town and gown” relationships.
The Language of Place-Based Learning

Before going further, we should clarify how we are using the terminology
that is associated with place-based pedagogy. Because this approach spans
a number of disciplines, we find a variety of terms used, with the most
popular reference being to place-based education (PBE). Here we will use
the terms place-based learning and place-based education interchangeably.
The term “place” will be used to denote more than the physical loca-
tion or space as indicated by geographic or map coordinates. Consistent
with the discussions found among geographers (Agnew, 1987; Cress-
well, 2004; Semken, 2005) and social studies educators (Resor, 2010),
we consider two additional dimensions that make it possible to iden-
tify the meaning associated with physical locations: locale and sense of
place. Locale refers to the setting, which could include a listing of promi-
nent objects such as the number of schools in a town, trees in a yard, or
traffic cameras at an intersection (Resor, 2010). A sense of place denotes
“the meanings of and the attachments to a place held by a person or
group” (Semken, 2005, p. 149). This term involves a more “sentimen-
tal” and subjective notion of a particular geographic location; one person
might stand on a corner and observe a vibrant shopping area, and another
person might stand on the same corner and see the loss of a community
as the result of gentrification.
The same physical location is experienced by various individuals differ-
ently, depending on that person’s previous experiences and social location.
Sociologists often refer to a person’s social location within a given commu-
nity, meaning a person’s relative position to others in their community.
Social location is usually based on group memberships (i.e., race and
ethnicity, gender, religious affiliation) and can shape how a specific loca-
tion is experienced by individuals. Semken, Ward, Moosavi, and Chinn
(2017) and Ardoin (2006) extend our understanding by noting how
many different ways that meanings can be attached to place:
Place is defined by meaning, and many diverse forms of place meaning —

including, but not limited to, aesthetic, economic, recreational, or spiritual
value; familial or kincentric rootedness; and cultural, historical, political, or
scientific significance—can be associated with the same place, as different
individuals and communities will experience it and know it in different
ways. (Semken et al., p. 544)
Indeed, all of our life experiences “from cultural traditions to natural

phenomena” are defined by the power of place (de Blij, 2008, p. 234).
While most efforts at place-based education take into account these
contextual factors, we suggest that educators integrate an understanding
of how the social, political, or economic power structures define commu-
nities, impact the environment, and inform the spatial narratives that our
students bring to the classroom when planning course activities.
Learning activities that are designed to take into account these power
structures are referred to as part of a critical pedagogy of place. In this
book, we will advocate taking into account a critical perspective by
acknowledging the importance of:
• the elements of the social context, recognizing that historical and

contemporary power structures can and do shape our local commu-
nities and the natural environment,
• our students’ initial spatial narratives (Elwood, 2004), and
• reflection on how maps are socially constructed (Crampton, 2001;
Elwood, 2004; Monmonier, 2018).
Not only should place-based learning recognize these power structures,

but learning activities should also actively promote “social and ecolog-
ical justice rather than merely learning about the place” by empowering
students to become actively engaged participants in their own communi-
ties (Israel, 2012, p. 77; Gruenewald, 2003).
Place refers to a geographic location, a sense of place, and a locale
(Agnew, 1987). These are all observable from being in a place, but how
do we display the things that we observe? Maps allow us to visualize place-
based information and data, provided that as map readers we are familiar
with basic map reading skills. Indeed, interpreting maps requires its own
form of literacy.
Geospatial Literacy
The term geospatial, or sometimes simply spatial, describes something
with a geographic or topographic component: Think maps (it comes from
the Greek geo, meaning “earth”). Geo-referenced or geolocated data refer
to data that range from numerical statistics or photos to tweets, and are
tied to a location on the earth’s surface. Geological or built structures,
social or animal behaviors, or even wildlife can all be studied as geolocated
data.
Engaging in spatial thinking requires that students use the concepts of
space, the tools of representation, and processes of reasoning. The ability
to imagine three-dimensional shapes from two-dimensional architectural
drawings and to visualize DNA structure as a double-helix, or to rotate
a geometric object in your head are all examples of how spatial thinking
plays an important role in many different disciplines (National Research
Council, 2006). Spatially literate students:
• have the habit of mind of thinking spatially—they know where,

when, how, and why to think spatially;
• practice thinking spatially in an informed way—they have a broad
and deep knowledge of spatial concepts and spatial representations,
a command over spatial reasoning using a variety of spatial ways of
thinking and acting, and well-developed spatial capabilities for using
supporting tools and technologies; and
• adopt a critical stance to spatial thinking—they can evaluate the
quality of spatial data based on its source and its likely accuracy and
reliability; can use spatial data to construct, articulate, and defend a
line of reasoning or point of view in solving problems and answering
questions; and can evaluate the validity of arguments based on spatial
information (National Research Council, 2006, p. 4).
Here, we focus on a specific kind of spatial literacy, that of geospatial

literacy. Any information or data with a geographic component—meaning
it is tied to a physical location—is the type of geospatial data that can
be visualized on a map. Geospatial literacy is what we use “to visu-
alize and interpret location, distance, direction, relationships, change,
and movement over space” (Sinton, 2012). This means that students are
able to “read” geographic information and make connections to where
and when these data occur, and to explore the complexity and intercon-
nectedness of how economic, political, social, or ecological relationships
shape experience. Because the role of place—the actual physical loca-
tion—is important in place-based learning, we need to help our students
develop their geospatial literacy, which includes the skills needed to
create, analyze, and interpret map-based data. By asking guiding questions
such as, “Where do the locations occur on a map?” “What is nearby?”
“Who lives there?” “What physical features are present?” “What social or
environmental patterns can be observed?” we can develop a foundation
for more complex analysis.
The pedagogy of place-based learning asks that students make obser-
vations, collect data, and develop a sense of place about a specific physical
location. Placing this information on a map enables students to visualize
a two-dimensional representation of our three-dimensional world. The
role of geospatial literacy includes having students recognize shapes and
patterns from among the “clutter” of the data. These are skills that can
be learned; just as a radiologist learns how to look at an image to detect
an abnormality, we can help our students to develop their own spatial
thinking skills to look for patterns in the data.
Geospatial technologies allow users to utilize critical thinking skills to
locate, display, and analyze geographic information, and make sense of the
increasing amount of place-based data that are emerging. With advances
in geospatial technologies (geographic information systems, global posi-
tioning satellites, remote sensing, and image analysis, for example), more
and more geolocated data are being generated all the time, including
soil erodibility and other environmental conditions; sidewalk and trans-
portation access; posts to social media such as Twitter and Instagram;
and traffic congestion. This increases the need to teach students the skills
to make sense of these data; visual representations of patterns require new
visual and geospatial literacies to see interconnections and how actions in
one area can impact another. Geospatial technology tools and the under-
standing these tools can afford users is central to enabling students to
become engaged, globally competent citizens (Langran & Baker, 2016).
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technologies have also evolved
dramatically in recent years, increasing the ability for students to access
GIS tools through a browser and use these tools to analyze geolocated
data without specialized training. Anyone with basic skills to visually inter-
pret images can see that there are more instances of an event on one part
of the map than on another part of the map, or that this area on the
map is darker than that area on the map. While there is a certain intu-
itive aspect to map interpretation, a specific kind of literacy is required to
spatially think about the relationships between data points. The best way
to represent information on maps requires some level of visual interpre-
tation. While the location of data may be fixed, the way that we choose
to array that data must be intentionally designed to communicate the
intended message or observation.
In order to facilitate geospatial thinking, we need more information
on how people learn to interpret locations, their characteristics, their
distances, or their changes over time. For example, do we know whether
how people interpret their location influences their relationships with
the environment, or with other people? To begin addressing these gaps
between what we know about geospatial thinking and geospatial tech-
nologies, a research agenda identified three broad research areas that
are needed: student learning and outcomes; teacher training; and tech-
nical development (Baker et al., 2015). The second of these areas is
teacher training where a key question involves the best ways to train
teachers and teach students about geospatial literacy. In subsequent chap-
ters, we will discuss ways to structure place-based learning activities that
take advantage of what we already know about using geospatial tech-
nologies for learning. Some of the key course components that promote
geospatial literacy include capturing and communicating knowledge in
the form of a map; recognizing and interpreting patterns; understanding
geographic concepts of neighborhood, spatial interaction, competition for
space, territory, migration, and spatial context; the ways in which humans
express themselves visually as they describe and record the world using
coordinate systems, data, and map projections; and seeing the value of
geography as a basis for organizing and discovering information, not just
as a list of places on the Earth’s surface (Goodchild, 2006).
There can be multiple opportunities to develop spatial thinking as we
ask students to consider actions performed in space, thinking about space,
and thinking with space:
Walking to school, taking a shortcut to avoid a traffic jam, playing a team

sport such as football, or packing a suitcase—actions that are performed
in space—all require spatial thinking in a real-world or environmental
context. The second type of spatial thinking, thinking about space, is typi-
cally employed when individuals learn factual information, organized as
facts and generalizations, about how the world works. The third type of
spatial thinking, thinking with space, is more abstract yet a powerful tool.
Spatializing non-spatial data or using space as an organizing framework to
conceptualize problems and make decisions is an effective cognitive strategy
used frequently in problem solving. (Emphasis added, Bednarz & Kemp,
2011, p. 20)
Together, spatial literacy provides us with the abilities needed to work

and reason in a spatial world and make a picture “truly worth a thousand
words” (Goodchild, 2006, p. 5). Maps are one such picture that requires
a sufficient level of geospatial literacy.
Mapping
Central to place-based learning is contextual learning , and maps are a
tool that can visualize and scaffold this type of understanding. We can
take the conceptual ideas being learned in environmental studies, urban
planning, language learning, or other academic areas, and apply them to
real-world venues. When academic concepts are presented abstractly, it
is up to the learner to make connections to the world where they will
live and work. When course instructors help make these connections by
providing learning in the context of real-world applications and engaging
authentic learning environments, students can better internalize these
concepts (CORD, 2016). Maps can serve the learner as they explore an
area with the intent of making connections between classroom knowledge
and the real world. Mapping contributes to critical, multidimensional
thinking, specifically: categorizing and interpreting information; analyzing
and evaluating; and making inferences (Sinton & Bednarz, 2007).
When we anchor the analysis of a place using mapping, students
develop the skills and habits of perceiving, evaluating, and analyzing visual
information (questioning assumptions and points of view; using evidence
to reason; and illustrating the visible) (Sinton & Lund, 2007). A good
map tells a story. Maps are essentially telling the story of a commu-
nity; you can illustrate the story of a place over time, provide portraits
of the people who live there, explain conflicts, inspire action, compare
data, depict a journey, with having protagonists, struggles, resolutions…
many of which are the same evidence you would find in any compelling
narrative. More importantly, “A good map teaches you to ask a better
question” (Frye, as cited in Kerski, 2016). These questions might include
What if I classified the data differently? What if I added this variable?
and other “what-if” questions (Kerski, 2016). Today, the ease of using
mapping tools and access to online mapping have made maps collabo-
rative and shareable in new ways. Zooming out helps us to connect our
local community to the region and the globe. But as web-based maps have
become easy to generate and share, the need for critical thinking increases.
We must be asking, “Who made that map?” and “What kind of data did
they use?” Not only should we be asking inquiry questions about the map,
but about the data that goes into the map being used for analysis (Kerski,
2019). Thematic maps are important ways to tell stories, but taking a
three-dimensional world and making it into a two-dimensional represen-
tation requires decisions on projections, scale, and symbolization. Just
like any data visualization, they can be inaccurate or misleading, deriva-
tive maps can repeat bad data, and the adage “garbage in, garbage out”
applies. How to Lie with Maps author Mark Monmonier (2018) refers to
the “cartographic mischief” that can be from “electronic blunders” (p. 2)
or be deliberate—either for clarity, or in order to deliberately deceive the
viewer. Thus questioning mapmakers’ expertise or motives becomes an
important component of developing students’ geospatial literacy.
Mapping is not an objective activity. Blair (2011) reminds us that there
are “methodological hazards of reductionism and interpretation in the
mapping exercises” (p. 52). As we seek to encourage students to look
for patterns, we also risk that they may make generalizations. It is impor-
tant to spend time helping students to see these risks and understand the
pitfalls of such activities and interpretations. In the next chapter, we will
discuss the critical place-based pedagogies that have addressed many of
these issues.
Who Is Involved in Creating Maps? Collaboration, Participation,

and Beyond
In addition to analyzing map, let’s turn our focus to those who are
making the maps, and how map contributors can add geolocated or
georeferenced data using technology. Different individuals or groups can
contribute to the construction of maps through drawings, digital illustra-
tion, or online GIS maps where our own field-collected data is combined
with other available online base maps or data sets to tell our own story of
a place. The various ways that these data are collected often depend on
who is making the map (whether they be individuals or groups), where
the map is being created (urban, suburban, rural), and in what context
(academic course, study abroad, informal learning).
Mapping Together
The advances in online mapping, especially online GIS, have made it
possible for groups of people to contribute to a common map. Similar
to citizen science, collaborative mapping is a type of mapping activity
that uses “volunteered geographic information” or crowdsourcing to
populate a map with geolocated data. Similar to collaborative mapping,
participatory mapping is a type of mapping activity that uses data from
multiple people, though here specifically through contributions of and
collaboration with community stakeholders, with the intended goals of
empowerment and inclusion of people who might otherwise be simply
regarded as the objects of study (Solís, McCusker, Menkiti, Cowan, &
Blevins, 2018).
Having students engage in participatory mapping can facilitate the
abstract conceptualization of spatial connections. Emmel (2008) describes
this interactive group process as a research method used to uncover local
knowledge and provide an understanding of the relationships between
people, place, and community over time. By generating maps, participants
must focus their attention on features of a specific place. This resulting
map serves as a tangible reference point for discussing abstract concepts
that emerge from concrete descriptions. Using the same process, students
move from concrete descriptions to abstract conceptualization as they
portray their understandings of the subject being studied.
Participatory mapping often includes social goals. By calling upon
multiple groups of stakeholders and allowing volunteers to interact when
creating maps together, participatory mapping (PM) can locate assets in a
community, involve local citizens in area decision-making about develop-
ment, and identify endangered animals and trees. “A consistent aspiration
of PM has been to engage and empower marginalized groups in society
through the use of spatial technologies” (Brown & Kyttä, 2018, p. 1). For
example, university “youth mappers” in Uganda are using digital maps
to display microfinance locations in the rural areas outside of their city
to help local residents find these largely unmarked services. Students in
Costa Rica were mapping locations where they spotted trash in order for
the municipal government to decide where to place trash cans. Arlington
County in Virginia, USA surveyed the public with a map to identify where
commuters and residents felt bike routes were most needed.
With the advances in and the ubiquity of mobile devices, public partic-
ipation in mapping projects has become even easier. No longer does a
person need to sit down at a computer to indicate something they saw
in their neighborhood—they can do it right away when they spot some-
thing in public. The final product is a map co-owned with the community.
Using Participatory GIS (PGIS) has a lot of potential, but participants’
possible lack of understanding of the technology and geospatial literacy
can be a limitation in using the PGIS approach (Brown & Kyttä, 2018).
There is an assumption that those involved in participatory mapping
are the people who are local to that area, but the students can be defined
as “outsiders” to an area where they are mapping. In these situations,
outside participants may be viewed with distrust; they may encounter
language and communication barriers; and the resulting ownership of
the data can be unclear (Brown & Kyttä, 2018). “The challenge of
building and maintaining trust with participants is important across
all PM [participatory mapping] domains, but especially important in
indigenous/rural/community mapping because the process is typically
sponsored by individuals outside the community of interest” (Brown &
Kyttä, p. 6); additional challenges stem from using a broad, one-size-fits-
all participatory mapping approach due to the differences in how this type
of mapping is used in the global south with indigenous peoples versus
urban residents in Western countries, thus underscoring the need to take
social context, lived experiences, and perspectives of the community into
account.
Critical Mapping
Whether it is “critical cartography” (Allen & Queen, 2015), “critical
GIScience” (Solís et al., 2018), or the broader fields referred to as the
“critical pedagogy of place” (Gruenewald, 2003), this group of peda-
gogical approaches questions the “assumptions, practices, and outcomes
taken for granted in dominant culture and in conventional education”
(Gruenewald, 2003, p. 3). That process of challenging assumptions
involves two phases, according to Gruenwald. First we need to “iden-
tify, recover, and create material spaces and places that teach us how to
live well in our total environments (reinhabitation)” and second, we need
to “identify and change ways of thinking that injure and exploit other
people and places (decolonization)” (Gruenewald, 2003, p. 9). We will
be discussing this critical approach to place-based education and mapping
throughout this book.
Mapping for Study Abroad

Blair (2011) refines the idea of place-based learning by incorporating
urban mapping as an experiential learning pedagogy in study abroad
programs. One reason that place-based learning works well for study
abroad programs is because students often find themselves in surround-
ings that are unfamiliar, which prompts a closer examination particularly
when what they expect to see or what they consider to be “normal”
is missing. Like City as Text, Blair’s approach requires that students
use observation skills to create maps that are annotated with personal
photographs to anchor the conceptual understanding they gained from
course readings in the authentic context of urban neighborhoods. Recog-
nizing the importance of developing a conceptual map to frame their
experiences, Blair creates directed excursions that guide students through
the streets of Paris, increasing the likelihood that they will successfully
master the targeted course outcomes. By completing a series of excur-
sions, which were created to focus on particular aspects of the social and
urban fabric of Paris, students gain a much deeper understanding of the
course material that is anchored in place.
Mapping Cities, Suburbs, and Rural Areas

Cities become classrooms in place-based learning. Mapping cities provide
opportunities to observe and analyze the use of urban space; social rela-
tionships; and decision-making, planning, and renewal around growth,
change, and diversity. Whether investigating decisions that impact
people’s lives, focusing on the distribution of resources, or partnering
with the local community, a sense of responsibility, and stewardship can
be fostered by these types of activities. One type of mapping that works
particularly well in urban areas is food mapping . Participants consider local
access to food and identification of possible “food deserts” while consid-
ering health, economics, and ecological impacts associated with access to
food in an urban area (Wight & Killham, 2014).
Cities have their own landscapes that can be “read,” mapped, and
analyzed for their human activity and environmental characteristics. Blair
(2011) describes a city as “a collective, social, and living intervention
itself shaped by historically contingent economic, political, and cultural
forces, which, if one has the appropriate maps, guides and mental dispo-
sitions, can indeed help reveal the human rationality and internal logic
that determined the city’s shape, life, and meaning” (p. 37). While we
often think of urban places as spaces for human activity, these human
activities have an impact on the environment through pollution, energy

consumption, etc. Nature exists in cities too—these natural habitats
can serve as locations for urban habitat mapping activities, encouraging
participants to respect nature in urban contexts (Swayze, 2009).
Suburban mapping can provide a useful comparison point for cities, by
asking access questions such as the location of parks, the quality and price
of food, or ease of using public transportation. Comparisons between
older or newer suburbs can prompt a discussion of social change over
time. Examining the drivers of change can lead to discussion of displace-
ment, diversity, homeownership, gentrification, and the identity of place.
Many students, and particularly those from small towns or suburbs where
they may not have needed to use maps would benefit from some extra
instruction on how to make use of maps for navigation purposes (Blair,
2011; Kelly, 2009).
Mapping rural spaces provides wonderful opportunities to incorporate
areas such as geology, watershed studies, landforms, and environmental
education, but has its own challenges. Huffling, Carlone, and Benavides’
(2017) response to a study by Zimmerman and Weible (2016) explored
place-based learning as a tool to help students who, despite learning about
the local watershed, were struggling with how to propose collective,
action-oriented strategies to address poor water quality. These authors
highlight the increasing need for science and environmental educators
to re-envision effective pedagogy for rural communities as “economic
instability amidst dwindling natural resources brings into sharp relief the
tensions between historical, economic, indigenous, cultural, agricultural,
recreational, and social uses of land” (Huffling et al., 2017, p. 34).
Mobile Mapping
The way that we are able to record geographic information has changed
dramatically in a short period of time. Years ago, GIS was confined to
desktop applications in which inserting non-numeric data collected in the
field, such as images, was challenging. More than ten years ago, when
teaching a course that used images collected as data during place-based
learning, the students used handheld GPS units to mark waypoints, and
took photos with the GPS unit appearing in the foreground, with the
historic building or monument in the background (Langran & Alibrandi,
2008). This, of course, led to some fuzzy images (Fig. 1.1).
Fig. 1.1 Mobile mapping: gravesite of P.T. Barnum (Photo by E. Langran)
Back in the computer lab, we would compile the data into spread-
sheets by hand, make shapefiles, and several steps later, we would be able
to use our networked GIS software to have the geolocated images and
other data appear in the onscreen map. Now, with mobile devices such
as smartphones and tablets, these data can be directly added to the map
from the field in a new era of what we refer to as “mobile mapping.”
Mobile devices can stimulate learning by supporting students in the
field as they craft their own analysis. In this type of inquiry pedagogy,
students identify a location of interest, and capture geotagged voice
notes and photos on location. Students can engage in the wonder of
asking questions and discovering answers (Dodge, 2011). Mobile devices
support the integration of place-based learning back into the classroom,
where the instructor can guide student discussions, modeling the process
of analysis. The Open University Innovation Report (Ferguson et al.,
2019) named place-based learning on its 2019 list of innovating pedago-
gies, not because it is a new method, but because of the new possibilities
provided by mobile technologies to support place-based learning. Both
the ubiquity of mobile devices, as well as the comfort level and ease of use
among a wider range of people, make this technology easier to integrate
into instruction. Many people are already using location-aware applica-

tions and navigational aids from mobile devices for personal uses and
informal learning experiences, so leveraging these geospatial tools makes
sense.
How mobile learning bridges the gap between the classroom

and exploring communities
When we use the term “mobile learning,” we are referring to using mobile
technology (such as mobile phones, tablets, and other portable digital
devices) for learning anywhere and at any time. This technology makes
it possible to use smartphones and tablets outside of the classroom for
place-based learning. Across the globe, this form of place-based learning
has helped transcend limited infrastructure, bringing internet access to
communities that will never have access to fixed-line computer labs and
in contrast to a desktop computer, offering an affordable alternative.
Mobile learning makes it possible to use smartphones and tablets
outside of the classroom for place-based learning. Estimates put the
number of people who own mobile phones at 5 billion, with half of the
devices being smartphones (Silver & Cornibert, 2019). While the growth
has not necessarily been distributed equally around the globe, the hope
is that more people now have access to educational content in places
where books may be scarce. The UNESCO Mobile Learning Policy Guide-
lines (2013) articulate several affordances that mobile devices provide in
learning:
• These customizable personal devices facilitate personalized learning
and assist learners with disabilities, in part because they are owned by
individuals and carried around throughout the day;
• The interactive features of mobile devices and the ability to automate
distribution to devices provide immediate feedback and assessment;
• Because people carry the devices with them, they enable anytime,
anywhere learning;
• They enable students to listen to lectures or study at home,
ensuring the productive use of time spent in classrooms and improve
communication and administration;
• They build new communities of learners;
• Location-aware devices move learning to new settings, sometimes
using augmented reality, and support situated learning;
• Access to cloud storage enhances seamless learning and bridge formal
and informal learning;
• It has been successful to minimize educational disruption in conflict

and disaster areas and helps maximize cost-efficiency.
The ability to use mobile devices on location to conduct mapping activities
advances the potential for engaging students and structuring their expe-
rience with place-based learning. GIS has for many years depended on
desktop computing. We are finally at a time when mobile devices can be
used to collect data out in the field, sending information seamlessly to an
online map for analysis. Mobile mapping uses a smartphone or tablet to
collect data that are tied to a physical location on earth and feeds the infor-
mation to an online map. These data can include photographs, sounds, a
numerical count of physical features, and descriptive attributes.
Mobile learning in formal educational environments requires new
pedagogical approaches to leverage the affordances of the technology.
Additionally, there are several components that must be in place: “(1)
material support, (2) logistical support, (3) instructional support, (4)
curriculum support, and (5) community support” (National Research
Council, 2006, p. 219). These are important considerations for planning
place-based learning.
Informal Learning
Informal learning occurs when we explore national parks or move into a
new neighborhood. In our pursuit of developing a skill, and in answering
a question or solving a problem, we have a spontaneous and learner-driven
experience that often takes advantage of collaboration, bringing together
communities of learners who share tips, expertise, and lessons learned.
This type of informal learning generally occurs outside of classroom
education and training. While it diverges from place-based education in
that it lacks instructor-assigned learning objectives and structure, it shares
the value placed on experiential learning in authentic settings. As we seek
to develop lifelong learners and professionals who are able to transfer
classroom knowledge to real-world situations, an inquiry-based and place-
based project can borrow from informal learning literature and from what
we have learned from observing popular location-based and location-
enabled gaming applications, such as Pokémon Go and Wizards Unite.
Alternate reality games that are location dependent demonstrate how a
story-driven transmedia platform can engage players to interact with place
and other players. Being at a particular location triggers an event in the
mobile application.
Geocaching was an early location-based gaming activity, using hand-

held GPS devices. With the advances in augmented reality uses of
smartphones, the opportunities for new location-based activities increase.
While none have yet reached the popularity of Pokémon Go or longevity
of geocaching, there are numerous small projects that allow people to
develop location-based mixed reality games and activities on mobile
storytelling platforms. For example, LocoMatrix (http://www.locoma
trix.com) develops location-based games for schools that allow players
to move through “virtual archeology” and use the application to “dis-
cover” and “dig” a Roman villa from their school field. Museums and
parks, which have already been informal learning sites, are also looking to
leverage the ubiquity of GPS-enabled devices such as smartphones.
The Role of Place in Your Classroom

When considering whether place-based pedagogy is appropriate, the
central question becomes, “How could place-based learning contribute to
an understanding or deeper knowledge of the subject?” Steven Semken’s
work in the field of geoscience generated a list of five core characteristics
of place-based education that have been used to distinguish this approach
as unique from others:
1. The content is focused explicitly on the attributes of a place (e.g.,

geology, climate, ecology, culture, economics, history).
2. The activity acknowledges, and usually explicitly incorporates the
diverse meanings that place holds for the instructor, the students,
and the community (e.g., locally situated traditional knowledge;
toponymy).
3. The activity takes advantage of authentic experiences in that place,
or in an environment that strongly evokes the place (e.g., experi-
ential learning, fieldwork, service learning, immersive virtual field
environments).
4. The activity promotes, and ideally supports, pro-environmental and
culturally sustainable practices and lifeways in the places that are
studied.
5. The activity enriches the sense of place held by students and
instructors alike (Semken et al., 2017, p. 545).
Table 1.1 Suitability for place-based learning
Differing roles of place-based inquiry Sample investigations
Inquiries best only undertaken when anchored in Impact of climate change:

place. The lesson is about where a phenomenon • on sea level in coastal areas, and
occurs or about attributes of place • on rainfall in agricultural regions
• temperature variations by
continent
Access to healthy food in walking
distance from public housing
complexes
Distribution of health care services
relative to transportation routes
Inquiries that are enhanced by spatial knowledge. Comparison of storefront windows
Although spatial tools are used, the location data featuring multiple languages in two
is not the main focus of these lessons different parts of the city
Inquiries not suited to spatial exploration. Spatial Comparative analysis of the plot
tools are not necessary to accomplish the task at lines in two novels
hand Archive of LatinX murals created
by political dissidents
Note All of these could have a spatial attribute added but don’t as stated here
These characteristics help us differentiate between the type of topics

in which geospatial knowledge is the focus of the intended learning
and those that may use geospatial technology as a tool to learn about
something else.
In Table 1.1, we offer a few examples of investigations that are well
suited to place-based learning as well as investigations that are not:
Chapter Conclusion: The Case

for Place-Based Education
The calls for place-based education have spanned many decades. Whether
these calls are based on privileging the knowledge each student brings to
the classroom or on an interest in engaging with the local community, all
suggest that place-based pedagogy is an effective strategy. In the chapter
that follows, we will take a closer look at why this may be the case, and
focusing on critical place-based inquiry.
As we were completing our work on this book, COVID-19 wreaked
havoc around the world. Writing about place-based learning during a
pandemic underscores both the potential as well as the challenges associ-
ated with place-based learning. The spread of the coronavirus highlighted
the many ways that where we live and work shapes the differential oppor-
tunities and challenges experienced by our students. Proximity to health
care services like testing or emergency care and residential density were
closely associated with infection rates. And those who could afford to
stay home and self-isolate had a lower chance of contracting the virus
than those who served on the front line. As teachers and students across
the U.S. (and around the world) attended school on virtual platforms,
the pandemic offered a striking example of how place matters in our daily
lives.
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CHAPTER 2
How and Why Placed-Based Learning Works
Educators can draw upon several bodies of literature to uncover how

and why place-based learning offers an effective way to engage students.
This chapter integrates these diverse literatures by outlining the process of
spatial thinking and how student learning occurs within situated contexts.
We consider the scholarship that addresses why place-based pedagogy can
create transformative learning environments and focus on what is known
about the learning process as well as the contextual issues associated with
inclusion, equity, and empowerment of students from underrepresented
or marginalized groups.
Existing research suggests that students construct knowledge through
interactions with teachers, their peers, and their environments. Engaging
learning activities can be designed to draw on an abstracted conceptual
scenario constructed by the teacher or an authentic scenario defined by
the boundaries a physical location. Place-based exploration gives students
access to situated learning environments that afford opportunities for
students to analyze complex phenomena from multiple angles of obser-
vation. Here, we consider the critical pedagogy of place literature that
examines how students’ different histories and life experiences impact the
many ways they understand the same place-based learning environment.
Our goal is to look across existing disciplinary literatures to develop a
critical, integrative approach to place-based inquiry.
© The Author(s) 2020 25

E. Langran and J. DeWitt, Navigating Place-Based Learning,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55673-0_2
Spatial Thinking
Speaking to a broad audience in The Harvard Business Review, Golds-
berry (2013) makes the case for expanding students’ exposure to
spatial thinking in our educational system. He begins by noting that
the Geography Department was the only program ever eliminated at
Harvard University since its founding. Similar closings at other universi-
ties followed, which Goldsberry contends is ironic because soon thereafter
technological developments like Google Maps increased the everyday use
of geospatial technology. The result of the geography department clos-
ings was that fewer students learned spatial reasoning skills such as reading
maps. Of greater concern however is the fact that fewer students were
learning to create maps and analyze spatial data sets, despite the advances
in online GIS (Alibrandi & Baker, 2008). Like many others, Goldsberry
concludes that we need to recommit to the type of curriculum that
develops “a generation of great data visualizers who can tackle our chal-
lenges” (Goldsberry, 2013, para 8). While Goldsberry certainly was not
the first to make this observation, publication of the Harvard Business
Review article suggests that a broader conversation was needed about
spatial education.
Meanwhile, conversations about spatial literacy were well underway
within many academic circles of educators such as those from the honors
community, geoscience, environmental studies, or K-12 social studies.
These conversations rarely took place across disciplinary domains and
often stopped short of generating a comprehensive understanding of how
spatial thinking could be taught. An early exception resulting from collab-
oration is the National Research Council’s Learning to Think Spatially
(2006). This NRC report summarized the analytical processes that make
up spatial thinking and the need for systematically developing students’
spatial reasoning skills.
Children develop mental maps based on direct experience with their
environment such as the routes they take from home to school or the
playground. In the process of their daily lives, they relate these experi-
ences to their own relative position. As children grow, they add indirect
experiences such as the knowledge gained from video, images, and text
about places, and develop a geocentric view that sees how places are
connected (Kimerling, Buckley, Muehrcke, & Muehrcke, 2009). Without
spatial reasoning, the resulting mental maps and cartographic maps may
not necessarily match. Place-based learning is among the ways to connect
2 HOW AND WHY PLACED-BASED LEARNING WORKS 27
direct experience with a geospatial representation. Our brains learn better

when presented with authentic challenges that are grounded in a partic-
ular location and context. In the next section of this chapter we will
look at what is known about how the brain works and why this infor-
mation suggests place-based learning environments are optimal learning
environments.
The Human Brain: Designed to Learn “On the Go”

Although research on how particular learning conditions are better
than others is still evolving, we know that where we learn matters.
Humans have obviously been learning outside of a classroom much longer
than within in classrooms. Developmental molecular biologist Dr. John
Medina describes the “human performance envelope”—the conditions
under which the brain most efficiently and accurately processes infor-
mation. According to Medina, “The human brain appears to have been
designed to solve problems related to surviving in an outdoor setting,
in unstable meteorological conditions, and to do so in near constant
motion” (Medina, 2008, pp. 4–5). These conditions are very different
from the static environment of a classroom.
Classrooms are designed the way they are because of tradition and
convenience, not because they offer an ideal physical environment for
learning. While classrooms are clearly a more practical and climate-
controlled way of educating large numbers of students, it is important
to recognize that teaching students how to exist in the world by working
in an enclosed room is not an optimal situation. In fact, we know that
when children are learning outdoors, they naturally “encounter oppor-
tunities for decision making that stimulate problem solving and creative
thinking because outdoor spaces are often more varied and less structured
than indoor spaces,” and “induce curiosity and the use of imagination”
(Burdette & Whitaker, 2005, p. 48). So, it is not just learning, but specif-
ically problem-solving, planning, and organization, executive function,
visual thinking, pattern recognition, and working memory that are given
a boost by outdoor environments (Jarrett, 2019; Pica, 2014).
We should design learning experiences that take into account these
optimal learning conditions from neuroscience research. While it is not
practical for students to be schooled entirely outside of a classroom
setting, there are times when we can integrate activities that take advan-
tage of optimal learning conditions. As new brain research is being
published, we learn more about how the physical environment impacts

brain functioning, from space design to the temperature of the learning
environment (Cheema & Patrick, 2012). The University of Exeter’s
Medical School is heading up a large-scale study on the positive mental
impacts of green and blue spaces, such as parks and beaches (Bratman
et al., 2019; University of Exeter, 2017). This study builds on previous
research conducted by the European Center for Environment & Human
Health. Many educators who tout the benefits of outdoor education point
to how outdoor education programs provide learning pathways to “tactile
and other sensory-driven modes of inquiry” (Auer, 2008, p. 7). Although
we may not have complete information about how to design an optimal
learning environment, the current evidence suggests first that movement
is good, and second, that the stimulation from being outdoors also is
good.
The Link Between Movement and Learning

There is a connection between where we learn, what we do when we
are learning, and the amount of learning that occurs. Admittedly there
is a lot we do not know about the brain, but we have evidence that
there is an important connection between movement and learning:
movement generates neural pathways, effectively changing the neurons
in our brains. Hannaford (2005) explains how movement leads to
learning by reminding us about how the brain develops. Each stage of a
baby’s progression of learning to move involves taking in sensory input,
balancing, and coordinating limbs. This movement develops neural path-
ways that are essential for learning. For example, crawling, a movement
which activates development of nerve pathways between the cerebral
hemispheres, becomes the basis for the visual coordination needed for
reading (eye teaming). Coordinated muscular activities stimulate the
production of neurotrophins, triggering the growth of existing nerve
cells. This process increases the number of new nerve cells and neural
connections in the brain (Hannaford, 2005). In this way, physical activity
stimulates the brain more than seat learning. We have some evidence of
the correlation between higher levels of fitness and academic test scores
(California Department of Education, 2002). More and more studies are
finding that physical exercise is important for a healthy brain (Adami et al.,
2018; van Dongen, Kersten, Wagner, Morris, & Fernández, 2016; Wein-
berg, Hasni, Shinohara, & Duarte, 2014) and what we refer to as “brain
plasticity”—our ability to reorganize and create new neural pathways.
Another random document with
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sadness.
“Last one!” exclaimed the Wiseacre, full of ready information.
“Why, man! That’s their first one. Here’s where they began last year.
I saw them in St. Paul three weeks ago, happy as wrens.”
THE MESSAGE IN THE AIR
By B. R. Stevens
The typewriters were clicking busily in the place. Every one

seemed honestly, industriously at work.
Looking out of the aperture prepared for the purpose, Lance
Allison saw nothing suspicious. Yet Monsieur the General had been
so sure that information was leaking, in some mysterious way, from
this very room.
Lance had been surprised that the fame of an American detective
should have made any impression in France: more surprised when
the General, on learning his identity, had personally solicited his aid.
Sitting with ears as well as eyes alert, his quick brain began to
dissociate the sound of the typewriters one from another.
That tall girl in black—the one with the pale, pale face, he
amended in his thought, so many, alas! were in black—that girl wrote
with an even monotony in consonance with her expressionless
countenance.
The pert little lass in blue seemed to write each word with an
emphasis, for her spacing was noticeable each time.
And so it went, each typist showing some marked peculiarity as
his ear picked out the particular rhythm.
His examination had reached the last one, and for the first time he
observed its operator closely.... Something familiar and different
about that girl.... Not her clothes, nor her coiffure—nothing he could
put a finger on.
Then he caught the click of her machine. Different from any of the
others, it seemed to jerk out the words and syllables with amazing
irregularity, dwelling on one letter, slighting another, pausing
between. Here, too, was something hauntingly familiar.
In the meantime men came and went, and Lance’s watchful eye
followed the slightest movement made by each newcomer. At any
moment some signal might give him a clue to the disclosures which
the General declared seemed to be made daily.
A timid country lad entered, wiping the dew of embarrassment
from his brow. After some awkward hesitation he conferred with one
of the clerks, evidently stumbling and halting in his inquiries.
No word of the colloquy reached Lance’s ear, but he suddenly
became aware of a message in the air—clear, deliberate, reiterated!
Fifty thousand English left Paris this morning. Destination, Arras.
An hour later the girl who somehow seemed different was
confronted in the private quarters of Monsieur the General by Lance
Allison, American detective. Bright-eyed and defiant, she
smouldered under the guard’s restraint.
“You are an American!” There was curt reproach in the detective’s
tone.
“Well, what of that?” she snapped.
“How came you a traitor to the Allies?”
Then, as she did not answer, he bowed to Monsieur the General.
“This girl gave out her information to a young clod-hopper to-day.
More than likely some other one yesterday and the day before, or to
him in a different disguise. At any rate, they were men who could
spell English—or American,” he added whimsically.
“But how? How, Monsieur le detective? He approached her not—
nor even looked toward her.”
“No,” smiled Lance, “but he had his ear cocked in her direction.”
He turned to the seething girl. “Now, make a clean breast of it, Miss.
You are done for. What evil spirit prompted treachery in one born
under the Stars and Stripes?”
Suddenly the smouldering fire burst into the flame of speech.
“’Twas Jean Armand, the low-down dog! Pretended to love me—
me! Kissed me—took my hard-earned money for his own comfort.
And then—the day he went to the front—he married Elise, a stupid,
wax-faced doll!... Then I swore to betray France as he had betrayed
me—and I have done it.”
“But how?” The General’s question was addressed to the
detective.
“By the clicks of her typewriter, Monsieur. She practised a peculiar
jerky touch so that it would become unnoted. Then when a spy came
in—was the hand on the heated brow the signal, I wonder?—she
talked to him by the dots and dashes of the Morse code with as
much clearness as if the words were breathed into his ear.”
“Yes, and it took an American to find me out,” she glowed with
strange exultation. “These conceited Frenchies were all at sea....
And—Jean, the husband of the fat Elise, fell yesterday under a
charge from troops I sent to meet his regiment—so—I don’t care
what you do to me, now. My work is done!”
IN A GARDEN
By Catherine Runscomb
Dick Halcomb stood waiting on the shady station platform. A little

groom appeared, suddenly and breathlessly.
“Sorry to be late, sir,” he gasped. “Mrs. Paige and Miss Laura
have gone to Mrs. Vingut’s garden party, and left word for you to join
them.”
“Damn!” muttered Halcomb. He had had a hard day in the city,
and felt quite unequal to dragging himself about, wilted and irritated,
any longer. Really, he considered, settling back into the motor, he
was getting pretty fed up with this insatiable lust of Laura’s. He
wondered whether, when they were married and she was away from
her mother, he would be able to instil in her a more normal
enjoyment of her pleasures. He thought, vaguely, of not going after
all—of awaiting them at the house. But a vision rose before him of
Laura all evening wrapped in her delicate fury of aloofness,
something too inhumanly polite to be called sulking, but of shattering
import to nerves on edge—and he decided grimly that he was too
hot, too tired. In the last analysis it was less trouble to go to the
garden party.
By this time they were humming smoothly up to the Vinguts’
gates. The breeze had cooled the heat of his brow, but his thoughts
were growing only more feverish with the passing moments. He
halted the chauffeur suddenly: “Let me out here, Lane. I’ll walk up to
the house—I need exercise.”
It was pleasant to stroll along the driveway, to stretch his cramped
limbs, and absorb at leisure the careful beauties of the land about
him. The lonely graciousness of tall poplar trees, the low-flowering
crimson of rhododendrons ministered gratefully to his troubled soul.
New satisfaction filled him as he discovered no people in sight. They
must be the other side of the house, on the terraces, he thought,
restfully. And then, suddenly, he stopped short, staring.
Just ahead in a clearing was an old Italian fountain, gray stone,
carved and mellowed by the centuries, water splashing musically
into its basin. Sitting on the edge was a tall young girl, the
adolescent grace of her body showing clear and white through the
classic scantness of her shell-pink draperies. Diana herself she
might have been, nymph-robed and formed, her chestnut hair bound
about by a silver fillet, her long, white legs, uncovered, dangling in
the water. He felt a wild certainty that if he spoke she would melt
away into the spray of the fountain. And then she turned her head
and saw him.
“You are late,” she said, in a very clear, low voice that merged into
the plashing water.
“Yes—I am late,” he stammered. “I wonder ... who you are?”
She stared into his eyes with the deep, unconscious gravity of a
child.
“I am Athena,” she answered simply.
“Athena!” he gasped. “Good heavens! Then you are a goddess—
or a nymph——”
She laughed—and her laughter sounded in his ear more like the
fountain than the fountain itself.
“Oh, no,” she reassured him. “We all have Greek names because
they are more beautiful.”
“‘We all’!... Good lord, child, who are you?”
“Why—I am Athena—one of the Morris Dancers. We came to do
our Spring Dance for the party.”
How absurdly simple, he thought. And yet how insufficiently it
explained the wonder of her.
“Why are you here—alone?” he went on. He could do nothing but
question her. He had to get to the bottom of her, somehow.
“We’re through dancing—and the people tired me.”
He sat down on the edge of the fountain, and she moved up
beside him, touching him, a divine friendliness in her deep blue eyes.
“How did they tire you—child?” he asked her gently.
“They are all so artificial—and so conscious. We are taught how
terrible this consciousness of self and sex is. Hellena Morris teaches
us that woman is only really beautiful, really strong, when she is
quite unconscious and unstudied.”
He eyed the grave little lecturer amusedly.
“Do you understand all that—Athena?” he ventured.
“Why, yes,” she said. “We are all very intelligent. It’s the
wholesome life we lead and the perfection of our bodies.”
He threw back his head and laughed.
“I like you when you laugh,” she told him suddenly. “I like you to
throw your head back, and the kind little crinkles round your eyes.
When you are not laughing you look so tired.”
“I am tired,” he admitted; “tired and disillusioned most of the time.
Perhaps it’s my unwholesome life and imperfect body——”
He watched her, glowing with unreasoning pleasure at her laugh.
“Humour, too!” he cried. “Child, you are wonderful! Tell me about
yourself ... everything. I must know the magic that evolved such
perfection.”
“Give me your hand,” she said. “There!... Now you can understand
me better.
“There isn’t much to tell. I am seventeen, and have lived with
Hellena since I was eight. There are twenty of us. She teaches us ...
wonderful things. Not hideous ‘accomplishments,’ but real things that
will help us—Greek and Latin, and the care of our bodies, and the
worship of beauty. We all dance, and sing, and play ... and we paint,
and write verse, and translate the classics, and read to each other.
And we are very strong and hardy, because of our simple lives.... We
can beat men at their own games, although we are so slight. We
wear few clothes—nothing to restrain or disfigure us. And when we
dance we don’t learn special steps; we express in ourselves
whatever we are dancing—Sorrow, or Love, or Spring. See, I will do
you part of our Spring Dance.”
She drew her white, dripping legs from the fountain and danced
before him—a thing so light and delicate, so breeze-blown and
whimsical, so altogether lovely, that his distrust of her humanity
returned to him unbearably.
She stopped—a sudden flush of rose and gleam of white—and
dropped by his side again.
“And every night,” she went on, as though there had been no
interruption, “we say our creed: ‘I believe in beauty—all the beauty
that ever has been and ever will be in the world. And I will worship
and serve it with the highest there is in me—always.’”
He could not speak at first. Then finally, unevenly: “I can’t
presume to praise your theory of life, Athena—any more than I could
your dancing. Thank you for them both.”
She put her hand on his knee, looking at him, whitely, a little
wildly.
“What is your name?” she asked.
“Dick,” he answered, as simply as she had told him hers.
“I should like to marry you—Dick.”
He stared at her.
“So you include marriage—in your scheme of life?” he said dully.
“Yes. Hellena says our marriage laws are terrible, but, while there
is no substitute, if we love terribly it is right to marry. I want to marry
you, Dick—to be with you always, and take the tired look away from
your eyes.”
“Child!” he cried. “You don’t know me!”
“It doesn’t matter,” she told him quaintly. “Love often comes this
way.”
He took her hand against his cheek.
“Dear,” he said, “I am thirty-five—a pretty world-stained and world-
weary creature. Your radiant youth was given you for a better man
than I.”
“I love you, Dick, I have never loved before.”
“Athena, I am ... going to marry ... some one else.”
She trembled against him.
“Some one you love?” she cried. “Dick, some one you love as you
could love me? Is she as young and beautiful? Could she amuse
you, and care for you, and adore you always—always, as I would?”
“Athena,” he said slowly, “there is no one like you ... in the world. I
love this ... other girl in my own way. Not as you should be loved, but
I’m not fit for such love as that. I can’t marry you. Athena—dear—
don’t make it too hard.”
She sat, silent.
Then: “Dick—would you—kiss me?”
He took her gently in his arms.
In the distance people were moving. There was a rustle and a
chatter. He let her go suddenly.
“Good-bye—dear,” he said.
“Good-bye—Dick,” she answered dully.
Once he turned back and saw her—drooping, rose-white, against
the old gray fountain.
· · · · · · ·
From the gay group ahead Laura detached herself, ruffled and
fluttering.
“You’re late enough,” she greeted him.
“Yes,” he said. Then, with an effort: “Have you seen the—Morris
Dancers?”
“Oh, yes; we all did. I think they’re rather disgusting—so few
clothes and so much throwing themselves about; don’t you?”
“You forget,” he answered slowly, “that I have just arrived.”
A CLEVER CATCH
By Lloyd F. Loux
She was a thief, and he knew it. He had followed her in her
travels, where she posed as a saleswoman. At various times he had
thought to capture her, but she evaded him. He feared he had too
little evidence, and she was so wily and so clever.
When he saw her sun-kissed hair and inviting lips, he felt abashed
to think of associating crime with her, and so he waited for more
conclusive evidence. He wished to be sure. How embarrassing it
would be to accuse her and then find her innocent!
And yet—he knew she was dangerous. Then one day he realized
something odd. He had been robbed! He, the cleverest detective on
the force, had been robbed! Yes, it was hard to realize. And by the
very woman he was seeking to capture. Yes, he knew she must have
done it.
Now he would bring her to justice! But how? He had no actual
evidence more than his own conviction. Ah, yes! He would put on a
bold front and bluff her. Yes, bluff her! How happy he felt. Why, after
he had made this capture he would be the proudest man on the
force. And he could have the satisfaction of saying he had wrung the
confession from her. So he togged up and put on a bold front and a
wise air and started out. But suppose she suspected his bluff? Oh,
horrors! Imagine his chagrin. The wisest man on the force, and made
a plaything of by a baby of a woman! But he was started, and only
cowards turn back. Suffice it for us to know that he succeeded and
escorted her to the nearest magistrate’s office, and she confessed!
Yes, and he had the satisfaction of hearing her take oath to the
confession. Then the magistrate appointed him to be her keeper for
life.
The case was closed with the best wishes of the magistrate.
STRICTLY BUSINESS
By Lincoln Steffens
“There’s an extra, a Christmas girl downstairs, that I think you’ll

want to keep; she’s a worker, but——”
The big store manager looked up at the tall, prim New England
woman who was the head of his employment bureau, and he
understood. But he’s a brute.
“But?” he insisted.
“Her references aren’t good.”
“Not good?” he said. “You mean they ain’t good people?”
“Oh,” she exclaimed, “they’re good people; they’re very good
people, but——”
“But?”
“They prefer not to speak, for or against.”
“I see,” he growled. “A case for bad people. Send her up to me.”
And up came the case, another Puritan, slim, alive, afire.
“I know,” she began, “I know what you’re going to say; every word
of it. I’m fired, but, first, I must hear a lecture; the same old lecture.
So fire away, but cut it short.”
“Won’t you be seated?” he said politely.
“Thanks,” she mocked.
He rose, and, with a chivalrous bow, begged her to “Please be
seated.”
“No,” she declared decidedly, “I’ll take it standing, so I can get out
if I don’t like——”
“Sit down,” he bellowed.
She sat.
He stood glaring at her. “Think I’d let you stand there lecturing and
judging me?” he growled. And he lectured and judged her. Then he,
too, sat.
“How do you know what I was going to say?” he demanded.
“Because you all say the same thing,” she flashed; “everywhere I
work. They tell me I’m bad, so I’m discharged, but they all give me
that lecture on how to be good—out of a job.” She named places she
had worked: stores where the managers and the conditions were
notorious. “They gave it to me at Freeman’s,” she sneered, “and,”
she jeered, “at the One Price Stores! Everywhere I get it, and not
only from you bosses. I see the other girls catch on to my story, and,
with looks at me, pass it on. ‘Poor Thing,’ they whisper and, then, of
course, the Poor Thing is fired.”
She didn’t look like a Poor Thing. She looked like a very Brave
Thing to this manager of women, but he felt, with his man’s intuition,
the despair that was washing her courage away. So he was kind.
“How old is the child?” he asked brutally.
“Five.”
“Who takes care of it while you’re at work?”
“Mother.”
“And you support all three?”
“Yes, and,” she blazed, “you needn’t worry about that. You fire
away. I’ll make out, somehow. Only don’t, don’t tell me I’m bad again.
I know that, too. Don’t I tell it to myself every hour, every day, and, if I
forget it for one little hour, doesn’t some one remind me?”
He was afraid she’d break, and he didn’t want her to; not her. “Too
proud, too brave.”
“You needn’t worry about me, either,” he said. “This is a business
house, strictly business. No sentiment, and no scruples. We’re here
to make money, and we’re on the lookout for women who’ll work and
work hard for us. We don’t mind a little thing like a little child. Fact is,
a little——”
She was lifting from her chair.
“Which is it,” he asked roughly, “a boy, or——?”
“A girl,” she said, and she dropped back.
“The fact is,” he resumed, “a little girl at home makes the mother
work harder in the store. And that’s the report on you. They say
you’re a hard worker, so I’d like to keep you on, regular, for life.”
She lifted again.
“But——” he said.
“But,” she collapsed.
“I don’t see,” he said, “how you can work hard, regular, if you go
on telling yourself that lie every hour, every day; that you’re bad.”
He got up, huffily. “How bad are you, anyway? How good you
been since—during the last five years?”
“As good as I was before,” she blazed, springing to her feet.
“Um-m,” he calculated. “I’ll bet you are, and I’ll bet that’s pretty
good. Good enough for us. We ain’t so awfully good ourselves.
Quick sales, small profits, and satisfied customers—lots of ’em.
That’s what we call good.”
She was reaching for him again, with hands, with eyes.
“But,” he struck, “you can’t do much for us and the little girl if
you’re afraid every hour, every day, that you’ll be found out and fired.
We got to cut out fear.”
“You mean?” she gasped.
“I mean,” he thundered, “I mean that you got to cut out that every-
hour-every-day business. See? It’s rot, anyhow. You’re as good as
anybody, and if anybody here says you ain’t, you come to me and I’ll
tell ’em this is a women’s business, run for profit; and women;
including mothers; women, children, and—money. Y’on?”
She stood there staring; comprehending, and he felt that she
wanted to break, but——
“Now, now, none o’ that,” the brute commanded. “Not here. This is
business, strictly business. You get back on your job. D’y’ hear?”
Yes, she nodded; she heard, and she bolted for the door, but as
she opened it she turned and she broke:
“God, how I will work! How I will——”
THE ADVENT OF THE MAJORITY
By Stella Wynne Herron
Colonel Scipio Breckenbridge stopped polishing the lighthouse

lamp and stared out across Lone Palm Key to where the blazing
yellow sand met the dark blue waters of the Gulf. Yes—there they
were again, hobnobbing on the beach—the alien Higgins, his face a
beef red from alcohol within and the tropic sun without, stretched
prone, the breeze flapping his loose sailor’s pants around his skinny
ankles—the Captain erecting a tarpaulin tent against the day of the
great four-yearly event, the presidential election.
Yes, indeed. Make no mistake. Lone Palm Key is a part of the
United States. This speck of an island that flips up out of the Gulf like
the tip end of a fish’s tail is listed as the sixty-sixth precinct of Florida.
For twenty years now the Colonel had religiously cast one vote for
the Democratic candidate; the Captain, one for the Republican
candidate. For twenty years—the Captain and the Colonel being the
entire population—the sixty-sixth had split fifty-fifty—and for twenty
years both had cherished the secret hope of one day carrying it.
Mr. Higgins had drifted into Lone Palm—literally—on a hatch top
of the ill-fated Petrel two months before, and it was not long before
his lamentable failing made itself manifest. Mr. Higgins was unhappy
unless drunk. When his entertainment ceased, and it looked as if,
through sheer thirst, he would have to consent to be taken to Key
West with the Captain’s next cargo of sponges—non-human—he
had discovered a cast-up keg of whiskey. Such an act of Providence
almost restored his waning faith in God. But, alas! for an acrid week
now the sacred fount had been dry. This time he would surely be
frozen out—— But, now, here was the Captain encouragingly
friendly, almost chummy, with him——
The Colonel strode across to the recumbent Higgins, and touched
him with his foot.
“Higgins,” he asked, “do yo’ reckon to vote on Lone Palm this
election?”
“I ’ave that intention,” replied Mr. Higgins gently.
“Are yo’—Republican or—Democrat?” The Colonel’s voice
trembled in spite of himself.
“I ’aven’t decided—yet,” and Mr. Higgins let his gaze drift again
skyward.
The Colonel met the Captain’s perfidious eyes across the
prostrate form of the potential majority. In that silent glance there
was a declaration of bloody war.
From that moment began the Golden Age on Lone Palm for Mr.
Higgins. With flattering frequency he drank healths to the Grand Old
Party, then to the party “that gave birth to Andrew Jackson and
Thomas Jefferson, sah!”
But no maiden, pressed by two suitors, was ever more coy in
avowing a choice than he.
A week before election the Captain’s and the Colonel’s liquor ran
out. Mr. Higgins, to his horror, began to get sober. The day before
election the Captain and his sloop disappeared. The Colonel did not
wait to investigate. He also hoisted sail for Key West. That night both
the Captain and the Colonel unloaded mysterious cargoes. At
midnight, after wandering constantly between the Captain’s
bungalow and the lighthouse, Mr. Higgins fell down in the sand,
impartially between the two abodes. The Captain and the Colonel, in
silence, removed the political enigma to his sail-cloth tent.
Mr. Higgins did not appear at the polls until nearly noon. It was
evident that the combination of Jamaica rum and Kentucky mountain
dew had made terrible ravages on a constitution even so immune to
spirituous shocks as his.
“Drink’s the cause o’ this here country’s goin’ to the dorgs,” he
remarked, through pallid, parched lips, as he entered the booth.
His ballot cast, he disappeared, still enwrapped in mystery and
silence.
At exactly six o’clock the Colonel arose.
“The polls of the Sixty-sixth Precinct, Monroe County, State of
Florida, are now closed. We will proceed to count votes, Captain
Hartford!”
The Colonel thrust into the box a hand that shook in spite of him
and drew out a ballot.
“One Republican!”
The Captain’s heart leaped.
“One Democratic!” announced the Colonel tremulously.
The Captain waited, staring at the floor. Finally he looked up. The
Colonel was gazing as if hypnotized, his bulging eyes fastened on
the ballot in his hand. At last the announcement came:
“The Prohibition Party—one vote!”
Two minutes later they found this pinned to Mr. Higgins’ empty
tent:
“i don what i don bekaws of conshunce i suddently cam to fel the

orful kurse of drink hav made free to borrow a sale bote will leve
same at kee west”
The Colonel drew himself up in his Prince Albert.

“The Sixty-sixth has again split even, sah!” he announced.
THE NIGHT NURSE
By Will S. Gidley
It was long after the midnight hour in the dimly lighted wards of the
field hospital back of the English battle line at Ypres, and pretty,
white-capped Nydia, the nurse best beloved by the wounded soldiers
—Nydia, with the face of a Madonna and voice as soft and soothing
as that of a mother crooning a lullaby to a sleeping babe—was flitting
about among the cots, adjusting a bandage or pillow here, and giving
a swallow of water or medicine there, and doing everything possible
for the comfort of her charges.
There was something of a mystery about Nydia. Nobody knew her
history or antecedents. She had appeared at the hospital and
proffered her services at a time when they were badly needed, and
the medical staff had accepted the offer and set her at work without
further questioning or investigation.
From the first Nydia was very popular with the patients to whom
she ministered; far more so than she was with the grim-visaged
surgeon-general in charge of the field hospital. Said he one day to
his assistant:
“This angel-faced nurse we’ve taken on lately may mean well, but
I am afraid she is a bit careless. Altogether too many of her patients
are dropping off—er—unexpectedly. I’ll have to look into the matter.”
Which he did—later on—but that, as Kipling says, is another story.
Return we now to Nydia on her nightly rounds.
She pauses at the cot of a stalwart young English captain who is
suffering from a gunshot wound received a few days before, and
bends over him with a look of anxious solicitude on her face.
“How is the pain to-night, my captain?” she asks, in a low, sweet
voice like a caress.
“Bad, bad,” he replies slowly. “But I can stand it, dear, so long as I
have you for a nurse. Just think! Only a week since you first came to
my cot side, and already I love——”
“Hush! my brave captain,” she breaks in on his rhapsody. “You
must not think of such things when you are suffering so from your
wound. It will be time enough for that to-morrow. To-night you must
sleep. I must use the needle to quiet your pain.”
“And when I wake to-morrow may I talk to you of love?”
“Yes—when you wake, my captain, you may talk to me of love—
when you wake!
“Listen, dear,” she went on in a whisper so low that only he could
hear. “I am going to lull you to sleep with a story—a story of myself.”
She paused long enough to use the needle and then resumed
whispering in his ear:
“Don’t interrupt or try to ask questions, my captain; there isn’t time
for that. In three minutes you will be asleep, and I must talk fast. You,
no doubt, believe me to be either French or English. I am neither. I
am from beyond the Rhine, a true daughter of the Fatherland. When
the war came I had an affianced lover in the German army, a young
lieutenant, who had been sent to England on a secret mission. There
he was arrested, tried, and executed, as a spy, in the Tower of
London.
“Yes, the English shot my lover for a spy! Since that my only
thoughts have been of revenge. That is why I am here acting as
nurse—and why my patients die!
“The English sent my lover out into the Great Unknown—alone. I
will send a thousand English to keep him company! To-day, my
captain, you said you would gladly die for me, so I am taking you at
your word!
“I have just given you a fatal dose of the hypodermic, and when
you wake it will be in another world, with my brave Wilhelm, who was
named for the great War Lord. When you meet him, tell him that I
sent you—and give him my love!
“Ha! ha! Do you hear, my captain? Give him my love; and tell him
that each night, Providence permitting, I will send him a new
messenger bearing my greetings! That is all. Good-bye, my captain.
The end is near. I am going to kiss you now so you may die happy!”
She bent lower over the cot of the dying officer. He had not
spoken before during her self-revelation; but now his eyes, filled with
horror and loathing, rolled upward to meet hers, and with a final
effort he hissed forth the one word—“Fiend!”
Nydia smiled—a grim, mirthless smile.
“No, not fiend, my captain—only a German!”
WHY THE TRENCH WAS LOST
By Charles F. Pietsch
Not two miles away lay his home. Metre by metre, Joffre’s
“nibbling” had forced the Boches back over the death-sown fields of
the Argonne. And now as he sat in his cunningly hidden nest aloft in
a treetop, observer for a battery of 75’s, his telescope, wandering
from the German trenches, brought home so close that he seemed
almost to be standing in his own garden.
It was so close, he thought—just over there. And it was so good to
be able to watch little Marie playing at the door, and to peep inside
into the kitchen where Jeanne was working—or to follow her from
room to room as her slim figure flitted past the windows.
He had worried so when “Papa” Joffre’s masterly retreat had left
her there alone. But this was the fourth day now that he had kept
watch over her, and soon, he said to himself with a smile—soon that
little home was sure to lie back of the French lines in safety.
The day was quiet. Only intermittently a cannon barked or a rifle
spat across the wire entanglements. And all the morning he had sat
watching Marie’s flaxen tresses bobbing among the rose bushes—
and dreaming of when the war ended.
And suddenly the picture changed.
Marie has dropped her dolls and is racing into the kitchen. The
door slams. He almost hears the bolt shot to, he thinks. And a squad
of Uhlans rides into the yard.
For months past he had driven that picture from his mind. It
couldn’t be—oh! it couldn’t be. And now in sight of home it came in
grim reality. So close—and yet as well be at the ends of the earth
with that German line between them.
He steadied the telescope in time to see a gun butt smash in the
door and the officer stride in. The German batteries opened with a

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Navigating Place-Based Learning:

Mapping for a Better World 1st ed.

Make the World a Better Place: Design with Passion,

Earth's the Right Place for Love: A Novel Elizabeth

Global Leisure and the Struggle for a Better World 1st

Scaling Impact. Finance and Investment for a Better

Better than Alpha Christopher M. Schelling [Christopher

Machine Learning for Decision Makers: Cognitive

Machine Learning for Decision Makers: Cognitive

The Hub: A Place for Reading and Writing

Elizabeth Langran · Janine DeWitt

ISBN 978-3-030-55672-3 ISBN 978-3-030-55673-0 (eBook)

Cover illustration: © Alex Linch/shutterstock.com

Yet, not “forward,” but backward in time, since to understand a place, we

dispossessed need, to understand the positioning of current events; and

• Ask Geographic questions

What follows is an articulation of a Critical Place-Based Inquiry Model

Cape Cod, USA Marsha Alibrandi

Common Ground: Our Love

add a spatial component to their assignments. Without realizing it, we

Arlington, USA Elizabeth Langran

Writing a book was as hard as I expected. If it weren’t for the encourage-

1 Place-Based Learning, Geospatial Literacy, and Maps 1

2 How and Why Placed-Based Learning Works 25

3 The Design of Critical Place-Based Inquiry 55

Chapter Conclusion: Designing for Success in Critical

4 Facilitating Student Learning 91

5 Place-Based Inquiry in Action 117

6 Conclusion: Mapping for a Better World 141

Fig. 1.1 Mobile mapping: gravesite of P.T. Barnum (Photo by

Table 1.1 Suitability for place-based learning 20

Place-Based Learning, Geospatial Literacy,

© The Author(s) 2020 1

Besselink designed this experiential activity to shift the students’ focus

When we blur the boundaries of a classroom and expand the locations

What Is Place-Based Learning?

• Develop stronger ties to their community;

By actively engaging local citizens, community organizations, and envi-

In Shatter the Glassy Stare (2008), Machonis devotes an entire section to

The Language of Place-Based Learning

Place is defined by meaning, and many diverse forms of place meaning —

Indeed, all of our life experiences “from cultural traditions to natural

• the elements of the social context, recognizing that historical and

Not only should place-based learning recognize these power structures,

• have the habit of mind of thinking spatially—they know where,

Here, we focus on a specific kind of spatial literacy, that of geospatial

Walking to school, taking a shortcut to avoid a traffic jam, playing a team

Together, spatial literacy provides us with the abilities needed to work

Who Is Involved in Creating Maps? Collaboration, Participation,

Mapping for Study Abroad

Mapping Cities, Suburbs, and Rural Areas

activities have an impact on the environment through pollution, energy

Fig. 1.1 Mobile mapping: gravesite of P.T. Barnum (Photo by E. Langran)

into instruction. Many people are already using location-aware applica-

How mobile learning bridges the gap between the classroom

• It has been successful to minimize educational disruption in conflict

Geocaching was an early location-based gaming activity, using hand-

The Role of Place in Your Classroom

1. The content is focused explicitly on the attributes of a place (e.g.,

Table 1.1 Suitability for place-based learning

Differing roles of place-based inquiry Sample investigations

Inquiries best only undertaken when anchored in Impact of climate change:

These characteristics help us differentiate between the type of topics