INDEPENDENT MAPPING EXCURSIONS

This page authored by Susan Rice, Beloit College. Materials used were adapted from Heidi Estrem, "Fieldnote Requirements" and Sara Seyfarth, "Strategies for Taking Fieldnotes." in Guide to First-Year Writing at Eastern Michigan University, and Natalie Gummer, Beloit College, Cities in Transition course.
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Initial Publication Date: June 2, 2011

Summary

These are exercises in observation of a physical location and a community within that location in both a campus and community context, designed to provoke comparisons as well as an awareness of the many different communities of people present in the greater Beloit area that might intersect with the students' individual interests.

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Learning Goals

Observation, structured field notes, summative writing and pictorial representation to inform a specific audience, reflective writing.

Context for Use

FYI seminar, 16 students. Students completed the exercises outside of class time; the assignments were to be completed during the eighth and ninth weeks of the semester.

Description and Teaching Materials

See attached.
Student Handout for Independent Mapping Excursions (Acrobat (PDF) 57kB May19 11)
Student Handout - Taking Fieldnotes (Acrobat (PDF) 124kB May19 11)



Teaching Notes and Tips

Allowing more time between the excursions for completion and reflection would have been wise.

Assessment

Each excursion was assessed using the following rubric. I wrote responses for each section to help the student focus their engagement or writing, and to aid future self-assessment.

FIELD NOTES (40 TOTAL)
Descriptive – physical location (10)
Expanded – physical location (10)

Descriptive – community (10)
Expanded – community (10)

MAP (10)

REFLECTIVE SUMMARY (20)

DIGITAL FILES (10)

MAP POSTS (20 TOTAL)
Physical location (10)
Community (10)

References and Resources