Fundamentals of GIS (GEO 2426) Lab Syllabus Fall 2006

Lab Instructor: Charles Yorke

Office: ELA 372
Phone: 245-0377
Email: cy1026@txstate.edu
Office Hours: TU 9:30 - 11:30 TH 9:30 - 11:30
LAB INFORMATION
Labs
SECTION
1001
1002
1003
1004
1005
1006
1007

DAY
Monday and Wednesday
Monday and Wednesday
Monday
Tuesday and Thursday
Tuesday and Thursday
Tuesday
Tuesday and Thursday

TIME
11:00 am - 12:50 pm
1:00 pm - 2:50 pm
3:00 pm 6:30 pm
2:00 pm 3:50 pm
4:00 pm 5:50 pm
6:00 pm 9:30 pm
10:00 am 11: 50 am

PLACE
ELA 155
ELA 155
ELA 155
ELA 155
ELA 155
ELA 155
ELA 155

LAB
ASSISTANT
Yorke
Yorke
Bryant
Longas
Longas
Wiseman
Bryant

Lab Assistants
Name
Lara Bryant

E-mail
lp1085@txstate.edu

Phone
Office
Office Hours
245-7989 ELA 373 MO 1:45-2:45
TH 1:00-2:00
Patricia Longas pl1049@txstate.edu
245-7931 ELA 113 WE. 2:00-3:30
TH 11:30-12:30
Suzi Wiseman swiseman@txstate.edu 245-1935 ELA 389 WE 2:00 3:00
TH 2:00 3:00
Charles Yorke cy1026@txstate.edu
245-0377 ELA372 TU 9:30 - 11:30
TH 9:30 - 11:30
CATALOG DESCRIPTION
This course is an introduction to Geographic Information Systems (GIS), a tool for integrating
and analyzing spatial data to visualize relationships, seek explanations and develop solutions to
pressing problems. The foundations and theory of GIS will be emphasized.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
-

Knowledge outcomes
-Students will explain how the foundations and theory of GIS apply to concepts of spatial and
aspatial data.
-Students will recognize and identify different spatial data models.
Skills outcomes
- Students will apply and use basic operations of GIS in creating and editing spatial data.
- Students will select appropriate techniques and technology to analyze geographic problems.

Texas State University- San Marcos is a member of the Texas State University System

GRADING
Lab Exercises (lowest lab grade dropped)
Grade Scale
A 90% B 80% C

70% D

100%

60% F < 60%

-Your final percentage will round to the nearest whole number, e.g., 89.2=89 but 89.6=90.
-No extra credit will be available during the semester.
Note: Grades will be posted on Blackboard for this class.
ATTENDANCE POLICY
You are expected to attend class and be punctual. There are technical knowledge and skills taught
in this lab that are not covered in the lecture. Students also need to utilize guidance from the lab
instructor and teamwork with classmates to complete lab exercises. Not showing up for the lab
will make it extremely difficult to complete the work by yourself, so it is in your best interest to
attend all labs.
Students should attempt to finish their lab assignments during the lab session. Students that finish
their assignments early are allowed to leave the class, but must have submitted their lab work
through Blackboard before leaving the class.
LABS
Lab exercises will be assigned every class. Lab exercises will be turned in online using
Blackboard. Lab exercises assigned on Monday must be submitted by 12 pm Wednesday.
Exercises assigned on Wednesday must be submitted by 12 pm the following Monday. NO LATE
WORK WILL BE ACCEPTED. Labs will be graded and returned via Blackboard within one
week of being turned in.
MAKE UPS/EXCUSED ABSENCES
Excused absences are only given if the student has contacted the lab instructor before missing the
lab, and the absence is worthy of being excused. The lab instructor will determine if the absence
is worthy of being excused and may ask for some type of documentation. Turning in a lab late
will only be an option for students with an excused absence for the class the lab was assigned.
They must talk to the instructor concerning this before the absence. If a lab is missed it is the
students responsibility to obtain the lab and submit it by the due time.
LAB MATERIALS

Lab Manual (Required): Maribeth Price. 2004. Mastering ArcGIS. Boston: McGraw
Hill. available in local college bookstores
Reading material will be made available at the library, passed out during lecture, and/or
passed out during lab class periods.
Students will also need (at least) a 250 MB ZIP disk (Iomega), CD-R, or a Flash Drive
for storage of their lab project materials (Flash drives are highly recommended due to
their reliability).

Texas State University- San Marcos is a member of the Texas State University System

LAB POLICIES
The following guidelines are designed to protect the resources of this department and to ensure
the availability of computer resources for students enrolled in other geography lab courses.
Failure to abide by these rules may result in termination of computing privileges.
1) Food and drinks are prohibited in labs.
2) Report any problems with equipment to the department computer laboratory
coordinator. Leave computer and printer covers closed.
3) Do not remove items from the labs. This includes computers, monitors, printers,
keyboards, mice, mouse pads, speakers, manuals, etc.
4) Software may be installed only with the permission of the computer laboratory
coordinator.
5) Do not change or modify computer or network configurations. Such changes may
interfere with the next student using the computer.
6) Log on using your account only. If someone has forgotten to log out, please log them
off.
7) Making personal copies of copyrighted software or data is illegal.
8) Do not download illegal programs or print/view inappropriate materials.
9) Printer usage is monitored and metered. Each student has been assigned a credit
limit for printouts. When the limit is reached, printing will not be possible until the
limit is increased. Increases will be made in $5.00 increments. Color prints will cost
more than black and white. Use your printer resources wisely.
SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS
This course requires significant computer file management skills and the ability to work within a
Windows computer environment without assistance.
CODE OF CONDUCT
In the Department of Geography, instructors strive to create an atmosphere of mutual trust and
respect in which learning, debate, and intellectual growth can thrive. Creating this atmosphere,
however, requires that instructors and students work to achieve a classroom in which learning is
not disrupted. At the most basic level, this means that everyone should attend class, be prepared
with readings and assignments completed, and that students pay attention. This means no
conversations with friends, reading the newspaper, coming late, or leaving early. Such behavior
is disruptive to the instructor and to your fellow classmates.
UNIVERSITY ADA STATEMENT AND POLICY
Students with special needs (as documented by the Office of Disability Services) who will require
compensatory arrangements must contact the instructor no later than the fourth class period to
discuss specific arrangements and logistics. Students who have not already done so will be
required to contact the Office of Student Disability Services located at LBJ 5-5.1 (512.245.3451).
Texas State is dedicated to providing these students with necessary academic adjustments and
auxiliary aids to facilitate their participation and performance in the classroom. The full ADAcompliant policy is available online at: http://www.ods.txstate.edu/

Texas State University- San Marcos is a member of the Texas State University System

ACADEMIC HONESTY POLICY

Learning and teaching take place best in an atmosphere of intellectual fair-minded openness. All
members of the academic community are responsible for supporting freedom and openness
through rigorous personal standards of honesty and fairness. Plagiarism and other forms of
academic dishonesty undermine the very purpose of the university and diminish the value of an
education. Specific sanctions for academic dishonesty are outlined in Texas State Student
Handbook (http://www.mrp.txstate.edu/studenthandbook/) and in the Texas State University
Policies and Procedures Statements (http://www.txstate.edu/effective/upps/upps-07-10-01.html)
which read, in part, that the penalty for academic dishonesty and plagiarism are as follows:
A requirement to perform additional academic work not required of other students in the
course;
A requirement to withdraw from the course with a grade of "F";
A reduction to any level of the grade in the course, or on the examination, or other
academic work affected by the violation of academic honesty.
Plagiarism means the appropriation of anothers work and the unacknowledged incorporation of
that work in ones own written work offered for credit. The following web sites are good
resources for acquainting yourself with plagiarism and how to avoid it:
http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/wts/plagiarism.html
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_plagiar.html

Texas State University- San Marcos is a member of the Texas State University System

Geo 2426 - Fundamentals of GIS Lab - Fall 2006 Schedule (Tentative)

Lab Schedule:

Date

Lab 1 - Introducing Arc GIS

Aug 28 - 30

Lab 2 - Working w/ ArcMap

Sep 6

Lab 3 - Coordinate systems & map projections

Sep 11- 13

Lab 4 - Drawing and symbolizing

Sep 18 - 20

Lab 5 - Working w/ tables

Sep 25 - 27

Lab 6 Queries

Oct 2 - 4

Lab 7 - Spatial Joins

Oct 9 - 11

Lab 8 - Map overlay

Oct 16 - 18

Lab 9 - Presenting data

Oct 23 - 25

Lab 10 - Basic editing

Oct 30 Nov1

Lab 11 - Raster analysis

Nov 6 - 8

Lab 12 TBA

Nov 13 - 15

Lab 13 - Final Project

Nov 20

Lab 14 Final Project

Nov 27 - 29

Texas State University- San Marcos is a member of the Texas State University System