Fun with GIS 298: 2022 ArcGIS Online Competition for US HS+MS Students
"How can I help my students build skills for life? How can I engage all my kids in something that interests them? I want to do projects, but the kids are all so different. And I have to be ready for some of them to be stuck at home for a week or two, with just a Chromebook or iPad."
The ArcGIS Online Competition for US High School (gr.9-12) and Middle School (gr.4-8) Students can help accomplish multiple goals. Students do a project, solo or with a single partner, in school or out, investigating a topic of their choice, about something within their state, gathering and analyzing geographic data, and presenting their findings via an ArcGIS StoryMap.
States participating in the Competition get to award prizes to a handful of entries each at high school and middle school, but everyone gets to win. Students build content background, tech skills, research skills, project skills, independence or teamwork, and experience with design and analysis, patterns and relationships, documentation and presentation, and more. It can help students and even teachers build vision, empathy, and resilience. Projects are like "educational Velcro:" you can bring together many valuable elements, especially when done bit by bit across the year. The Competition gives everyone a target, and helps all build long-term frameworks.
In the Competition, the geographic scope is bounded and the student's mission needs to be clear. Many class activities during fall and winter can build capacity, leading to a powerful synthesizing event … or teachers can encourage students to do their own intense personal study outside of class. Regardless, even young students charged with meeting identifiable milestones over time can surprise adults with their vision, creativity, tenacity, and capacity to learn and use technology effectively.
Explore the Competition at https://esriurl.com/agoschoolcomp. See and listen to winners from previous years. State leaders are invited to apply using the form accessed from the Leadership Team section of the Rules page. While there, look carefully at changes to the awards section this year. Engage the state's geomentors. Plan how to get the word out and help engage these powerful young minds in understanding a complex world and develop the skills they need to build a better tomorrow.
