UNDERSTANDING RELIEF METHODS IN ARGENTINE AND HUNGARIAN SCHOOLS: EXPERIENCES IN BOTH COUNTRIES

J.J. Reyes Nunez¹, E. Galle¹, C.E. Juliarena de Moretti², A.M. Garra³, C.A. Rey³, M.V. Alves de Castro³, A.S. Dibiase³

1 - Eotvos Lorand University, Department of Cartography and Geoinformatics, Budapest, Hungary

2 - Consejo Superior de Educacion Catolica, Buenos Aires, Argentina

3 - Centro Argentino de Cartografia, Buenos Aires, Argentina

jesus@ludens.elte.hu

This paper presents the second part of a joint research project developed by Argentine and Hungarian specialists. The project was organized on the scope of a bilateral agreement signed by the Argentine and Hungarian governments to support researches in different scientific fields.

Cartographers and teachers participating in this project prepared two similar questionnaires to collect information about how pupils understand the different methods used to represent the relief in atlases, textbooks and workbooks in the elementary schools of both countries. The obtained data is stored in digital format and the results of the data analysis are presented using different types of charts.

The main aims of this research were the analysis of the actual situation in the teaching of map concepts in both countries, the identification of difficulties to face during the teaching and learning of map concepts (emphasizing two themes: use of thematic maps in the first year of the project and understanding of relief methods in the second one), followed by the recognizing of the positive experiences on teaching of map concepts, in interest of possible mutual adoption of them in both countries.

All the databases, results, comparisons and proposals written by the participant cartographers are placed to the Web, facilitating that specialists from other countries can consult freely this data and to use it in similar investigations.