METHODS OF GEOGRAPHY TEACHER ATLAS DESIGN
V.V. Molochko
SSPE "Kartographia"
admin@ukrmap.com.ua
Geography Teacher Atlas is a kind of
cartography complex course of which includes the extended list of maps,
methodical set in form of texts, tables, explanatory schemes and vocabulary
containing terms.
The main stages
of work on scientific design of Teacher’s Atlas are:
- The analysis of complex school atlases of similar purpose and
contents published in the USSR and abroad made it possible to determine in
general the structure of the Atlas planned for designing, as well as to
draft the list of maps to analyze the methods of their setting and general
design.
- The analysis and working up of school programs in Geography for
secondary schools of general education and high school in force in Ukraine
now allowed not only to define the thematic contents of the Atlas and find
cartographic topics of current importance but also determine the integral
interconnection of separate subjects, geographic as well as related to Geography.
- The structure and contents of the Atlas are finally determined
on the basis of the built structural graphic model of information
representation by certain territorial levels. It helped to solve the
problem of systematic regulation of the maps contents and maps groups, to
define the thematic composition of maps and their place with regard to
each other in the framework of their certain system.
- For the assessment of the cartographic products quality we
conducted marketing research, the focus group of which were experts-users
(Geography teachers of schools, lyceums, colleges, teachers training
universities). On the basis of this research results the main features of
the Atlas were defined more exactly, and that was aimed at providing
correspondence of the contents and the purpose of the Atlas to specific
requirements of the cartographic products users.
- All the above mentioned processes made it possible to compose a
list of maps necessary for the provision of teaching process in
educational institutions of general education and to create the Atlas
assembly model.
Geography Teacher Atlas contains maps
representing the world as a whole, maps of continents and oceans, maps of countries
in groups or apart, and maps of Ukraine. New thematic maps were included to
each part of the Atlas, such as formation of a political map and of
international organizations; the potential of natural resources, external
economic links between countries of the world and Ukraine; global problems of
humanity, etc.