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How can GIS Practitioners continue with their
Professional Development?
Introduction
Authored by Carl G. Young
Geography 26, Data Acquistion in GIS
Instructor Paul Veisze
Background
GIS practitioners have an ongoing need to continue their professional
development. As GIS professionals, we often experience a persistent, overwhelming
sense of urgency to re-tool and re-train in order to perform quality work.
Changes from command-line driven applications to GUI applications which
increasingly have to be delivered across the Net using client-server architectures
to exploit data from enormously complex data warehouses and new generations
of hardware according to rapidly evolving standards. Within this ten-year
timeframe, we have been in danger of becoming obsolete end-users of GIS
technology. Those of us who continued to make our living in GIS have had
to acquire whole new skill-sets. In the face of the pressure to maintain
our status as valuable employees, we are compelled to continue training
and learning. We see no end in sight; we must face the notion of lifelong
learning in GIS.
In a much broader sense, we find ourselves in the knowledge-based economy
of the post-technological Information Age, where knowledge and skills have
become the key factor in competition and where knowledge is the only lasting
resource of competitive advantage. As we approach the millennium, concerns
about the decline of Western firms, technological change, social change,
market drivers, demographic changes, and the increasing globalization of
business are fueling a "desperate quest" for new approaches to management
and organization. The Information Technology industry faces a problem of
global proportions. Number two is computer skills training and the third
most significant trend is a shift from training to learning (ASTD 1997,
Ernst & Young LLP 1999). According to Ernst & Young LLP in 1997
companies spent $18 billion worldwide on IT training alone. The same Webpage
cites research published by International Data Corp: that number is estimated
to reach $27.9 billion by 2001. Training expert Jack J. Phillips (1994)
estimates that total spending on training in the U.S. rose 7% in 1993 to
about $30 billion. Training for Information Systems professionals is a
significant part of that.
Several resources are available which have an enormous potential to
reach beyond traditional means of education and training. With the Internet
putting educational resources onto the horizon of many professionals, we
can use these resources. Multiple languages and regional differences of
cultures, policies, economy, make open and distance learning (ODL) and
flexible education challenges even to experienced educators. Solutions
and ideas to enhance the professional development design and implement
international educational resources for Internet delivery.
| Learning is the key to prosperity . .
. Investment in human capital will be the foundation of success in the
knowledge-based global economy of the twenty-first century . . .. Learning
throughout life will build human capital by encouraging the acquisition
of knowledge and skills and emphasizing creativity and imagination. To
achieve stable and sustainable growth, we will need an well-educated, well-equipped
and adaptable labor force. To cope with rapid change and the challenge
of the information and communication age, we must ensure that people can
return to learning throughout their lives. As well as securing our economic
future, learning has a wider contribution. It helps make ours a civilized
society, develops the spiritual side of our lives and promotes active citizenship.
Learning enables people to play a full part in their community. It strengthens
the family, the neighborhood and consequently the nation. It helps us fulfil
our potential and opens doors to a love of music, art and literature. That
is why we value learning for its own sake as well as for the equality of
opportunity it brings. -- David Blunkett, Secretary of State for Education
and Employment, England |
Methods
Process of data collection
I develop a number of questions relating to those methods GIS practitioners
are using to maintain their skills. My candidates were selected from to
two GIS working groups, which included the following: Instructors from
ESRI and GIS professionals within California State service. All agreed
that GIS user conferences were an excellent method for updating oneself
on the new GIS applications that are available and networking with other.
Formal training should be provided by industry representatives and co-taught
by seasoned professionals. The student body should be made up of the students
with some to ample GIS knowledge. Ample time for interaction between students
and faculty should be scheduled when possible; again these classes also
present the opportunity for networking and the sharing of knowledge.
Improving accessibility of professional development
by localization of online learning environments
Continuing education by distance learning is today attractive
to many individuals working in a diverse range of GIS professions. Existing
programs make extensive use of the Internet to successfully reach a widely
dispersed audience. GIS is a technical field, we need continued training
in the technical areas such as computer hardware, computer software and
computer programming while education on spatial studies is a necessity
in the field of geography, specialized study in GIS and the technology
related to it are very important for those seeking and maintaining employment
in the GIS profession.
What should be addressed in training?
There are a number things that should be emphasized
by professors when students ask how they can succeed in GIS; those are
training on GIS software programming skills, and new applications of existing
GIS software.
Examples include the following:
ESRI Training;
January-June
2000 ESRI Class Schedule
The Web version
of the January-June
class schedule.
January-June
2000 ESRI Course Catalog
The January-June
catalog has all the details about ESRI's expanded lineup of courses.
(728 K Adobe Acrobat PDF file.)
July-December
1999 ESRI Class Schedule
The Web version
of the July-December
class schedule.
July-December
1999 ESRI Course Catalog
The July-December
catalog has all the details about ESRI's expanded lineup of courses.
(1,082K Adobe Acrobat PDF file.) |
1999-2000 Seminars
Regional User Groups
Partner Events
ArcInfo 8 Rollout
Here is a chronological list of ESRI seminars.
Nov 30
ArcInfo 8 Rollout
Seminar
Utah State Auditorium
Salt Lake City, UT
Seminar Flyer
Free
Registration!
Nov 30
GIS Is Smart Business
Marriott Rocky Hill
Hartford, CT
Seminar Flyer
Free
Registration!
December, 1999
Dec 2
ArcView Hands-on Workshop
Camp, Dresser &
McKee
Cambridge, MA
Seminar Flyer
Free
Registration!
Dec 2
ArcInfo 8 Rollout
Seminar
Renaissance Denver
Hotel
Denver, CO
Seminar Flyer
Free
Registration!
Dec 7
GIS Is Smart Business
Marriott Newton-Boston
Boston, MA
Seminar Flyer
Free
Registration!
Dec 8
Santa Barbara/Ventura
User Group Meeting
Ventura College, Science
Center
Ventura, CA
Seminar Flyer
Free
Registration!
Dec 8
Inland Empire User
Group Meeting
ESRI, Building M,
Tri-Plex
Redlands, CA
Seminar Flyer
Free
Registration!
Dec 8
Orange County User
Group Meeting
Orange County Transportation
Authority
Orange, CA
Seminar Flyer
Free
Registration!
Dec 9
Modesto Area User
Group Meeting
DoubleTree Hotel
Modesto, CA
Seminar Flyer
Free
Registration!
Dec 9
Los Angeles User Group
Meeting
Wilshire Grand Hotel
& Centre
Los Angeles, CA
Seminar Flyer
Free
Registration!
Dec 9
Spatial Analyst Workshop
Rio Hondo Community
College
Whittier, CA
Free
Registration!
Dec 9
3D Analyst Workshop
Rio Hondo Community
College
Whittier, CA
Free
Registration!
Dec 10
Spatial Analyst Workshop
Rio Hondo Community
College
Whittier, CA
Dec 10
3D Analyst Workshop
Rio Hondo Community
College
Whittier, CA
Free
Registration!
Dec 14
ArcInfo 8 Rollout
Seminar
Town & Country
Resort Hotel
San Diego, CA
Seminar Flyer
Free
Registration!
The ESRI Virtual Campus is your home for self-paced GIS training on
the World Wide Web.
Now, students can choose
from more than a dozen courses on GIS
applications, science and technology. Many of those
students are also
students in real life, taking advantage of the growing
number of
partnerships between universities and the Virtual
Campus. Many others
arrive already well-established in the GIS industry
and seek to broaden
their professional knowledge and standing.
Students come to class from all over the world, and
they work in a broad
range of GIS fields, from natural resources management
to logistics
planning to environmental quality regulation.
Knowledge is not static, of course, and
neither is the Virtual Campus. As
the power and popularity of GIS grows, so too will
the walls of the Virtual
Campus expand -- encompassing new courses, new partnerships,
and
new opportunities.
In recognition of that expansion, the Virtual Campus
offers the resources
of one of the most comprehensive libraries of GIS
materials on the Web.
It contains maps, books, technical papers, conference
proceedings and
a wealth of other reference materials free of charge
to GIS students and
professionals anywhere.
Consistently, students mention the freedom the Virtual
Campus gives
them to learn on their own.
The campus is available 24 hours a day, allowing
students to make
decisions about how, where and when they will study
concepts, practice
exercises, and take exams.
At the same time, the Virtual Campus seeks to connect
these students
and to offer the amenities of a real academic community
-- including
giving students access to reference material, to
expert help -- and to each
other, through chat rooms and discussion groups.
Conclusion
GIS is a rapidly expanding profession. Effective methods
for maintaining GIS skills include the following: GIS user conferences
present excellent resources for examining new GIS application, lectures
of GIS related subject matter, peer presentations, and networking. Classes
provided by GIS vendors and working GIS professionals are excellent resources.
Internet courses AKA virtual campus courses provide an excellent review
of previously taught subject matter. Local and regional GIS user conferences
also provide some excellent resources. Professional publications serve
as an excellent method for updating one's skills. It is useful to people
in many disciplines and its potential is limitless. GIS is a serious science
and the people who will be using it must be seriously trained as GIS scientists.
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