Special Collections Division the University of Texas at Arlington Libraries Vol. XIII * No. 1 * Fall '99

Texas teachers participating in the Cartographic Connections Project include (left to right):
Sherri Braddock, Dave Garrett, Gary McGregor, Adam Miller, James McGregor, and Cynthia Owens.

Making a Cartographic Connection
by Gerald D. Saxon

In October 1998, the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) applied to the Houston Endowment, Inc., for a grant to fund a three-year electronic pilot project whose goal is to connect primary and secondary school students and teachers to an important primary source--historic maps of Texas and the Southwest. Several departments at UTA sponsored the grant, including the Center for Greater Southwestern Studies and the History of Cartography, School of Education, Center for Distance Education, Department of History, and the Libraries’ Special Collections Division. In April 1999, the Endowment agreed to award $200,000 to underwrite the project, which is entitled "Cartographic Connections: Improving Teaching Through the Use of Historic Maps." The grant project is based on the premise that students will gain a better understanding of history, geography, and related subjects by using historical maps as tools for understanding the past and the present.

The project involves UTA faculty, library staff, and twenty-two teachers selected from across Texas who serve as paid advisors. The teachers were selected on a competitive basis and represent a cross section of districts and schools in the state. The project staff sought teachers who were innovative and willing to experiment with primary sources in the classroom. In addition, the project staff chose teachers who would serve as spokespersons for the project at its conclusion. Teachers submitted applications along with letters of reference. An applicant pool of seventy-five was reduced to twenty-two teachers as project staff sought to have representation from across the state and from all size schools and districts.

Adam Miller of Denton working on a curriculum plan using maps.

The teachers who were selected for the project include: Karen Black, Sherman High School; Sherri Braddock, Blakemore Middle School, Boys Ranch ISD; Karen Campbell, Weatherford High School; Richard Chambers, Thomas J. Rusk Middle School, Nacogdoches ISD; Rachel Darby, Spring Hill Junior High, Longview ISD; Dave Garrett, Coppell Middle School East; Rebecca Giese, Cleburne Middle School; Dan Gravelle, Martin High School, Arlington ISD; Houston Hendryx, Alpine Middle School; Matt Lyons, Hastings Ninth Grade Center, Alief ISD; and Diana Mays, Young Junior High, Arlington ISD.

Also, Garry McGregor, Raynes Middle School, Crandall ISD; James McGregor, Lancaster Junior High School; Adam Miller, Calhoun Middle School, Denton ISD; Cynthia Owens, Stephen F. Austin Middle School, Bryan ISD; Kathryn Parish, Berkner High School, Richardson ISD; David Schild, North Ridge Elementary, Birdville ISD; Nora Stackhouse, South Junior High, Edinburg CISD; Kerri Walker, Marlin High School; Helen Wilson, Arnold Middle School, Cypress-Fairbanks ISD; Michael Wilson, Arnold Middle School, Cypress-Fairbanks ISD; and Sandra Woodruff, Austin Academy, Garland ISD.

Helping to coordinate the project at UTA and to work closely with the teachers are David Buisseset, holder of the History Department’s Jenkins and Virginia Garrett Endowed Chair in Greater Southwestern Studies and the History of Cartography; Richard Francaviglia, Director of the Center for Greater Southwestern Studies; Katherine Goodwin, Cartographic Archivist in Special Collections; Sally Gross, Head of Special Collections; Dennis Reinhartz, Professor of History; Judy Reinhartz, Professor of Education; Gerald Saxon, Associate Director of Libraries; and Pete Smith, Director of the Center for Distance Education.

The teachers and UTA staff and faculty are working together to achieve four major objectives: first, determining curriculum needs in light of local, regional, and statewide requirements; second, selecting appropriate maps from among UTA’s large collection to help meet these needs; third, developing strategies and lesson plans to integrate the use of maps into the curriculum; and fourth, sharing with other educators the techniques learned in this project. The project began on June 4-5, when the teachers visited UTA for a general orientation session. The teachers returned to campus for intensive consulting sessions on July 19-21.

These sessions introduced the teachers to a number of significant maps from UTA’s collection and provided the teachers with techniques to help analyze and interpret the maps. The teachers, in turn, strategized on ways they could employ historic maps in their classrooms. The teachers will develop specific strategies and lesson plans using maps and then begin to integrate these plans into their teaching in fall 1999 and spring 2000. Teachers will return to UTA in the summer of 2000 to refine their strategies and ideas and link them to the curriculum. They and the project staff will also decide on the best way to deliver map images to classrooms across the state. The project will conclude in 2002.

For additional information about Cartographic Connections, please contact: Gerald Saxon, Associate Director of Libraries, UTA, Box 19497, Arlington, TX 76019-0497, (817) 272-3393 (phone), (817) 272-3360 (fax), e-mail <saxon@library.uta.edu>.

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