A constructivist approach to using GIS in the New Zealand classroom

The development of the revised New Zealand Curriculum provides an excellent opportunity to investigate GIS‐based learning pedagogies within the social sciences classroom. The new curriculum privileges inquiry‐based activities with a more participatory approach to learning, providing students with greater autonomy in their studies. This paper emphasises the value of GIS technology for extending student learning when situated within a problem‐based learning (PBL) framework. Using GIS, students undertake geographic inquiry through meaningful learning grounded in constructivist learning theory. PBL is well suited as an instructional strategy for integrating GIS as students actively learn when presented with authentic, real‐world problems.