**1. Introduction**

Geospatial technology (also known as geomatics) is a multidisciplinary field that includes disciplines such as surveying, photogrammetry, remote sensing, mapping, geographic information systems (GIS), geodesy and global navigation satellite system (GNSS) (Pun-Cheng, 2001). According to the U.S. Department of Labour, geospatial industry can be regarded as "an information technology field of practise that acquires, manages, interprets, integrates, displays, analyzes, or otherwise uses data focusing on the geographic, temporal, and spatial context" (Klinkenberg, 2007). It is a new integrated academic field that has a diverse range of applications (Konecny, 2002). The applications of geomatics are in the fields of precision farming, urban planning, facilities management, business geographics, security and intelligence, automated mapping, real estate management, environmental management, land administration, telecommunication, automated machine control, civil engineering and so on. Even applications of some devices such as cellular phones, RFID (radio frequency identification) tags and video surveillance cameras can be regarded as part of geospatial technologies, since they use location information (Klinkenberg, 2007). So, graduates of geospatial technologies have the opportunity to pursue varying and challenging careers. Apart from offering graduates challenging career paths (both indoor and outdoor); geomatics exposes them to modern, cutting edge and innovative information system and technologies.

The connection between geospatial technologies and information and communication system and technology runs deep. Geomatics fields, especially GIS, have used information and communication technologies such as database management, data sharing, networking, computer graphics and visualization. Thus, some authors (Klinkenberg, 2007; Goodchild, 2011) regard geospatial technologies as part of information technology. Even geospatial technology has had its own free and open source software movement in the open source geospatial foundation (OSGeo) which organizes the free and open source software for geospatial (FOSS4G) conferences. The foundation also support a number of geospatial projects for web mapping, desktop applications, geospatial libraries and metadata catalogue. This relationship has led to further development of geospatial techniques and applications.

There has been a significant growth in geospatial technologies applications in recent years. There is a major increase in the availability of remote sensing imagery with increasing

Applications of Geospatial Technologies

was composed of the following items:

 I am more motivated to learn than before The group discussions make me a better learner

performance of students were documented.

benefited from these technological developments.

**2. Methodology** 

for Practitioners: An Emerging Perspective of Geospatial Education 5

McDougall et al., 2006; Hannah et al., 2009; Aina, 2009) have discussed the problem and part of the suggested mitigations is revamping the curriculum and improving the learning experience of the students. Emerging pedagogical methods such as problem-based learning, cooperative learning, student-centred inquiry and active learning could be relevant in achieving effective learning and enhancing learning experience. This article examines the adoption of active learning method as one of the strategies of improving student enrolment and retention in geospatial education. It presents the results of a case study of the active learning approach. It also discusses the emerging trends in geospatial applications, the global challenges of

The sections of the article that discuss the trend in geospatial applications, importance of geospatial technology for higher education and the challenges of geospatial education are based on review of literature. The final section on the adoption of active learning method is based on questionnaire survey, course assessment and teacher's observations. The questionnaire survey was completed by 16 students that enrolled in Geographic Information System and Remote Sensing courses. The questions were aimed at getting feedback from students on the adoption of active learning method. The questionnaire contained seven items with a five-point Likert scale (Highly Agree to Highly Disagree). The questionnaire

geospatial education and the different strategies to improve geospatial education.

There has been a remarkable change in the teaching method of this course

Teaching other members of the class by making presentations helps me in my learning

There is no difference between how I learn now and how I have been learning before

The course assessment is based on students' grades for each of the courses. The course assessment for the semester was compared with the previous semester when active learning method had not been vigorously adopted. Also, teacher's observations on changes in the

It is difficult to exhaustively outline the recent applications of geomatics in an article as the list continues to expand and there are already vast areas of application. "Comprehensive lists of the capabilities of GIS are notoriously difficult to construct" (Goodchild, 2008). However, notable applications can still be highlighted to show what geospatial technologies are capable of and the possible future uses. The development of new applications in geospatial technology is linked with recent development in electronic and information and communication technology (ICT). Geospatial technologies adopt innovative information and communication system concepts and this is evident in the current and emerging geospatial applications highlighted in the following sections. The different domains of geomatics have

The current teaching method helps me in learning better

I am encouraged to search for more information about the subject

**3. Recent and emerging trends in geospatial applications** 

spatial, temporal, radiometric and spectral resolutions. So, users can apply satellite images in wider areas of application. In the field of surveying, advancements in surveying instruments such as electronic distance measurement, total stations, data collectors, 3D laser scanners and automatic level have boosted the applications of surveying in varying areas. In navigation satellite technology, wide area differential GNSS systems are nearly covering the whole world leading to improved accuracy and availability (Fig. 1). In GIS technology, GIS applications have become ubiquitous. They are available on desktops, notebooks, tablets and mobile phones. The trend is towards multidimensional visualization of geospatial data especially with the availability of digital terrain model (DTM) data and light detection and ranging (LIDAR). The drive towards more integration of geospatial technologies within the geospatial domain and with other related domains (such as information technology and telecommunication) (Xue et al., 2002) has further enhanced the growth and development of geomatics applications.

Fig. 1. Global wide-area differential GNSS systems

The current development and expected growth of geospatial technologies have earned it a place as one of the emerging technologies (Gewin, 2004). New job opportunities are being created as geospatial market expands to new areas of applications. The global annual revenues of geospatial market were estimated at \$5 billion in 2003 (Gaudet et al., 2003) and the revenues are expected to continue to grow. The American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) in its ten-year industry forecast estimated revenues for its geospatial domain at \$6.5 billion for this year (Mondello et al., 2004). The expanding geospatial market requires adequate education and training to develop a workforce that will meet current and future market demand.

Despite the increasing utilization of geospatial technologies in different fields, many geomatics departments in colleges and universities are facing the challenge of low student intake and retention. Quite a number of studies (Hunter, 2001; Konecny, 2002; Mills et al., 2004; McDougall et al., 2006; Hannah et al., 2009; Aina, 2009) have discussed the problem and part of the suggested mitigations is revamping the curriculum and improving the learning experience of the students. Emerging pedagogical methods such as problem-based learning, cooperative learning, student-centred inquiry and active learning could be relevant in achieving effective learning and enhancing learning experience. This article examines the adoption of active learning method as one of the strategies of improving student enrolment and retention in geospatial education. It presents the results of a case study of the active learning approach. It also discusses the emerging trends in geospatial applications, the global challenges of geospatial education and the different strategies to improve geospatial education.
