GEOG 594A
Culminating Experiences in Geospatial Intelligence

GEOG 594a: Summer 2024

Syllabus (Summer 2024)

GEOG 594A: Culminating Experiences in Geospatial Intelligence

This syllabus is divided into several sections as outlined below. You must read the entire document, which serves as our course "contract."

  • Instructors
  • Course Overview
  • Required Course Materials
  • Assignments and Grading
  • Course Schedule
  • Course Policies

Instructor(s)

The instructor for this course is Todd Bacastow.

Office hours: Please see the Meet Your Instructor page for office hours and additional information about the instructors.

Instructors read and respond to e-mail and discussion forums at least once per day during the week.


Course Overview

GEOG 594A: Culminating Experiences in Geospatial Intelligence (3 credits) is a required capstone (seminar) course for Penn State's:

  • Graduate Certificate in GEOINT Analytics (GEOINT)
  • Intercollege Master of Professional Studies in Homeland Security (iMPS-HLS)

The course is a 16-week seminar and requires up to 15 hours of student activity each lesson. The first six weeks provide the foundation for the geospatial problem you will investigate in greater depth during the last ten weeks. This seminar brings together the threads of the Geospatial Intelligence program and reinforces the standards of professionalism applicable to geospatial intelligence analysis in government and business. The overarching aim is to enhance your understanding of the role of geospatial intelligence, develop individual competencies, reinforce professional concepts, and improve geospatial analytical techniques and methods. GEOG 594A is the culminating experience for the Intelligence and Geospatial Analysis Option of the Intercollege Master of Professional Studies in Homeland Security as well as the final course for the Graduate Certificate in Geospatial Intelligence Analytics. As such, the course expects the student to explore and critically analyze a topical area of interest in appropriate depth. This seminar provides an opportunity to apply the technical tools, concepts, and theories learned in previous coursework while investigating a current analytic problem.

Prerequisites

There are no specific course requirements to take GEOG 594A, but it does require courses or previous experience in GIS and remote sensing and a conversation with your advisor.

What Is Expected

This course requires up to 15 hours of student activity each lesson. You will need to check out the course discussion boards regularly. That's where students and instructors share comments, pose questions, and suggest answers. I strongly encourage you to get in the habit of logging in to the course website every day to check in on the class. With only occasional exceptions, I check message boards every day. You can be sure that I will read, but not necessarily respond to every single message. For a more detailed look at what will be covered in each lesson, as well as the due dates for our assignments and activities, please refer to the semester-specific course schedule that is part of this syllabus (see "Course Schedule").


Course (Seminar) Objectives

To complete GEOG 594A successfully, students must communicate a high level of knowledge of the subject based on their thinking, organization, and technical analysis of the geospatial evidence. The topic of this seminar is to examine the core analytic competencies of the geospatial professional; this is to say, to examine a geospatial analytic problem. The goals of this seminar are for you to:

  • identify a real-world problem.
  • perform an elementary Exploratory Spatial Data Analysis.
  • present and justify the need to study the problem.
  • provide the practical ways in which the proposed study should be conducted.
  • recognize the ethical and professional issues in the spatial domain.
  • evaluate and apply analytical methods in geospatial analysis.

The final deliverables of GEOG 594A are a presentation addressing a geospatial intelligence question and a research paper.


What is a Seminar?

A "seminar," according to Webster's dictionary, is a group of advanced students studying under a professor with each doing original research and all exchanging results through reports and discussions. The seminar method of teaching is based on Socrates' theory that it is more important to enable students to think for themselves than to merely fill their heads with "right" answers. This theory led him to regularly engage his pupils in dialogues by responding to their questions with questions, instead of answers. This process encourages divergent thinking rather than convergent.

In this seminar, you will be given opportunities to "examine" a common piece of text or idea. After "reading" the common text or idea, open-ended questions are posed. The open-ended questions allow you to think critically, analyze multiple meanings in text, and express ideas with clarity and confidence. After all, a certain degree of emotional safety is felt by participants when they understand that this format is based on dialogue and not debate.

Dialogue is exploratory and involves the suspension of biases and prejudices. Discussion/debate is a transfer of information designed to win an argument and bring closure. Americans are great at discussion/debate but do not dialogue well. However, once teachers and students learn to dialogue, they find that the ability to ask meaningful questions that stimulate thoughtful interchanges of ideas is more important than "the answer." Dialogue is characterized by:

  • suspending judgment
  • examining our own work without defensiveness
  • exposing our reasoning and looking for limits to it
  • communicating our underlying assumptions
  • exploring viewpoints more broadly and deeply
  • being open to disconfirming data
  • approaching someone who sees a problem differently not as an adversary, but as a colleague in common pursuit of a better solution.

Participants in a seminar respond to one another with respect by carefully listening instead of interrupting. Students are encouraged to "paraphrase" essential elements of another's ideas before responding, either in support of or in disagreement. This simple act of socialization reinforces appropriate behaviors and promotes team building.


Required Course Materials

To take this course, you need to have the required course materials listed below. All (other) materials needed for this course are presented online through our course website and in Canvas. To access the online materials, you need to have an active Penn State Access Account user ID and password (used to access the online course resources). If you have any questions about obtaining or activating your Penn State Access Account, please contact the Outreach Helpdesk. They can be reached at 1-800-252-3592 in the US or internationally at 814-865-5403 (country code 1). You may reach them by e-mail at psuwd@psu.edu.

You might require Esri's ArcGIS software in this course. Details on acquiring an educational software license can be found on the GIS @ Penn State Website. If you have questions regarding the software, please contact the instructor.

Note

ArcGIS is a commercial software package that is restricted to personal use by the student. It is unlawful for anyone to use this software package without the appropriate commercial license from Esri Inc. to generate personal or corporate profit or revenue.

Using the Library

Just like on-campus students, as a Penn State student, you have a wealth of library resources available to you!

As a user of Penn State Libraries, you can...

  • search for journal articles (many are even immediately available in full-text);
  • request articles that aren't available in full-text and have them delivered electronically;
  • borrow books and other materials and have them delivered to your doorstep;
  • access materials that your instructor has put on Electronic Reserve;
  • talk to reference librarians in real time using chat, phone, and email;
  • ...and much more!

To learn more about their services, see the Library Information for Off-site Users.


Assignments and Grading

Course length: 12 weeks

Summary: Below you will find a brief summary of the lesson tasks for this course and the associated time frames. Assignment information will be on each lesson's checklist - so you will need to check there for the full set of details and deliverables. Sometimes the details for each lesson can change, and it's possible that the syllabus may not be updated as quickly as the lesson checklists, so always check specific lesson checklists for the latest details.

Your grade for this course will be based on your course participation and eight (8) deliverables. Each is outlined below. Detailed instructions are located in the online course materials.

Activity Weight
Deliverable 1: Research Question 5%
Deliverable 2: Question and Bibliography 7.5%
Deliverable 3: Data Exploration Assignment 12.5%
Deliverable 4: Workplan 12.5%
Deliverable 5: Project Review 1 12.5%
Deliverable 6: Project Review 2 12.5%
Deliverable 7: Presentation 12.5%
Deliverable 8: Final Paper 25%

Letter grades will be based on the following percentages:

A
93.0-100%
A-
90.0-92.9%
B+
87.0-89.9%
B
83.0-86.9%
B-
80.0-82.9%
C+
77.0-79.9%
C
70.0-76.9%
D
60.0-69.9%
F
<60.0%
X
Unsatisfactory (student did not participate)

Acceptable participation:

  • Offers solid analysis, without prompting, to move the conversation forward
  • Demonstrates deep knowledge of the text and the question
  • Actively listens to other participants
  • Offers clarification and/or follow-up that extends the conversation
  • Remarks often refer back to specific parts of the text

Unacceptable participation:

  • Offers little commentary
  • Is ill-prepared with little understanding of the text and question
  • Does not listen to others, offers no commentary to further the discussion
  • Distracts the group by offering off-topic questions and comments
  • Ignores the discussion and its participants

Late Work Policy

One of the many advantages of taking courses online is that it affords you a degree of flexibility in when and how you complete your assignments which might be more challenging to achieve in a face-to-face classroom setting. However, taking courses online does not mean that you've got the autonomy to do and submit the work when you wish.

For us to move through the material as a group, each of you must complete your assignments on time. Late is defined as submitted anytime after 11:59 p.m. on the day on which the assignment is due. This means if you procrastinate and turn it in at 12:05 am the next morning, it is late.

Assignments will be assessed a 10% penalty for each 24 hours they are late (i.e., midnight on Wednesday through 11:59 pm on Wednesday is 10%, and so on).

Life happens. Inevitably, you will have some legitimate situation or emergency arise during the semester that will hinder your ability to complete work on time. You should always communicate these occurrences to your instructor as soon as possible. It takes but a minute to call or email and give me a courtesy heads-up. I'm much more willing to work with you if I know what's going on. Falling off the radar for an extended period and then requesting more time retroactively is not the appropriate way to communicate a problem with your instructor. Let me know what's happening when it's happening; that gives me the best chance of helping you out.

Procrastination doesn't pay - Technology is far from perfect, and, generally, it only fails when you need it to work. If you play with fire and wait until the very last second to attempt to submit your work in Canvas, you may get burned. This is an easy enough problem for us to avoid - you have a full week to complete your work, so don't wait until that last second to turn it in.

Make-up Exam Policy

This course does not have any exams.


GEOG 594A Course Schedule

image Printable Schedule
Lesson 1: Developing Your Research Question
Date Week 1
Readings

Lesson 1

Assignments

Research Question

Lesson 2: Literature Search
Date Week 2
Readings Lesson 2
Assignment Question & Bibliography
Lesson 3: Exploring the Problem with Maps and Descriptive Statistics
Date Week 3
Readings Lesson 3
Assignments

Data Exploration Assignment

Lesson 4: Workplan
Date Weeks 4 and 5
Readings Lesson 4
Assignments

Workplan

Lesson 5: Project Review 1
Date Weeks 6 and 7
Readings Lesson 5
Assignments

Project Review 1

Lesson 6: Project Review 2
Date Weeks 8 and 9
Readings

Lesson 6

Assignments

Project Review 2

Lesson 7: Presentation
Date Weeks 10 and 11
Readings

Lesson 7

Assignments

Presentation

Lesson 8: Final Paper
Date Week 12
Readings

Lesson 8

Assignments

Final Paper

Course Policies

Technical Requirements

For this course, we recommend the minimum technical requirements outlined on the Technical Requirements page. If you need technical assistance at any point during the course, please contact the Penn State World Campus IT Service Desk.

Penn State E-mail Accounts

All official communications from Penn State are sent to students' Penn State e-mail accounts. Be sure to check your Penn State account regularly, or forward your Penn State e-mail to your preferred e-mail account, so you don't miss any important information.

Academic Integrity

This course follows the procedures for academic integrity of Penn State's College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. Penn State defines academic integrity as "the pursuit of scholarly activity in an open, honest and responsible manner." Academic integrity includes "a commitment not to engage in or tolerate acts of falsification, misrepresentation, or deception." In particular, the University defines plagiarism as "the fabrication of information and citations; submitting others' work from professional journals, books, articles, and papers; submission of other students' papers, lab results or project reports and representing the work as one's own." Penalties for violations of academic integrity may include course failure. To learn more, see Penn State's Academic Integrity Training for Students

Course Copyright

All course materials students receive or to which students have online access are protected by copyright laws. Students may use course materials and make copies for their own use as needed, but unauthorized distribution and/or uploading of materials without the instructor’s express permission is strictly prohibited. University Policy AD 40, the University Policy Recording of Classroom Activities and Note Taking Services addresses this issue. Students who engage in the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted materials may be held in violation of the University’s Code of Conduct, and/or liable under Federal and State laws.

For example, uploading completed labs, homework, or other assignments to any study site constitutes a violation of this policy.

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

Penn State welcomes students with disabilities into the University's educational programs. Every Penn State campus has an office for students with disabilities. The Office for Student Disability Resources website provides contact information for Campus Disability Coordinators at every Penn State campus. For further information, please visit the Office for Student Disability Resources website.

In order to receive consideration for reasonable accommodations, you must contact the appropriate disability services office at the campus where you are officially enrolled. You will participate in an intake interview and provide documentation. See documentation guidelines at Applying for Services from Student Disability Resources. If the documentation supports your request for reasonable accommodations, your campus’s disability services office will provide you with an accommodation letter. Please share this letter with your instructors and discuss the accommodations with them as early in your courses as possible. You must follow this process for every semester that you request accommodations.

Change in Normal Campus Operations

In case of weather-related delays or other emergency campus disruptions or closures at the University, this online course will proceed as planned. Your instructor will inform you if there are any extenuating circumstances regarding content or activity due dates in the course due to these delays or closures. If you are affected by a weather-related emergency, please contact your instructor at the earliest possible time to make special arrangements.

Reporting Educational Equity Concerns

Penn State takes great pride in fostering a diverse and inclusive environment for students, faculty, and staff. Acts of intolerance, discrimination, or harassment due to age, ancestry, color, disability, gender, gender identity, national origin, race, religious belief, sexual orientation, or veteran status are not tolerated (Policy AD29 Statement on Intolerance) and can be reported through Educational Equity via Report Bias.

Counseling and Psychological Services

Many students at Penn State face personal challenges or have psychological needs that may interfere with their academic progress, social development, or emotional well-being.  The university offers a variety of confidential services to help you through difficult times, including individual and group counseling, crisis intervention, consultations, online chats, and mental health screenings.  These services are provided by staff who welcome all students and embrace a philosophy respectful of clients’ cultural and religious backgrounds, and sensitive to differences in race, ability, gender identity, and sexual orientation.  Services include the following:

Counseling and Psychological Services at University Park  (CAPS): 814-863-0395
Counseling Services at Commonwealth Campuses
Penn State Crisis Line (24 hours/7 days/week): 877-229-6400
Crisis Text Line (24 hours/7 days/week): Text LIONS to 741741

Military Personnel

Veterans and currently serving military personnel and/or spouses with unique circumstances (e.g., upcoming deployments, drill/duty requirements, disabilities, VA appointments, etc.) are welcome and encouraged to communicate these, in advance if possible, to the instructor in the case that special arrangements need to be made.

Connect Online with Caution

Penn State is committed to educational access for all. Our students come from all walks of life and have diverse life experiences. As with any other online community, the lack of physical interaction in an online classroom can create a false sense of anonymity and security. While one can make new friends online, digital relationships can also be misleading. Good judgment and decision-making are critical when choosing to disclose personal information to others whom you do not know.

Technical Requirements

For this course, we recommend the minimum technical requirements outlined on the World Campus Technical Requirements page, including the requirements listed for same-time, synchronous communications. If you need technical assistance at any point during the course, please contact the IT Service Desk (for World Campus students) or Penn State's IT Help Portal (for students at all other campus locations).

Internet Connection

Access to a reliable Internet connection is required for this course. A problem with your Internet access may not be used as an excuse for late, missing, or incomplete coursework. If you experience problems with your Internet connection while working on this course, it is your responsibility to find an alternative Internet access point, such as a public library or Wi-Fi ® hotspot.

Mixed Content

This site is considered a secure web site, which means that your connection is encrypted. We do, however, link to content that isn't necessarily encrypted. This is called mixed content. By default, mixed content is blocked in Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Chrome. This may result in a blank page or a message saying that only secure content is displayed. Follow the directions on our Technical Requirements page to view the mixed content.

Deferred Grades

If you are prevented from completing this course within the prescribed amount of time for reasons that are beyond your control, it is possible to have the grade deferred with the concurrence of the instructor, following Penn State Deferred Grade Policy 48-40. To seek a deferred grade, you must submit a written request (by e-mail or U.S. post) to the instructor describing the reason(s) for the request. Non-emergency permission for filing a deferred grade must be requested before the beginning of the final examination period.  It is up to the instructor to determine whether or not you will be permitted to receive a deferred grade. If permission is granted, you will work with the instructor to establish a communication plan and a clear schedule for completion within policy.  If, for any reason, the coursework for the deferred grade is not complete by the assigned time, a grade of "F" will be automatically entered on your transcript.

Diversity, Inclusion, and Respect

Penn State is “committed to creating an educational environment which is free from intolerance directed toward individuals or groups and strives to create and maintain an environment that fosters respect for others” as stated in Policy AD29 Statement on Intolerance. All members of this class are expected to contribute to a respectful, welcoming, and inclusive environment and to interact with civility.

For additional information, see:

Attendance

This course will be conducted entirely online. There will be no set class meeting times, but you will be required to complete weekly assignments with specific due dates. Many of the assignments are open for multiple days, so it is your responsibility to complete the work early if you plan to travel or participate in national holidays, religious observances or University approved activities.

If you need to request an exception due to a personal or medical emergency, contact the instructor directly as soon as you are able. Such requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Mandated Reporting Statement

Penn State’s policies require me, as a faculty member, to share information about incidents of sex-based discrimination and harassment (discrimination, harassment, sexual harassment, sexual misconduct, dating violence, domestic violence, stalking, and retaliation) with Penn State’s Title IX coordinator or deputy coordinators, regardless of whether the incidents are stated to me in person or shared by students as part of their coursework. For more information regarding the University's policies and procedures for responding to reports of sexual or gender-based harassment or misconduct, please visit Penn State's Office of Sexual Misconduct Prevention & Response website.

Additionally, I am required to make a report on any reasonable suspicion of child abuse in accordance with the Pennsylvania Child Protective Services Law.


Disclaimer

Please note that the specifics of this Course Syllabus can be changed at any time, and you will be responsible for abiding by any such changes. All changes will be communicated to you via e-mail, course announcement and/or course discussion forum.