RESEARCH METHOD COHEN ok

GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION SYSTEMS 251
Geographical Information Systems
While not exactly a simulation, the computerbased
Geographical Information Systems are
becoming increasingly used in educational
research, for example in discussing patterns
of student recruitment and school choice.
Educational policy frequently has geographical
implications and dimensions, e.g. catchment areas,
school closures, open enrolment and school
choice, the distribution of resources and financial
expenditure, the distribution of assessment
scores and examination results. Geographical
Information Systems is a computer-based system
for capturing, storing, validating, analysing and
displaying spatial data, both large scale and
small scale, integrating several types of data
from different sources (Worrall 1990; Parsons
et al. 1996; Gorard et al. 2002). This is useful
for teasing out the implications and outcomes
of policy initiatives, for example: ‘What is the
effect of parental choice on school catchments’;
‘What is the spread of examination scores in a
particular region’; ‘How effective is the provision
of secondary schools for a given population’; ‘How
can a transport system be made more effective for
taking students to and from school’; ‘What is
the evidence for the creation of ‘magnet’ and
‘sink’ schools in a particular city’. Examples of
the data presented here are given in Boxes 10.2
and 10.3.
Clearly the political sensitivity and significance
of these kinds of data are immense, indicating
how research can inform policy-making and its
effects very directly. Parsons et al. (1996)provide
a straightforward, fully referenced introduction
to this field of research in education, and they
present case studies of catchment areas and
examination performance, the redistribution of
school catchments, and the pattern of movements
in catchments.
Readers wishing to research Geographical
Information Systems (GIS) on the Internet can
access several sites by keying in ‘education research
Geographical Information Systems’ on a search
engine for the Internet or by visiting the following
web sites:
Chapter 10
Box 10.2
Geographical Information Systems in secondary schools
School A
Scale
0 300m
School B
Notes
Pupils at school A
Pupils at schools A and B
Pupils at school B
Catchment boundary
Source: Parsons et al.1996