Google map as a situating tool (a short write up)

Google Maps is a powerful situating tool that enhances learning by allowing students to explore real-world locations through interactive maps and satellite imagery. In education, it supports the situated learning theory, which emphasizes learning in authentic contexts. Google Maps enables learners to connect classroom knowledge with real-life geography, history, and environmental studies. For example, in social studies or geography lessons, students can use Google Maps to locate countries, examine physical features, trace historical trade routes, or study urban development. It helps learners visualize distances, directions, and spatial relationships, making abstract concepts more concrete. Teachers can also design engaging activities such as virtual field trips, where students explore cultural landmarks or ecosystems around the world without leaving the classroom. Google Maps encourages inquiry, exploration, and critical thinking by letting students pose questions, search locations, and interpret map data. Overall, Google Maps situates learning in real-world contexts, making it an effective tool for experiential and meaningful learning.