#Introduction
![Sixth grade students map in OpenStreetMap for a Peace Corps project in Botswana.] (https://peacecorpsmappingproject.files.wordpress.com/2015/04/dsc_0474-e1441917806899.jpg)
Contributing data to OpenStreetMap empowers American youth to actively participate in the international development process and provides a unique and comprehensive understanding of our host communities’ human and physical landscapes. Through our World Wise Schools Correspondence Match program, your students will enjoy exciting conversation and learning opportunities with a Peace Corps Volunteer in the field while helping to create a real base map for use in that Volunteer's projects and host community.
The majority of people in the developing world do not enjoy access to accurate, detailed maps of their own communities and countries. This lack of maps poses challenges when health centers need to understand the geographic element of a disease or an ecotourism business wants to promote environmentally friendly travel on a website. It prevents local governments from accessing data that could help them better allocate resources, and it leaves students without a clear understanding of how to understand their immediate world through a geographic lens. Follow the instructions below to involve your classroom today!
![Middle school students celebrate their Peace Corps OpenStreetMap project.] (https://peacecorpsmappingproject.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/img_3801-e1441917881973.jpeg)
Recommended for students in the 6th grade and above
One: Join Peace Corps' World Wise Schools Correspondence Match. Register for Peace Corps’ World Wise Schools Correspondence Match program [here] (https://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/classroom/correspondence/request/). Indicate that you are interested in mapping via the dropdown menu titled "Areas of Work".
Two: Collaborate with a Peace Corps Volunteer in the field. The Peace Corps will contact you to introduce you to your matched Peace Corps Volunteer in the field. We will match you with a Volunteer who is currently working on a mapping project with his or her community. Connect with your Peace Corps Volunteer to coordinate communication with your classroom and to set up your first video chat.
Three: Teach your students OpenStreetMap. Register your students or, if they have their own email addresses, have students register themselves for accounts at [OpenStreetMap] (www.openstreetmap.org). To learn the basics of “Why” and “How” to map, watch [these videos] (www.mapgive.state.gov) prepared by Peace Corps’ partner organization, Mapgive. The interactive videos provide time for students to practice, so be sure to watch the videos next to computers while logged in to OpenStreetMap. Advanced users can also reference the pre-existing OpenStreetMap curriculum and assessment tools developed by [TeachOSM] (http://teachosm.org/).
Four: Help create a base map of a Peace Corps community for use in a real field project. Your Peace Corps Volunteer and his or her community will need help creating a map of their community, and your students are perfect for the job. They will have the opportunity to observe, analyze, and digitize satellite imagery for a Peace Corps community. Your Peace Corps Volunteer can provide context and a rich description of his or her project and Peace Corps experience during video chats with your students. Work with your Peace Corps Volunteer to identify the mapping task that your students should complete. For examples of these tasks, visit Peace Corps' [current list of mapping tasks] (http://tasks.hotosm.org/?sort_by=priority&direction=asc&search=peace+corps).
![Sixth grade students video chat with Peace Corps Volunteers in Mozambique after mapping for their projects.] (https://peacecorpsmappingproject.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/img_0937-e1441917948216.jpg)
![A middle school student learns how to map in OpenStreetMap.] (https://peacecorpsmappingproject.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/img_9069-e1441918022651.jpg)
Students are an excellent resource when you're working with counterparts to develop a base map of your community on OpenStreetMap. If you lack reliable Internet access or simply the time to create a base map, let American students help you by tracing over roads and buildings in your community. Once they are finished, you and your community will be able to refine the map and add your local knowledge through OpenStreetMap's easy, user-friendly iD map editor. You can also contribute to Peace Corps' Third Goal by communicating with the students who map your community and helping them make sense of the satellite imagery they observe.
One: Join Peace Corps' World Wise Schools Correspondence Match. Register for Peace Corps’ World Wise Schools Correspondence Match program [here] (https://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/volunteers/correspondence/enroll/). Indicate that you are interested in mapping in the "How did you learn about this program?" box of the registration form by writing: "Please match me with a Volunteer in the Mapping Initiative". You can also choose an educator whom you already know.
Two: Collaborate with an American educator and classroom. The Peace Corps will contact you to introduce you to your educator match, who has already indicated to us that they would like her students to map on OpenStreetMap for your project. Connect with the educator to set up your first video chat with the students.
Three: Bring your project to life for students. In your first video chat with the students, present your host country, community, family and Peace Corps experience. Provide a vivid context to help students understand your country and your role as a Peace Corps Volunteer. What do you eat? What is your house like? What is your day-to-day experience? Slide decks can help facilitate your presentation and provide visuals for students.
Once students have started mapping for your work area on OpenStreetMap, share stories, pictures and rich descriptions of the geography of your community to help students make a connection between the satellite imagery they observe of your site and the humans who live there. PCVs have used a variety of media to communicate with their matched classrooms, including video chats, blog posts, captioned pictures, phone calls, and letters. If you need additional assistance planning your Correspondence Match activities, refer to the [Correspondence Match Handbook.] (http://files.peacecorps.gov/uploads/wws/lesson-plans/files/CM_PCV_Handbook_1.pdf)
Four: Measure and report your results. As with any project, be sure to measure and report your activities and results in the VRF. Take note of how many students participate in your Third Goal activities. You can also ask the teacher to make sure students use a particular hashtag while saving OpenStreetMap edits and check their progress by searching for that hashtag on [Results-Maps.] (http://resultmaps.neis-one.org/osm-changesets#2/34.0/1.4)
![Peace Corps Botswana Volunteers address a White House audience, including several students, to discuss the importance of OpenStreetMap for their host communities.] (https://peacecorpsmappingproject.files.wordpress.com/2015/05/screenshot-2015-05-26-at-9-23-53-am-e1441918129711.png)
From March-June 2015, Peace Corps’ Office of Third Goal and Returned Volunteer Services and Office of Innovation collaborated on a pilot project to test the viability of a World Wise Schools open mapping program. We worked with six educators to train 119 middle and high school students in Washington DC, Virginia and, through virtual lessons, in Michigan. The program was a resounding success – students and educators alike valued the opportunity to contribute in a hands-on, tangible way to Peace Corps projects while learning useful, take-to-the-market kinds of skills such as spatial reasoning and geographic analysis. Peace Corps Volunteers and their communities who previously lacked access to accurate base maps of their area and did not have the resources to build it themselves gained more detailed base maps for use in public health, ecotourism and education projects. Two of the most outstanding student mappers were even featured at the [White House Mapathon.] (http://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2015/06/01/first-annual-white-house-mapathon.cnn)