依尺度大小，空間能力可分為小空間與大空間，前者常用於心理的智力測驗，後者為地理學與地球科學主要涉及的範疇。在已有的研究發現，小尺度空間能力與地理學科的關係並不高，其可能關鍵是空間能力尚包含有空間知識。故本研究以小尺度空間能力的心像旋轉與大尺度的空間知識，探討受測者的空間能力。研究方法為利用GoogleEarth的衛星影像以不同旋轉角度的圖像，讓學生判斷臺灣的五大港口，實驗過程分為前測、教學與後測，教學場域分為電腦教室組、普通教室組與戶外現場組。研究結果發現：在普通教室組的學習成效最低；戶外現場組對已參觀的港口辨識力最佳；電腦教室組以旋轉角度最大港口前後測的進步最為明顯；另外，最近新闢建的港口因相關資料尚未引入教科書，使得多數學生對該港都很陌生。

According to the space scale, spatial ability can be divided into small-space and large-space. The former is commonly used in psychological intelligence tests; the latter mainly involves with geography and earth science. Previous studies found that small-scale spatial ability shows low relevancy with geography, since spatial ability is affected by spatial knowledge. In this study, the author combines mental rotation of small-scale spatial ability and large-scale spatial knowledge to explore
the subjects' spatial abilities. The research method is using satellite images in Google Earth in different rotation angles, allowing students to discern Taiwan's five major seaports. The experimental process is divided into pre-test, teaching, and post-test; the teaching environments include three groups: computer classroom, general classroom, and outdoor site. The results showed that: the general classroom learned the least; the outdoor site group demonstrated the best ability of discerning the seaports; the
computer lab group improved the most from pre-test to post-test in terms of the seaport image with the largest rotation angle. In addition, as the newly-built seaports haven't been introduced in textbooks, they are unfamiliar to most of the students.