Accessible geographic maps are useful for gaining insight into the environment. Traditionally, tactile maps are always used in cartographic literacy. These maps have proved to be efficient for the acquisition of spatial knowledge by people with visual impairment, but they have significant limitations. For example, due to the specifics of the tactile sense, only a limited amount of information can be represented on the map. It should be noted, however, that only a small percentage of the visually impaired population can read Braille. Recent technological advances allowed the design of interactive maps in order to overcome some limitations. A significant feature of the maps is the potential to provide extensive monitoring of phenomena with spatial knowledge, regardless of the age of the user. It is in this sense that, this research presents the creation of a computational resource that aims to enable or not students with basic education deficiency in the teaching of Cartography. The developed software uses simultaneous sound and image resources with data from the 193 member countries of the United Nations, which allows inclusive education, interaction between students with or without visual impairment. ResumoMapas geográficos acessíveis são úteis para obter informações sobre o meio ambiente. Tradicionalmente, mapas táteis são sempre usados em alfabetização cartográfica. Esses mapas mostraram-se eficientes para a aquisição de conhecimentos espaciais por pessoas com deficiência visual, mas apresentam limitações significativas. Por exemplo, devido às especificidades do sentido tátil, apenas uma quantidade limitada de informações pode ser representada no mapa. Deve-se notar, no entanto, que apenas uma pequena porcentagem da população com deficiência visual pode ler Braille. Recentes avanços tecnológicos permitiram o desenho de mapas interativos para superar algumas limitações. Uma característica significativa dos mapas é o potencial para fornecer monitoramento extensivo de fenômenos com conhecimento espacial, independentemente da idade do usuário. É neste sentido que, esta pesquisa apresenta a criação de um recurso computacional que visa capacitar ou não alunos com deficiência na educação básica no ensino de Cartografia. O software desenvolvido utiliza recursos simultâneos de som e imagem com dados dos 193 países membros das Nações Unidas, o que permite educação inclusiva, interação entre alunos com ou sem deficiência visual.

Cartographic Projection can be defined as the mathematical relationship between the position of a model of the terrestrial surface and the flat surface. Cylindrical projections are employed around the world, taking into consideration their properties and special characteristics. The purpose of this study was to identify the cartographic projection that best represents South America terrestrial surface, focusing mainly on the area of the continent, determined by the South American Defense Council. Initially, the projections were selected based on a bibliographic review. Subsequently, a suitability judgment was made for South America applying Tissot Indicatrix, Isolines of Maximum Angular Distortion and Region of Acceptable Distortion. Finally, an assumption was drawn up among the best results. The study control was performed using the software Flex Projector and ArcGIS 10.1, computational resources of great use in Cartography. The study provided a clear, simple and objective understanding of how different projections behave. The motivation comes from the insufficiency of detailed information and applied to the choice of map projection in regions of large areas.

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In Brazil, the LDB - Law of Guidelines and Bases nº. 9394(Brazil, 1996) and the PCN - National Curricular Parameters, determines that the Geography discipline is recognized as autonomous and should not be understood as a complement to other disciplines. In this way, the improvement in Geography teaching passes through cartographic literacy. The focus is on offering the student the capacity to carry out the appropriation, analysis, reflection and criticism on geographical space. In this way, this paper presents a resource that consisted of the development of the application called MapVoice. The purpose of the software is to enable Blind or visually impaired students, from basic education, in the learning of Cartography in Geography classes. MapVoice provides the understanding and interpretation of physical environments transformed into thematic maps based on data from the 2010 Brazilian Demographic Census executed by IBGE. The software used sound and image resources developed for Windows environment. The research concludes that it is necessary to prepare the infrastructure of the schools for the reception of these students, but mainly the continuing training of teachers and teaching assistants. Mapvoice was tested at the Institute of the Blind for validation, achieving a satisfactory result and making enthusiasm for the development of new researches.