Addresses the importance of maps for instruction in both history and geography. Suggests that maps have gotten recent attention because of the rapid political changes occurring in Europe and the quincentenary of Columbus' voyage. Discusses different map projections and the importance of media and satellite display of real pictures of the world.…

Presents findings of an analysis of Italian seventh grade students' understanding of capitalism and socialism. Reports that knowledge of the topics was rather poor. Concludes that students who had studied the topics more thoroughly had somewhat, but not substantially, greater understanding of capitalism and socialism. Calls for more research. (SG)

Discusses the poor performance of U.S. students in tests of geographic knowledge. Describes the Memphis (Tennessee) City Schools' World Regional Geography Concepts Project. Explains that the program instructs teachers in geographic content, concepts, and skills. Reports increased geographic expertise among teachers who participated. Indicates that…

Discusses the desirability of teaching latitude and longitude concepts to upper elementary students. Includes a four-lesson unit on the topics. Employs hurricane tracking information available from the National Hurricane Center. Provides a foundation for future lessons on Middle and North American geography. (SG)

Discusses the concept of writing across the curriculum and how it is used in a university level geography class. Suggests that writing as a resource for learning benefits students by encouraging critical thinking, the organization of bodies of information, and increased memory. Includes specific reading and writing assignments. (DK)

Presents two lesson plans integrating social studies, art, music, and literature to teach geographic themes using the concepts of human settlement and transportation. Explains that comparing two paintings of rural life illustrates the themes of relationships with places and movement. Suggests that comparing songs about great projects uses the same…

Discusses the development of effective teaching methods in geography and asks how the field stands in terms of the current movement toward enhanced quality of teaching and learning. Argues that the best way to promote quality teaching is to give the best researchers the training and means to reach students. (DSK)

Suggests that using the format of the planning public inquiry as a model for a learning activity provides geography students, usually working in teams, with the opportunity to investigate environmental issues from a particular point of view and to present their case as an oral presentation and written report. (DSK)

Observes that students cannot be expected to make critical judgments on controversial issues like the global environment without some instruction in the logic of critical reasoning. Describes two argument forms, convergent reasoning and inference, and provides instructions for an interactive activity that uses examples from industrial ecology and…

Provides activities to encourage classroom play that helps preschool children learn more about place, including where they are at a particular time and how they move from one location to another. Includes separate lists of activities for children ages 2-3, 3-4, and 4 and older. (JPB)

BSc Single Subject Geography students at University College Chester enrol for a core module that involves the acquisition of fieldwork data, data analysis and project design. One of this module's assessment exercises requires students to 'write up' a field-based research project as a functioning website. This paper explores the practicalities of…

The classic American novel, Herman Melville's "Moby-Dick", can be used in geography and English classes at the high school and college levels to explore five themes that have a geographic component or are of interest to geography students: (1) the journey, (2) human/environment interactions, (3) social relationships in space, (4) acquiring…

The importance of Pestalozzianism in the development of Continental European education has been long acknowledged, but less work has been done on the impact and interpretation of Pestalozzian ideas in Britain. The paper utilises a case study of the Worksop Pestalozzian Institution in Nottinghamshire to explore how Pestalozzian practices were…

This study examined the effects of contiguity and feature animation on the recall, map reconstruction, inference performance, and en-route behavior of university students studying a computer-delivered reference map with associated text. Participants were randomly assigned to six versions of a computer program created by crossing three contiguity…

This research started from the premise that (a) employability is an internationally accepted concept with a confusion of interpretations and definitions; and (b) that an insight into the variation in understanding of employability and teaching employability would benefit geography curriculum development. Consequently, the views of the co-authors…