"Back to the Basics" is an innovation of the WETMAAP Program (Wetland Education Through Maps and Aerial Photography) which offers a series of workshops that provide training in basics ecological concepts, technological skills, and methods of interpretation necessary for assessing geography and earth science topics. The precept of the…

The slippery downhill slide of geography as a taught subject in Tasmanian schools is a lamentable case of lost opportunity. Curriculum reforms reported in previous Forum papers for IRGEE (Robertson, 2003a, 2003b) highlight the time lag in responses to these changes by geography educators. Perhaps because they have steadfastly held to the belief…

The Revised Primary School Curriculum, if implemented, will change the nature of teaching and learning about countries in primary classrooms in the Republic of Ireland (ROI). This research aims to listen to children's voices about distant countries in order to reflect on their experiences and ideas on learning about distant places. (Contains 4…

This paper explores both substantive and methodological issues relating to research investigating Year 9 (age 13-14) pupils' conceptions of geography in one English comprehensive school. Posters, a questionnaire and interviews were used to generate a variety of forms of data. Findings indicated that the pupils saw geography as about the world,…

G. Stanley Hall (1844-1924), founding president of Clark University, was a leader in the child study movement and a significant figure in psychology and education in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Hall had pronounced opinions on many educational subjects, including the teaching of geography. His criticisms and program for the…

Determining the direction in which to face another location on the globe is a problem with significant social and religious meaning, and one with a rich and interesting history in the Western world. Yet a fully satisfying geographic solution to this problem is hindered by our intuitive perception of the world as a flat surface-where a "straight"…

Interim semester field trips provide a unique opportunity for undergraduate students to collect field data in support of their capstone research experience. We encourage students to participate in collaborative research projects prior to the semester for which they enroll in the capstone course. Students select a research project based on a field…

Pairs of students from two age groups made choropleth maps using Arc View. Evidence from their discourse is used to assess aspects of their cartographic understanding as well as the nature of their collaboration. Students from both age groups spent a high percentage of their time talking about cartographic strategy and a low percentage of time on…

This contribution to the "Comments" section first introduces a metric designed to estimate the amount of attention given to different countries of the world in academia using Internet "term paper mills". This metric is used to introduce a call for the incorporation of more geographic education regarding peripheral areas of the world into the…

This article presents the reflections of a new instructor of economic geography in the USA. The author offers practical advice for designing and delivering a course for the first time. Suggestions are given in support of the view that sharing knowledge of effective teaching practices is an important component of mentoring early-career faculty. By…

China is one of the largest countries in terms of geography student enrolment in higher education. This study draws on an extensive collection of data as well as the authors' own surveys of 20 geography schools/departments, to elaborate on the development features of China's geography in higher education (GHE) against its unique background since…

Geography's institutional position in US colleges and universities has strengthened over the past 15 years. Student numbers have increased, many existing geography programmes have expanded, and new programmes have been launched. This article documents these developments and situates them historically. Attention is then directed to reasons behind…

The authors evaluate impacts of web-based learning (WBL) for a geographic information system (GIS) course in which self-paced interactive learning modules replaced lectures to prepare students for GIS laboratory activities. They compare student laboratory, mid-term, final exam and overall scores before and after introduction of WBL, analyzing for…

The paper focuses on the constraints encountered in developing and introducing a geography discipline programme, with a distinctive regional focus, within a university of technology. Through a case study approach, the analysis relates the development of geography at Queensland University of Technology (QUT) to changes in geographical education in…

This article explains a professional development experience of fifth to twelfth grade teachers in using geographic information systems (GIS) and global positioning systems (GPS) technologies to enhance classroom teaching and learning environments. A key challenge faced by the developers was whether teachers would value the technology tools enough…