Students learn more from introductory weather and climate courses when they can relate theoretical material to personal experience. The ubiquity of weather should make the link obvious but instructors can foster this connection with a variety of simple methods. Here we describe traditional and web-based techniques that encourage students to…

In this paper, the authors evaluate map overlay, a concept central to geospatial thinking, to determine how it is naively and technically understood, as well as to identify when it is leaner innately. The evaluation is supported by results from studies at three grade levels to show the progression of incidentally learned geospatial knowledge as…

Reform in geography education, as reflected in "Geography for Life: National Geography Standards" (1994) for the U.S.A., favors a constructivist approach to learning. This study examines the acceptance of this approach among students in two upper secondary schools in China. A lesson was developed to illustrate interactive problem solving…

Technology that helps students view images in three dimensions (3-D) can support a broad range of learning styles. "Geo-Wall systems" are visualization tools that allow scientists, teachers, and students to project stereographic images and view them in 3-D. We developed and presented 3-D visualization exercises in several undergraduate courses.…

Assessment of geography undergraduate programs, which incorporate external reviews and concomitant departmental self-studies, attempt to assure pedagogical excellence within uncompromising commitments to successful student learning outcomes, currency of the knowledge and skills imparted, and continuous programmatic improvement. Programmatic…

People generally do not perceive New England to be tornado-prone. Yet, there is a long history of such storms in the six states going back to the late seventeenth century. Usually, New England tornadoes are small and short-lived; even so, some have caused many deaths and much property damage. There is a greater probability for a person to be…

"Differentiating Instruction With Menus Grades 3-5" offers teachers everything they need to create a student-centered learning environment based on choice. Addressing the four main subject areas (language arts, math, science, and social studies) and the major concepts taught within these areas, these books provide a number of different types of…

This report describes a program designed to enhance social studies skills and knowledge. The target areas for enhancement are geography, economics, history, and core democratic values. The need for strengthening these skills was documented by literature, and surveys. An analysis of probable cause for lack of social studies skills revealed that…

This research is part of a broader project being carried out by Erain School (San Sebastian) since February-March, 2004. The project is centered on the educational use of digital video. It has been catalogued as an R&D&I Project by the Diputacion (provincial council) of Guipuzcoa and the Basque government who collaborated in financing it,…

This handbook can be used by anyone with an interest in mapmaking. The step-by-step guide shows how to draw, plan, and color a one-of-a-kind world map. There is a list of materials, supplies, worksheets, and a trouble-shooting appendix for special situations. The guide also provides a variety of enrichment activities to promote continued…

These curriculum units were developed in a National Endowment for the Humanities 1994 summer seminar "Mexico in Transition." The 23 lessons are written in Spanish. Lessons are entitled: (1) "La Migracion Mexicana Vista a Traves del Cuento 'Paso del Norte' de Juan Rulfo" (Jose Jorge Armendariz); (2) "Los Grupos Indigenas de…

This report describes the process of establishing the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Achievement Levels-Setting (ALS) to formulate expectations for the geography and U.S. history assessments in 1994 for grades 4, 8, and 12. The volume includes the following: (1) "List of Tables"; (2) "List of Figures"; (3)…

This document contains a reprint of the 1916 "The Social Studies in Secondary Education: A Six-Year Program Adapted Both to the 6-3-3 and the 8-4 Plans of Organization and Report of the Committee on Social Studies of the Commission on the Reorganization of Secondary Education of the National Education Association" widely believed to be the most…

This project shares the information that an elementary school media specialist gleaned from a summer seminar in Mexico. The document consists almost entirely of pictures of Macintosh video screens. The author used still frame video slide pictures and computerized notes to prepare a "hypercard stack" that readers could access using…

Through the study of several works of art by Albert Bierstadt, George Catlin, Winslow Homer, and Thomas Moran, this resource explores the way that people felt about their growing nation during the period of westward expansion until the end of the 19th century. It introduces students to basic principles of landscape painting and has students…