This ERIC Digest discusses "Geography for Life: National Geography Standards 1994." The standards specify what students in U.S. schools should learn and be able to do with regard to geography. There are six essential elements of geography into which 18 standards are grouped: (1) the world in spatial terms; (2) places and regions; (3)…

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in geography is a periodic survey of geographic knowledge and skill of students at grades 4, 8, and 12. The first NAEP in geography was conducted in 1994 and the second in 2001. Like the 1994 assessment, the 2001 assessment probed students' ability to recall, understand, analyze, and interpret…

Geography is a key to understanding and acting effectively in our world. It is the subject that, more than any other, enables people to comprehend the earth and its environment, and to appreciate the delicate balances between the human and physical elements that bind people to this planet. However, more than half the children of the United States…

There is an important relationship between history and geography that needs greater emphasis in the social studies curriculum. By emphasizing the temporal and spatial relationships in geography and history, geographers can help develop curriculum that focuses upon the fundamental themes in geography, the relationship of the themes to the study of…

Territorial decentration is a question of major significance to geographic educators. This paper reports the findings of a research project designed to determine the territorial decentration of an American sample of children. The primary purpose of the research was to determine if Piaget's territorial decentration stages are appropriate for…

Discusses the five fundamental themes of geography. Describes the relationship between them and traditional geographic concepts. Merges themes and concepts to include location (position on Earth's surface), place (physical and human characteristics), relationships within places (human and environment), movement (humans interacting with the earth),…