This technical paper offers an alternative method to the traditional physical geography course which has as its primary objective the knowing of approved body of knowledge. The premise is that a discipline of physical geography does not now exist and that traditional physical geography consists of nearly independent topics treated without common…

Fourteen hundred entries of British works on geography in education comprise this bibliography intended for teachers at the elementary, secondary, and college levels, for students, and for research workers in all branches of education. The purpose is to provide a guide to extensive literature that records a century of progress and achievement in…

This article considers the idea that an analysis of the structure of geography and of the nature of spatial concept development in children will reveal a valuable conceptual link that might serve as a theoretical basis for developing objectives in geographic education. (Author)

Cross-cultural and developmental research on the untaught mapping abilities of children aged five through ten suggests that mapping behavior is a normal process in human development, and that map learning begins long before the child encounters formal geography and cartography. (Author)

Discusses a study based on the "New York Times" in which newsworthy countries and cities are surveyed. The objective is to provide information to geography classroom teachers who incorporate current events into their geography programs. Maps, charts, textual information, and a comparison with a 1960 survey are included. (DB)

Presents a six day activity unit for upper elementary grades to develop an understanding of the value of knowing geography and to teach the five geography themes and their meaning. Completion of the unit will enable students to apply all five themes in describing a place geographically. Includes a test for student evaluation. (LS)

Provides educational resources from ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center) to help teachers find the material to teach the five themes of geography. An annotated bibliography of seven ERIC documents on geographic location is provided. (LS)

This literature review discusses the epistemology of geography and the rationale for including it in the curriculum. It then reviews research about geography learning and teaching. Efforts to reform the geography curriculum require understanding the core epistemological themes and concepts of geography. (SLD)

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…

Geographers in the United States rely heavily on microcomputers. They employ microcomputers to enhance three general categories of tasks: word processing and other productivity needs, geographic instruction, and discipline-specific applications. Word processing and desktop publishing continue to be the primary uses of microcomputers by…

Geo-political concepts and constructs are used to interpret the Arab-Israeli conflict. (DE)

The articles in this report describe how field work, which is highly relevant to modern research and theory, can be used to improve geographic instruction at several instructional levels. Chapter one places the role of field work in geographic instruction in the broader context of contemporary theories of learning. The second chapter describes an…

Ninety-seven objectives reflecting major social science concepts in the discipline of geography at the kindergarten through ninth grade levels are included in this booklet, which is one of a series. Emphasis is upon requiring students to master behavioral aspects and concepts central to the field of geography. The material is organized into eleven…

Ways in which geographic education lags behind recent developments in the field, as well as conceptual and practical suggestions for bringing it up to date are discussed in this document. Unlike traditional geography, which rested on variations of environmental determinism, a basic interest in man and his spatial reference underlies the concepts…