This research study was designed to assess preservice elementary education teachers' knowledge of world geography. The "High School Subject Tests: World Geography," developed by Scott, Foresman and Company for use with high school students, was administered to 124 undergraduate elementary education majors enrolled in social studies methods courses at a southern university. Consisting of 45 multiple-choice items, the test was subdivided into the following six content areas: basic geographic definitions; chronology and seasonal change; determining direction, distance, and elevation; location determination; identifying landforms; and map reading. Overall, the students performed poorly on this test, and it is concluded that these prospective teachers will have difficulty teaching geography to elementary students unless they learn on the job. A study by Breazeale (1985) provides some evidence that teachers do learn on the job. However, improvement in place location knowledge will require a change of teacher attitude toward world events, recognizing the importance of world geography, history, and the other social sciences. Student performance was evaluated and presented in eight tables detailing the percentage of correct responses by content area. A nine-item bibliography is included. (GEA)