Skills in Professional Geography: An Assessment of Workforce Needs and Expectations

This study compares the skills of professional geographers and the needs of employer organizations across major sectors of the U.S. workforce. Following a series of focus groups, two surveys were developed to explore: (1) the extent to which specific skills were performed by geographers in different professional positions, and (2) the value of and anticipated demand for those skills from the perspective of employers. Overall, respondents in the focus groups and both surveys emphasized the need for general skills ranging from time management and writing ability to information management and computer literacy. Employers also cited many geographic skills as being vital for enhancing the work of professionals in all types of organizations. Competency in field methods, the ability to work across disciplinary boundaries, and spatial thinking were three skill areas that characterized the work of geographic professionals irrespective of specialty.     

What's on top for geography teachers? National Certificate of Educational Achievement and the prioritization of professional development

Geography teachers' work is influenced by multiple education policy initiatives. Professional development opportunities emerge to support these policy changes and associated compliance issues. This paper reports the results of a survey in which geography teachers self‐reported their knowledge and prioritized professional development needs. The data indicate that some compliance issues associated with assessment policy reform have largely been resolved, while more substantive assessment and course design issues continue to be prioritized for professional development. However, professional development that continues to focus on assessment reform may marginalize geography teachers' engagement with concurrent curriculum and pedagogical policy initiatives.     

(What Geographers Should Know About) The State of U.S. and Canadian Academic Professional Associations’ Engagement with Mental Health Practices and Policies

The professional organizations to which geographers belong and by which they are represented have a civic duty and ethical responsibility to educate their members about mental health issues in their professions and, by default, their work environments. And yet national-level professional associations in North America are lagging behind universities in adopting initiatives, commissioning reports, and looking into best practices around the mental health of their members. A survey of the Web sites of sixty-six professional associations in the social sciences, geographical sciences, and humanities in the United States and Canada reveals an uneven presence of attention to mental health issues in terms of their members’ research on mental health issues, awareness of mental health as a professional development issue, and engagement in mental health advocacy and public outreach. In this article, we explore how geography’s professional organizations compare to others with respect to these issues and suggest ways in which they can develop their own mental health protocols to address the crisis of mental health in the academy. Key Words: Academic professional associations, American Association of Geographers, Canadian Association of Geographers, mental health, mental health practices and policies.     

Understanding Place as ‘Home’ and ‘Away’ through Practices of Bird-watching

Bird-watching is an increasingly popular leisure activity. Previous research has taken for granted the identity of people who watch birds, often categorised by their level of skilled practice as ‘dude’, ‘birder’ or ‘twitcher’. Feminist geographers encourage us to explore identity work as an outcome of the reciprocal relationships between practices and place. Our feminist approach illustrates that the practices of bird-watching are always much more than categorising birds as species. This paper illustrates how the practices of bird-watching are integral to the making and remaking of sense of place as ‘home’ and ‘away’, to sustain identities beyond accepted categories of ‘dude’, ‘birder’ and ‘twitcher’. The creation and application of different types of ‘bird-lists’ helps to explain the ways in which practices of bird-watching facilitate making sense of place as simultaneously ‘home’, ‘away’ and habitat, as well as the identity work of home-maker, citizen-scientist and tourist. Our insights into these leisure practices of bird-watching are drawn from analysis of data gathered from 21 people who actively bird-watch and reside on the South Coast, New South Wales, Australia by combining research methods of talking, walking, drawing and photography.     

高星级酒店外籍管理者对广州地方景观的感知与跨文化认同

全球化是当今世界最重要的特征之一。有关跨国移民对城市景观的感知和跨文化认同研究也得到越来越多的关注。在文献回顾的基础上, 以广州高星级酒店外籍管理者作为研究对象, 通过定性研究进行数据的收集和分析, 构建了外籍管理者对城市地方景观感知和跨文化认同的形成演变机制, 并得出以下结论:① 在职业影响下, 外籍管理者对迁入城市产生了被动的地方认同, 进而形成了被迫同化的跨文化认同模式;② 外籍管理者基于身份构建对城市地方景观进行感知, 对反映“他者”、“我者”和“世界人”身份的景观感知度较高, 反映出他们对故乡和迁入城市的地方认同, 从而产生了同时具有整合和边缘特征的跨文化认同模式;③ 外籍管理者通过迁入城市的地方景观感知而产生地方意义的解读, 基于对迁入城市正面的地方意义解读, 对城市产生了地方认同和整合的跨文化认同模式, 基于对迁入城市负面的地方意义解读, 对城市产生了地方不认同和分隔的跨文化模式。研究结论丰富了城市景观研究和跨文化认同研究的相关理论成果, 并为中国跨国移民政策和国际化城市建设提供了可供借鉴的实践参考。     

Geographers in the U.S. Government in Washington,DC, during World War II

Geographers in Washington, DC, during World War II and the agencies in which they worked are recalled through the naming of geographers engaged in wartime work during this seminal period in the development of the geography profession in the United States. The five agencies then employing the largest number of geographers were the Research and Analysis Branch of the Office of Strategic Services, the Topographic Branch of the Military Intelligence Division of the War Department, the Board of Economic Warfare (later the Foreign Economic Administration), the Board on Geographic Names, and the Office of the Geographer, Department of State. The impacts of this period on individual geographers, the professional organization of geographers, cartography, higher education, and the government are suggested.     

Geographers in the U.S. Government in Washington,DC, during World War II

Geographers in Washington, DC, during World War II and the agencies in which they worked are recalled through the naming of geographers engaged in wartime work during this seminal period in the development of the geography profession in the United States. The five agencies then employing the largest number of geographers were the Research and Analysis Branch of the Office of Strategic Services, the Topographic Branch of the Military Intelligence Division of the War Department, the Board of Economic Warfare (later the Foreign Economic Administration), the Board on Geographic Names, and the Office of the Geographer, Department of State. The impacts of this period on individual geographers, the professional organization of geographers, cartography, higher education, and the government are suggested.     

AMERICAN COUNCIL OF LEARNED SOCIETIES

SUMMARY

The greatest deficiency in American geography is substantive research leading to scholarly publication. By comparison, teaching much more adequately developed so that the need for improvement there is not so urgent. I am convinced however that a majority American geographers respect scholarship and are eager to see improved in quantity and quality.

One of the chief obstacles to the initiation of active research programs by many geographers is a poor development of a sense of problem.

An important stimulation to the development of personal research programs would be the organization of geographical meetings of relatively small size in which active rsesearch workers reported on their progress and findings. Emphasis could be on exchange of ideas, debating of controversial issues and the development of research programs rather than upon the reading of formal papers. Instructors in small colleges and high schools could be inspired to undertake local research problems so that they become expert on heir local areas. This was characteristic of such teachers in Japan.

Our national professional organization, including i t s annual meetings, has become so large that such a n intimate program involving ritical discussion is difficult to attain.

Up to the present time the regional divisions have not developed a consistently distinctive and important function in the national organization. Their usefulness is not comonensurate with the degree of representation which they at present have on the Council of the AAG.

It is my hope that the regional divisions may see fit to undertake this function of stimulating personal and group research as t heir main function and plan their annual meetings accordingly. I do not propose to blueprint these meetings too precisely, but I will go so far as to say that in my judgment they should be occasions for mental stretching. They shoufd be pitched at a high level so that they will attract mature minds and seriousscholars. The total effect of such meetings should be to toughen intellectually those in attendance through providing opportunities for professional debate and discussion. I would make every effort to encourage participation in these programs by both youngsters and old sters, by alert high school teachers and those in college and university faculties so that the lifting effects of the regional meetings would be felt throughout all ranks and ages. I would favor the development of field excursions provided they are planned with genuine professional values in mind; values not limited to observation alone but focused so as to stimulate controversy and healthy debate.     

“Enough Wandering Around!”: Life Trajectories,Mobility, and Place Making in Neoliberal Academia

This article analyzes the life trajectories of twelve early-career geographers in relation to their life–work experiences in an increasingly neoliberal academia and its constant demands of hypermobility. Using (auto)ethnographic research methods, it delves into the manifestations and effects of the pervasive myth of the detached, always ready-to-move scholar. We analyze the role of mobility in imaginaries and practices of academia and its close relationship with privilege and precarity. Our findings show how academic work is inescapably located despite the systematic erasure of the bodies, places, and networks that scholars are part of. By taking into account the centrality of place making in academic experience, our conclusions point to more comprehensive ways in which academic mobility can be understood, reflected on as part of geographers’ professional training, and transformed.     

Sentinels of geography: legacy,public policy and contemporary relevance

Many geographers, past and present, have addressed public policy issues facing nations and peoples and in the process offered solutions to highly complex problems. Three ‘sentinels’ of the discipline, Halford Mackinder, Carl Sauer and Thomas Griffith Taylor, served as protectors of geography speaking up for the science in a way often confronting public officials, politicians and others. They contributed significantly to the development of geography in Britain, the USA, Australia and Canada, while engaging in public policy debates on topics such as geopolitics, geographical constraints on land use and natural resource management. All three were advocates for the unity of geography, stressing how an understanding of the interconnectedness of natural and human phenomena can assist in decision making. They were often frustrated by what they saw as ill-informed policies which did not respect geographic realities. Given their varied contributions, it is difficult to fully assess their impact both during their long and productive lifetimes, and subsequently, especially given the interdisciplinary and contested nature of their research. Today, academic geographers are faced with having to increasingly ‘prove the impact’ of their research, something beyond the comprehension of previous generations. Lessons from an analysis of the work of these ‘sentinels’, as well as my own experience, show how difficult a task this will be.     

THE POTENTIAL IMPLEMENTATION OF BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLES IN BIOGEOGRAPHY

As professional geographers we ask the above question in terms of problem solving, but undergraduate students ask it in regards to employment. To determine what exactly our recent majors have done, we prepared a questionnaire on careers, salary, and the utility of the major. Responses indicate they held a wide variety of employment opportunities and annual salaries from under $8,000 to well above $20,000 in 1981. Particularly useful courses include cartography, quantitative techniques and field course work. Special interest was shown in our new Internship Program.     

WHAT CAN I DO WITH GEOGRAPHY?*

As professional geographers we ask the above question in terms of problem solving, but undergraduate students ask it in regards to employment. To determine what exactly our recent majors have done, we prepared a questionnaire on careers, salary, and the utility of the major. Responses indicate they held a wide variety of employment opportunities and annual salaries from under $8,000 to well above $20,000 in 1981. Particularly useful courses include cartography, quantitative techniques and field course work. Special interest was shown in our new Internship Program.     

Tasks,Strategies, and Cognitive Processes Associated With Navigational Map Reading: A Review Perspective*

All geographers use and may create maps in their professional activities. While perceived by some as merely tools to present spatial information, maps are actually complicated communication mechanisms. Many geographers spend tremendous amounts of time learning about verbal and written communication (how to speak, listen, read critically, and write effectively). But to many, one of the basic tools of geographic communication, the map, is a general source of unknown. Many previous papers have focused on how to create effective maps; this paper focuses on how people read and use navigation maps. Everyone completes map‐reading tasks, uses (often different) strategies, and processes information through cognitive processing. Geographers may benefit from understanding how they, as well as their map‐viewing public, process the information contained on their maps. This paper addresses terms and issues addressed in navigational map reading, specifically including tasks and strategies as well as the governing cognitive processes.     

Emplaced professional identities: Restructuring and the contested space of town nursing skill

Abstract:  Health sector restructuring influences most health professionals, and those working in small town hospitals in New Zealand have been affected in particular ways. This paper focuses on the shift in skill requirement for nurses as a result of the loss of surgical services and the downsizing of a town hospital. The shift in nursing skill was contested by nurses who perceived it to be an assault on their skilled professional identities. However the majority of the nurses acquiesced and remained at the town hospital. Rather than read this acquiescence as passivity and victimization on the part of the nurses, their narratives suggest a more complex interpretation which prompts an exploration of the 'investments' that nurses may have in at least temporarily acquiescing. The interdependent relationship between profession and place in which neither profession nor place appear to operate independently in the constitution of identity, is highlighted. Understanding professional identities as emplaced in this way, provides a way of beginning to make sense of how people negotiate, contest, accept or reject change at work in small towns.     

Technology Integration in K–12 Geography Education Using TPACK as a Conceptual Model

There is a need for quality professional development programs and instructional models addressing the needs and challenges of K–12 technology integration in the geography classroom. This study used a mixed-methods design employing surveys and observations to evaluate teacher experiences within a professional development program focused on developing in-service geography teachers’ technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge (TPACK) through content-specific learning tools and resources. Results indicate that instructional scaffolding plays an important role in improving teachers’ ability to integrate technology in pedagogically meaningful ways geared toward enhancing students’ geographic inquiry skills.     

Support for,and Impacts of Publishing in the Annals of the AAG: The Authors and and Editor Speak

A survey of 176 authors who published in the Annals between 1988 and 1993 provides insights into why authors submitted their research to the journal, what support they received, and the impacts of the publication on their careers. Most decided themselves to submit their work, and one-third received support from research grants; cartographic assistance and graduate assistants were less important. The major benefits of publishing in the Annals were visibility in one's department, contact with other geographers, and requests for reprints. Most authors presented their ideas at professional meetings prior to submission. Promotion and salary Inc.reases were benefits for women, assistant professors, associate professors, and physical geographers. Authors considered their articles as original examinations that yielded new results, contributed to theory, stimulated debate, and helped bridge gaps inside and outside of geography. These results are useful in helping individual authors and for administrators in identifying the kinds of research support needed by authors publishing in the Annals.     

情境主题餐厅员工地方感特征及其形成原因——以广州味道云南食府为例

地方感的研究为探讨人地关系提供了新的视角。情境主题餐厅作为能提供特殊体验的一种微观文化空间,为员工构造了一个“异位(heterotopias)”的超现实空间(hyperreality)。本文通过对广州味道云南食府这一典型情境主题餐厅员工的体验式观察和深度访谈,探讨了情境主题餐厅员工对不同尺度空间产生的不同地方感特征及其原因,得出以下结论：① 员工对情境主题餐厅及其所处城市的地方感存在差异。他们对餐厅具有强烈的地方认同和地方依赖,对餐厅所处城市具有地方依赖,但对餐厅以外的其他城市空间不存在地方认同;② 员工对情境主题餐厅地方感特征产生的原因是餐厅融洽的社交环境、良好的工作和生活环境以及较高认同的情境(文化);③ 员工对情境主题餐厅所处城市地方感特征产生的原因是城市所提供的良好工作条件、较差的自然环境、低熟悉的城市空间、对家乡的依恋和对“异乡人”的身份认同;④ 员工对情境主题餐厅及其所处城市的熟悉程度、环境和文化认同程度和归属/依恋程度的差异是员工对两者地方感存在差异的原因。结论对于丰富地方感在微观空间层面的理论与实证研究有重要的价值,能够为城市中其他微观文化空间的地方感研究提供借鉴。     

Contested identities of indigenous people: Indigenization or integration of the Veddas in Sri Lanka

Traditionally, the identity of indigenous people was defined in relation to closeness to nature and use of wildlife resources. Such an identity has been put under pressure due to development programmes, neo‐liberal policies and increasing market economy, forcing these people to redefine their identity within new socio‐economic and geopolitical contexts. Based on ethnographic research, the situation of the Vedda people in Sri Lanka is analysed. First, we unravel how they define their identity through a ‘meaningful relationship’ with the place in which they used to live prior to their displacement because of a large scale development project. Second, we analyse how the Veddas (re‐)negotiate their identity in a context of limited access to land, lack of education, unemployment, and an increasing demand for indigenous tourism. It is found that the Veddas redefine their identity by pursuing two survival strategies: tourist development and re‐indigenization, and integration into mainstream Sinhalese society. Both strategies pose challenges and opportunities.     

Developing Mission-Focused Outcomes for a Professional Conference: The Case of the National Conference on Geography Education

Conferences are principal mechanisms for professional organizations to advance their missions. Conference evaluations can measure mission-related outcomes in order to gauge an organization's impact on the professional growth and development of its community and other stakeholders. Using data from two recent conference evaluations, this article examines the impact of the National Conference on Geography Education in an effort to encourage a discussion about possible future directions.     

信息技术应用对农村居民行为空间的影响——以河北省无极县为例

地理学对信息技术空间作用的研究主要以城市地区为主而缺少对农村的关注,但从理论上分析信息技术应用在农村产生的影响似乎比城市更大。信息技术作为一种新的信息传输渠道、互动媒介与平台,正在改变着农村居民日常行为空间。利用中国东部典型农业大县的农村信息化发展为基础,通过问卷与访谈的方法对农村居民信息技术应用进行统计与分析,在此基础上,对农村居民社会交往空间的变化进行了探讨。研究发现:不同时期信息基础设施的拥有情况是影响人际交往空间变化的根本;随着新的信息技术尤其是移动电话和互联网的发展,农村居民人际交往空间出现极大拓展,同时相同空间范围的人际交往频次增加;互联网的即时通信功能使农村居民社会交往空间类型增多。