Exploring Obstacles toEducational Reform: Observations from Finding a Way

This paper examines teachers' expressions of concerns and resistance to the idea of making their classrooms gender equitable. The observations made here arose in the context of the National Science Foundation-funded National Council for Geographic Education Finding A Way project. During Finding A Way summer institutes, teachers were asked to look critically at themselves and reflect on their classroom practices. From their journal entries and personal narratives, it was found that teachers frequently experience powerful emotional responses and cognitive dissonance when asked to address issues of equity in their classrooms. Dissonance, ambivalence, and resistance surfaced most often over the “request” that they become proactive. We found that Finding A Way was most successful with those teachers who were willing to assume the role of “change agents” and who were personally invested in the outcome. Heretofore, professional development research in geography has been remarkably silent on the issue of teacher resistance to educational reform initiatives.     

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.     

Geography and National Education Policy

Abstract

The National Geography Standards must be relevant to everyone associated with educational reform. The special advantage enjoyed by geography during the last administration is slipping away. The focus has shifted from the national to the local level. One way geography can demonstrate its relevance is to strengthen its ties with environmental education.     

Certain Persistent Errors in Geography

Abstract

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 methods. The students reacted positively to the lesson. The instructional practices stimulating their response and the potential for problem solving geography educational methods in China are discussed.     

An Action Vocabulary for Thinking Spatially: The National Geography Standards and Defining What Students Should Know

Abstract

Geography for Life identifies what students should know and be able to do in geography at the conclusion of grades 4, 8, and 12, the benchmark years cited in the document. The action statements that are integral to implementing each of the 18 National Geography Standards are driven by a set of verbs used to identify specific intellectual skills. These skills encourage students to think spatially. The purpose of this article is to identify the action verbs used in the activity statements, inventory their frequency and distribution across the benchmark grades, and define in detail the seven that are most commonly employed. These action words are examined within the context of Bloom's cognitive taxonomy (1956) to illustrate how the National Geography Standards are adaptable to one well-established schema for the structure of knowledge and thus applicable to others as well.     

Geography in Alaska: Holding the Standards High

Abstract

In 1992, the State of Alaska Department of Education embarked on a standards-writing process as part of its Alaska 2000 reform effort. Supported by a Frameworks Grant from the U.S. Department of Education, standards were written in geography, government/civics, and history during 1993 and 1994. This article highlights an extensive statewide public consensus process used to generate the Alaska 2000 Geography Standards, which were modeled after Geography for Life: National Geographic Standards 1994.     

Seedbed of Reform: Arnold Guyot and School Geography in Massachusetts, 1849–1855

Abstract

Swiss-born Arnold Henri Guyot (1807–1884) was the first professionally trained geographer to hold an academic position in the United States. After his migration to this country in 1848 he lived for several years in Massachusetts. During this period he introduced contemporary German-Swiss ideas of geography to key opinion leaders in an important series of lectures (published as Earth and Man), established a system of weather stations, and lectured on methods of teaching geography in Massachusetts teachers' institutes and normal schools. This article discusses Guyot's work in the reform of school geography in Massachusetts as the seedbed for his later, better-known work as the author of innovative textbooks and other teaching aids.     

The Uncomfortable Classroom: Incorporating Feminist Pedagogy and Political Practice into World Regional Geography

Abstract

This paper examines how to incorporate a feminist pedagogy into teaching World Regional Geography in order to empower students to seek social change. This paper also addresses the fragile relationships that develop in the feminist classroom, such as challenging students' inherent prejudices in a safe and comfortable setting.     

Exploring Obstacles toEducational Reform: Observations from Finding a Way

This paper examines teachers' expressions of concerns and resistance to the idea of making their classrooms gender equitable. The observations made here arose in the context of the National Science Foundation-funded National Council for Geographic Education Finding A Way project. During Finding A Way summer institutes, teachers were asked to look critically at themselves and reflect on their classroom practices. From their journal entries and personal narratives, it was found that teachers frequently experience powerful emotional responses and cognitive dissonance when asked to address issues of equity in their classrooms. Dissonance, ambivalence, and resistance surfaced most often over the “request” that they become proactive. We found that Finding A Way was most successful with those teachers who were willing to assume the role of “change agents” and who were personally invested in the outcome. Heretofore, professional development research in geography has been remarkably silent on the issue of teacher resistance to educational reform initiatives.     

CONSTITUTION OF THE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAN GEOGRAPHERS

The Geography of Economic Activity: An Introductory World Survey. Richard S. Thoman.

Urban Responses to Agricultural Change. Clyde F. Kohn, ed.

Learn Geography the Easy Way, revised edition. Raymond P. Dollinger, ed.

The Tropical World: Its Social and Economic Conditions and Its Future Status, 3rd edition. Pierre Gourou.

Outdoor Recreation for America: A Report to the President and to the Congress by the Outdoor Recreation Resources Review Commission.

Francois Matthes and the Marks of Time: Yosemite and the High Sierra. Fritiof Fryxell, ed.

Hammod's Ambassador World Atlas, 2nd edition. C.S. Hammond and Co.

The Wew Rand McNally Pocket World Atlas, Cardinal Edition.

The Golden Khersonese: Studies in the Historical Geography of the Malay Peninsula before A.D. 1500. Paul Wheatley.

Plant Life of Palestine, Israel and Jordon. Michael Zohary.

Europe's Needs and Resources. J. Frederic Dewhurst, John O. Coppock, P. Lamartine Yates AND Associates.

Problems of Applied Geography. Kazimierz Dziewonski, ET AL., eds.

Problems of Dynamic Meteorology and Climatic Theory.

Questions of Physics of the Atmosphere.

Mapuche Social Structure: Institutional Reintegration in a Patrilineal Society of Central Chile. L.C. Faron.

The Statesman's Yearbook, 1961–1962. S. H. Steinberg, ed.

A Regional Geography of South Australia. D.D. Harris AND D.A.M. Lea.

Volcanoes: In History, In Theory, In Eruption. Fred M. Bullard.     

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

Books reviewed in this aritcle:

Africa South of the Sahara. A. T. Grove.

Africa's Lamds and Nations. Lucile Carlson.

Africa—A New Geographical Survey. A. B. Mountjoy and C. B. Embleton.

China: Ageless Land and Countless People. Chiao-Min Hsieh.

China: Emerging World Power. Victor P. Petrov.

Canada's Changing Geography. R. Louis Gentilcore(ed.)

The Southeastern Ulzited States. John Eraser Hart.

The Northeastern United States. Lewis M. Alexander.

North America: A Geography of Canada and the United States. J. H. Paterson.

The lndus Rivers: A Study of the Effects of Partition. Aloys A. Michel.

The Drama of Fiji: A Contempordry History. John Wesley Coulter.

Cripple Creek. Robert Guilford Taylor.

Future Environments of North America. F. Fraser Darling and John P. Milton(eds.).

General Geography Introduction to Geography. Henry M. Kendall, Robert M. Glendinning, and Clifford H. Macfadden.

A Question of Place: The Development of Geographic Thought. Eric Fischer, Robert Campbell and Elden Miller.

Compass of Geography. Jan O. M. Broek.

Travel and Exploration Lieutenant Zagoskin's Travels in Russian America, 1842–1844. Henry N. Michael(ed.).

One Chilly Siberian Morning. Douglas Botting.

Physical Geography General Physical Geography. Pierre Birot.

Plants, Animals, and Man in the Outer Leeward Islands, West Indies. David R. Harris.

Man's Influence on the Vegetatiola of Barbados, 1627 to 1800. David Watts.

Water Research. Allen V. Kneese and Stephen C. Smith(eds.).

Geology and Geornorphology of the Coastal Plain of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil and Northern Uruguay. Patrick J. V. Delaney.

Problems of Weather Forecasting Ferdinand Steinhauser(ed.).

Introductiom a la Geomorphologie Climatique. J. Tricart and A. Cailleux.

Physical Geograflhy: Selected Readings. Fred E. Dohrs and Lawrence M. Sommers(eds.).

Statistics Quantitative Geography, Part I: Economic and Cultural Topics. W. L. Garrison and D. F. Marble(eds.).

Mathematics in the Social Sciences and Other Essays. Richard Stone.

Economic Geography Geography and Economics. Michael Chisholm.

Geography of Manufacturing. Gunnar Alexandersson.

New Viewpoints in Economic Geography: Case Studies from Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, North America. J. Rutherford, M. I. Logan, G. J. Missen.

Essays on Commodity Flows and Spatial Structure of the Indian Economy. Brian J. L. Berry.

Shifting Cultivation in Southeastern Asia. J. E. Spencer.

Economics of Outdoor Recreation. Marion Clawson and Jack L. Knetsch.

Settlement and Urban Geography Die Auszuirkungen eines Eisenbahnknotenpunktes auf die geographische Strukture einer Siedlung-am speziellen Beispiel con Lehrte und ein Vergleich mit Bebra und Olten/Schweiz. Werner Mikus.

City and Village in Iran: Settlement and Economy in the Kirman Basin. Paul Ward English.

Japanese Colonization in Eastern Paraguay. Norman R. Stewart.

Les Transports Parisiens. Pierre Merlin.

Geography of Market Centers and Retail Distribution. Brian J. L. Berry.

Urban Land-Use in Hong Kong and Kowloon. Part I: Tsim-Sha Tsui District. Chi-Sen Liang.

Greater London: An Industrial Geography. J. E. Martin.

The American City. Raymond E. Murphy.

The Internal Structure of Retail Nucleations. Barry J. Garner.

Planning for a Nation of Cities. Sam Bass Warner, Jr., (ed.).

Metropolis on the Moue. Jean Gottmann and Robert A. Harper(eds.)

Geography of Population Geography of Population. J. Beaujeu-Garnier.

Political Geography Systematic Political Geography. Harm J. de Blij.

The Northern Tier: Afghatzistan, Iran, and Turkey. Rouhollah K. Ramazini.

A Dictionary of Geography: Definitions and Exfilunutiotzs of Ternzs used in Physical Geografihy. W. G. Moore.

Physical Naster Plan of the Jerusalem-Ashdod Region. E. Efrat

A Catalogue of Latin American Flat Maps, 1926–1964. Palmyra V. M. Monteiro.

Atlas of North Carolina. Richard E. Lonsdale.

J. Russell Smith: Geographer, Educator, and Conservationist. Virginia M. Rowley.

The Geographer's Craft. T. W. Freeman.

Geography and History Traces on the Rhodian Shore: Nature and Culture In Western Thoaght From Ancient Times to The End of The Eighteenth Century. Clarence J. Glacken

Social and Cultural Geography Languages, Territories and Names of California Indian Tribes. Robert E. Hexer.     

The Geographic Imperative

Abstract

With the publication of Geography for Life: National Geography Standards 1994 in October 1994, geography has taken a big stride forward in demonstrating to teachers the breadth and significance of its discipline. This talk focuses on three aspects of geographic reality in the lives of teachers and students, under the title of “The Geographic Imperative.” Consideration of the Imperative and three axioms is intended to support the fullness and classroom utility of the Geography Standards.     

Gaps,Intellectual Enthusiasms,Personal Insecurities: Response to “Stages on Journeys”

Abstract

The Department of Geography at Arizona State University implemented a field exam as part of its PhD program requirements. This field exam requires students to develop an independent field-based research project based on a general question in the student's specialty area. A survey of current and former PhD students and faculty members document how the field exam assists students in developing skills necessary for continuing graduate research and for preparing them for the rigors of academic employment. The outcomes of the exam include both long-term, process-related benefits and more immediate tangible rewards. For some students, the preliminary fieldwork and results redirect student interests and form the basis for their eventual dissertation. The field exam is adaptable to a diversity of geography research methods, subject areas, and graduate degree programs, while remaining grounded in the discipline's vibrant, widely respected fieldwork tradition.

     

GEOGRAPHIC NOTES ON THE BARBADOS MALARIA EPIDEMIC∗

The Zagros Streams. Theodore Oberlander.

UNESCO Source Book for Geography Teaching.

The Early Spanish Main. Carl Ortwin Sauer.

Locational Analysis in Human Geography. Peter Haggett.

The Geography of Economics—A World Saruey. Geoffrey Parker.

Introduction to Hydrometeorology. J. P. Bruce and R. H. Clark.

Geography of New York State. John H. Thompson, (ed.).

Alaska: A Challenge In Conservation. Richard A. Cooley.

Pergamon General World Atlas. E. N. Davis and G. B. Cheetham (Consultant Editor); Stanley Knight (General Ed- itor).

Danish Planning Legislation—A Survey.

Region Planlcegning og Region Inddeling. Landsplanduvalget, K?benhavn.

Native Inheritance, the Story of Corn in America. Howard T. Walden 2D.

The Uses of Air Photography. J. K. S. St Joseph (ed.).

Geschichtlicher Atlas fiirdas Land and der Saar. Hektor Amman and Emil Meynan (eds.).

An Economic Geography of East Africa. A. M. O'Connor.

Economic Geografihy of Canada. Pierre Camu, E. P. Weeks, and Z. W. Sametz.

Indian Cities: Characteristics and Correlates. Qazi Ahmad.

Dimensions of East African Cultures. Charles M. Good, Jr.

Toronto's Changing Retail Complex: A Study in Growth and Blight. James W. Simmons.

The Geography of Northwestern Europe. F. J. Monkhouse.

Western und Central Europe: A Regionul Geography. E. W. Shanahan.     

Experienced Teacher Participation in Preservice Programs: A Model in Geography at the University of Northern Colorado

Abstract

This paper discusses a model program for preparing secondary geography teachers in the Department of Geography at the University of Northern Colorado. The key feature of the program is the presence of an outstanding secondary teacher in residence throughout the year who team-teaches the Teaching Methods in Geography and World Geography courses with geography faculty, modeling effective ways of teaching the subject. Students are paired with Colorado Geographic Alliance teacher-consultants in summer institutes and for student teaching. Analysis of formative evaluation data collected through the third year provides some measure of the program's success. Students have responded favorably to the use of a variety of teaching strategies, the opportunity to discuss with faculty why certain strategies are utilized, and how their own constructed lessons have worked in their student teaching. They have also reported that their understanding of geography has improved from taking the team-taught courses.     

Editorials: New Associate Editors

Abstract

The Earth and How it Works: A Lab Manual and Workbook with Teaching Ideas, Projects, and Activities in Environmental Science by Philip R. Holzinger Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1985. x and 150 pp., figs., illus., photos, maps, app., biblio., and index. $12.95 paper.

Wild Horses and Sacred Cows by Richard Symanski Flagstaff, AZ: Northland Press, 1985. xv and 223 pp., photos, and map. $14.95 cloth; $9.95 paper.

The Making of the Dutch Landscape: An Historical Geography of the Netherlands, 2d ed. by Audrey M. Lambert Orlando, FL: Academic Press, 1985. xiii and 372 pp., figs., tables, photos, maps, refs., and index. $55.00 cloth.

Rating Places: A Geographer's View on Quality of Life by Susan L. Cutter Resource Publications in Geography. Washington, DC: Association of American Geographers, 1985. vi and 76 pp., figs., tables, maps, and biblio. $5.00 paper.

A Strategic Atlas: A Comparative Geopolitics of the World's Powers, 2d Rev. ed. by Gerard Chaliand and Jean-Pierre Rageau Trans. Tony Berrett. New York: Harper &; Row, 1985. 224 pp., graphs, tables, maps, and biblio. $26.95 cloth; $14.95 paper.

The Surveillant Science: Remote Sensing of the Environment, 2d ed. by Robert K. Holz New York: John Wiley, 1985. xvi and 413 pp., figs., illus., tables, photos, maps, refs., and index. $21.95 paper.     

Mentoring: A New Approach to Geography Teacher Preparation

Abstract

Geography teacher preparation is an ongoing problem for the discipline. Changes in certification requirements and federal and state educational policies have diminished the role of colleges and universities in educating teachers. At the same time, geography education reform efforts have resulted in higher standards and an increased quantity of geography in the curriculum, pre-service programs have failed to produce an adequate supply of highly qualified geography teachers. This paper suggests that geographers implement geography mentoring programs to improve the quality of geography instruction in early-career teachers. A model developed for the National Geographic Society is described. The model uses Teacher Consultants as mentors to assist novice teachers at the stage in their development when they are most ready to improve practice: between years two and five of their career.     

Resilience Theory and Thomas Vale's Plants and People: A Partial Consilience of Ecological and Geographic Concepts of Succession

Geography has discovered resilience theory, a body of thought about ecological change that initiated with C.S. Holling in the 1970s. We describe the similarities and differences between resilience theory and a geographical treatise, Thomas Vale's (1982) book Plants and People. Vale's work draws more from the tradition of field botany and plant succession than from the theoretical and mathematical ecology that prompted Holling's ideas. Yet like resilience theory, Vale's model of ecological change emphasized multiple states, the threshold transitions between them, and their irreversibility. Each described how forests and rangelands can flip between stability domains in response to altered fire regimes, modified grazing pressures, and climate change. Plants and People also recognized the dual nature of stability encapsulated in Holling's formalization of engineering and ecological resilience. Although resilience theory predates Vale's work and retains primacy through its citation record, we show how their partial consilience promotes a more critical understanding of resilience theory and the ways in which models, scale, and human values influence our comprehension of ecological change.