The World's Import Trade and the United States' Share Therein

Abstract

Many student geography organizations or clubs associated with colleges and universities undertake community service projects each year to meet local needs and to gain recognition within the community. A uniquely geographical project of playground map painting provides a great community service and goes one step further by incorporating elements of quality service-learning for the geography club members. Painting projects for large school playground maps of the world, United States, or home state are student-planned and student-run. The final painted map can be used for geographic education in elementary schools by conveying basic spatial and geographic relationships. This article will detail a proven method of producing a colorful, useful playground map that can be employed by geography clubs as a service-learning activity and used by educators in elementary schools.     

The Journal of Geography

Abstract

Recent immigration has been an important factor in the growth and distribution of the United States population. The rising number of immigrants has accounted for up to one-fifth of the annual population growth and they have gone to the already populous urban centers and states. Immigrants must be recognized as an increasingly important element of the urban and population geography of the United States.     

国际地理学期刊的主要特征

依据2015年6月发布的2014年度国际期刊引证报告,将SCI收录的46种地理学期刊按学科分为5大类,对各学科期刊的影响因子、总被引频次等相关引证指标进行分析,并对各专业地理学期刊2009-2014年间的学术影响力增长情况进行总结。同时,整理国际地理学期刊的年刊文量、出版国别、出版周期和出版公司等期刊出版资料,对国际地理学期刊的学科类型分布、学术影响指标、编辑出版状况之间的相关影响特征进行探讨。     

Employing SWOT Analysis in Coursework on the Geographies of Regional Economic Development and Trade

Abstract

The use of SWOT analysis is a means through which geography students can investigate key concepts in economic geography and essential topics in regional economic development. This article discusses the results of a course project where economic geography students employed SWOT analysis to explore medium-sized metropolitan areas across the southern United States and their suitability for export-led development. The results suggest that students were able to critically evaluate these urban regions and their potential for integration into the global economy. This case also intimates that the SWOT concept could be applied to other situations and regions in geography coursework.     

Commentaries on “Automated Geography”. Automated Geography and the DIDS (Decision Information Display System) Experiment

Age profiles of geographers having varying topical and areal subfields are compiled using the Guide to Graduate Departments of Geography in the United States and Canada, 1983–1984 and the 1982 AAG Directory. Major retirement trends for the next 10 to 20 years suggest that replacement of faculty may raise key appointment issues and priorities that may significantly change the nature of academic geography.     

The Fundamental and the Incidental in Geography

Abstract

An increased use of artistic literature as a resource in both teaching and research is evident in geography. With the growing interest of some scholars in the behavioral aspects of geography, traditional resources are being supplemented with more humanistic, subjective information sources. In historical geography, for example, literature is a particularly suitable resource for studies of man's role in past geographies and of human perception of past environments.¹ Specialists in regional geography and area studies also have shown a growing appreciation of such sources.² A parallel and related development has occurred in geographic education. In many different courses, but particularly in those dealing with regions, literature has become a recommended resource. The purposes of this paper are (1) to review the relevance of the novel as a resource for geographers and (2) to suggest that a current novel, Centennial, by James A. Michener,³ particularly warrants consideration for use in courses on the historical geography of the United States.     

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.     

Using Action Research to Implement the National Geography Standards: Teachers as Researchers

Abstract

Action research is defined as systematic classroom-based inquiry to solve teacher-perceived problems. It has been a component of education, particularly professional staff development, for the past century under several names although geography educators in the United States have rarely used it for this, or any other, purpose. This paper reviews the literature on action research in order to argue for its use in geography education. A preliminary exploration of action research-based professional staff development is described. The results of the project indicate that action research is potentially useful as a way to guide teachers to reflect on their practice. It is argued that geography educators should include it in their repertoire of reform techniques.     

Teaching Advanced Placement Human Geography

Abstract

The College Board's decision to add human geography to its Advanced Placement (AP) program is an exciting development for teachers at all levels who are concerned about the state of geographical understanding in North America today. Yet as discussed in an earlier edition of this journal (Murphy 1998), the successful implementation of AP human geography is contingent upon meeting formidable pedagogic challenges. These challenges are the product of the discipline's relatively low profile in many high schools (particularly in the United States), the lack of extensive geographical training on the part of most high school teachers, and the scarcity of good geographical reference materials in many classrooms and libraries.     

AIDS to Successful Photography

Abstract

The National Geographic Society's Geography Education Program continues to work on improving geography in the nation's schools. A successful network of geography education Alliances is in place across the United States. These state-based Alliances emphasize grass-roots involvement by teachers and other geography educators. Features of the Geography Education Program include inservice teacher training at Alliance-sponsored summer institutes, institutes held at the Society's headquarters in Washington, and specialized institutes devoted to a specific topic such as technology in education, or water issues. In the near future, the Society's projects include urban outreach, technology training and application, development of preservice programs, and the implementation and dissemination of world-class standards in geography.     

A Field Plan for Large-Scale Terrain Mapping

Abstract

Field work in geography often involves an exercise in which the student is required to make some type of map. Although most areas of the United States are well mapped, seldom are extremely large-scale (larger than 1:24,000) relief maps available. A method of contour-line mapping using small contour intervals and a large scale is appropriate in teaching several mapping principles and requires only a few simple tools and the use of elementary mathematics. Percent slope is established at uniform intervals along closely spaced traverses of the area to be mapped. Spot elevations are thus established from which contour lines can be determined. Accuracy in field-data collection and care in cartography will yield a very satisfactory map of terrain characteristics of small areas. Several concepts of maps and mapping are taught through direct student involvement.     

The Future of Radical Geography∗

Radical geography has posed new, and refashioned many old, geographical problems. These problems require attention irrespective of one's political leanings. Yet radical geography has been consistently ignored by mainstream geographers since its inception. This essay examines the reasons for this situation, and finds four answers in Peet's recent review of the history of radical geography [1]. It seems likely that radical geography will continue to receive a cold shoulder unless its future exponents take pains to counter this trend. Six conditions are required to ensure progress, including effective communication in established journals, methodological heterodoxy, and a systematic, discipline-wide evaluation of the contribution of radical geography.     

The Geography of Black America: The Growth of a Sub-Discipline

Abstract

Although blacks constitute the largest ethnic minority in the United States, historically they have either been largely omitted from geographic literature or else portrayed in less than a humanistic manner. However, beginning about 1965 a change took place in geography regarding its interest and treatment of black Americans. Within the last eight or nine years the geography of black America has blossomed into a full-fledged subfield of geography. In all, over 200 theses, dissertations and published works have been produced by geographers during this period. Moreover, a sharp shift in subject emphasis has occurred. Prior to 1965, what little geographic literature there was dealt mostly with rural or regional studies. Now the emphasis is, at long last, upon urban black American where over eighty percent of blacks reside.     

OTHER ITEMS

Abstract

The recent publication of an expansive national dataset, the Integrated Public Use Microdata Sample, allows for new analyses of the historical geography and settlement of various immigrant and ethnic groups in the United States. The present research explores the growth, development, and geographic dispersion of the ethnic Mexican population, and outlines some of the demographic and social characteristics within significant clusters of this population in the United States across the first half of the twentieth century. The analysis does not attempt to overturn other geographies and ethnographies in Mexican American history, but through its ability to elucidate broad, national patterns it is able to create a more dynamic view of settlement, demonstrating the role of immigrants and of women immigrants in particular. Results indicate that place matters: the geographical context of arrival and settlement were key factors in differentiating communities and the lives of those who lived in them.     

American viticultural areas: A problem in regional geography

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine a particular type of formal geographic region—the viticultural region—to promote an understanding of the geographical bases of wine production. The authors have found that the viticultural area is an excellent vehicle for teaching students how geographers construct and analyze regions. Although the wine industry in the United States is concentrated overwhelmingly in California and secondarily in a belt running from New York across Pennsylvania and into Ohio, most of the lower 48 states have at least one officially recognized viticultural area. The following problem has been developed to be used “as is” or to be modified for any state or region in the country. By the end of the problem, students have gained hands-on experience in defining regions, correlating physical geography with human activities, and thinking about the importance of place names and scale.     

Overcoming Geographic Innocence in Geography Education

Abstract

This article deals with the issue of providing geographic training to prospective teachers from the perspective of a secondary school teacher who also teaches a social studies methods course. Research in educational journals provided a background for describing the lack of geographic training among social studies teachers. While the National Geographic Society's alliance network is addressing this issue among practicing teachers, there is still a need to include some geography training for preservice teachers. Suggestions are offered for including geography within the context of the social studies methods course. A plea is also made for geography professors to include the new National Geography Standards in their courses, especially in introductory courses.     

Editorials

Abstract

Travelers' diaries are just one example of how primary documents can be used to experience geography in the classroom. Involving students in people's lives is an effective way to interest students in geography. Students will discover how these travelers migrated across the Missouri landscape, what modes of transportation they utilized, and the places they encountered along the way. This lesson focuses on people who traveled through Missouri in the mid-1800s. State historical societies and local archives are excellent sources of travel diaries and journals that can help your students experience geography and learn something about their own state in the process.     

How the States Got Their Shapes

Abstract

A baseline geography test was administered to over 3,000 Indiana college students enrolled in introductory geography courses. The National Council for Geographic Education Competency-Based Geography Test, Secondary Level, Form II, was used to measure the 1987 level of geographic ability in the areas of map skills, place-name location, physical geography, and human geography. Personal information gathered from each respondent included age, sex, travel experience, and level of geographic education. Older students scored better while geographically immobile groups scored lower. A strong correlation was found between travel and geographic knowledge. Findings show low overall geographic ability and that factors of age, travel experience and gender are correlated with certain aspects of geographic knowledge and skills.     

A Spatial View of How United States Cesarean Section Rates Changed from 1990 to 2014

The overuse of cesarean sections (C-sections) in the United States is a contested issue. The rate of C-section births in 2015 at 32 percent was over double the World Health Organization recommendation of 10 to 15 percent. We employed spatial statistical methods and data visualization techniques to assess the temporal and spatial trends in C-section rates by county across the United States. Although the national rate of C-section remained stable at the beginning and end of this study period, an increase in rates from 1997 to 2009 was reflected simultaneously in national, state, and individual county rates. Local indicators of spatial dependence did not show spatial clustering as being connected to, or driving, the change, yet the visualization methods used here show details on individual county deviance from local temporal trends. By highlighting counties that do not follow the trends of their neighbors, we identify exceptional locations that could help further the study of the determinants of changing C-section rates in the United States. Key Words: cesarean sections, exploratory spatial data analysis, medical geography, spatial statistics.