Changing Horizons in

Geography Education



Changing Horizons in
Geography Education

Edited by
Karl Donert
Przemysław Charzyński


Executive redaction
Antoni Stark

Technical redaction
Zdzisław Nyca
Dariusz Bojanowski

© Copyright by Herodot Network

Toruń 2005

ISBN 83-7443-012-5

First edition

Published by:
Herodot Network with the arrangement of
Association of Polish Adult Educators, Toruń Departament
87-100 Toruń, PCK str. 9, tel./fax +48 56 622 52 71, +48 56 622 43 09
e-mail: sop@[Link] [Link]

 Contributors

Anouk Adang Tine Béneker

Faculty of Geosciences Department of Human Geography
Utrecht University and Planning, Faculty of Geographical
Utrecht, The Netherlands Sciences
[Link]@[Link] Utrecht University
Utrecht, The Netherlands
Sirpa Anttila-Muilu [Link]@[Link]
Oulun Lyseon lukio
Oulu, Finland Donatas Burneika
Department of General Geography,
Maria Attard Faculty of Natural Sciences
GIS Laboratory, Geography Division Vilnius University
University of Malta Vilnius, Lithuania
Msida, Malta [Link]@[Link]
[Link]@[Link]
Moira Buttigieg
Mayté Banzo Mediterranean Institute
UFR de Géographie et d’Aménagement University of Malta
Université de Bordeaux  Msida, Malta
Bordeaux, France [Link]@[Link]
[Link]@[Link]
Herculano Cachinho
Theresa Barata Salgueiro Department of Geography
Departamento de Geografia Lisbon University
Universidade de Lisboa Lisbon, Portugal
Lisboa, Portugal cachinho@[Link]
tbs@[Link]
Przemysław Charzyński
Urszula Basini Didactical Laboratory,
School of Education Faculty of Biology and Earth Sciences
Kingston University Nicolaus Copernicus University
Kingston on Thames, UK Toruń, Poland
[Link]@[Link] pecha@[Link]

Mireia Baylina Xosé Constenla-Vega

Department of Geography University of Santiago de Compostela.
Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona IDEGA.
Bellaterra, Spain Galicia, Spain
[Link]@[Link] abalargaliza@[Link]

5
Massimo De Marchi Vladimir Herber
Dipartimento di Geografia Institute of Geography, Faculty of Science
Universita di Padova Masaryk University Brno
Padova, Italy Brno, Czech Republic
[Link]-marchi@[Link] herber@[Link]

Stelian Dimitrov Eduard Hofmann

Faculty of Geology and Geography Faculty of Education
Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski” Masaryk University
Sofia, Bulgaria Brno, Czech Republic
stelian@[Link] hofmann@[Link]

Karl Donert Arild Holt-Jensen

Liverpool Hope University Department of Geography
Liverpool, UK University of Bergen
donertk@[Link] Bergen, Norway
[Link]-jensen@[Link]
Barbara Gambini
Istituto di Geografia Alois Hynek
Universita di Urbino Institute of Geography, Faculty of Science
Urbino, Italy Masaryk University in Brno
sognoincatai@[Link] Brno, Czech Republic
hynek@[Link]
Kim Chuan Goh
National Institute of Education Nikola Hynek
Nanyang Technological University School of Politics, Sociology and Law
Singapore The University of Plymouth,
kcgoh@[Link] Plymouth, UK
[Link]@[Link]
Jesus Granados
Faculty of Education, Department of Eila Jeronen
Didactics of Social Sciences Department of Educational Sciences and
Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona Teacher Education
Barcelona, Spain University of Oulu
[Link]@[Link] Oulu, Finland
[Link]@[Link]
John W. Halocha
Bishop Grosseteste College Servet Karabaǧ
Lincoln, UK Department of Geography, Gazi Faculty
[Link]@[Link] of Education
University of Gazi
Ankara, Turkey
skarabag@[Link]

6
Margaret C. Keane Serguei Larin
St Mary’s University College Faculty of Ecology and Geography,
Belfast, Northern Ireland Tyumen State University
[Link]@[Link] Tyumen, Russian Federation

Aikaterini Klonari Mark Lawrence

Department of Geography, Department of Geography & Political
University of the Aegean Science
Mytilene,Lesvos, Greece Bemidji State University
aklonari@[Link] Bemidji, Minnesota, USA.
mlawrence@[Link]
Valérie Kociemba
UFR de Géographie et d’Aménagement Ülle Liiber
Université de Bordeaux  Institute of Geography
Bordeaux, France University of Tartu
kociv@[Link] Tartu, Estonia
[Link]@[Link]
Jaromír Kolejka
Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology Xosé Manuel Santos-Solla
Mendel University of Agriculture and University of Santiago de Compostela.
Forestry IDEGA
Brno, Czech Republic Galicia, Spain
kolejka@[Link] abalargaliza@[Link]

Kostis C. Koutsopoulos Miroslav Marada

Department of Geography and Regional Department of social geography and
Planning regional development,
National Technical University of Athens Faculty of Science
Athens, Greece Charles University
koutsop@[Link] Prague, Czech Republic
marada@[Link]
Sandor Kreuze
Faculty of Geosciences Barbara Katharina Mayerhofer
Utrecht University Department of Geography, Geology and
Utrecht, The Netherlands Mineralogy
skreuze1982@[Link] University of Salzburg
Salzburg, Austria
Nikos Lambrinos [Link]@[Link]
School of Education, Dept. of Primary
Education Olivier Mentz
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki Department of French Studies
Thessaloniki, Greece University of Education Freiburg
labrinos@[Link] Freiburg, Germany
mentz@[Link]

Gabor Mezősi Peris Persi
Department of Physical Geography and Institute of Geography
Geoinformatics Urbino University
University of Szeged Urbino, Italy
Szeged, Hungary persi@[Link];
mezosi@[Link]
Iwona Piotrowska
Manuel Mollá Department of Geography Teaching and
Department of Geography Ecological Education, Faculty of Geo-
Universidad Autónoma de Madrid graphical and Geological Sciences
Madrid, Spain Adam Mickiewicz University
[Link]@[Link] Poznań, Poland
ipiotrow@[Link]
Finn Moller
University College of West Jutland Danuta Piróg
Esbjerg, Denmark Department of Didactics of Geography
[Link]@[Link] Pedagogical Academy in Kraków,
Kraków, Poland
Kliment Naydenov dbutryn@[Link]
Faculty of Geology and Geography
Sofia University “[Link] Ohridski” Anton Popov
Sofia, Bulgaria Faculty of Geology and Geography
naidenov@[Link] Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
Sofia, Bulgaria
Nina Nikolova popov@[Link]
Department of Climatology, Hydrology
and Geomorphology Andrew Powell
Faculty of Geology and Geography School of Education
Sofia University “[Link] Ohridski” Kingston University
Sofia, Bulgaria Kingston on Thames, UK
nina@[Link] [Link]@[Link]

Leo Paul Maria Prats

Department of Human Geography and Plan- Department of Geography
ning, Faculty of Geographical Sciences Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona
Utrecht University Bellaterra, Spain
Utrecht, The Netherlands
[Link]@[Link] Paweł Pytka
Department of Geography Education
Miguel Pazos-Otón Maria Curie-Skłodowska University
University of Santiago de Compostela. Lublin, Poland
IDEGA
Galicia, Spain
abalargaliza@[Link]

Artur Religa Gert Ruepert
Department of Geography Education Faculty of Geosciences
Maria Curie-Skłodowska University Utrecht University
Lublin, Poland Utrecht, The Netherlands
artrel@[Link] [Link] t@[Link],
egea@[Link]
Dana Řezníčková
Department of social geography and Albert Rydant
regional development, Faculty of Science Department of Geography
Charles University Keene State College
Prague, Czech Republic Keene, New Hampshire, USA
danarez@[Link] arydant@[Link]

Margaret Roberts Şahin Salih

School of Education Department of Geography,
University of Sheffield Gazi Faculty of Education
Sheffield, UK University of Gazi
Margaret.roberts20@[Link], Ankara, Turkey
[Link]@[Link]. ssahin@[Link]

Erika Roccato Yvonne Schleicher

Institute of Geography University of Education Weingarten
Urbino University Weingarten, Germany.
Urbino, Italy schleicher@[Link]
[Link]@[Link];
erikar@[Link] Daniela Schmeinck
Department for social and scientific
Jolanta Rodzoś studies in primary education
Department of Geography Education University of Education
Maria Curie-Skłodowska University Karlsruhe, Germany
Lublin, Poland [Link]@[Link]
jrodzos@[Link]
Petar Slaveykov
Jüri Roosaare Faculty of Geology and Geography
Institute of Geography Sofia University “[Link] Ohridski”
University of Tartu Sofia, Bulgaria
Tartu, Estonia slav@[Link]
[Link]@[Link]
John Smith
School of Applied Sciences
University of Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton,UK
jps@[Link]

9
Michael Solem Maria Villanueva
Association of American Geographers Faculty of Education.
Washington D.C., USA Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona
msolem@[Link] Barcelona. Spain
[Link]@[Link]
Jose Somoza Medina
Geography Department Anne Wheeler
University of Leon School of Applied Sciences
Leon, Spain University of Wolverhampton
somoza@[Link] Wolverhampton,UK
[Link]@[Link]
Joanna Szczęsna
Departament of Geography Education Mark Wise
Maria Curie-Sklodowska University School of Geography
Lublin, Poland University of Plymouth
joannaszczesna@[Link] Plymouth, UK
mwise@[Link]
Tatjana Resnik Planinc
Department of Geography, Paweł Wojtanowicz
Faculty of Arts Departament of Geography Education
University of Ljubljana Maria Curie-Sklodowska University
Ljubljana, Slovenia Lublin, Poland
[Link]-planinc@[Link] pwojtan@[Link]

Luis Ulloa-Guitián Daniela Zlatunova

University of Santiago de Compostela. Department of Climatology, Hydrology
IDEGA and Geomorphology,
Galicia, Spain Faculty of Geology and Geography
abalargaliza@[Link] University of Sofia “St. Kliment Ohridski”
Sofia, Bulgaria
Rob Van der Vaart
Department of Human Geography and
Planning,
Faculty of Geographical Sciences
Utrecht University
Utrecht, The Netherlands
[Link]@[Link]

Lieselot Vandenhoute
KATHO department RENO
Torhout, Belgium
[Link]@[Link]

10
 Contents
1. Exciting Geography .........................................................................................15
Herculano Cachinho, How to design and implement exciting
geographical learning experiences in the classrom .........................................
Karl Donert, The use of ICT in Geography departments in European
higher education ..............................................................................................
John Halocha, Primary Childrens’ Understanding of Fieldwork
Experiences......................................................................................................
Vladimir Herber, Multimedia learning of geographical subjects .................9
Jaromír Kolejka, Eduard Hofmann, Geographical fieldwork in forests .......
Nikos Lambrinos, A pupils’ approach to a judicial conflict between
rivers and humans ............................................................................................
Iwona Piotrowska, Observation and presentation of phenomena
in Geography Education ..................................................................................5
Margaret Roberts, Constructing the world through the curriculum ............5
Jolanta Rodzoś, Przemysław Charzyński, Training geography teachers
in Poland with regard to changes in school education.....................................65
Jolanta Rodzoo, Paweł Pytka, Artur Religa, Interdisciplinary pathways:
gains and losses ...............................................................................................
Jüri Roosaare Ülle Liiber, Geography competitions as stimuli
for advanced students ......................................................................................9
Yvonne Schleicher, Mark Lawrence, GIS-Use in Geography Lessons
at Schools, Colleges and Universities – Innovation and Challenge ............... 
Lieselot Vandenhoute, Remote Sensing in Geography Education,
illustrated by a vegetation dynamics study (Kikwit region,
Democratic Republic of Congo) ......................................................................9

2. Professional Development and Geography .....................................................95

Maria Attard, Developing Undergraduate GIS Study-units
– The Experience of Malta ..............................................................................9
Theresa Barata Salgueiro, Geography programs and Bologna ..................10
Tine Béneker, Leo Paul, Rob van der Vaart, The added value
of international students groups in geography classrooms ...........................10
Donatas Burneika, International collaboration in distance education
for geography students – experience of Vilnius University .......................... 
Moira Buttigieg, The Role of the Geography Teachers’ Association
(Malta) in the Professional Development of Teachers ................................... 
Xosé Constenla-Vega, Miguel Pazos-Otón, Xosé Manuel Santos-Solla,
Luis Ma Ulloa-Guitián, Networking and social diffusion of Critical
Geography in Galicia (Spain): The “Abalar” Project.....................................
Stelian Dimitrov, Anton Popov, The place of Geoinformation
technologies in the education and professional development
of European geographers ...............................................................................

 Kim Chuan Goh, The Future of Geography and Geography Education
in Southeast Asia: Issues and Challenges......................................................
Arild Holt-Jensen, The status of geography in Norway; an issue
of grave concern ............................................................................................
Eila Jeronen, Sirpa Anttila-Muilu, Effective Practices in Distance
Education in Upper Secondary Level Geography in Finland .......................6
Aikaterini Klonari, Kostis C Koutsopoulos, Primary and Secondary
Educators’ Attitudes on School Geography .................................................. 15
Miroslav Marada, Dana Řezníčková, Charles University geography
graduates in practise: the relationship between the concept of education
and professional success ................................................................................156
Gábor Mezősi, New Training Structure in Geography Education
in Hungary ..................................................................................................... 16
Finn Moller, Evaluation, assessment and geographical education...............169
Manuel Mollá, The Relationship between Geography and Other
Disciplines In Spanish Higher Education ...................................................... 
Kliment Naydenov, Peter Slaveykov, Why Managers from Multinational
Companies Must Have Specialization in Geography ....................................0
Leo Paul, Tine Béneker, Rob van der Vaart, A multilevel approach
to professional development. The example of the Department
of Human Geography and Planning in Utrecht .............................................
Tatjana Resnik Planinc, Times of Change for Geography Education
in Slovenia .....................................................................................................
Gert Ruepert, Anouk Adang, Sandor Kreuze, The Evolution of a European
Student Network ............................................................................................195
Salih Şahin, Servet Karabag, An evaluation of geography and geography
education in Turkey .......................................................................................20
Daniela Schmeinck, Europe in geographical education – An international
comparison of factors influencing the perceptions of primary school
pupils..............................................................................................................206
Michael N. Solem, Internationalizing geography in higher education:
initiatives of the association of american geographers ..................................
Jose Somoza Medina, The Position of Geography Graduates in the Labour
Market in Castile and Leon (Spain) ............................................................... 
Maria Villanueva, To have and to have not. Some questions on secondary
Geography in Spain .......................................................................................

3. Intercultural Aspects in Geographical Education .........................................

Mireia Baylina Maria Prats, What Europe do we teach? A view from
Spanish Geography ........................................................................................0
Margaret C. Keane, Geography Forum: Intercultural Learning Online ....6
Valérie Kociemba, Mayté Banzo, Geography teaching and European
citizenship: are things changing in France? ..................................................


 Barbara Katharina Mayerhofer, Teaching Geography in English
at Austrian Schools, Models, Practice and Intercultural Gain ......................
Olivier Mentz, Do you speak European? or: Why even Geographers
should know more than English… ................................................................25
Peris Persi, Erika Roccato, Intercultural education in Italian Geography ....25
Danuta Piróg, Geographical education vs. cultural education
and education of culture in Polish schools – theoretical reflections .............26
Andrew Powell, Urszula Basini, Developing global citizenship through
geographical education: examples from Kerala, India ..................................269
Joanna Szczęsna, Paweł Wojtanowicz, The role of geographical
education in shaping regional identity of children ........................................6
Rob van der Vaart Tine Béneker Leo Paul, Getting geography students
involved in European integration ..................................................................
Anne Wheeler, John Smith, Albert Rydant, Serguey Larin, The Role
of International Staff and Student Collaboration in the Enhancement
of the Geographic Curriculum ......................................................................
Mark Wise, Geography and Languages in Intercultural Education:
does the spatial diffusion of English hinder or help intercultural
geographical understanding? .........................................................................29

4. Global and Environmental Geography .........................................................299

Barbara Gambini, Sustainable development: let geographers take
the lead (with a little help from some friends) .............................................. 300
Jesus Granados, The contribution of Geography teachers to Education
for Sustainability: a case study ......................................................................305
Alois Hynek, Nikola Hynek, Sustainability, Development and Security
in Landscape Field Practice ...........................................................................30
Massimo De Marchi, Developing geographical professional abilities:
experiences in Egypt and Brazil.................................................................... 
Daniela Zlatunova Nina Nikolova, Studyng climate and water resources
management in Bulgaria in the context of global environmental
management ...................................................................................................0



 PART ONE

Exciting Geography

15
16
 How to design and implement exciting geographical
learning experiences in the classrom

Herculano Cachinho

Department of Geography, Lisbon University

Alameda da Universidade, 1600-214 Lisboa, Portugal
e-mail: cachinho@[Link]

Abstract
This paper deals with the design and implementation of exciting geography’s learning expe-
riences in secondary schools. First of all we discuss some theoretical and methodological
aspects involved in the design of what the exciting geographical learning experiences can be
and what we need to do to achieve success in its implementation in ours schools. Secondly
we describe the process step by step and then we present a Portuguese experience developed
by novice teachers in a teacher training program at Lisbon University.

Key words: exciting geography, learning experiences, discovery learning, constructivism,

fieldwork

Introduction
This paper deals with aspects of Exciting Geography. It concerns the problem of
how it is possible to design innovative and exciting learning experiences, which
are able to stimulate the interest of students. This should promote the discovery
and the exploration of the world around us, and therefore, to establish a real and
meaningful geographical education in secondary schools. In theory, Geography has
a huge formative potential (Geographical Association, 2000), but in practice, due to
several factors, geographers, both researchers and teachers, have experienced great
difficulty in mobilising this formative potential in student’s education. Geography
is often considered a boring and useless subject concerned with memorising less
interesting facts.
There are three main issues:
(i) What is the meaning of exciting geography? The question suggests what does
exciting geography mean and what can we do to make geography an exciting subject
in our schools? Concerning this topic a number of viewpoints were expressed at the
2004 HERODOT Conference in Nicosia, and so, this paper seeks to reconsider some
of the ideas presented there (Cachinho, 2004);
(ii) There should be items present in the learning experience so that it becomes
exciting to students. The answer to this issue implies a brief thought about the
contents, teaching methods and the environment for learning;
(iii) How to put theory into practice? An example of this will be explained with
a Portuguese experience developed by novice teachers in a teacher training program
at Lisbon University.


 Exciting geography! What does this mean?
Exciting may signify several things. In the Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary
of Current English (2000), we can find the following:
Exciting: adj. = causing great interest or excitement. Interest: i) Wanting to know more
= the feeling that you have when you want to know or learn more about sb/sth; ii) attrac-
tion = the quality that sth has when it attracts sb’s attention or makes them want to know
more about it
Excite: i) to make sb feel very pleasure, interested or enthusiastic, especially about sth that
is going to happen; ii) to make sb feel a particular emotion or react in a particular way
Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary of Current English (2000), Sixth Edition

In this context what does exciting geography mean and what can we do to make
geography an exciting subject in our schools? In fact it may signify many things,
even if our thinking is composed by multiple convictions, intuitions, and doubts. Perhaps
it is not too controversial to state that Geography will be exciting if it manages to be
interesting to students, feeding and stimulating their interest in knowing more about the
world, whether we are talking about their neighbourhood or the most distant country,
and so helping them to solve real-life problems.
In my opinion, to make geography an exciting topic, it will imply several changes,
namely:
(i) Turn geography into an open window for knowledge of the world around us,
and the learning experience into an adventure. To attain such a goal we need to
intervene at two levels: the level of substantive and procedure contents, on one hand,
and learning/teaching methods, on the other hand. As to content, it is necessary to
anchor teaching in the learning of basic concepts, and key questions in which geog-
raphy builds its identity (Figure 1). In what concerns the methods, Saint-Exupéry
(1946) shows us a possible way. In his book Le Petit Prince, this writer tells us about
geographers and explorers, making a clear distinction between them. The former
are concerned with the location of the most important elements of the planet Earth:
oceans, rivers, cities, mountains
and deserts. The latter are mainly
concerned with the discovery of
those elements. So, even if we disa-
gree with the idea of geography of
this writer, it seems that the best way
to involve students in the process
of learning is to turn them into
explorers. Explorers in the sense of
someone who tries to discover, who
searches for, examines or observes
to understand the world and its prob-
lems. Allowing students to perform
the role of explorers, teachers, not
Figure 1. Key-questions and main concepts of geography

 only increase their motivation to learn but also make it possible for them to be aware
of how limited their knowledge is about worldwide problems, thus finding a real
sense in geography education.
(ii) We need geography classes to “give us wings not cages” (Alves, 2004). In
cages, birds unlearn the ability to fly. They are no longer birds. Because flying is
in their nature. An exciting geography doesn’t love caged birds, it creates wings
for them. It exists to give birds the courage to fly. This means that geography must
offer food and entertainment to students, or if we prefer the Rubem Alves meta-
phor, we need to offer students tools and toys. “Tools” are sources of knowledge
that allow us to solve everyday problems. Considering geography, tools are the
knowledge and skills that teach us to “think about the space and place” and so,
that we can “understand the world around us” and “act in it” in a conscious way.
“Toys” are those things without real utility, but give pleasure and joy to the soul.
Toys create the incitement and predisposition to find the tools and mobilise them
in the right way trying to solve daily problems.
(iii) We need classrooms to become effective learning places. In our schools,
a lot is taught but little is learned. Teaching spaces are focused on the teacher,
but learning places depart from the student, considering several dimensions: their
ideas, their potential, and their limitations… So if we want classrooms to deepen
their dimension of learning places it is fundamental to intervene in three domains
closely connected: a) recentre the learning/teaching process; b) reposition students
and teachers in pedagogical practices; and c) change classroom environments and
its ambiences.

How to design exciting geographical learning experiences

Geography will become more exciting if learning experiences offered to the students
improve. It is through these innovative experiences that students will find sense in
what they learn, and consequently, in geography education. Several items must be
present in the design of an exciting geographical learning experience. It must put
together interesting themes, innovative working methods and techniques, enjoyable
working environment and the discussion of real-life problems, as these are the ones
students face and in fact what motivates them to learning. In Figure 2 we present, in
a scheme, the methodology, step by step, for the design of experiences we consider
exciting both for teachers and students. Our methodology is based on the scientific
work methodology. These experiences are also likely to be exciting to teachers, as
while investigating about the subjects that will be explored in the classroom they
are creators and not just reproducers of geographical knowledge. The experiences
are also exciting to students, as their role in the classroom changes from spectators
to actors. In face of real social and environmental problems to which it is neces-
sary to find solutions, students, using investigation methods, and helped by their
teachers, start having the main role in the discovery of the most appropriate solutions.
The teacher, now freed from the main role in action, may observe the performance
of the students and use it as a way of investigation. This investigation will allow the
teacher to know the “ideas” and levels of performance of students, and work from
19
mistakes and obstacles to learning. Only this way the teacher can design and plan
good experiences and involve students in its development.
With these learning experiences students may develop the capacity of going from
perceived and experienced space to rational and thinking space, developed through data
analysis and investigation, to reach integrated space and action space, in which they
will be asked to show their newly achieved geographical skills and competences.

Figure 2. Scientific methodology and design of exciting geographical learning experiences

Theory into practice: a Portuguese experience

During 2004 we had the opportunity to put theory into practice. At the annual
seminar on “Geography didactics” twenty trainee teachers designed educational
projects and implemented them in the classroom with Key-Stage 3 (12−14 years old)
students, during the school term. These projects involved the analysis of social and
environmental problems in the area of Lisbon or its surroundings. They included
as examples:
• The role of river Tagus in the organization of economic activities in the axe of
Vila Franca de Xira,
• Impacts of tourism in Castelo de Bode Dam,
• Sustainable development of National Park of Aires and Candeeiros,
• Effects of urban pressure and beach tourism in changing land use in Costa de
Caparica and
• The localization of a regional shopping centre in an area of extreme ecological
vulnerability in southern margin of the metropolitan area of Lisbon.
The approach of these problems were designed in the context of the Portuguese
National Curriculum, and took into consideration the flexibility allowed by the
20
Ministry of Education. Having in mind the development of geographical knowledge,
competencies and skills, the investigation projects involved a varied range of activi-
ties implemented in the classroom and outdoors, such as: first hand investigation of
places, environments and human behaviour through fieldwork; use of new technolo-
gies, like Internet search engines, digital cameras, database and desktop-publishing
packages; drawing and interpretation of maps, plans and graphs; gathering, recording
and presentation of evidences; carrying out of geographical enquiries; exploration of
textbooks, newspaper and magazine articles and other writing resources; or involve-
ment of role playing to illustrate the different points of view about the subject of the
different groups.
It is important to bring together the traditional learning activities developed in the
classroom with fieldwork because the “outside” environment is, par excellence, the
geographer’s laboratory. It is outdoors where, from direct experience, students can
investigate people, places, their interactions, patterns, process, and environmental
issues – the true nature of geography. Besides, places exist within our hearts and
minds. We audit them through sight, smell, sounds and touch. So, only “outside”
students can develop a personal “sense of place”; maybe one of the most meaningful
dimensions of life.
Due to problems of limited space it is not possible to make here an evaluation of
the research projects. Still, considering the opinion of students and teachers involved,
we have no doubt that we must continue to explore its potential. As a matter of fact,
some of the experiences presented here will be published on the website of the project
INTERFACES that we expect to develop in the near future as a place of creation,
diffusion and promotion, among Portuguese society, of good practises in geography
education.

References
1. ALVES R. 2004. Asas ou Gaiolas. A Arte do Voo ou a busca da Alegria de Aprender,
Asa Editores, Porto.
2. CACHINHO H. 2000. «Geografia Escolar: orientaçao teórica e praxis didáctica»,
Inforgeo, n.o 15, pp. 69−90.
3. CACHINHO H. 2004. «Exciting Geography: what is it and how can it be developed in
secondary schools?», in International HERODOT Conference, University of Cyprus,
Nicosia, 21-23 May, in [Link]
4. GEOGR A PHICA L ASSOCIATION 2000. This is Geog raphy, Sheff ield,
[Link]
5. HUGONIE G. 1989. “Enseigner la géographie actuelle dans les lycées”, L’Espace
Géographique, 2, 129−133.
6. JOB DAVID. 1999. New Directions in Geographical Fieldwork, Cambridge University
Press, Cambridge.
7. MÉRENNE-SCHOUMAKER B. 1985. «Savoir penser l’espace. Pour un renouveau
conceptuel et méthodologique de l’enseignement de la géographie dans le secondaire»,
L’Information Géographique, n.o 49, pp. 151−160.
8. SAINT-ÉXUPERY A. 1946. Le Petit Prince, Gallimard, Paris.
9. SOUTO GONZÁLEZ X. 1998. Didáctica de la Geografía. Problemas sociales y cono-
cimiento del medio, Ediciones del Serbal, Barcelona.

 The use of ICT in Geography departments
in European higher education

Karl Donert

Liverpool Hope University

Hope Park, Liverpool L16 9JD, UK

e-mail: donertk@[Link]

Abstract
Geography is a very visual and contemporary area of study in higher education. It has a critical
role to play in providing lifelong learning skills and competencies for society, including those
concerning information and communication technologies (ICT). This paper reviews some
of the results of a survey undertaken at the birth of the HERODOT Thematic Network for
Geography in higher education in late 2002. It considers the use and implementation of ICT
by academics, the student learning approaches encouraged and the professional development
needs of academics. The lack of implementation of modern ICT, especially elearning, and
low level of integration of ICT in Geography are reported on. The paper then assesses some
of the issues involved in encouraging change and concludes with the members’ perceived
role of network.

Key words: ICT, elearning, Bologna, professional development, HERODOT network

Introduction
In Europe, higher education systems are in a state of great change and as higher
education organisations experience massive reform it is likely that those involved will
need to work in many different ways. Higher Education institutions across Europe
are undergoing significant changes, not only of their layout and structure, but also
their own approaches to education (Sangra, 2002). The comparative analyses of
such systems can lead to benchmarking and standardisation of approach, through
for example the TUNING Project (Haug, 2001).
One significant development has been the rise of a computer technology that has
the power to transform education into innovative learning and teaching situations,
Innovation in the use of information and communications technology (ICT) has
a huge potential for widening access and supporting learners as and when they need
it (Richardson, 2001). So higher education should be responding to new kinds of
students, those who want ‘anytime-anywhere’ courses which suit them rather than
what the teachers want to deliver. The significance of this has yet to be realised.
The affordability and wider access to today’s powerful information technologies
should promote the widespread development of modern education (Wagner and
Szacs, 2000). An interactive computer-based approach to teaching and learning
should be matching the powerful changes that are taking place in our rapidly evolving
information culture.


eEurope and the Bologna agenda
In higher education terms, the European goal in is to become the most competitive
and dynamic knowledge base in the world capable of sustainable economic growth
with more and better jobs and greater social cohesion (Commission of the European
Communities, 2004). This will be achieved partly through the use of new technolo-
gies where eEurope is the European action which actively promotes the information
society to all in Europe (Commission of the European Communities, 2002). Some of
its core priorities have been identified as eLearning, eWorking skills and eInclusion
(Oliveira, 2002). The European Commission thus strongly advocates the use of ICT
in education and training in order to bring access to educational opportunities in
a more equally distributed fashion throughout an enlarging Europe. There should be
a greater emphasis on the types of cooperation and collaboration in learning brought
about by communication and information technologies throughout Europe (Reding,
2000). ICT for education has become very significant in political and financial terms,
with increasing investment from powerful organisations that often have little real
knowledge of education.
The Bologna process is not simply about transforming structures and educational
content; it is connected with lifelong learning and to the needs of society. Higher
education institutions are now expected to be actively involved in lifelong learning
and to include the new information and communication technologies. Bologna
provides common standpoints for all higher education institutions where a relevant
curriculum is needed to answer the needs of society. Across Europe Geography seems
to have been enslaved in a disciplinary curriculum, Bologna should not encourage
us to simply transfer the old curriculum into a changed format. Geography has the
potential to be the subject that can address the needs of Europe, so we need to create
new learning opportunities that are relevant to the students. These students are also
making new demands on higher education: They increasingly require tailor-made,
learner centred courses that focus on their needs and their demands. The resultant
education will thus need to develop the learning skills of the student, such as critical
thinking, teamwork, inter-cultural awareness, problem solving and co-operation.
The significance role and of ICT and particularly elearning in delivering this should
not be underestimated.

e-Learning
There is no simple definition of what constitutes elearning. The term could describe
the use of software that is designed to manage or administer various aspects of
learning which are decided upon and implemented by a tutor (Resnick and Resnick,
1992). eLearning software might consist of a core set of features which would include
the delivery of learning materials, administration of learners including the tracking
of progress, assessment of learners, different forms of communication, planning,
organisation and timetabling facilities, searching tools and online help (Milligan,
2000).
Most elearning software appears to offer the same set of solutions. Many of these
products claim to provide an integrated learning space, which is well suited to the

 support of student-centred learning, a core mission of Bologna. Laurillard’s (2002)
mapping of methods with educational activities, are support for the fact that it is
not the environments themselves that support or enhance learning, but the ways in
which they are used if suitable learning is to take place (Donert, 2004). Simms (2000)
maintains that it is through the active engagement with learning that elearning can
enhance the student experience. The major dimensions being characterised by:
• Learners – the who of the learning process
• Content – the what of the learning process
• Pedagogy – the how of the learning process
• Context – the when and where of the learning process.

HERODOT Members Survey

In late 2002, the 81 members of the HERODOT thematic network for Geography in
higher education were asked to complete an in-depth questionnaire about the state
of Geography in their institutions, their work and in their countries. In all 65 partner
Table 1. ICT and teaching Geography in higher education institutions responded based in
Activity %HE departaments 31 different countries. Of these
 organisations were only
Teaching about ICT GIS %
Remote Sensing 60% involved in teacher training, not
IT in Geography 52% offering undergraduate or post-
Teaching with ICT Computer assisted learning 45%
graduate Geography degrees.
Distance learning % Table  shows the proportion of
Online learning 9% departments teaching about ICT,
Research GIS % with ICT and doing research in
Remote Sensing 35% ICT in Geography at that time.
IT in Geography % Over half of the departments
offered distinct courses in ICT in
Geography; however few used either distance learning or elearning to deliver courses
for their students. Technology-oriented Geography courses have thus been devel-
oped in most academic depart-
ments but using online learning
opportunities or multimedia was
not well developed.
IT and GIS practicals were
taught in most higher education
Geography departments. There
were two types of courses identi-
fied, introductory courses which
were commonly developed for
study in years  and , these
courses were often followed
by more advanced, detailed or
specialist courses in later years
Figure 1. IT and GIS practicals by year of study (Donert, 2004).

 The main learning approaches
encouraged by academics and
used by students were also
defined in the survey (Figure 2).
Surprisingly, only just over one-
half of the departments (56%)
considered that they developed,
as a main theme, student-centred
learning approaches, this was
fewer than those promoting
teacher-organised approaches.
The teacher-centric models
appeared to prevail with tradi-
tional lecture-seminar-practical
activities dominant with little
concern for the student experi-
ence or real needs.
Concerning the use of ICT, Figure 2. Main learning methods used by students – percentage of
departments
in all only % encouraged
students to use computer assisted learning. This suggests that although geograph-
ical studies are strongly related to contemporary issues, current affairs and visual
information sources, the value of information acquisition and the opportunities for
communications through ICT in the learning process are greatly undervalued, It
would thus appear that few European geographers have been at the forefront in
developing courses and materials which incorporate or embed new technologies.
It was noticeable that the range of main Table 2. Variety of student learning approaches
student learning approaches suggested by in Geography
geographers varied significantly (Table 2). Number of main %
Most departments encouraged many different learning approaches institutions
approaches and several included all those 1−2 10%
mentioned in the survey, but in one-third of the 3−4 %
replies traditional teacher-orientated activities
5−6 %
seemed to dominate with little variety encour-
7−8 15%
aged. These were not just found in higher educa-
tion institutions from EU countries nor were they only from new member states; but
the approaches favoured seemed to depend mainly on local circumstances and indi-
vidual preferences. With the ongoing implementation of Bologna in European insti-
tutions this pattern is likely to significantly change in future years. The approaches
to implementing and managing such change will also need consideration.
The issues involving IT-based practical work were also researched and this
revealed the existence of three main situations. More than one-quarter (27%) of
the institutions considered themselves to be technologically well-equipped. They
mentioned the wide range of facilities they had available for both study purposes and
research. In some cases the laboratory facilities had become self-funded by income-
25
generating activities, which included research contracts, EU projects, running profes-
sional development courses for others or through national funding. In other cases
there was central funding available to support these activities.
More than half of the institutions (55%) were facing difficulties in maintaining
the quality and technical relevance of the ICT-based courses they were trying to
run. They identified the main issues as a lack of up-to-date equipment, having too
few useful resources (including readily available data), financial shortages and low
levels or even no technical support. A final group of institutions (18%) indicated that
they were unable to offer any IT-based activities due to inadequate or non-existent
facilities, too many students to practically cope with and the lack of training or
expertise of staff. One-third of the responses also noted that, despite the scientific and
technological nature of many geographical courses, the obvious needs for employ-
ability and in some cases the student demands for geo-technology rich learning
opportunities, the status of Geography at an official level is still considered to be a
non-technical or non-scientific discipline. Hence the levels of funding and support
for laboratory courses do not realistically reflect the needs of the subject, the students
and the workplace. Institutions thus need to be supported at national (and European)
policy level if they are to have the right conditions to develop suitable courses for
their students.
The use of ICT in higher education has experienced rapid growth in recent years.
However in the universities surveyed, the technology appeared to be mainly used by
academics to prepare courses (Table 3), rather than to be implemented or integrated
into the courses themselves. Nor were there any plans in most departments to do
this, as of 141 subject-based initiatives identified in the survey, only 28 were related
to ICT,  of these were concerned with GIS developments and only  associated
with elearning. Specific software developments in geography were hardly mentioned
at all. So, the involvement of geography departments and geographers in the use of
ICT is relatively low and the profile of online activities and innovative learning is
limited. This was borne out by the activities at the HERODOT workshop on Exciting
Geography held in Cyprus in June 2004. Of the 30 members of the network who
attended and presented papers, 12 were teacher trainers and 16 were specialists in
geoinformation or GIS. As the workshop was offered openly to all members of the
network, it was clear that few ‘academic’ geographers appear to have embraced the
importance or significance of innovation in learning and teaching Geography. It was
also surprising that only five of the papers addressed the use of ICT and only two were
about using elearning in geography. This is worrying if geography is to be delivered
Table 3. Main resources used to develop teaching
Amount of use in Online learn- World Wide Electronic On-line
developing courses ing sources Web Books Journals
High 6% % 0% 5%
Average % 46% % 29%
Low 15% % % %
No use 62% 5% 85% %

26
as a vibrant exciting subject at university. New tools, techniques and pedagogies have
to be developed implemented and researched. This indicates the need to raise the
profile and importance of ICT within the subject through Herod activities and beyond
if the learning opportunities afforded by ICT are to be achieved. The significance of
professional development of academics cannot be over-stated.

Continuing Professional Development (CPD)

As ICT is becoming increasingly pervasive, in the home and the workplace, the need
for training and continuing professional development (CPD) has never been so great
(Sandelands, 1998). The speed of change in ICT also necessitates that we reorganise
the present education system. So, though ‘traditional’ courses in Geography will
still be a major part of university provision, clearly there are many other types and
forms of training required to meet the expanding demands. It is expected that the
most likely growth will be in providing professional courses and updates offered
through distance learning or via elearning (Blake et al., 2003, Mooney and Martin,
2003; Sorensen, 1998).
In Europe, apart from some notable exceptions, there appears to be very few
professional development opportunities available for academic Geographers in
higher education and so there are very few which allow academics to learn about
new technologies and innovative teaching strategies (Donert, 2003). Respondents to
the HERODOT survey cited that a total of 75 CPD events had been attended in the
previous two years (Table 4). While some academics had been well off in CPD course
provision and two of the UK respondents were CPD expert trainers for the LTSN-
GEES Geography Subject Centre, most European academics had either not attended
any professional development, or else had only been to one session in the previous
two years. This shows the paucity of local and national provision. Of the courses
attended, 28 (36%) were ICT-related but only 7 were linked to e-learning. This is of
greater concern when only one of the elearning courses was considered to be of high
quality. The ICT CPD mainly appeared to focus on the technical aspects without much
concern for pedagogy, practical needs or implementation. The HERODOT survey
also highlighted the professional needs, which showed that more than one-third of the
academics wanted to have further ICT training and 20% required elearning training.
However, CPD opportunities remain largely unavailable to geographers or else are
not taken up by geographers working in European higher education. Geography
in many countries has Table 4. Professional training events in past 2 years (65 replies)
perhaps been over- Number of % Type of CPD %
concerned with its own CPD activities replies activity replies
subject content, status, 0 % GIS %
situation and context,  % e-learning course 9%
leading to two-thirds of  % specific computer course %
the CPD being subject
 % basic ICT course (Office) 5%
specific training activi-
> 6% web page development %
ties. Research priorities
also dominated over CDP trainers % Others, non-IT 64%


teaching needs in terms of CPD. So, the European thematic network for Geography
in higher education (HERODOT) has been established in part to address these
concerns and to support academics in their implementation of the Bologna process.
Hence the delivering change through Bologna is not being matched by the necessary
support for those involved. The significance of innovation and change is dealt with
partly in the next section.

Professional development and change

ICT challenges our ‘traditional’ educational system and its eminence has significant
implications for the future. Organisations react to change in many different ways and
they will take up possible new opportunities at different rates, but understanding the
process of change is important for implementation. The degree of inertia or resistance
to change will be related to many factors. In Geography much opinion, including that
shown in the papers for this HERODOT Conference, appears to suggest that we need
well-defined reform, new bachelor and masters courses, not just changed in name
only, which are integrated with relevant ICT with pedagogical approaches to support
good materials for learning. While there are many good examples of pioneers that
demonstrate that change using ICT is possible and practical, the issue that we need
to address is what professional development is necessary to enable the geography
community to transform its European education space and populate it with exciting,
relevant and vibrant new courses.
In total, the 65 institutions identified only ten creative initiatives involving the
use of ICT in Geography. There were some major developments, for example in
creating digital landscape models equipped with logically integrated data for various
purposes in 2D, 3D and 4D event modelling, the development of major new courses
using elearning software and the establishment of a Geography education portal.
Several other initiatives reported on planned action research for example in the use
of the Web, digital portfolios or presentation software in classes. However, most of
them only appeared to involve teacher education courses in Geography rather than
academic geography courses. So it seems like Geography was, with only a few
exceptions, at a very early phase in the adoption of new technologies for learning
and teaching. So we should be considering how and why eLearning, multimedia and
geo-software opportunities should be implemented so that academics can focus on
how to construct courses based on the learning requirements of the students rather
than the teaching approaches we want to offer. In a higher education increasingly
governed by market forces our courses need to match the expectations of the learners,
hence useful quality guidelines in terms of technical issues, pedagogical approaches
and content should be established and used.

Conclusions
If the perceived role of a Thematic Network like HERODOT is to stimulate and
support change (Figure 3) by providing examples that are retrievable by tutors/
teachers and give access to best practise and the state of the art, then its actions
must relate to the activities of a knowledge society. Today we are all expected to

include ICT as part of the educa-
tional approaches we promote.
However, much Geography
education in Europe has not yet
embraced these needs. It remains
largely dominated by traditional
teaching activity, which is
fairly resistant to the adoption
of new approaches. As a result
geographers are not, except in
the case of GIS, in a position
to take advantage of the poten-
tially positive impacts of ICT. It
is likely that many Geography
departments will soon seek to
offer online courses in the near
future in order to expand their
provision and more importantly
increase income generation
rather than doing it to in meet the Figure 3. Perceived role of the HERODOT network
educational needs of computer- (Cooper, 2000)
literate students
Online learning provides opportunities for significant levels of interaction (Zell,
2001). eLearning has been shown to be an excellent facility for the development of
collaborative skills including cooperative problem solving and teamwork activities
(Simms, 2000). Therefore, integrating eLearning within Geography courses would
encourage deeper, more reflective and student centred learning approaches, meeting
the core goals of Bologna. The support mechanisms can be used to help most students
reach their goals. So, as a high priority, HERODOT must consider the potential of
new technologies in geographical education as we develop our educational struc-
tures through the Bologna process. In many countries, geography as an academic
subject is at risk and yet geography and geographers do not seem flexible enough to
integrate and incorporate multimedia, the Web and e-learning into our university
courses. We need to embrace these new technologies, but new pedagogies which
are more relevant to the st century will need to be employed. So, we should focus
on the meaningful embedding of computer-based activities that will offer enhanced
learning opportunities. These will help develop learner autonomy and encourage the
establishment and building of professional communities of geographers.
There are strong implications that e-learning should change the way that higher
education is delivered. This research thus suggests that a more in-depth survey of
opinions and attitudes are required towards the use of new technologies. This survey
is currently being undertaken by members of the HERODOT network.

29
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Primary Childrens’ Understanding of Fieldwork Experiences

John Halocha

Bishop Grosseteste College, Lincoln, England, LN1 3DY

e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
Fieldwork activities in England are currently under threat owing to concern over the safety of
pupils. It is therefore essential for geography educators to have clear evidence of the benefits
of fieldwork in being able to develop primary children’s understanding of the world. The
research was based on field visits made to the coast by children aged 10−11 years in 2004.
The purpose of the visits was to develop their understanding of coastal processes. Following
the fieldwork, pupils were asked to represent what they had learnt and how they thought they
understood coastal processes. Analysis of the children’s work provided a number of insights
into their understanding: these are discussed within the paper, along with some implications
for fieldwork design and justification.

Key words: Primary Education, Geography, fieldwork, Teacher Training

Introduction
Fieldwork is viewed as an essential part of geography by many English primary
teachers but there is increasing pressure on them to justify its presence in the
curriculum (Revell, 2002). There is also concern from some teacher unions and
senior management about the legal issues surrounding fieldwork (Clare, 2004). They
can refer to theoretical sources (Smith, 1987:209) to find backing for their position.
Practical texts on developing and leading fieldwork provide more evidence to support
their case (Richardson, 1998). There is, however, little research evidence at primary
school level which examines how and what children actually learn through fieldwork.
Nundy (1999) is an exception to this and provides us with some interesting starting
points for further research. In particular he noted the positive impact on long term
memory as a result of pupils being in memorable places. Rickinson (2001) presents
a review of research on outdoor learning but this contains relatively few references
to fieldwork undertaken by primary aged children. The research discussed in this
paper offers some evidence of what pupils learn through fieldwork and how fieldwork
design may affect their understanding.

Pilot research
A pilot project was established in 2003. The teachers had devised a programme of
practical activities for each child to experience during their field day. These were
based on concepts such as sea defences, longshore drift and coastal erosion. The
author attended this day as an observer. These were then followed up back at school.
Soon after, 150 pupils in five classes were asked to represent their learning and
understanding of coastal processes. Five teachers were asked to do this with their

class using identical instructions and resources. Analysis of the 150 pieces of work
provided some evidence of pupils’ understanding. However, it was noted that there
were significant variations between the classes, even though they had very similar
preparation, outdoor activities and follow-up. It was decided that although a large
amount of data was available, few conclusions could be drawn as the teachers had
somehow influenced how classes approached the task. It was therefore decided to
revise the research process for 2004 (Orion et al., 1997).

Research method
In 2004 the next cohort of 10− years old pupils at the same school took part in the
programme of coastal fieldwork, but with 120 children in four classes. The author
attended this day as an observer. As in 2003, one day of follow-up activities was
also observed in each class. A short time after the fieldwork the headteacher agreed
that a research assistant could visit the school to administer the activity to each class
without the teachers being present. She gave the same verbal instructions used in 2003
and classes were provided with similar materials for expressing their understanding
of coastal processes. They all had the same amount of time to complete the task.
Pupils were asked to write their age and gender. The instructions encouraged pupils
to use any format to complete the activity: drawing, notes, poems, maps, diagrams
and prose were all acceptable. Field notes were taken while the pupils completed
the activity.
The research assistant coded pupils’ papers so that each class could be identified.
Reflections on the data collection process were discussed. Each of the 120 samples
of pupil work was then analysed. This was based on the set of activities experienced
by each pupil at the coast and observations made during the fieldwork process.

Research findings
It was apparent that the use of a research assistant to collect the data provided much
greater consistency across the four classes of their understanding of what they were
being asked to do. Many individual approaches were used by the children but the 2004
data enabled comparisons and generalisations to be made from this large data set.
Field notes on how individual pupils and groups approached the task provided further
insights to aid the analysis of pupils’ work. Matthews (1992) talks of children having
a ‘lens of experience’ through which they develop ways of environmental knowing.
The teachers provided a range of lenses in the various activities undertaken.

Sea defences
Pupils were asked to study the landscape to identify a variety of methods used to
protect the land from erosion. Over 90% of pupils included some reference to this
and many drew accurate representations of how each was constructed and what its
purpose was. 35% annotated their drawings in some way with comments such as
“sea defence helps defend the beach and Skegness” (girl, 11). This is an interesting
example as it shows an understanding of how groynes protect the beach and concrete
structures protect the land. 10% of pupils also showed they had seen how wood,

natural boulders and concrete were used in different ways as sea defences. Four
pupils drew simple plans to show how these features were located at different places
on the length of coast they had studied. Four pupils from one class drew plans to
show the angles at which waves hit the beach and how longshore drift works. This
may well have been discussed by their teacher as the practical work on longshore
drift was almost non-existent. In future trips it may be worthwhile to include simple
experiments to show children how the movement of water along the coast actually
takes place.
50% of pupils recorded in some ways one of the most potentially powerful activi-
ties undertaken on the visit. They were put into groups (Dunne and Bennett, 1990)
and each one way given an identical small piece of wood. Their task was to design
and build a sea defence to stop the in-coming tide from getting hold of their piece
of wood. This activity created great excitement and much team co-operation and
social learning. It had been planned to time it so that the groups could then observe
how the in-coming tide attacked their defence. Pupils used sand, mud, pebbles,
drainage channels, seaweed and the slight variations in the topography of the beach
to construct their defence. Video data from 2003 includes detailed explanations
of their structures and how effective they were against the in-coming tide. The
2003 paper data contains many detailed diagrams and descriptions of this activity
because they pupils were able to watch the in-coming tide destroy their structure and
compare theirs with other group designs. The data includes many examples of very
clear understanding of how different materials and designs withstood the power of
the waves. Unfortunately, in 2004 the teachers had mis-read the tide time charts on
the web and arrived just as the tide was going out. The 2004 pupils still built their
structures, but those 50% pupils who did record the building experience used much
simpler sketches and vocabulary to explain the task and why it had been undertaken.
By comparing the 2003 data with that from 2004, it appears that pupils who had
the vivid experience of watching how the sea destroyed their defence were able to
demonstrate more examples of the concepts they now understood.

Transportation of material
One activity required pupils to collect a sample of sea water and seal it in a plastic
bottle. The teachers’ objective was to show how sea water transports solid material
along the coast and how this load is made up of a variety of materials. It was also
designed to reinforce the concepts of erosion, transportation and deposition. Three
pupils demonstrated some understanding of these concepts through sketches and
writing. The predominant misconception by pupils was that the purpose of the
activity was that they “collected water to see how the water would settle” (girl, 10).
The word ’settle’ was used by over 30% of pupils. Apart from one boy who wrote
“we learnt about the waves carrying pebbles” there was very little evidence of how
this activity helped develop a clear understanding of transportation processes. Back
in the classroom pupils were able to see how the load did settle out into layers in their
bottles. It is possible that the way in which water handles a variety of particles is
too complex a concept for primary age children and that some awareness of water’s

ability to hold and move a load is sufficient for that age range. It does, however, raise
issues of progress and continuity in fieldwork experiences.

Erosion
In preparatory work, all pupils had discussed coastal erosion, seen a video clip and
used the same textbook on the coast: this contained very clear diagrams and explana-
tions. Indeed, the 2003 data provided many examples of how pupils had remembered
the diagrams and were able to reproduce them from memory in order to show how
cliffs are eroded by the sea. About 20% of the 2004 cohort drew similar diagrams.
It would be interesting to ask teachers if they had made less use of the textbook,
as the 2003 data gave evidence of how pupils could relate classroom learning to
what they saw in the field. This whole area of how different learning resources are
linked with the actual fieldwork experience in the mind of children perhaps deserves
further research.
The stretch of coast visited by the school does not include cliff features that clearly
demonstrate classic features such as caves, stacks etc. That part of the east coast of
England is much more an example of soft rocks being eroded and materials moved
along the coast. It is therefore interesting that about 20% of pupils did want to include
notes and diagrams based on their classroom activities, perhaps indicating some
ability to see an overall concept of ‘coasts’ and how they vary around the English
coastline.
About 15% of pupils did draw diagrams to show how material was eroded from
a coast, whether from hard or soft rocks gradually developed into smaller and smaller
particles. Some of these drawings matched the diagrams in the textbook while others
were much more individual and creative. In many cases the linked words indicate an
understanding of how particles reduce in size. Another activity had been to collect
samples of sand and pebbles at different distances from the sea and study them in detail
back in school. One pupil explained that before the fieldwork “I didn’t know that the
waves come and take all the rocks and stone and turn them into sand” (girl, 11).

Beachcombing
All pupils had the supervised opportunity to collect items found at different places
on the beach. It was to “find out what types of objects get left behind by people and
the sea” (girl, 11). Her writing and drawing give evidence of how she understands
the difference between natural and human items and indeed this was represented by
many pupils in a variety of ways. Some were also able to show how the sea deposited
different materials depending on where pupils looked. Throughout the fieldwork,
very little use was made of map reading or map drawing skills. This activity may
have been an effective way of showing how map making could have helped pupils
record where they found their collection of objects. Pupils had also been asked to
look out for pebbles, shingle, sand and mud as they carried out their activities. This
was included to provide a further example of how rocks and eroded and how the sea
moves and deposits materials on various parts of the beach: again, some mapping
activities ay have further reinforced these concepts.
35
Environmental perception
Palmberg and Pupu (2000) consider how outdoor activities may support the devel-
opment of environmental responsibility in young people. For the first time in 2004
teachers included an activity where children had time to quietly sit on the beach to
look, listen and think. They had prepared for this in literacy lessons and back in school
used the experiences of this quiet time to write a poem. Comparing the 2003 and 2004
data, there is a clear trend to more accurate descriptions, wider use of geographical
vocabulary and a greater sense of involvement in the fieldwork (Greig, 2000). This is
another aspect of the research that could be followed up in more depth. Observation
of the fieldwork did not provide evidence of teachers forcing environmental issues
on pupils, but one pupil wrote, when describing his drawings of creatures found on
the beach “this is a sea creature that have a habbitat on the beach thats why we have
to pick up rubbish and look after this butiful place” (boy.10). It may be difficult to
measure, but perhaps fieldwork can raise pupils’ awareness of the environment and
their own feelings about places.

Implications for teacher training

Analysis of the 2004 data suggests that primary school pupils are aware of some
of the varied experiences they have when taking part in geographical fieldwork.
A parallel research project (Halocha, 2005) into geography student teachers’ under-
standing of fieldwork supports these findings in that they report greater awareness
of both what and how pupils learn in education outside the classroom. However, few
students currently on initial teacher training courses in England have the opportunity
to experience, let alone analyse, the teaching and learning that can occur. If time
constraints continue on such courses, it may be appropriate for tutors in subjects
such as geography, history and science where fieldwork is used, to provide some
experience of some generic activities and discussion of research to ensure that future
generations of primary school teachers are aware of how fieldwork can help pupils
develop both intellectually and socially.

Conclusion
The 120 pieces of pupils’ ideas offer a fascinating insight into both what they may
have learned from the visit and how they choose to express this. Although they were
given an open-ended task, the research assistant did note that some pupils may have
preferred to talk about their understanding of the visit. There is no sense in which
this paper suggests that the research method described is a complete and accurate
means of evaluating pupils’ understanding of fieldwork activities. Rather, it raises
questions about how we can begin to understand how pupils living in the twenty
first century who constantly experience versions of the world presented to them via
electronic, virtual images, whether they be TV, video, computer games, camera
phones or websites, actually perceive and interpret real world fieldwork opportuni-
ties provided for them (Matthews, 1992).
Observations in the field and analysis of pupils’ work suggests that pupils may
develop more complex map reading and making skills if these can be planned into
36
the range of practical activities. Many of their diagrams and cross sections drawing
show they have the technical skills to achieve this. The field notes made while pupils
were expressing their ideas on paper suggest that the type of follow-up activities
undertaken after fieldwork may also have an influence on pupil understanding. The
children were able to discuss ideas with each other. The research assistant noted that
they were asking each other many questions and trying to work out the answers in
a social way. Future research may benefit from investigating how helping pupils to
continue their geographical enquiries after fieldwork may help them to understand
more from their first hand experiences. This might involve teachers moving away
from follow-up work which simply exists to presents findings, but rather sees the
fieldwork experience as one part of the process of geographical learning. This may
have implications for how schools plan fieldwork into their schemes of work, but
the spin-offs may result in even deeper understanding of experiences gained out of
the classroom.
Overall, the data suggests that pupils do increase their understanding of the
world through fieldwork. The phrase ‘what I saw…’ was used by many of the pupils,
suggesting that the opportunity to see real world structures and processes is important
in developing their geographical understanding.
Geographical fieldwork in England is being challenged by time, curriculum
demands, costs, management perception and trade union concerns. As geographers
we need to have more evidence to match these challenges. In addition to evidence
from pupils, it may be worthwhile to research the perceptions and values of those
headteachers and school governors who do believe that fieldwork and outdoor
learning is an essential part of primary school education. The headteacher of the
school in which the research was based sets very high standards in all aspects of
school life. He expects fieldwork to take place in a variety of curriculum subjects. He
accepts responsibility for pupils being on a beach during an incoming tide in order
to have first hand experience of coastal erosion. The result of this commitment to
fieldwork by school management is perhaps best summed up by this piece of writing
from a ten year old girl who took part in this rich fieldwork experience “By doing
this we have remembered a lot A VERY LOT!!”

References
1. CLARE J. 2004. ‘Union tells teachers to end all school trips’, The Daily Telegraph, 19
February.
2. DUNNE E., BENNETT, N. 1990. Talking and Learning in Groups, London: Macmillan
Education.
3. GREIG D. 2000. ‘Making sense of the world: language and learning in geography’ in
Lewis, M. and Wray, D. (eds.) Literacy in the Secondary School, London: David Fulton,
pp. 69−90.
4. HALOCHA J. 2005. Geography student teachers’ developing understanding of fieldwork
with primary children, Paper to the Charney Manor Primary Geography Conference
Primary Geography – 10 Years On, February 18−20th
5. MATTHEWS H. 1992. Making Sense of Place: Children’s understanding of large-scale
environments, Hemel Hempstead: Harvester Wheatsheaf.


 6. NUNDY S. 1999. ‘The fieldwork effect: the role and impact of fieldwork in the upper
primary school’, International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education.
8(2), 190−198.
7. ORION N., HOFSTEIN A., TAMIR P., GIDDINGS, G.J. 1997. ‘Development and valida-
tion of an instrument for assessing the learning environment of outdoor science activities’,
Science Education, 81(2), 161−171.
8. PALMBERG I.E., KURU, J. 2000. ‘Outdoor activities as a basis for environmental
responsibility’, The Journal of Environmental Education, 31(4), 32−36.
9. REVELL P. 2002. Danger! Is this the end of class trips? Times Educational Supplement.
6 September.
10. RICHARDSON P. 1998. ‘Fieldwork’ in Carter, R. (ed.) Handbook of Primary Geography,
Sheffield: The Geographical Association, pp. 181−195.
11. RICKINSON M. 2001. ‘Learners and learning in environmental education: a critical
review of the evidence’ (Special Issue), Environmental Education Research, 7(3). (whole
issue).
12. SMITH P. 1987. ‘Outdoor education and its educational objectives’ Geography, 72(2),
pp. 209−216.


 Multimedia learning of geographical subjects

Vladimir Herber

Masaryk University Brno, Faculty of Science, Institute of Geography,

Kotlarska 2, 611 37 Brno, Czech Republic
e-mail: herber@[Link]

Abstract
The promotion of ´contact-free learning methods´ is a possible response to the Action Plan
for the European education initiative ‘Learning in the Information Society’. It is connected
with the use of Internet based technologies on the one hand and geoinformation technolo-
gies on the other hand. This paper presents extracts of the WWW pages devoted to the
multimedia learning of Landscape ecology and Regional physical geography of the Czech
Republic, including e-learning technologies supported by the Information system of Masaryk
University Brno.

Key words: ICT in geographical education, multimedia learning, www presentation

Introduction
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) may be a term that has only
become popular in the past few years, but the notion of ICT has a long history within
the teaching and learning of geography. The use of ICT as a tool for teachers and
learners has never had such prominence and this is something that must be addressed
by all phases of education, reaching across formal and informal education. Despite
the importance of the technology, there are many issues for all geographers, ranging
from access to the technology, to identifying its effective use and application. More
importantly it could be claimed that ICT is changing geography continually, be it in
the patterns of work that geographers study or the formal understanding of how the
subject can and should be taught (Hassell 2000).

ICT in geographical education

Lambert and Balderstone (2000) highlight the belief that ICT has the potential to
enhance students’ skills of geographical enquiry. To meet this potential often requires
two conditions to be met:
1. Geography teachers need to improve their own understanding and competence
in the power of information technology to support enquiry methods (such as
collecting, recording, analysing and presenting data in a variety of forms – text,
maps, tables and diagrams).
2. Students need to develop their ICT skills beyond the basics of data handling
(such as an ability to conduct a sound geographical enquiry utilizing information
skills such as selection, evaluation, interpretation and presentation of appropriate
data).

39
 Computer literacy can be considered as one of the standards of education in the
modern society. It enables us to cope with increasing amounts of information as
well as to solve even very difficult task with the help of computers. The use of ICT
at school is very multiple, computer based learning is increasingly being put into
practice. Slavik and Novak (1997) give the following alternatives:
• multimedia programmes
• simulation programmes, modelling
• testing programmes
• learning programmes
• information resources
• videoconferences
• distant forms of learning
• virtual reality
As stated in Hassell (2000), the learning process can be improved in a number of
ways when using ICT:
• ICT can provide a safe and non-threatening environment for learning with the
flexibility to meet individual needs and abilities of each student;
• ICT gives students immediate access to richer source materials;
• difficult ideas are made more understandable when information technology makes
them visible;
• ICT can affect the power to try out different ideas and take risks, encouraging
analytical and divergent thinking.
According to Manak and Svec (2003) a computer is used mostly to present learning
programmes when a student works on his own or under a teacher’s supervision. This
situation is also known from other learning models (Figure 1). Teachers help a student
gradually to attain student’s full independence. This is, for that matter, a final aim
of the entire education – like the
training of new drivers. This is a
computer that individualizes and
accelerates the process of student’s
growing independence and adopts
it to the current condition of every
single student. On top of that, it is
necessary to learn to recognize
relevant information, to select the
data that are both functional and
easy to manage.
Figure 1. Computer-based learning
A teacher has a variety of
software products at his/her disposal, e.g. programmes for practising, simulation
programmes and games, electronic textbooks, encyclopaedia, atlases, various expert
systems and learning programmes on the basis of artificial intelligence, geographical
information systems, etc. The model of a traditional way of learning has been changing
with the coming of modern educational technologies. According to Manak (1999) there
appear new roles of a teacher, these are:
40
• an organizer and manager of a learning process
• a student’s partner, assistant and adviser
• an educational programmer
• a technologist of educational processes
• a researcher in teaching and learning methods
The learning society requires
considerable knowledge to under-
stand more and more complicated
and interconnected world. It also is
a precondition of economic success
in a global competitive society. The
model of an active individual that is
able to use acquired knowledge and
skills and make adequate decisions
in personal and professional situa-
tions, as well as to receive incen-
tives from around, to anticipate new
complex situations, to search for
variant solutions and analyse their
consequences is considered to be a
conceptual starting point. The active
individual person is creative and
studies for all his / her life. A school
provides him / her with the tools,
necessary methods and learning
mechanisms. He / she disposes of a Figure 2. The main page of Landscape Ecology learning
complex of universally used skills, resource
so-called key competencies.
The European Action Plans – Learning in the Information Society and eEurope
2005 are, apart from other things, aimed at the support of educational innovations by
means of multinational network and at the studies based on multimedia to guarantee
effective integration of ICT to education.
The principles, strategies and actual steps characteristic of the development of
modern educational systems of some EU countries have entered Czech geographical
education. Educational projects established at the Institute of Geography at Masaryk
University Brno use the alternatives of geoinformation technologies based on the
World Wide Web to create various learning materials, for example that of Landscape
Ecology (Fig. 2) and the Physical Geography of the Czech Republic (Herber 2004).
Great emphasis is put on the presentation of the dynamics of various matters for
which the series of satellite images are used. The data for each issue are generally
structured as follows:
• Introduction to the issue
• Present state of the issue knowledge
• Data resources

• Analysis of the issue – a landscape component approach
• Synthesis and evaluation of the existing or traditional media presentation of the
issue
• Evaluation of understanding of the studied issue in the form of questions and
tests.
Conclusion
Electronic support of teaching and learning processes is necessary in the current
conditions of increasing number of Geography students in the Bachelor’s degree
programmes at the Faculty of Science of Masaryk University Brno. It is the indirect
result of the affiliation of the Czech Republic to the Bologna Process. As far as the
state of the ICT equipment and the level of the ICT skills of the academic staff are
concerned, Masaryk University has got all the pre-requisites for the use of e-learning
methods. The aim of Masaryk University for the forthcoming period is the shift to the
stage in which e-learning tools can be easily used by every teacher. The electronic
study resources which are available to students by means of the Information System
of Masaryk University ([Link] are also used within lifelong education, for
example by the teacher-trainees of the Summer Geographical School.

References
1. BUTT G. 2002. Reflective Teaching of Geography 11-18. London- New York:
Continuum.
2. HASSELL D. 2000. Issues in ICT and Geography. [in:] Fisher C., Binns T. (eds): Issue
in Geography Teaching. London: Routledge Falmer, pp. 80-92.
3. HERBER V. 2004. Physical geography of the Czech Republic.
URL: [Link] (In Czech)
4. LAMBERT D., BALDERSTONE D. 2000. Learning to Teach Geography in the
Secondary School. London: RoutledgeFalmer.
5. MANAK J. 1999. The sketch of didactics (Nárys didaktiky). Brno: Masaryk University.
(In Czech)
6. MANAK J., SVEC V. 2003. Teaching and learning methods (Výukové metody). Brno:
Paido. (In Czech)


 Geographical fieldwork in forests

Jaromír Kolejka1, Eduard Hofmann2

1
Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology, Mendel University of Agriculture
and Forestry, Brno, Czech Republic
2
Faculty of Education, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
e-mail: kolejka@[Link] hofmann@[Link]

Abstract
General and regional geographic knowledge allows us to understand better many spatial
questions related to the forest, its position, extension, composition, differentiation, margins,
and especially the functions, etc. The forest serves as an indicator of many phenomena
hidden to common eyes. Schools researching information, about forests helps pupils to
understand them. Fieldwork in forest areas and the consequent processing of data about the
forest improves respect for forests among pupils, and contributes to the environmental care
and protection as well.

Key words: forest, research, fieldwork, field centre

Introduction
Geographical knowledge allows us to better understand many spatial questions. The
right studies support not only a better orientation of the land use, understanding the
internal and external relationships, but also an the explanation of local and regional
situation. The forest serves as an indicator of many phenomena hidden to common
eyes, so studying it and understanding the processes involved is very important.
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country located in Central Europe. Woodlands
cover aproximately 33,4% of Czech territory. The territorial distribution of forests
reflects the spatial structure of the country and the mountains specifically causing
the right sort of climatic and soil conditions for forest growth. Its area of forestry
has grown since the 16th and th century, when it only covered about 5% of the
surface. The largest forest areas cover the border mountain ranges of Bohemia and
Moravia as this land has colder climate, steeper slopes and poorer soils. The larger
inland forest areas are located on isolated mountains. Other large forest areas cover
steep and deep river valley systems and poor sandy soils on sandstones and also on
wind blown and fluvial sands. The rest of the country is covered with a pattern of
smaller forest patches, pasture and field areas. The proportion of woodland generally
increases from lowlands into mountains. As might be expected, forests cover less
valuable soils or less useable sites unless the forest serves special purposes.
Schoolteachers thus need to explain to pupils that the woodland is not distributed
randomly in the landscape and its position in any region also reflects regularities
given both by the needs of the human community and also by natural conditions.
The forest is thus a good indicator of human and natural factors.


Fieldwork in forest areas
In the Czech Republic school excursions are commonly heading into forested areas.
The excursion field work program routinely deals with forest canopy cognition,
usually its living segment. Pupils are being taught to recognise individual tree
species, parts of tree bodies, their flowers and fruits. The pupils are learning about
the relationships of forests and trees with animals. Pupils learn to identify individual
forest herbs (Barányová, Novák, 2004). The specialized ecological education makes
pupils familiar with forest ecosystems as a whole, their structures and dynamics,
relationships between their compounds, their roles and functions. The spatial aspects
of the forest – its territorial differentiation – remains only marginal. Geography
studies presents an opportunity to explore and explain such spatial aspects of nature
and in this way will help its understanding.

Geographer´s view on the forest

Woodland plays many important roles in the European cultural landscape. Wood
production was the original forest function for humans. The present understanding
of forest functions is quite different beacause of deep changes in the production tech-
nologies in industry, housing, construction, heating, etc. as well as better knowledge
about other important abilities of woodland. Other forest functions include:
• protecting the soil against soil erosion,
• climatic influences like air humidification, cooling and wind speed reduction,
• hygienic functions such as dust absorbtion, noise reduction
• aesthetic aspects like the psychological role of green colour and diverse horizon
• recreational and health features where the input of chemicals has a positive effect
• ecological aspects where biodiversity protection of species and societies
• water protection supporting water accumulation and filtration
• educational through teaching in and about forests and
• scientific issues with a study of various aspects of forest ecosystems.
Many of these functions are hidden not only from the broad public but also to educa-
tion and research specialists as well. Developing opportunities that will increase the
awareness of the importance of and opportunities to understand forested area is thus
very important.

Role of an integrated terrain education centre

The problem of forest teaching lies in the question of how to explain the importance
and significance of forests to pupils in primary schools. Field and class education
offers opportunities to involve pupils in the subject. If the objective is to encourage
active pupil participation it is important to apply attractive educational methods in
a series of stages of forest study. These stages can be represented by the collection
of data about forest functions (in field, literature, maps, aerial and satellite imagery)
and data processing and presentation of results to other schoolmates. The most attrac-
tive teaching approaches can best be achieved in the field and in computer-assisted
classes. The establishment of an “integrated terrain education centre“ can be used
successfully for both these purposes.

 One of these field study laboratories belongs to the Department of Geography,
Faculty of Education, Masaryk University in Brno. It is located nearby the Jedovnice
village in the beautifull landscape on the border of Moravian Karst and Drahanská
vrchovina Highland about 35 km to the North from the city Brno centre.
The purpose of the integrated terrain education centre is to integrate various
field study practices carried out by individual science branches. The environmental
education and professional preparation of future teachers (presently students of
the Faculty of Education) were the linking forces between natural science (namely
geography, biology and chemistry) and humanistic science (represented by citizen
education) (Hofmann, Rychnovský and Plucková, 2003). The centre thus serves
as a terrain school for one-week pupil field courses for primary schools in Czech
Republic, and partially also for the Slovak Republic during the summer season (May,
June, September).
Various progressive teaching methods are being applied here groupwork, project
and problem solving education. The instruction emphasises the co-operation of all
participants (teachers, students and pupils) to solve practical tasks. The inter-subject
links play a very important role in improving the importance of teacher co-operation
and the application of team-based education. The outdoor education is comparable
to the types of “fieldwork“ which are commonly undertaken in English/American
schools.
Fieldwork is understood as a complex educational form consisting of progressive
teaching methods, such as experiments, centre research, short-term and long-term
observations, project solving, co-operative methods, experiential methods, etc.. It
consists of various organisational education forms (including jaunts, field experi-
ments, excursions, thematic school visits, expeditions, etc.. The focus of this kind of
education is based on outdoor activities – outside the school area and out-of doors.
These activities support the development of necessary lifelong skills of pupils.
The integrated terrain education centre has an accomodation facility, research
laboratory, library and depot. The classroom and laboratory do not simulate the
normal school environment. The distribution of mobile furniture and other equip-
ment depends on the requirements of the visiting school. There are microscopes,
stereo lenses, chemical laboratory, GPS instruments, TV sets, video recorders,
thematic maps, etc. at their disposal here.

Geographical fieldwork in the forest about the forest

There is a varied local geographical environment around the integrated terrain educa-
tion centre in Jedovnice (village, pastures and meadows, fish ponds, forests in hilly
karstic and non karstic areas with an elevation between 450 and 550 m a.s.l.). This
makes the study of various aspects of the territorial distribution and functionality
of the forest area possible (Figure 1).
The fieldwork for pupils (grade 5 of the primary school and above) usually consists
of (Kolejka, 2005):
1. Forest functionality mapping (topographic map at the scale of 1:10000 is available,
orthophotomap at same scale as well, community master plan, black-and-white base
45
 maps for colour childrens´mapping
of forests with various features).
The children can be inspired with
the above mentioned overview of
forest functions. They can identify
forest areas with specific functions
in maps, in the field and/or in areial
imagery by themselves (such as
wood productional forest – connif-
erous woodland without any other
function, soil protectional forest
– on steep slopes, water protec-
tional forest – along the banks of
water bodies, streams and springs,
Figure 1. Digital map of present landscape compilled by geog-
raphy students and pupils protected forest – in preserved areas
of all classes, ecologically important
forest – predominantly decidous forest with nature near canopy species composi-
tion visible in orthophoto), recreational forest – with dense network of walking
routes, pick-nick areas, small architecture, watch points, hienical forest – bordering
production facilities and busy roads, educational forest – equipped with learning
pathes and tables, aesthetic forest – hidening various „cicatrices“ in the land-
scape (fresh minning areas) or improving views on important landmarks (castles,
mansions, etc.), climatical forest – protecting housing areas and dividing large
agricultural segments of open landscape. This way, children can realize that the
most of forest areas are multifunctional (Figure 2).
2. Consequent discussion about fitness of territorial distribution of forests with
identified functions. Children can assess if the present functions of multifunc-
tional forest areas are complementary or competitive. They can identify priority
functions governing individual forest areas eighter excluding other functions or
supporting them. Such supervised discussion teaches children to understand the
forest in functional and spatial relationships, in any case from the viewpoint forest
utility for humans. The respect to the forest can be being developed this way better
than by demostration its features.
3. Jaunt into functional forest samples is used to demonstrate the best behavioural
practices. This way, children can understand what type of behavior is harmful to
the forest and its functioning, and which are not.
4. A team competition can be arranged based on different types of forest activity in
diverse areas. These can include searches, inumerical and/or word games.

Potential field work teachers in the forest

Trainee geography teachers and those of biology or ecology can gain valuable
pedagogical experience by working in the field centre. They need to be supervised
by experienced expert teachers and be aware of the safety and other issues associ-
ated with outdoor education. It is essential for them to prepae and undertake “forest
46
learning“, to develop and then introduce
essential teaching materials, to raise issues
with qualified teaching staff and experi-
ence and learn key principles of fieldwork
organisation. Using the laboraty processing
equipment is another positive aspect, this
includes personal computers with GIS
software. It is evident that GIS technology
represents a very effictive teaching tool, as
forest field work linked with GIS is a very
attractive alliance opening new horizons
to the geography teaching (Mahel and
Svatoňová, 2003).

Figure 2. Example of results of the forest mapping done

by field work
References
1. BARÁNYOVÁ S., NOVÁK S. 2004. Zeměpisné učivo ve výuce vlastivědy a přírodovědy.
Biologie, Chemie, Zeměpis, Vol. 13, № 4, pp. 199−204.
2. HOFMANN E., RYCHNOVSKÝ B., PLUCKOVÁ I. 2003. Terénní výuka a její real-
izace na Integrovaném odborném pracovišti PdF MU. In: Pregraduální příprava a post-
graduální vzdělávání učitelů chemie. Ostravská univerzita, Ostrava, pp. 252−256.
3. KOLEJKA J. 2005. Geografie a les. Námět pro terénní výuku pro základní školy.
Biologie, Chemie, Zeměpis, Vol. 14, № 3, pp. 145−149.
4. MAHEL D., SVATOŇOVÁ, H. 2003. Terénní projektová výuka a GIS ve výuce středních
škol. ArcRevue, № 3, pp. 15−18.


 A pupils’ approach to a judicial conflict between rivers
and humans

Nikos Lambrinos

School of Education, Dept. of Primary Education, Aristotle University

of Thessaloniki, Greece, GR-54124
e-mail: lambrinos@[Link]

Abstract
This paper presents the idea, the steps, the implementation and the results of a primary
school project. The project was based on the personification of a river which complained
to the humans about the way they treated its water and basin and finally had to prosecute
the humans in court. Because of the seriousness of the charges the court had consisted of
a “public prosecutor” (sixth form pupils of the 1st pilot primary school) a “counsel for the
defence” (sixth form pupils of the 2nd pilot primary school) and the “jury” (sixth form pupils
of the rd pilot primary school). Then, the pupils were asked to gather evidence from books,
newspapers and the Internet to support the rivers (pupils from the first primary school) and
humans (pupils from the second primary school). The evidence was based on environmental
issues, recreation, emergency (like fire), agricultural needs etc. The trial lasted three hours.
All pupils followed the rules like being in a real court, providing evidence for the support
of their “client” (the river or the humans) and the “jury” were taking notes on the evidence.
Finally, the “jury” announced their verdict and the “judge” sentenced the humans.
The project and the followed procedure showed that the pupils respond better
whenever the teacher gives them the chance to get an active role and simulate real
life while learning. Many pupils acted like real lawyers and searched intensively for
information in order to support their ideas.

Key words: environmental geography, trial, rivers, humans, active learning

Introduction
During the school year 2001-2002 a pilot project named “supple zone of multi-
thematic actions”, was applied in Greek primary schools (Greek Official Gazette
1366, 2001). This project was based on creating a free zone of school subjects (2−4
hours a week), where teachers and students were able to deal with various subjects of
their own interest. One of the proposed subjects was environmental education (EE)
through a student’s social and physical environment and also their contact with the
local environment. A very important element of the “supple zone” project was that
teachers were at last free to apply new teaching methods instead of concentrating
on the old traditional ones.
The next step that followed towards the new perspective on the content of school
subjects, was the so called Cross Curriculum Program (Greek Official Gazette 1375,
2001) which became law in early 2002 (without being clear when its application will


begin). It is referred to the inter-disciplinary approach of all cognitive subjects taught
at school. This, along with the supple zone, gave a perfect opportunity to connect
environmental education to geography.
According to the above mentioned new curriculum, the aim of environmental
education is “To make students… be sensitized about the problems arising from bad
management of the environment. In addition, through EE students… will be active
members in decision taking and materialization process…”
Our project was based on the above aims. Our intention was to make the pupils
search for environmental impacts taking into consideration the fact that geography
contributes greatly in understanding 1) the degree of the impact and 2) the reasons
of being disastrous, in some cases.

Methodology
In order to do so we had to “invent” a story which could introduce the pupils in real
life and give them an active role. The idea was to make the pupils work in small
teams which were parts of a large team (the whole class), make them think about
rivers and humans and their interconnection and discuss and support their ventures
with data in front of an audience. So, the whole idea was based on a typical debate
between teams.

The “story”
The “story” started in March 2002, when the rivers “sued” the humans for inappro-
priate and impetuous use of their water and ask for justice. The “judge” (who may
be a teacher) asked grade six pupils of the 1st pilot primary school of the School of
Education to be the “public prosecutor”, the sixth form pupils of the 2nd pilot primary
school of the School of Education to be the “counsel for the defence” and, because of
the seriousness of the accusation, the sixth form pupils of the rd pilot primary school
of the School of Education to be the “jury”. So, this project involved the pupils of
three sixth form classes of three primary schools.
The “public prosecutor”, the “counsel for the defence” and the “jury” had their
advisors, student teachers of the department of Primary Education, Aristotle Univer-
sity of Thessaloniki. The venue of the trial was the main auditorium of the department
of Primary Education, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece and the date of
the trial was fixed in June 7, 2002.

The gathering of evidence

Each party was organized into five teams and each team was responsible for the
gathering of evidence on a specific topic for the support of their “client” (table 1).
Thus, 10 teams of pupils were formed which were supervised by five groups of
student teachers. Each student teacher group was responsible for one team from
each party because the students wanted to participate in both. That was done under
the condition that they wouldn’t reveal any of the evidence gathered by each team
of pupils against the others.

49
 The teams had three months to gather and discuss with their supervisors all the
evidence they needed. They met once a week for a couple of hours maximum. During
the meetings the student teachers acted as advisors. They helped the pupils get the
information they needed from geography magazines, newspapers, books and the
Internet. Whenever they realized that the evidence was not sufficient or appropriate
they explained to the pupils the problems that may arise and encouraged them to
look for new and stronger arguments.
The pupils of grade six of the rd pilot primary school, acting as the “jury”, were
asked by their teacher to do a “preliminary investigation” on the relationship between
humans and rivers, so they would be prepared to listen to the evidence of both parties.
In fact, it would have been fairer if the “jury” had known nothing about the case but
the pupils wanted to be more active and do something for the project.
Table 1. The structure of the trial
Public Prosecutor Student Counsel for the Defense
Topics covered by the pupils teachers Topics covered by the pupils
st Pilot • the destruction of the natu- st team • recreation (sailing, fishing nd Pilot
School ral river bed and the discon- etc.) School
tinuity of the channel
• the pollution and contami- nd team • transportation of goods and
nation of the river passengers
• the destruction of fauna and rd team • electrical power produc-
flora tion, dams
• the reduction of water dis- th team • irrigation, water supply
charge
• the reduction of delta for- 5th team • public works against flood-
mation ing
rd
The Jury –  Pilot school
The Judge – a teacher from any of the schools (in this case the writer of the article)

The trial
The date of the trial was fixed in June 7, 2002 at 08:30 a.m. The venue was the main
auditorium of the department of Primary Education, Aristotle University of Thes-
saloniki, Greece. The writer of this article was appointed to be the judge, given that
the teachers of the three schools were already engaged in the procedure and they had
also asked for it. Each party was positioned at a different place; the public prosecutor
to the left of the bench, the counsel for the defense to the right of the bench and the
jury at the right of the bench, at the side of the parties, facing the two parties and
the judge. The public – the rest of the pupils of the three schools and their parents
– were sited behind the two parties.
The trial began with the announcement of the accusation from the judge and after
that the public prosecutor asked to support the evidence. Each team revealed their
evidence using various ways. They gave speeches, recited poems, used posters,
displayed photographs and diagrams, they even performed a drama to play that they
wrote for the occasion. Both parties had many objections against each other, some
50
overruled by the judge and some sustained. The trial ended almost three hours after
its commencement.
The foreman of the jury announced that the jury found the humans guilty on all
charges and the judge sentenced them accordingly.

Conclusions
If we divide this project in two parts, one being the pre-trial part and the second the
trial itself then, we can distinguish the advantages and disadvantages that derive
from the theme (pre-trial part) and the procedure (trial).
The pre-trial part: The pre-trial part was a very productive period for the pupils.
A two-way relationship was established between the teacher and the pupils. They
learned how to use the available sources, extract the appropriate information and
even how to present them to an audience in a more attractive way. They learned how
to work in teams and what were the benefits from working as a member of a team.
They found out that they can acquire more knowledge when working as a team,
learning from what the rest of the members have found. So all the members think
about and discuss everyone’s findings.
The trial part: The pupils respond better whenever the teacher gives them the
chance to have an active role and simulate real life while learning. Many pupils
acted like real lawyers and searched intensively for information in order to support
their ideas. The pupils learned how to debate and to respect the opinion of the others
even if they don’t agree. That means they learned to listen to the arguments of the
opposite side, and find evidence to invert this. They learnt that they have to filter
each piece of information they read or hear before they form their own opinion or
take a decision.
Disadvantages: The trial lasted too long. That was due to the many topics and
teams that were involved (ten topics and ten teams). Each team wanted to present its
evidence, which was very reasonable. The schedule of a project such as this should
foresee this problem and put from the beginning time restrictions on the teams.
The teams and the topics could be fewer, and they could be asked to focus on their
evidence instead of making long introductions. The pupils didn’t make a summary
of what they read, they copied whole pages from books and read them in the trial.
This, combined with no time restrictions, made the trial last too long.
The student teachers: The student teachers involved in the project found the
procedure very interesting, innovative and productive. The pupils, in their effort to
support their findings, came closer to the teacher. The teacher co-operated with each
of the students and had the opportunity to realize which pupil is interested in what
and how the pupil works in order to achieve his/her objectives.

References
1. Greek Official Gazette 1366. 2001. v. ?, 18-10-2001, Geography (in Greek).
2. Greek Official Gazette 1375. 2001. v. ?, 18-10-2001, Geography (in Greek).

51
 Observation and presentation of phenomena
in Geography Education

Iwona Piotrowska

Department of Geography Teaching and Ecological Education, Faculty of

Geographical and Geological Sciences, Adam Mickiewicz University,
ul. Dzięgielowa 27, 61-680 Poznań
e-mail: ipiotrow@[Link]

Abstract
Contemporary geography is treated as a science studying and explaining the causes and
effects of the natural and socio-economic diversification of geographical space. Under-
stood in this way as a subject taught at school irrespective of the education level, including
academic training, it offers great cognitive, practical and instructional insights. The teaching
of geography should help the student to seek an answer to the question of the meaning or
cause of existence of individual geographical objects and phenomena and their role in the
environment, as well as their rational use. Of great significance in the cognitive process is
the ability to make keen observations. Geographical education is thus one of the pillars of
the development of a knowledge-based economy.
Apart from the choice of the contents of geographical instruction, the role of this subject
in the school structure, and its importance in the education of modern man, reflection is
also due to the mode of observation and presentation of geographical knowledge. The way
in which the teacher passes on information, tries to make the student interested in the
geographical environment and moulds his imagination, has a decisive effect not only on
his learning progress, but also on the perception of the subject itself (Piotrowska, 2003). In
many works the didactic effort of the teacher is treated as a teaching art. Hence, it seems
justified to approach the teacher’s demonstration, discussion or explanation of geographical
processes and objects as another art – that of presentation. Even more so as presentation is
considered today to be a skill that is a fundamental part of one’s professional competence
and a condition for one’s personal development (Łasiński, 2000).

Key words: geography, presentation, observation, teaching, conditions of effective pres-

entation

Presentation
Presentation in the teaching and communication process is a planned and system-
atic method of acting upon a defined group of students, during which it is crucial to
inform, convince and motivate listeners (Łasiński, 2000). Apprehension about being
evaluated combined with satisfaction from positive reception is inherent to any pres-
entation (Pijarowska and Seweryńska, 2002). This is also easily observed in teacher’s
didactic work, in which emotional input significantly influences students’ perception
of geographical data. In terms of schoolwork, presentation is continuously present
in every lesson while discussing various geographical features, phenomena, proc-

52
esses or their reciprocal relationships. The proper method of presentation determines
how successfully the didactic aims are implemented and influences the efficiency
of teaching.
Preparation for presentation includes a thorough analysis of its aim, method and
the recipients involved. The most important element of each presentation is to deter-
mine its objective. Thus presentation is a task-oriented activity and not spontaneous
and unprepared (Łasiński, 2000). Good reception is dependent upon the audience.
Consequently, it is the student who decides in what way geographical input is taken
in, understood and memorized.
Many authors (Jay and Jay, 2000; Łasiński, 2000; Pijarowska and Seweryńska,
2002) agree that the following factors influence good reception of presentation:
• Clear structure of presentation
• Contents as well as expression of the topic
• Body language, i.e. author’s image, body posture and eye contact
• Method of presenting contents using visuals or creating a whole set, if necessary.
Every presentation, regardless of its subject matter, consists of the following
elements which must be clearly visible to recipients: introduction (topic presenta-
tion, engaging listeners’ interest and preparing them for reception), development
(subject discussion, presentation of main points, conclusions and acknowledgment
of attention). It is the presenter who decides when to move on to the next part of
the presentation and how to end it. One of the basics of presentation is confidence
resulting from profound knowledge of the subject and realistic self-esteem (Pija-
rowska and Seweryńska, 2002). As for timing of individual parts of presentations,
the introduction takes on average 15% of time allotted, development about 75% and
ending about 10%. The basic elements of presentation to which particular attention
should be given are listed below (Pijarowska and Seweryńska, 2002).

Introduction
• first impression determines the success of the whole undertaking
• non-verbal communication occurs throughout the entire presentation
• eye contact with listeners as well as awareness of facial expression and gestures
• introduction should be a conscious presentation
• a plan – script – is essential.

Development
• excellent knowledge of the subject as well as logical sequence and clarity of the
message
• visuals that make the subject easier to comprehend and also add interest
• managing symptoms of nervousness
• maintaining contact with listeners
• keeping track of time
• approaching the finishing stages of development should create an impression of
completeness and clarity of the message.

53
Ending
This part aims at formulating the main theme running through entire presentation
and summarising its contents in demonstrated theses as well as finishing it off with
adequate delivery.

Efficacy and attractiveness of the message

Effective presentation aims at conscious implementation of an anticipated goal. Its
effectiveness is influenced by elements such as accumulated knowledge, contents,
skills, strategy and methods of presentation (Pijarowska and Seweryńska, 2002).

Knowledge
While selecting the subject it is essential to analyse the aim of presentation. In order
to accumulate and then make use of knowledge a lot of features, facts or phenomena
must be remembered and logically associated. The familiarity with memorizing proc-
esses on the side of both teacher and student may facilitate learning. It is important
to realize that memorizing is made much easier by: comprehension of all elements of
input, frequent revising of contents and the ability to apply the contents to problem
solving and putting them to practical use (this results from basic principles of the
teaching process – principle of linking theory with practice and principle of durability
of results, Okoń, 1987).

Contents of presentation
The very method of formulating the subject suggests the form of its presentation.
Therefore, a topic selection determines the concept of its presentation. While selecting
the subject matter to be presented it is crucial to understand well the selected topic
(the main thought), to balance all the elements and to construct a feasible plan of
presentation.

Skills
They are understood as aptitude and readiness to perform in public. Not everyone
has the benefit of this skill. However, it may be developed in the course of preparing
and giving a lot of presentations if some prerequisites are present.

Strategy
It is a plan which takes into account contents, structure, form and listeners. A logical,
well ordered plan facilitates presentation.

Presentation methods
The message is easier to understand, memorize and watch if didactic tools, or media,
are used: pictures, slides, transparencies, posters, models, films, computer and multi-
media programs as well as Internet resources (Strykowski et. al. 2003). They should
all relevantly illustrate the presentation, without distracting viewers. Their impor-
tance is particularly pronounced in teaching geography, which was pointed out by
the great Czech pedagogue active in Poland Jan Amos Komeński, (1592−1670) who
54
formulated one of key principles in teaching geography – the principle of visualiza-
tion (Okoń, 1987). As much as 83% of all information is assimilated through the
sense of sight (Łasiński, 2000). Therefore visualization should underlie all presenta-
tion. According to Jay (2000) an image acts better that words since it is faster, saves
time, is more efficient and easier to memorize at the same time enabling indirect
observation of the questions discussed.

Verbal and non-verbal communication

Nowadays a lot of attention is given to communication. Communications, or people
talking to each other, is made up of verbal and non-verbal messages. A school is a
place particularly suited for this purpose. Both teachers and students send various
messages. Strykowski et. al. (2003) suggest extending teacher’s competencies by
communication, media and technology competencies. Ignorance and the inability to
interpret messages may create a number of difficult didactic situations.
The first of these messages discussed, verbal, is of a linguistic variety. The
language register may be literary, colloquial or scientific. Besides language other
crucial elements include associations, choice of words and correct syntax (Łasiński,
2000). Depending on educational level and the syllabus the teacher conveys informa-
tion of geographical environment adjusting it to the perception potential of students.
Łasiński (2000) believes that the method of lecturing influences the process of
communication up to 30%, its elements being intonation, force and speed of speech
as well as pauses between sentences, the pitch of voice, articulation and any dialects,
if applicable. Many different methods may be used in order to emphasize the char-
acter of presentation: strengthening or weakening the volume of voice, suspending,
accelerating or slowing down the speed of reading, modulating intonation or length-
ening words. The speech must be loud and clear, intonation should be melodious, the
tempo and volume of voice diversified; mumbling, shortening syllables or speaking
through the nose are not recommended; also vocabulary should be varied. Presenta-
tion becomes then more expressive both to listeners and the speaker.
Pauses play an interesting and important role in presentations (Detz, 2004; Heigl,
2004). Moments of silence are recommended in the course of the lecture to make it
possible for listeners to absorb contents and, at the same time, to observe the visuals
shown. It is the pauses that make the presentation suggestive and vivid. On the other
hand, a non-verbal message is an integral process which, according to Pease (2004)
and Łasiński (2000), involves body language, which consists of:
• facial expression
• gestures
• body posture
• eye contact
• non-verbal aspect of speech; tone of voice, rhythm, stress, speed of speech
• involuntary physiological reactions
• physical appearance
• personal distance and
• space (physical surroundings)
55
 Studies have shown that the aforementioned type of communication clearly prevails
in interpersonal communication. Pease (2004) maintains that verbal component of
speech makes up to 35% of communication whereas the rest occurs at a non-verbal
level; Łasiński (2000) suggests it is about 50%. From a teacher’s perspective the
ability to read and interpret non-verbal messages coming from students, sometimes
termed intuition or perception, seems to be exceptionally important (Wołowik, 1998).
Ignoring signals coming from students during a lesson may result in a situation in
which the planned method of presentation does not adapt and thus the educational
effect is impaired.
In the course of presentation another factor, mentioned earlier, appears i.e. distance,
defined as personal distance from other people, something that Pease (2002) calls
‘territory’ and the ‘speaker’s safety zone’, whereas Hall (after Pease, 2004) names
it ‘speaker’s own space’. In the course of studies on non-verbal expression (called
proxemics after Hall) considerable significance was given to distances people who
engage in interaction tend to keep between them as well as their reciprocal arrange-
ment. Pease (2004) lists four types of spacing zones: private (15−46 cm), personal
(46−120 cm), social (120−360 cm) and public (more than 360 cm). Inevitably, each
individual zone may determine the method of presentation as well as its adequate
reception as they define the distance to listeners- students.

Perception of presentation – natural barriers

In the course of every presentation there appear to be many disturbances that may
make it difficult or even impossible to communicate. Such situations are especially
troubling for beginners, young inexperienced teachers. Łasiński (2000) points out
to the following barriers of efficient communication that may have an impact on
perception of presentation (Table 1)
Table 1. Barriers to effective communication (Łasiński (2000), modified)
Semantic Psychological Physical and external
• Lack of professional • Negative attitude • Noise
preparation • Shyness • Whispering
• Distorted information • Lack of interest in the • Temperature
• Multitude of information subject • Venue
• Incomprehensible subject • Excessive emotional • Time of day
matter involvement • Power cut or computer
• Incomprehensible termi- • Disregard for listeners break-down
nology or language • Dogmatic thinking • Too many listeners
• Speaker’s speech defect • Lack of concentration • Inadequate room ar-
• Monotonous speech rangement
• Inability to focus on • Time pressure
listening
• Tiredness

56
Dress rehearsal
How should a presentation be prepared so that set goals are achieved? The only
solution seems to undertake perfect preparation both of its subject matter and of its
methodological aspects as well as having a ‘dress rehearsal’ to test full readiness for
delivery. Such a rehearsal allows for final corrections and helps boost confidence in
its success. It is also an opportunity to assess the teacher’s skills and the extent of
preparation.
The following factors are helpful in rehearsing a presentation (Pijarowska and
Seweryńska, 2002):
• reading the entire presentation aloud
• practicing in front of the mirror using notes; and
• speaking in a normal and/or louder voice (voice experiments)
An element which is extremely important in achieving success both in rehearsal
and in real-life presentation is success visualization, or projecting an image of a
successful presentation. A good presentation is easy to understand, visual, inter-
esting, vivid and prepared with competence (Łasiński, 2000), and, if prepared well,
it may considerably enrich educational system and geography teaching.
In schools in the st century, in the time of unprecedented development of informa-
tion technologies, GIS and the Internet, enormous importance is given to presenta-
tion skills of geography teachers regardless of the elected methods and techniques
of geography instruction.

References:
1. DETZ J. 2004. Sztuka przemawiania. Gdańskie Wydawnictwo Psychologiczne,
Gdańsk.
2. HEIG P. 2004. 30 minut, aby zostać dobrym mówcą. Wydawnictwo „KOS”, Katowice.
3. JAY A., JA, R. 2000. Skuteczna prezentacja. Wydawnictwo Zysk i S-ka, Poznań.
4. ŁASIŃSKI G. 2000. Sztuka prezentacji. Oficyna Wydawnicza Wydawnictwa eMPI2,
Poznań.
5. OKOŃ W. 1987. Wprowadzenie do dydaktyki ogólnej. PWN, Warszawa.
6. PEASE A. 2004. Mowa ciała. Jak odczytywać myśli innych ludzi z ich gestów.
Wydawnictwo „Jedność”. Kielce.
7. PIJAROWSKA R., SEWERYŃSKA, A.M. 2002, Sztuka prezentacji. WSiP, Warszawa.
8. PIOTROWSKA I. 2003. Ewaluacja metod nauczania w edukacji geograficznej. W:
Edukacja geograficzno-przyrodnicza w dobie globalizacji i integracji europejskiej.
PTG, Uniw. Opolski, Opole.
9. STRYKOWSKI W., STRYKOWSKA, J., PIELACHOWSKI, J. 2003. Kompetencje nauc-
zyciela szkoły współczesnej. Oficyna Wydawnicza Wydawnictwa eMPI2, Poznań.
10. WOŁOWIK W. 1998. Język ciała uczniów i nauczycieli. Atlas II. Wydawnictwo Profes-
jonalnej Szkoły Biznesu, Kraków.

57
 Constructing the world through the curriculum

Margaret Roberts

University of Sheffield, School of Education, 388 Glossop Road,

Sheffield. S10 2JA.
e-mail: Margaret.roberts20@[Link]

Abstract
Concerns have been expressed about misleading impressions of the world conveyed by
various map projections. In this paper I argue that the world studied in the geography class-
room by 11−14 year olds in England is equally distorted by the curriculum itself. Although
the UK Geography National Curriculum provides a framework for teaching, choices about
which places are studied are made by teachers. An investigation into which places were
studied and why was carried out through a questionnaire survey and through interviews in
case study schools. The findings revealed significant patterns of attention and neglect both
at a world scale and at a European scale. A range of factors affected curriculum choices.
The study raised questions about how the curriculum is constructed, about the way places
were represented and studied and about the use of case studies.

Key words: curriculum, maps

Introduction
Concerns have been expressed about the distorting influence of the use of partic-
ular map projections in schools (Wright, 2003). The world is represented to pupils,
however, not only through maps but also through what is studied in school. The
focus of this paper is on the shape of the world constructed through the geography
curriculum at Key Stage 3 (11−14 year olds) in England, the last stage in which
geography is compulsory. It reports on and discusses a small research study which
investigated which places were studied and why.

Contexts
Geography has always been concerned with place but as the academic subject has
changed, so has the world represented through its discourses. Regional geography
constructed a comprehensive world, classified into regions and described in detail.
Explanations tended to be deterministic. The quantitative revolution, created a
different, more uniform world in which the search for general laws to explain proc-
esses was more important than the particularities of places. Humanistic geography
re-emphasised the importance of people and place but its focus on meanings of
particular places created a fragmented world of experience. Radical geography, with
its concern for issues and the political and social processes underpinning them,
produced a new world in which global issues, patterns and inter-relationships became
more significant. The cultural turn of the 1990s produced not simply a different map

58
of the world, but multiple maps of meaning (Jackson, 1989). Post-modern approaches
have emphasised different geographies, different viewpoints, and different repre-
sentations of the world and how place identity is constructed through relationships
with other places (Massey, 2002).
Just as the discourses of academic geography change the map of the studied
world, so do the discourses of the educational world. Before the introduction of the
Geography National Curriculum (GNC) in 1991 the dominant approach to syllabus
construction was through thematic studies, influenced variably by the quantitative
revolution and by radical geography’s concerns with issues. A minority of schools still
influenced by a regional approach studied the world through a curriculum structured
by continents and countries (Roberts, 1998). As teachers could choose what they
taught, the curriculum worlds constructed through these frameworks varied.
Concern about the under-emphasis of place studies in schools (Walford 2000,
Rawling, 2001) influenced the first GNC (DES, 1991) with the result that it included,
in addition to the study of themes, the compulsory study of specified places: the
home region; one of France, Germany, Italy and Spain; one of twelve named Less
Economically Developed Countries (LEDCs), and one of USA, Japan and USSR. The
emphasis was on descriptive studies. The two revisions of the GNC in 1995 (DFE,
1995) and 2000 (DfEE, 1999) still included the study of place, but countries were
no longer specified and only two countries had to be studied. Instead of emphasis
on description there was emphasis on studying at a range of scales within regional
and global contexts and independence (DFE, 1995) and on the distinctive character
of places, the causes and consequences of regional differences, change and issues
of topical significance (DfEE, 1999).

Methodology
I used both quantitative and qualitative methods to investigate the shape of the world
created by the choice of countries and case studies. I sent a questionnaire survey to
 schools in an attempt to produce some generalisations about which countries were
studied and why. The response rate was 69%. I used qualitative methods to examine
the particular worlds created in individual schools through choice of countries and
case studies and to explore the thinking behind the choices made. I interviewed heads
of geography in six schools, focusing on the whole curriculum in three schools and
on Europe in three different schools.

Survey findings
The current GNC in the UK requires pupils to study any ‘two countries in signifi-
cantly different states of economic development’. Four countries dominated the
choices. Italy and Japan dominated the MEDCs chosen, with 72% of schools
choosing one or both of these countries. 75% of schools chose either Brazil or
Kenya.
An open question on why particular countries were studied produced a variety of
responses. A large majority (90%) explained their choices in terms of resources, some
stating simply that they were ‘in the texts we purchased’, others indicating a more
59
active engagement in curriculum development, e.g. ‘over the last 4/5 years we have
built up resources and staff knowledge of Nigeria. We had some useful videos and an
Oxfam resources pack’. 40% justified their choices in terms of geographical content
with a minority referring specifically to the GNC place requirements e.g. ‘Italy is good
for looking at regional disparities’. Most justified the choices in terms of opportunities
to use the countries as case studies for themes. A minority justified choices in terms
of the broader curriculum, mentioning links with modern languages, citizenship, and
history e.g. ‘India is studied alongside the study of Mogul Empire’.
Teachers’ and pupils’ experiences and preferences were important for some: ‘We
have a teacher who lived in Kenya’; ‘Some students of Italian descent’; ‘Brazil: to
enthuse and motivate boys (football link)’, and India: ‘pupils bring some knowledge
and images to discuss’. A minority had chosen the UK as the country for study
because they thought pupils should study their own country. Two responses justified
their choices in terms of intrinsic importance of the country: ‘USA is a large important
country and frequently in the news’ and ‘India is important in itself’.

Interview findings
The general interviews in Schools A, B and C revealed that the flexibility of the GNC
allowed schools to construct completely different curriculum worlds consisting of
their chosen countries and case studies.
School A chose to study Japan and Tanzania, the latter because of an exchange link
of pupils and staff with a subsistence village in Zanzibar. A discussion of places used
for case studies revealed significant areas of neglect. No case studies were selected
from North America, Europe or the Middle East or from South America apart from
the tropical rainforest or from Asia apart from flooding in Bangladesh.
School B studied USA, in spite of limited published resources, because of its
importance in the world, and also Australia and Brazil. These three countries were
studied in some detail with cross referencing to other comparable places, thus delib-
erately enlarging the curriculum world. Case studies from many parts of the world
were chosen to illustrate the GNC themes, but Asia was not studied at all apart from
flooding in Bangladesh.
School C studied Italy, Japan and India, spending a whole term on each, a longer
period than in other schools. Pupils were told why these countries were chosen and
were encouraged to do extended reading on them through a collection of newspaper
cuttings. Although there was no use of case studies from USA, Africa, Russia or
the Middle East, there was some study of all parts of the world through a series of
lessons on each continent focusing on key information and issues.
Interviews in Schools D, E and F were focused on Europe, excluding the UK. In
all three schools, work on the whole of Europe was limited to a lesson on general
map work and one or two lessons on the European Union, its purposes and member
countries. All three schools had chosen Italy as its MEDC. This was explained in
terms of availability of resources, because of teachers’ and pupils’ visits to Italy and
because pupils had some knowledge through Italian cultural influences in England.
The approach to studying Italy varied. School D adopted a systematic approach
60
focused on landscape, climate, population and contrasts between north and south.
School E included a more enquiry-based approach with pupils being asked to inves-
tigate whether the north/south divide was still valid. School E had developed a series
of activities designed to develop ‘thinking skills’ through the study of Italy.
When studying the themes prescribed in the GNC, teachers chose very few illustra-
tive case studies from Europe. The examples included: tourism in Majorca, Benidorm
and the Alps; migration from Kosovo; volcanoes in Italy and pollution in the North
Sea. Thus, the map of Europe constructed in these schools was as peculiar as the world
maps in Schools A, B and C. Italy dominated the study of Europe. Areas of neglect
included Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, Germany and the Republic of Ireland.
In all six interview schools, the places studied were almost all chosen by the
teacher; pupils had extremely limited opportunities to choose which places they
studied or to incorporate their own personal experiences of place into their study
of geography. There was little evidence that teachers consciously thought about the
world they were constructing through the curriculum. Views differed on whether the
patterns of attention and neglect mattered. Some thought that pupils should have a
framework of knowledge about places and a sense of place and attempted to develop
this a bit through map work and quizzes. Others thought it was more important to
develop a range of skills than to develop knowledge about particular places.

Discussion
Just as every map projection distorts in its own way, so did the curriculum choices of
each geography department. There were distinct patterns of attention and neglect.
The countries that received the most attention were Italy, Japan, Brazil and Kenya,
which I’ll term the ‘big four’. This is an odd list. Although these countries were
named in the first GNC, this is insufficient to explain their dominance. Other coun-
tries specified in GNC 1991 such as USA, Germany and China are almost totally
neglected now.
There are several reasons why the big four have become so dominant. Hopkins
(2001) studied the shape of the world constructed through the different textbooks
series produced for successive versions of the GNC. He noted the emergence of a
limited number of countries for study (Brazil, Kenya, India, Italy and Japan) and
the neglect of countries that might have significance for minority groups in England
(e.g. Pakistan). Three of the ‘big four’, Italy, Japan and Kenya, were selected for
inclusion in the first edition of Key Geography (Waugh and Bushell, 1991), which
became by far the most popular of the textbook series written for GNC 1991. Key
Geography books had been used at some stage by % of the survey schools, with
74% continuing to use them. Choices made by textbook authors became further
entrenched as producers of television programmes, atlases and textbooks tended
to follow the dominant choices. The curriculum position of the ‘big four’ became
further embedded by schools linking the study of themes with the chosen countries,
e.g. linking Brazil with the study of tropical rainforests, and Italy and Japan with
the study of volcanoes and earthquakes. A sort of curriculum inertia has now set in
with teachers continuing with their existing choices even when not constrained by
61
prescription. Interviews showed that departments had invested time and money in
developing resources on their chosen places and that teachers had developed confi-
dence in teaching them.
The use of case studies to illustrate themes extended areas of attention. In the
interview schools, the UK, although not selected as a country for study, was given a
lot of attention because of its use for case studies to illustrate the themes. This could
be explained by its dominance in textbook case studies (Hopkins, 2002). The use of
case studies, while extending coverage of the world, was not without its problems.
China was studied mainly as an example of population policy. Bangladesh was
studied only as an example of flooding. Such studies, if unsupported by a broader
contextual study, could lead to stereotypical and misleading images.
There were distinct patterns of neglect. Little or no attention was given to the study
of USA, Russia or the Middle East and only a minority of schools gave any attention
to China or India. These omissions, which were common among all schools, made
the KS3 worlds very peculiar. The interviews showed that the worlds of individual
schools were made even odder by additional areas of neglect e.g. the whole of Africa,
or Europe or Asia.
Several issues have emerged from this small study. First there is the dilemma
of depth versus breadth of study. The interview schools illustrated the value of
depth of study developed through school exchange links with Zanzibar, through
extended reading on Japan and through the use of the same country for case studies
to illustrate issues and themes. Breadth of study was developed through references
to similar cases in other parts of the world, through providing overviews of issues
in each continent and through studying the wider context of the countries chosen for
study, e.g. the European Union. GNC 2000 encourages breadth of study through the
requirement to study interdependence of countries and to study at a range of scales
from the local to the global, and through the study of topical issues. These aspects
of the GNC requirements related to place were not emphasised in the interview
schools. The disadvantages of studying a few places in depth could be reduced if
topical issues were to be regularly studied in schools. Study of the enlargement of
the EU and debates about its future would enhance the curriculum map of Europe
considerably.
Second, there are issues related to areas of neglect. The worlds constructed at
KS3 excluded the most powerful, the most rapidly changing, the most populous and
the most globally significant countries in the world. Can pupils whose geographical
imaginations are being shaped by such peculiar worlds, really develop much under-
standing of the world they live in? Are there places in the world that should be included
in every curriculum and if so who should decide? Increased study of global context
and interdependence would inevitably draw these neglected areas, e.g. China and
the USA, into the KS3 worlds.
Third, there are issues of representation. The worlds that pupils study in their
textbooks are very different from the world of current affairs or the world as it is
represented in photographs, reports and advertisements that pupils encounter in
their particular cultures. A cultural turn in school geography, drawing on develop-
62
ments in academic geography, could develop pupils’ geographical imaginations by
encouraging them to investigate and become critically aware of how the world is
represented in the media (Morgan, 2003) and in the textbooks they use.
Fourth, there is the issue of who should control the curriculum. GNC 1991 was
criticised for being centrally controlled and prescriptive. Although the legacy of GNC
1991 is still significant, GNC 2000 is neither prescriptive nor controlling. Its flex-
ibility gives apparent control to teachers, but when choices are influenced so much
by resources it seems that it is the authors of best selling textbooks who are shaping
the world. Pupils could be given more control by giving them the choice of places to
be studied. In this study, only a few departments allowed such choices.
Lastly, there is the issue of difference. Whatever we do in schools, pupils will
construct different worlds and develop different geographical imaginations through
the interplay between what they learn inside and outside of the classroom. There
is scope for greater acknowledgement of the different worlds pupils bring into the
classroom, worlds shaped by their own direct experiences, through their contacts
with other people, through their cultures and through the media. In this study, only
a minority of schools justified choices in terms of pupils’ interests, experiences,
family connections or existing knowledge.

Conclusions
The worlds created through the geography curriculum are influenced by the require-
ments of the GNC, by availability of resources and by ways of thinking about the
geography and the curriculum. This study revealed peculiar curriculum worlds
with strange patterns of attention and neglect. It is inevitable that any world created
through the curriculum is simply a partial representation. In the same way as it is
impossible to produce an accurate map projection, so it is impossible to produce a
curriculum that represents the world accurately. The findings of this small piece of
research, however, has implications for initial teacher education and for the contin-
uous professional development of teachers. It is worth considering ways in which
teachers can become more critically aware of the peculiar yet taken-for-granted
worlds they are constructing through the curriculum. It is worth endeavouring to
make these curriculum worlds more extensive and more balanced and more related
to the worlds that 11−14 year olds experience. This can be done through giving more
time to the study of topical issues and of enabling pupils to make use of their own
personal geographies gained directly through experience and indirectly through the
media and through other people.

References
1. DES 1991. Geography in the National Curriculum (England). London: HMSO.
2. DFE 1995. Geography in the National Curriculum. London: HMSO.
3. DfEE 1999. Geography: The National Curriculum for England. London: HMSO.
4. HOPKINS J. 2001. ‘The world according to geography textbooks: interpretations of the
English National Curriculum’, International Research in Geographical and Environ-
mental Education. 10, 1, pp. 46−67.

63
 5. JACKSON P. 1989. Maps of Meaning. London: Routledge.
6. MASSEY D. 2002. ‘Globalisation: What does it mean for geography?’, Geography, ,
4, pp. 293−296.
7. MORGAN J. 2003. ‘Cultural geography goes to school’, Geography, 88, 3, pp. 217−224.
8. RAWLING E., 2001. Changing the subject: The impact of national policy on school
geography 1980−2000. Sheffield: The Geographical Association.
9. ROBERTS M. 1998. ‘The Impact and Legacy of the 1991 Geography National Curriculum
at Key Stage 3’, Geography, 83, 1, pp. 15−27.
10. WALFORD R. 2001. Geography in British Schools 1850-2000, London: Woburn
Press.
11. WAUGH D. and BUSHELL, A. 1991, 1992, 1993. Key Geography. Cheltenham: Stanley
Thornes.
12. WRIGHT D. 2003. ‘Questioning world maps’, Teaching Geography 28, 4, pp. 174−176.

64
 Training geography teachers in Poland with regard
to changes in school education

Jolanta Rodzoś1, Przemysław Charzyński2

1
Department of Geography Education, Faculty of Biology and Earth Sciences,
Maria Curie-Sklodowska Uniwersity, Krasnicka str. 2cd, 20-718 Lublin, Poland
e-mail: jrodzos@[Link]
2
Didactical Laboratory, Faculty of Biology and Earth Sciences,
Nicholas Copernicus Uniwersity in Toruń,
Danielewskiego str.6, 87-100 Torun
e-mail: pecha@[Link]

Abstract
The paper shows changes in training of geography teachers that have been occurring in
Poland since the late 1900s. Analyzed were curricula of schools of higher education, with
particular regard to their quality. Teacher training is examined in the aspect of:
• contemporary conception of school education
• social-economic situation
• formal requirements of Ministry of Education.
The article also contains postulates of further modernization in teachers education,
concerning both merits and pedagogy.

Key words: Polish education system, geographical education, training geography

teachers

Introduction
The Polish education system has undergone huge changes in the last fifteen years.
To a large extent, these changes are a consequence of the system transforma-
tion and reform of 1989 and accompanying changes in the economic, social, and
cultural spheres. In the new, democratic, conditions of state functioning, the school
model based on central administration and using uniform patterns of teaching and
upbringing has proved to be inadequate. The range of competences developed so far
in school education has also been recognised as insufficient. The citizen’s qualities
that have now become highly rated in the days of a market economy and developing
self-government, are: open-mindedness, innovativeness, creativity and the ability to
function in competitive conditions. That is why, starting in the early 1990s, changes
in curriculum and methodology began to be introduced in schools, crowned by
a systemic reform of education finally introduced in 1999.

Changes in Polish school system

The Polish school at the end of the past century was characterised by excessive
factual knowledge. Within particular subjects, the achievements of their mother

65
scientific disciplines were presented, together with the whole specialist scientific
terminology. Such knowledge was too detailed, often incomprehensible for the
pupil, and unrelated to his/her needs and everyday experience. Besides, the style
of teaching reflected in large measure the way in which the state functioned. In the
centralised economic system, education was aimed at preparing pupils/students for
predetermined tasks, hence the passivity of the Polish pupil/student. Overloaded
curricula/syllabuses, dominance of factual knowledge, and related to it negligence
in the sphere of skills in the pupil’s/student’s education, as well as the contents not
corresponding to his/her capacities and needs, were the weakest points of the Polish
school of the late 1990s.
In the conditions of political opening of Poland to the West, in the early 1990s,
the educational approaches of holism, personalism and activism gained impor-
tance on the school ground. They became the methodological bases for the shortly
implemented reform.
Adopting principles of the holistic approach in Polish education meant, firstly,
abandoning the rigid division of the contents into subjects according to scientific
specialisation, to the advantage of an integrative approach. Secondly, it meant the
necessity of presenting all the objects, phenomena, and processes in a broad context,
so as to demonstrate the world’s complexity and to show correlations between its
components. The paraphrase of the holistic idea in the functional language is the
motto: To understand the world. The consequence of adopting the idea was joining
together related subjects, especially so called “borderline” subjects, one of which is
geography. The most spectacular example was combining, at primary school level,
the contents of geography, biology, physics, and chemistry into one subject called
“science”. Moreover, at all levels of education interdisciplinary pathways were
created, that is such form of classes where the contents should be realised with the
co-participation of teachers of different specialisations. The geographers’ sphere of
interest includes primarily the regional, European, and ecological pathways, and
some others, like health and media pathways.
Adopting the idea of personalism meant changes in the approach to the pupil/
student. The fundamental goal of his/her education was defined as assisting in his/
her development, not only intellectual, but also physical and emotional. It was no
longer the achievements in particular scientific disciplines, but the pupil/student who
became the principal reference point for the choice of the contents, methods, and other
elements of education process. In the school work organisation, his/her capacities,
interests, and needs became important determinants. At the same time, the principal
task of the school was defined as preparing the pupil/student for efficient functioning
in life, in its personal, professional, and social dimensions. Emphasised was the need
of developing such skills as: communicating, team work, problem solving and the
organisation of individual learning/studying.
That approach was matched perfectly by the concept of activism, whose main idea
is developing the pupil’s/student’s active attitude towards the tasks set for him/her.
Activism at school means organising the process of education in such a way that
the pupil/student acquires knowledge through his/her own work. The work involves
66
a series of intellectual as well as practical activities. Its proper organisation is one
of the main tasks of the teacher. The principle of activism has also been reflected in
school textbooks. Their important elements are sets of didactic tasks that guide the
process of reception and interpretation of the contents contained in various sources
of information.
Thus, in less than two decades, the Polish school has undergone substantial changes.
The methodological bases of education have been thoroughly re-constructed. Among
the goals, paramount role was ascribed to those belonging to the spheres of atti-
tudes and skills. New types of classes appeared, both in respect of the contents and
their organisation. On the school market there are now many alternative teaching
curricula/syllabuses, and even more textbooks for pupils/students. The effects of
education are measured through a system of external exams after each stage of
education has been finished. Teachers are morally responsible for the results achieved
by pupils/students.

Contemporary geographical education at school level

In the reformed school, geography as a separate subject is present at both levels of
secondary school. In the primary school, its contents constitute part of the subject
called “science”. Alongside those organisational changes, the reform has been
followed by major changes in the selection and layout of geographical content. They
can be formulated as follows:
1. The emphasis has been shifted from physical geography to socio-economic
geography. In the middle school, issues connected with human activity are
reflected in more than half the entries of Basic curricular requirements (Ministry
of Education and Sport, 2002). At the secondary school level traditional physical
geography is even less important. It is primarily the presentation and explanation
of economic and social mechanisms of the contemporary world that has become
the essence of geography. In this way the postulate of preparing the young genera-
tion for participation in social and professional life is realised.
2. The layout of geographical contents has changed. A systematic geography course,
that would present successively the elements of geographical environment, has
been abandoned. The “problem” approach is preferred, where the contents of
different areas of geography concentrate around specific issues. There is also
a tendency to integrate geographical contents with the contents of other related
subjects.
3. Problems are examined in different scales. At primary school level, as part of
the “science” subject, geographical phenomena are analysed chiefly in local,
regional, and Poland-wide scales. At the levels of middle and secondary schools,
it is recommended to approach most of the problems at the global scale, referring
to corresponding examples from each continent, and from Poland.
4. The geography of Poland is no longer a separate thematic block. The pupil/student
learns about the characteristic features of Poland’s geographical space against
the background of other regions of the world, with close reference to the global
processes.
67
5. The principle of usefulness has become one of the criteria in the selection of
content. Exposed are real problems from various areas of life. Special meaning has
been given to explaining mechanisms of contemporary world economy, processes
of the development of societies, as well as their demographic and political prob-
lems. The contents from the fields of tourism and recreation have been ascribed
higher rank, both in the scale of the country and that of the world.
6. The knowledge of how the “man-environment” system functions has been broadened.
The socio-economic phenomena and processes are shown in relation to natural condi-
tions. A lot of space is also devoted to presenting their consequences to nature.
7. At all levels of education geographical content has been connected to regional
education, understood as teaching about the region where the pupils/students
live.
8. Among skills, the ability to use various sources of geographical information (such
as maps, plans, statistical yearbooks, different types of pictures, internet, GIS,
and others), holds an important position.
On the whole, contemporary geographical education in the Polish schools has got
rid of factual knowledge. Its goal is to help understand the phenomena and processes
occurring in the environment of human life in various places of the earth.

Preparing geography teachers for the realisation of education tasks

The theoretical assumptions adopted make school geography a subject of significant
social usefulness. At the same time, its new character sets high demands for teachers.
Their professional preparation calls for a wide range of methodological competence,
but also complementary and topical knowledge about the environment, as well as
about various forms of human activity in the environment.
Training of geography teachers takes place in thirteen academic centres in Poland
conducting geography studies. Pedagogical preparation follows the Ministry of
Education standards that give specifications for the set of compulsory subjects of
the field, the hour limits for teaching, and the general outline of the content. But the
subject-matter preparation of geography teachers is not regulated by official docu-
ments, and is carried out differently in each of the centres, depending on its research
paradigm and its tradition and expertise. The only common kernel for all the schools
of higher education are the basic curricular requirements specified by the Ministry
of Education, that regulate the set of basic subjects, obligatory for geography studies,
with an outline of their contents.
The pedagogical preparation of geography teachers is basically the same as that
of other subject teachers. During the uniform MA studies they are obligated to the
total of 480 hours of training, spread over minimum two years of studies. The block
consists of the following subjects:
• psychology and pedagogy – the total of 150 hours
• didactics of geography – 120 hours
• geography teaching practice in various types of schools – 150 hours
• voice practice – 30 hours

68
• optional subject (30 hours) useful in school practice, e.g. ethics, knowledge about
the region, safety rules at school
Since 2004, the professional development of teachers has also included learning
a foreign language to an extent that allows its fluent use. Similar requirements have
been set for ICT. It is obligatory to organise classes on computer, operating and using
IT as a didactic means, however the hour limits for this has not been specified. More-
over, it is possible to organise additional classes of a methodological character.
The process of educating geography teachers at a higher education level is gradu-
ally being adapted to the requirements of the Bologna Declaration. During two-cycle
studies, the principle of double specialisation is in force. Students acquire qualifications
to teach another subject besides geography. Moreover, individual academic centres
offer postgraduate studies to teachers who want to improve their qualifications.
The block of pedagogic subjects, which qualifies for the job as a teacher, is treated
as optional, only for those who are interested in working in education. Therefore, it
is not assigned to a particular year of study. Such a solution promotes the mobility of
students between various academic centres. Unfortunately, it is only some universi-
ties that credit the pedagogy block according to the ECTS system.
The formal requirements for teacher training have not changed much since 1992.
Since then, the general scope of compulsory subjects has increased only by sixty
hours, with the obligatory foreign language and ICT training being a novelty. More
substantial changes have occurred in the goals and content of the subjects in the
pedagogic block. A survey conducted in the geography centres in 2004 and the
analysis of guidebooks containing university curricula, showed that new contents
and approaches have been taken into account in geography teachers training.
The changes have occurred chiefly in the following aspects:
1. Students are instilled in independent opinion/judgement formulation. They eval-
uate the methods of work, various didactic materials, including school syllabuses
and textbooks. It is a stage preparing them for making similar decisions in their
future professional work. At the same time, an attitude of being critical towards
opinions and suggestions of others is developed.
2. It is also emphasised that the students should be convinced of their individuality
and resulting from it the possibility of choosing various ways of action. In the old
system, teachers were treated as a group of uniform attitudes, opinions, and no
possibility of having individual preferences.
3. Taken into account is the problem of teachers being innovative, that is their ability to
initiate and introduce new didactic materials and new approaches into school practice.
4. The curricula raises the problem of the need for reflection over oneself, one’s own
attitude, and the adopted strategy of teaching. They show the need for continuous
evaluation by means of analysing one’s own actions and comparing the results
obtained with the plans made earlier.
5. There is a clearly marked orientation of students-prospective teachers towards the
pupil/student. His/her capacities, needs, and interests are taken into consideration.
Those qualities are treated as reference points in organising any didactic work.

69
6. An important issue in the curriculum of pedagogic subjects is also the diagnosis
of the pupil’s/student’s development and the ability to modify teaching strategies
depending on the results of teaching.
7. Among the contents of training prospective teachers, there is a motto: Planning
your professional development. University preparation is thus treated as only the
first stage of becoming a teacher.
8. In classes, many problems are solved through team work, which develops the skill
of effective co-operation that is so important in the work of the modern teacher.
9. It is also very important to develop communication skills that will allow efficient
exchange of information and feelings in the direction of teacher-pupils/students,
teacher-parents, teacher-representatives of the local environment.
As the above shows, modern curricula/syllabuses for the subjects of pedagogic
blocks follow the changes in school geography. A fact of the greatest significance
is that beside the traditional methodology course, with the training of the pupil’s
efficient work organisation skills, the classes prepare prospective teachers to make
autonomous choices. Emerging from the programs analysed is also the model
of a teacher-creator who forms the didactic process, adjusting it to specific condi-
tions. At the same time, attempts can be noticed to develop in prospective teachers
an attitude of being open and ready to improve both their methodological compe-
tence, and their own approach. It can be said that the curricula for educating teachers
takes into account the needs of modern school education. They prepare the student
for taking the first steps in the profession. At the same time, they are convinced of
the need for continuous improvement and training. Maybe more effort should be put
in the area of co-operation between the teacher and pupils/students on one side, and
local community on the other.
There is, however, an evident lack of adjustment of the subject-matter preparation.
It is a fact often stressed by didactics research (Stańczyk 2002, Szkurłat 2004). In most
of the higher education institutions, geographical studies curricula contain subjects
corresponding to narrow scientific specialisations. As a rule, physical geography is
present in wider range. There is also a lack of subjects integrating individual pieces
of knowledge. Polish university geography shows a particular reluctance towards
demonstrating relationships between human activity and the environment. Such an
approach is treated as a sign of geographical determinism, in its pejorative sense.
The student has no occasion either for getting to know the problematic formulation of
the contents, because the contents of the university subjects are very often arranged
in a schematic encyclopaedic way. The same refers to the problem of using different
spatial scales. At higher education institutions, such an approach is quite rare.
Besides, education at the higher level is oriented towards the passing of knowledge,
while the sphere of the student’s skills remains acutely neglected.
The concept of school geography, in respect of the approach to the contents, runs
ahead of university practice. Higher education schools are institutions with great
curriculum/syllabus autonomy. They are not included in the reform on the grounds
of administrative decisions. They reform themselves in their own pace, more with
regard to research and finance than education. Besides, they function independently
70
of the lower levels of education. Hence there is a discrepancy between the require-
ments of school education and the subject-matter preparation of teachers for work.
As a result, the graduates of geographical studies have to make a huge effort in order
to design new high quality geography on the basis of the specialist knowledge they
have received. Teachers’ postgraduate studies, with curricula constructed usually
by the didactics of geography, can be of help. Knowing the school’s needs, they aim
at the proper choice of subjects and the adequate approach to the contents of each
of them. Few geography teachers undertake such complementary studies. In order
for geography teacher education to have a professional character, a new model of
academic training needs to be worked out.

References:
1. Ministry of Education and Sport. 2002. Basic curricular requirements.
2. STAŃCZYK A. 2002. Problemy społeczno-ekonomiczne świata w ponadgim-
nazjalnym nauczaniu geografii. [in:] Geograficzne uwarunkowania rozwoju Małopolski.
Red. Z. Górka, A. Jelonek. Instytut Geografii i Gospodarki Przestrzennej UJ, Kraków:
577−582.
3. SZKURŁAT E. 2004. Kształcenie nauczycieli geografii w świetle różnic programu
kształcenia geograficznego na poziomie szkolnym i akademickim. [in:] Kształcenie
i dokształcanie nauczycieli geografii w Polsce i Unii Europejskiej w drodze do
jednoczącej się Europy. Red. W. Osuch, D. Piróg. Wydawnictwo Naukowe Akademii
Pedagogicznej: 65−73.


 Interdisciplinary pathways: gains and losses

Jolanta Rodzoś, Paweł Pytka, Artur Religa

Department of Geography Education, Maria Curie-Skłodowska University

al. Kraonicka 2cd, 20-718 Lublin, Poland
e-mail: jrodzos@[Link]

Abstract
The paper presents an assessment of interdisciplinary pathways in Polish schools. In the
first part, theoretical foundations of such of classes are presented, as well as models of their
implementation. In the second part, based on a survey conducted in schools of the Lublin
province, an analysis of the factual situation is made. Presented in detail are three pathways
whose realization involves geographers, i.e. ecological pathway, regional pathway, and Euro-
pean pathway. The ways of organizing such classes are discussed and evaluated. The final
result is a list of advantages of interdisciplinary pathways, as well as their minuses resulting
from objective factors and from lack of understanding of the idea.

Key words: interdisciplinary, schools, pathways, curriculum

Introduction
One of the principal tasks of contemporary Polish school education is working
out a teaching model that would realise the idea of a holistic approach to contents.
The purpose for integrating the contents is to make pupils aware of various inter-
relations and interdependences among the elements of their perceived reality. One
effect of the integrative efforts is a formation of classes new to Polish schools: the
interdisciplinary (cross-curricular) pathways, sometimes knowns as the short educa-
tional pathway. Although the idea has been known in Polish didactics for quite a long
time, as an institutionalised form of classes it was introduced in 1999.

Interdisciplinary Pathways
The educational pathway is defined as “…a set of contents and skills of educational
importance which can be implemented within different subjects or as separate
classes” (Ministry of Education and Sport, 2002). When putting that definition into
the language of practice, a few most important facts need to be stressed:
• each educational pathway is assigned particular contents to be realised
• the pathways are not assigned any definite hour limit
• pathway implementation should be carried out by the teachers of various subjects
• organisational form is not specified
Interdisciplinary pathways are implemented at all levels of school education. Their
full listing is given in Table 1. The pathways can be organised in a variety of ways.
Practice shows that schools realise four models (Figure 1−4; after Pacholska, Kozak,
Bloch and Koralewska 2001):


• the one-subject model: the contents specified by the basic curricular requirements
are incorporated into one selected subject (Figure 1)
• the multi-subject model: the pathway contents are realised within different subjects
(Figure 2)
• the block model: the pathway contents are implemented during additional classes/
activities, separate from the subjects taught; they can take the form of an excur-
sion, lecture, workshops, theme sessions, etc. (Figure 3)
• the mixed model: part of the pathway contents is incorporated into one or more
subjects, and the rest is implemented during separate activities (Figure 4).
A survey conducted in 120 schools of Lublin region has shown that the multi-
subject variant is preferred. In the case of European, ecological, regional, as well as
the literatures and media pathways, some schools employ the mixed model. Part of the
contents is established by teachers within particular subjects, but separate, occasion-
based extra-curricular activities are also organised, devoted to specific issues. In the
case of the ecological pathway, this may include field trips, excursions or tidying-
up the immediate surroundings. Typical of the European pathway are „culture”
days devoted to selected European countries or meetings with representatives of
those countries. The regional pathway often involves visiting museums, regional
knowledge contests, art contests, and workshops dedicated to the tradition, rites and
customs of the region. The form typical for reader’s and media education are sessions
about editing school newspaper or running school broadcasting system.
Table 1. The listing of interdisciplinary (cross-curricular) pathways for each stage of education.
INTERDISCIPLINARY PATHWAYS
PRIMARY SCHOOL SECONDARY SCHOOL
COLLEGE PATHWAYS
PATHWAYS PATHWAYS
Pro-health path Pro-health path Pro-health path
Ecological path Ecological path Ecological path
Reader’s and media path Reader’s and media path Literature and media path
Society path Regional path Regional path
– European path European path
– Philosophical path Philosophical path
– Civil defence Life-in-family path
Polish culture across Medi-
– –
terranean culture
The survey showed as well that
not all the schools have decided to
implement interdisciplinary path-
ways, or they are not being fully
implemented. The least frequently
developed one is the philosophical
pathway. The subject matter Figure 1. One-subject model of organising interdisciplinary (cross-
is too difficult for teachers. It curricular) pathways.

 involves specialist issues, that call
for knowledge of the history of
philosophy, the fundamentals of
various philosophical schools, as
well as their research methodolo-
gies. The professional training of
teachers of particular subjects is
Figure 2. Multi-subject model of organising interdisciplinary (cross-
not sufficient for them to be suffi-
-curricular) pathways.
ciently knowledgeable in those
areas.

Implementing pathways
The results of the development
of an interdisciplinary pathway
depend to a large extent on its
proper preparation. Each teacher
participating in task realisa-
Figure 3. Block model of organising interdisciplinary (cross- tion has to be assigned specific
curricular) pathways. responsibilities. It is also important
to plan their work reasonably and
synchronise it in terms of time.
The first step in preparations
is that the school staff should
undertake careful examination of
the goals and contents of a given
pathway. Detailed analysis of basic
curricular requirements will allow
the teachers who will implement
Figure 4. Mixed model of organising interdisciplinary (cross- the contents to be selected At the
curricular) pathways. same time, it is necessary to learn
about different ways of preparing interdisciplinary pathways. Subsequently, the
assigned team, knowing the pathway contents and ways of implementing them,
selects one of the approaches. The features of the particular community, as well as
the school’s educational environment should be taken into account at this stage. If the
model chosen is other than one-subject, and further work will require the co-opera-
tion of several teachers, it is likely to be necessary to appoint a project manager or
coordinator, that is to say a person who will supervise further preparatory work and
monitor the achievement of the specific agreed fundamentals. The next step is to
undertake a detailed review of syllabuses in each pathway that are available on the
school market. If none of them fulfils the expectations, then it is appropriate to create
a specially tailored programme. This can be prepared by the whole team participating
in the implementation of a given pathway, or by a few selectedpeople. The task of
the project manager, is to assure the completion and quality of the programme. The
curriculum must specify, apart from the contents details, the approaches for subject

delivery, and the methods of the pathway evaluation. The last stage of prepara-
tions consists in assigning tasks to each teacher and planning the schedule. Thus
the prepared project can be finalised. The preparatory process described above is
illustrated in Figure 5.

Figure 5. Steps in the process of preparing an interdisciplinary (cross-curricular) educational

pathway.
Interdisciplinary pathways have been present in Polish school merely for six years.
Working out the right methodological solutions required a huge effort from the
teachers and the whole school community. However, the latest school education
programme project, planned to be implemented in the school year of 2006/2007,
proposes that interdisciplinary pathways be removed from the curriculum. Such a
prospect inspires reflection on the value of such form of classes. The question arises,
what are its negative aspects? What problems have been created for schools by the
introduction of educational pathways? What are the facts that negate the sense of
their further existence? It seems that for the „losses” the following arguments can
be presented:
• Introducing interdisciplinary pathways meant introducing new contents, which in
turn meant that pupils needed to stay longer at school, or else that some subjects
contents already taught needed to be left out.
• A number of pathways at each educational level would indicate that one teacher
may be involved in the implementation of several. It is difficult to imagine how
he/she could synchronise work in several teams.
• Teachers of some subjects are not equally engaged in pathway development and
implementation. For example geographers, biologists, or historians, on account
75
 of the contents they teach, participate in many more educational pathways than
physics or PE teachers. How can this extra work be related to salary?
• Pathway implementation is a huge burden for teachers. Even if already existing
curricula are employed, they need to be modified in order to fit a given school’s
conditions.
• As schools are free to produce the contents in the way they choose, the results
obtained in different schools cannot be compared.
• If a pupil moves to another school, the consistency of his/her education is inter-
rupted.
• There is no ideal form of educational pathways implementation because:
– In the case of selecting the one-subject model, the noble idea of multi-level
problem examination remains in the sphere of fiction. Not many teachers
possess a knowledge which is broad enough to present a holistic picture of
the world. When that variant is adopted, despite the assumptions made, the
pathway contents is rendered one-sidedly and usually consists merely of extra
information on a given subject. There is little integration or inter-disciplinarity
involved.
– If the multi-subject model is employed, in which the pathway contents is realised
within several separate subjects, organisational problems cannot be avoided.
In this model it is important to follow the chronology of contents, so that their
logic is preserved. Thus, one unpredictable incident, such as for example the
illness of one of the teachers, is enough for the whole plan to be upset.
– In the multi-subject model there is also a considerable risk of individual teachers’
providing a superficial approach. To save time, they might skip some of the
pathway contents or do it in a narrow way. As the responsibility for the pathway
implementation is shared by many people, it is easy to miss out things.
– Pathway implementation with the use of the block model takes a lot of extra
time. Preparation and conducting of separate, extra-curricular classes, is done at
the cost of teachers’ free time. Hence, one more problem arises: how to include
their work in the duty load, and how to assess each person’s contribution.
• Co-operation among teachers may prove difficult, because of personality differ-
ences. Within the team working on a given pathway conflicts may arise, that may
influence the educational effects.
The practice shows, however, that interdisciplinary pathways are also quite benefi-
cial. On the side of „gains”, the following facts should be listed:
• Proper pathway completion allows the pupil to get to know a given phenomenon
in a holistic way, shedding light on its many aspects. This makes it possible for the
pupil to notice various types of interrelationships and interdependencies among
the elements of reality. Even in the one-subject model, in which one teacher is
responsible for implementing a given pathway, such an approach to the contents
is possible. A teacher conscious of his/her tasks will broaden his/her knowledge
and use it in the best way possible.
• Interdisciplinary pathways prevent the doubling of so called „borderline” problems
which may be present in several areas.
76
• Pathways signal important tasks to be accomplished, e.g. regional education calls
attention to the need of developing the sense of affiliation with one’s residence
place. Health education makes us realise that the „stay-healthy” trend should be
propagated. If pathways are removed from the curriculum, the awareness of those
features may disappear.
• Thanks to the pathways, schools can organise many useful actions and events,
such as cleaning up of the immediate surroundings, tidying objects or places of
historical importance, or creating a school garden.
• Pathways are not ascribed any arbitrary organisational form, nor specified time for
the contents to be completed, thus they allow teachers to employ new, attractive
solutions.
• Pathways are the opportunity for initiating theme classes, longer than one lesson
unit. They are either additional, extra-curricular activities, or they are a combi-
nation of classes belonging to different subjects. They give pupils an occasion to
show their extra-school knowledge and their talents, for which there is no place
during a typical lesson.
• Many of the tasks require effort on the part of pupils. It develops their various
skills and instils them into autonomous thinking and acting.
• Separate classes devoted to the realisation of a given pathway are characterised by
a more relaxed atmosphere, the teacher-pupils relationship becomes less formal,
and there is a chance for them to get to know one another better, and for the bonds
between them to tighten.
• Pathway implementation makes teachers active, stimulates their ingenuity and crea-
tivity. Success in class is the source of professional satisfaction, motivating them to
further quests. School success may be transferred into other spheres of life.
• Pathways give a teacher a chance to perform new functions, e.g. that of a project
manager. This increases his/her self-esteem as well as his/her prestige among
colleagues. They are also a means for the teacher’s self-improvement, and constant
enhancement of their competence.
• Teachers co-operation may be an occasion for getting to know one another better,
and forming of friendly-professional bonds.
• Pathway realisation often requires the participation of people not belonging to the
school community, thus encouraging contacts between the school and the parents
as well as the local community.
The above evaluation shows that the advantages of interdisciplinary pathways
are undeniable. They are particularly evident in the spheres of skills/competences
and attitudes. It is especially true with the models in which pathways are realised
with the participation of several teachers and, at least partially, during separate,
extra-curricular classes. Such organisation will assure a multi-aspect approach to
the contents, and at the same time bring educational benefits. It will serve both
the teacher’s and the pupil’s development. The biggest minus of interdisciplinary
pathways are organisational problems. It is a new form of classes, and schools
still lack experience in their realisation. Working out the right solutions requires
some effort and is often achieved in the process of trial and error. Predominance of

errors may have a negative impact on further work. Nevertheless, the benefits are
quite significant, and abandoning that form of classes seems detrimental. It should,
however, be considered whether all pathways should remain. They differ in relative
importance. There are, however, some pathways as for example regional education,
whose removal would mean the abandoning of certain significant educational ideas.
Even if at present the pathways are not being implemented by every school, and their
effects do not meet expectations, we cannot nullify the work of other schools whose
work brings excellent results.

References
1. ANGIEL J. 2001. Edukacja regionalna. Poradnik dla nauczyciela, Centralny Ośrodek
Doskonalenia Nauczycieli, Warszawa.
2. Ministry of Education and Sport. 2002. Basic curricular requirements: Podstawa
Programowa dla szkoły podstawowej, Rozporządzenie Ministra Edukacji Narodowej
i Sportu z dnia 26 lutego 2002 r., w sprawie podstawy programowej wychowania przed-
szkolnego oraz kształcenia ogólnego w poszczególnych typach szkół, Dziennik Ustaw
z 2002 r. Nr 51, poz. 458.
3. PACHOLSKA M., KOZAK A., BLOCH M., KORALEWSKA G. 2001. Ścieżki eduka-
cyjne dla klas IV−VI. Poradnik dla nauczycieli. ARKA, Poznań.
4. PYTKA P. 2004. Święte źródełka – element edukacji regionalnej [in:] Badania
geograficzne w poznawaniu środowiska. Michalczyk Z. (red.) PTG Oddział Lublin,
Wydawnictwo UMCS, Lublin, pp. 775−778.
5. RELIGA A. 2004. Edukacja geograficzna na poziomie ponadpodstawowym a ścieżki
edukacyjne [in:] Badania Geograficzne w poznawaniu środowiska, Materiały 53 Zjazdu
PTG 23-27 VI 2004 r. nt.,,Geograficzne problemy pogranicza Europy Wschodniej i Za-
chodniej”, Wydawnictwo UMCS, Lublin, pp. 779−783.
6. RELIGA A. 2005. Ścieżki edukacyjne w szkołach podstawowych, gimnazjach i liceach
województwa lubelskiego [in:] Waśko P., Wrońska M., Zduniak A. (red), Polski system
edukacji po reformie 1999 roku. Stan perspektywy i zagrożenia, Dom Wydawniczy
ELIPSA, Poznań-Warszawa, tom 1, pp. 273−281.
7. WOJTANOWICZ P. 2000. Miejsce geografii w bloku przedmiotów zintegrowanych
w liceum profilowanym, [in:] Nowoczesna Szkoła, t. 3, Geografia w reformowanym
systemie szkolnictwa (pod red. Zbigniewa Zioło), Wydawnictwo Naukowe Akademii
Pedagogicznej, Kraków, pp. 28−38.


 Geography competitions as stimuli for advanced students

Jüri Roosaare, Ülle Liiber

Institute of Geography, University of Tartu, 46 Vanemuise St., 51014 Tartu, Estonia

e-mail: [Link]@[Link]; [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
Geography Olympiads have been held in Estonia since 1965. Students from the University of
Tartu have been taking part in the Baltic Geography Olympiad and in 2004 they participated
first time in the International Geography Competition. In this paper we review and analyse
the experiences of previous national competitions, results of a questionnaire on opinions
among participants of the last Olympiad and consider possible means for the further devel-
opment of such competitions.

Key words: School geography, Geography Olympiad, gifted pupils

The Gifted and Talented Development Centre and Olympiads in Estonia

If we recognize that some children are more gifted than the others, special atten-
tion should be paid to enable them to maximise the realization of their talents. The
ordinary school system may be insufficient for this purpose and – as in arts and
sports – also in pure and applied sciences (mathematics, physics, chemistry; natural
sciences: biology, geology, physical geography; social sciences: sociology, economy,
human geography; human sciences: philology, psychology etc.) different activities
for gifted students have been started long ago. In Estonia, the first school students’
competition in solving scientific tasks took place at the University of Tartu in 1950.
In the academic year 1953/54 Olympiads in sciences started. According to recent
research, gifted pupils consider the Olympiads as the main incitement to penetrate
deeper into science (Sepp, 2002).
Similar ideas and activities had been developed in the 1960’s among geographers
in Estonia and this resulted in 1965 in the establishment of national Geography
Olympiads. Since then, 31 National Geography Olympiads have taken place and
more than 1,500 students have had experienced the final competitions. The outcomes
and substance of the competitions have been analysed in two small books (Raik and
Benno, 1981; Mardiste, 1988). Since 1996 seven Baltic Geography Olympiads have
taken place and in 2004 Estonian students for the first time participated in the 5th
International Geography Competition in Poland.
The Olympiads’ movement in Estonia has widened during last decade and today
there are 21 different fields of competition for gifted students in the homepage of
national Olympiads ([Link] Since several subjects
have at their top level output to an international competition, or else are looking
for such possibilities, another aspect, the system of preparation to Olympiads has
been developed. For that purpose The Gifted and Talented Development Centre
was founded more than 30 years ago at University of Tartu aiming to “give talented
79
students in mathematics and sciences from all over Estonia guidance in their pursuit
for self-realization and to organize additional schooling” ([Link]
[Link]). This Centre is becoming integrated more and more with the Estonian e-
University ([Link] using methods of e learning and giving challenging
opportunities for any interested pupils (Roosaare and Liiber, 2004).
We will return to the questions of the future of Geography Olympiads in the last section
of current paper. The next section provides an overview on structure of national Geog-
raphy Olympiads in their historical development. The third section deals with current
questions on the basis of an inquiry conducted amongst finalists of the last Olympiad.

Changing structure and altered accents in the National Geography Olympiads

The Geography Olympiad competition consists of two rounds, at county-level and
a final (national) round. At the beginning the competition was oriented mainly to
students with a deep interest in geography. The student’s own investigation was a
precondition to take part in the Olympiad. Authors of the best research works were
invited to attend the final competition. Since 1994 the county-level round (written
work testing geographical knowledge and skills mainly according the school
programme) has been organized to identify the best students in geography of every
county so that they can take part of the Final (national) round. Every year more
than two thousand students (ten times more than authors of research work in former
times) participate in the county-level round and one hundred students of different
age-groups altogether are invited to the Final (national) round. Over time, qualifica-
tion to the Final round has become more serious and now students are invited to
the final competition only on the basis of general ranking. Originally students were
graded only at two levels: 6th to th form (aged 13–15) and 9th to th form (aged 16–18).
Now, there are  age-groups: th (up to age 13; grade D), 8th (14; C), 9th (15; B) and
gymnasium (16–18; A).
Many years ago, the final round took place in midsummer in the countryside as a
camping event during a week with a strong emphasis on socialising the participants
and familiarising them with local rural places. Now it takes place in springtime over a
weekend (two days) in small settlements and are based on the local school facilities.
The final competition has consisted of different types of activity (Figure 1).
Nowadays it consists of a written test (composed of different tasks), fieldwork and a
quiz (about the knowledge acquired during an excursion). In 2005 for the first time
computer-based exercises were also included in addition to the written test tasks.
Orienteering was included in the programme of Olympiad because originally the
organizers considered that physical fitness was needed to be a good geographer.
Today, orienteering is very popular sport in the Northern and Baltic countries and
as is almost considered as the professional sport of geographers, so it continues to
be in the programme of final round, but its results are calculated separately and not
counted for Olympiad’s ranking list.
The winners of the gymnasium level Olympiad have the possibility to take part
in the Baltic Olympiad and in the International Geography Olympiad. Nowadays
an important point for gymnasium level students is that the winners of the National
80
Figure 1. Changes in the structure of final competition
Olympiad and all the participants of the International Olympiads have a right to
enter Tartu University without any examination. Several participants of Geography
Olympiads have become well-known geographers.

Olympians – who they are and what are their expectations

A questionnaire completed by the students at the end of the last final competition (in
2005) enables us to make some analysis on school geography and Geography Olym-
piads from the pupils’ point of view. Among 95 respondents there were 60 males and
35 females (with no clear trend in relation to age) from 42 different schools. There is
an apparent tendency in Olympiads of all subjects that the geography of top students
is narrowing and more gifted students are concentrated in a limited number of elite
schools located in the capital city and some bigger towns. Many students consider
the students’ success in different competitions as one of the most important indica-
tors of study progress and school quality.
Almost half (47%) of finalists have taken part (in addition to geography) also in
local rounds of other Olympiads and 24% have been in other finals. On average,
each finalist in geography participated (during the last two years) in 3.5 local rounds
and 2.5 finals. Dominating subjects were biology and mathematics but a hypothesis
that participants in mathematics and in biology belong into two different groups of
students is not statistically reliable.
Students’ interest in geography stems mainly from their school experience, the
school and teacher were said to be “quite important” or “extremely important” for
83% of students, whereby the students indicating the importance of their home (50%),
were as a rule considering the school as being equally important.
Geography teachers whose students compete in the Final round were mostly famous
and acknowledged specialists. They spend lots of time working with the candidates of
Olympiad. At some schools there are even additional geography lessons for talented
students. For those teachers the Final round of the Geography Olympiad has changed
meaning in some respects to become a competition among the best teachers.
Students evaluated the complexity of different types of questions in the written
test using five ratings in the scale 1 = ”a stumbling-block for me” … 5 = “my hobby
horse”. Since self-appraisals (average ratings of all types of questions) of different
grades were different, it is more informative to compare the deviations from the
grade’s average ratings (Table 1).


Table 1. Differences in estimation of questions’ difficulty amongst different grades
Type of questions \ Grade A B C D
Tasks that are testing the geographical facts -0.36 -0.14 -0.01 -0.22
Tasks that are demanding the analysis of situation 0.41 0.04 0.14 -0.22
Tasks that are demanding the generalization 0.39 0.18 -0.22 -0.33
Map questions -0.04 0.00 -0.12 0.57
Identifying the pictures -0.37 -0.10 0.20 0.20
Ratings’ average for a given grade: 2.90 3.05 3.33 3.01
Regarding the fieldwork, the students had to indicate which exercise was the easiest
and which one was the most difficult. Practically all exercises were mentioned, the deter-
mination of bearings was most numerous amongst the “easy” tasks and compilation of
landscape profile amongst the most difficult tasks. We were also interested in participants’
opinions on the proportion of events in final. To obtain more reliable quantitative estimates
we used Saaty’s method of Analytical Hierarchy Process by means of Idrisi software
tools (Eastman, 2003). In total, 28% of respondents showed consistent assessments and
the figures presented in “Desirable” section of Table 2 were based on these answers only.
The real structure is shown according to an average sum of points.
Almost all (95%) students were using computers at home, 84% of these computers
were connected to Internet. Therefore we might presume that their computer literacy
is relatively high. However, the questions about computer use show that their knowl-
edge is narrow, especially from the point of view of geographical applications.
Although 83% of students have used the Internet to find geographical illustrations
(and 72% to find any map), only 16% of them were doing it continuously. Several
interesting and useful native (Estonian) electronic textbooks and web sites offering
interactive computer maps were used only by one quarter of the students. It is probable
that students are not sufficiently informed about such possibilities. Also, a serious fact
for organizers to consider is that students were in surprisingly undivided opinion that
computer-based exercises in the written test were a rather undesirable experience.
Table 2. Events’ structure (per cent) of final competition
Grade Written test Fieldwork Orienteering Quiz
Gymnasium 47.4 34.4 9.3 9.1
Desirable

9th Form 51.6 32.4 6.4 9.4

th Form 45.9 33.7 9.3 11.1
th Form 42.8 31.2 10.0 16.0
Desirable

Average 47.0 33.0 9.0 11.0

min 15.0 4.0 3.0 4.0
max 69.0 63.0 39.0 28.0
Gymnasium 57.0 33.0 – 10.0
9th Form 60.0 29.0 – 11.0
Real

th Form 65.0 25.0 – 10.0

th Form 64.0 26.0 – 11.0


Challenges for the future
Nowadays there are lots of web-based activities or projects for self-assertion on
different fields and levels. The Globe programme and similar activities are examples
which are oriented to students with research interests. A new challenge emerging
at school level is that of e-learning giving students with a deep interest in a specific
subject area an opportunity to study additional aspects to the school programme.
In some cases – this is an alternative to being fixed to his/her teacher of a special
subject. In fact, a learning network of pupils is already spontaneously working, both
on a national level (writing and changing essays, for example) and an international
level (finding privies of their hobbies). These initiatives have to be routed towards
positive outputs (Roosaare and Liiber, 2004).
The role of The Gifted and Talented Development Centre, which consists today in
preparing the students for national and international competitions, may be widened
in future. In addition to adding a course of geography in the next academic year, we
are looking for new possibilities and outputs. GIS as a common tool in geography
should find its place also at school level. Taking into account the relative expense
of GIS software and the desire to make learning more exciting, we foresee the
possibility of competitions that use geoinformatics as an inter-school co-operation
of student groups working on small projects. Maybe in the future such a thematic
national network of school GIS projects will also internationalise and launch some
kind of new competition, too.

References
1. EASTMAN J.R. 2003. IDRISI Kilimanjaro. Guide to GIS and Image Processing. Clark Labs.
2. MARDISTE H. 1988. Üldhariduskoolide geograafiaolümpiaadid aastail 1977-1987.
Tartu [in Estonian: Geography Olympiads 1977–1987].
3. RAIK A., BENNO A. (koost.) 1981. Esimesest kümnenda geograafiaolümpiaadini:
1965–1975. ENSV Haridusministeerium. Tallinn [in Estonian: From the first to tenth
Geography Olympiads: 1965–1975].
4. ROOSAARE J., LIIBER Ü. 2004. e-Learning and europeanisation as promoters of
changes in geographical education. In: Estonia: Geographical Studies, 9. Estonian
Academy Publishers, Tallinn, pp. 211–223.
5. SEPP V. 2002. Aineolümpiaad andeka opilase motiveerijana. Magistritöö. Tartu Ülikool
[in Estonian: The Olympiad – a motivator for the gifted student].


 GIS-Use in Geography Lessons at Schools,
Colleges and Universities – Innovation and Challenge

Yvonne Schleicher1, Mark Lawrence2

1
Pädagogische Hochschule Weingarten, University of Education, Kirchplatz 2,
88250 Weingarten, Germany.
e-mail: schleicher@[Link]
2
Bemidji State University, Department of Geography & Political Science,
1500 Birchmont Drive, Bemidji, Minnesota 56601 USA.
e-mail: mlawrence@[Link]

Key Words: GIS, Geographical Education

Introduction
Outside schools and universities, GIS is spreading into all kinds of professions
(geomarketing, precision farming, city administration); with a current growth rate
of about 15% per year, there are now nearly a million GIS users worldwide. But
the connection between the “real world” and geographic education at schools and
universities remains poor. In the United States, only about 50,000 university students
(barely 0.2%) receive GIS education currently; similar situations are found in Europe
(ESRI 2000; U.S. Census Bureau 2002).
From the outset, a number of obvious questions arise: How, where and when do
we teach in school with GIS? Since most GIS education involves training without
much theoretical preparation, the great potential of GIS is still unknown to most
students and teachers. For research projects also, it is a great challenge to find out
whether Patrick Wiegand was right in saying: “GIS represents, in my opinion, the
single biggest contribution geographers have made to society and economy since the
Age of Discovery” (Wiegand, 2001, p. 68).

GIS in Geographic Education at universities – A perspective from Germany

Currently, the German teacher-education system doesn’t include GIS education as
a basic competence for geography teachers, so it is based on their own commitment
and optional offerings by the universities. Once the higher education system starts
to follow a Bachelors-and-Masters-Curriculum through the Bologna-Process, Euro-
pean Agreement 2010, for our teacher education, there will be a chance to integrate
GIS techniques into Bachelors modules to learn about the potentials of GIS, while
in Masters modules for geographic education/teacher education, we will be able to
focus on the didactics of how to integrate GIS in a school curriculum. Such an inte-
grative curriculum will require exchange between geography professors and those
of geographic education.


A perspective from the United States
Worldwide, half the number of professionals using GIS as a part of their job are found
in the United States, and about 20,000 schools there are now using GIS (Education
World, 2004). At least 1400 American colleges and universities are involved, but only
about 53% of the demand for Masters-level graduates with intensive GIS education is
being met (ESRI 2000). Most professional preparation amounts to only a single GIS
course, while a growing effort at professional certification calls for the successful
completion of at least four courses. Because the university system in the U.S. is much
less prescriptive than for example in Germany, there is less coordination or concern
about what a standard GIS education should be for future teachers. At Bemidji State
University (BSU) for example, GIS training of teachers is indistinguishable from
that provided to natural resource specialists, political scientists, or criminal justice
students. Still, nationally some remarkable examples of GIS curriculum are found
in especially poor areas and in schools with predominantly minority populations,
which is of special interest for BSU because of the presence in northern Minnesota
of three large Indian reservations.
BSU offers a “Geographic Information Systems” course and a “Techniques in
GIS” course, with initial exposure in a university-wide “Introduction to Map Use”
course. There is no specific program for geographic education, but the social studies
education unit is housed in the Department of Geography & Political Science, which
also holds summer workshops for already licensed teachers wishing to add GIS
competence. Six undergraduate degree options are offered to majors in geography,
four of which include some GIS coursework. Three of the major options are pre-
professional planning programs; the fourth is a Bachelor of Science program specifi-
cally emphasizing GIS, including not only three GIS courses but also three computer
programming or data modelling courses, an internship experience, and a site analysis
and planning needs assessment element. A 7-course GIS minor for non-geographers
will be offered for the first time in the 2005-2006 academic year including curriculum
modification to provide an “Advanced GIS” course. While BSU is not necessarily
typical of American universities, its efforts (especially in light of limited staffing
and material resources given its remote location and a student population of only
about 6000) reveal the growing need to more than merely acquaint students with
GIS software.

Student reactions to GIS

Nonetheless, it seems to be a global effect: students’ first steps in GIS are connected
to frustration about the complexity of mastering the software, and as soon as you
start to work on the next step, most of the knowledge from the previous lecture
seems to be lost. At BSU, two weeks of a 14-week semester are spent just gaining
familiarity with the ArcView “general user interface.” Basic exploration of datasets
bundled with the software, together with a project designed to have students test
a geographical hypothesis, take at least two more weeks. Optimally, students should
be able to gather new data from beyond the material supplied with the software, and
develop confidence manipulating that information, too. When 63 students in the BSU
85
“Introduction to Map Use” course were surveyed in the fall of 2004 about which of
11 topics they favoured the most, only 23.81% chose ArcView (though that was the
most-favoured topic overall); another 30.16% favoured ArcView the least.

Why is it so difficult to integrate GIS in Geographic Education?

GIS is more challenging for teachers than previous technical innovations. Universi-
ties are able to present software as a new tool for geography, but typically they are
unable to integrate it in a practical system for use in schools. In other words, there is
a significant gap between teaching about GIS and teaching with it. Worse, universities
have not yet discovered how to help future teachers really facilitate student learning
with GIS. A combination of problems seems responsible for this: These include the
complexity of the software (especially ArcView), lack of education-specific training
(at colleges, universities and elsewhere), lack of time to prepare lessons (and few
project-publications that are easy to adopt), a shortage of special data for geography-
lessons at schools, and of course the necessary conviction that the effort to integrate
GIS in the classroom is worth it. Needless to say, there are also basic but important
issues about the lack of equipment, insufficient funds for site licenses and software
upgrades, and communication gaps between teachers in the classroom and school
administrators who are likely to remain unaware of the potential of GIS for their
student populations.

Three steps to successful curriculum implementation of GIS

Early on, many institutions made the mistake of trying to directly adapt or follow
project-learning with GIS (Figure 1: step 3) without sufficiently preparing students
to do so (Figure 1: steps 1 and 2 GIS understanding and GIS-techniques). Now
universities and schools both have realized that it is necessary for students to climb
step by step in order to reach GIS-competence and to run a successful GIS-project
using their own data-surveyed in the field.

Step 3:
Project-learning with GIS (active students)
with given data or own data-survey in the field
Step 2:
Teaching with GIS (Teacher-Presentation)
Map-Production, Map Design, Using GIS-Maps to solve geographic
questions
Step 1:
Teaching about GIS Note:
In addition to work with Arc View/Arc Explorer etc.,
(Teacher-Presentation – Theory) web-based GIS-tools (Online-GIS) are a successful
Introduction of Geographic Information way to win teachers to integrate small GIS-modules
Systems: potential, real-world-relevance in geographic education

Figure 1. Steps to successful curriculum implementation of GIS

86
The process of GIS inquiry – Thinking geographically
Besides simply starting with large GIS projects, in many cases only software tech-
nique is emphasized. What is missing usually is clarification for the students of the
basic “geographic question” behind any particular project. Malone et al. (2003, p. 6)
suggest that there are five steps to thinking geographically:
1. ASK geographic questions
2. ACQUIRE geographic resources
3. EXPLORE geographic data
4. ANALYZE geographic information
5. ACT upon geographic knowledge.
To “ask geographic questions” is the first and hardest step, because how a question
is asked has much to do with the rest of any GIS inquiry. Appropriately framing the
question informs the second step (“acquire geographic resources”) since GIS inquiry
requires specifying the geographic focus, the time period which data needs to cover,
the topical aspects of the data, and whether it is already available or will have to be
assembled by the user. At best, today’s curricula having to do with teaching about
and learning with GIS fails to properly emphasize these crucial first two steps. Most
programs “explore geographic data” (Malone’s third step) only in terms of what is
already available with GIS software. The fourth and fifth steps (“analyze geographic
information” and “act upon geographic knowledge”) are therefore usually inad-
equately carried out, despite being the culminating efforts of any GIS inquiry.

GIS in Geographical Education – Requirements for successful GIS work in

schools
According to Audet and Paris (1996), the predictors of GIS implementation in educa-
tion are {1} good computer file management, {2} databank skills, {3} comfort in
giving students freedom to explore in class, and {} existence of a project usable in
the classroom. Kerski (2001) identified items that enhance GIS use: {1} the number of
training hours, {} the number of years a teacher had been teaching, {} the number
of teachers using GIS in one school, {} the amount of technical and administrative
support, and {5} the number of conferences attended. Kerski discovered the main
benefits of GIS implementation in his research: {1} providing real-world relevance
to subject matter, {} providing an exploratory tool for data analysis, {} enhanced
learning, {4} enhanced motivation and student interest, and {5} integration of
different subjects. These research results emphasize a high number of training
hours in order to successfully implement a GIS curriculum, but besides providing
teachers with user-friendly GIS software and training, we should keep working on
research-projects. As Sarah Bednarz notes: “In terms of research findings, no study
provides a “magic bullet” for GIS in education – the study that proves it is worth the
time and effort to implement it, the study that will persuade the majority to adopt”
(Bednarz 2003, p. 232).


The road ahead: Mobile Learning with GIS and GPS
While students at universities and teachers at schools are struggling with GIS in the
classroom, geography and science education specialists are working on concepts
around “mobile learning,” since fieldwork is the perfect connection of GIS- and
GPS-use. The current interest in “geo-caching” ([Link]) might be
the next step for education specialists to follow creating fieldwork concepts including
both (GPS and GIS) in meaningful curricula to train spatial thinking and orientation
in the field.

References:
1. AUDET R.H., PARIS J. 1996. GIS implementation model for schools: Assessing the
critical concerns. Journal of Geography: 284−300.
2. BEDNARZ S., BAKER T. R. 2003. Journal of Geography, Vol 102, Number 6: Research
on GIS in Education: 232.
3. BUNCH R. 2000. GIS and the Acquisition of Spatial Information: Differences among
Adults and Young Adolescents. Research in Geographic Education Vol. 2 (2): 67−97.
4. DELISIO E. R. 2004. Students map neighbourhoods with GIS. Education World 19
February.
5. ESRI. 2000. Learning with GIS, ArcUser: The Magazine for ESRI Software Users, June 14.
6. FALK G. 2004. Didaktik des computerunterstützten Lehrens und Lernens. Illustriert an
Beispielen aus der geographieunterrichtlichen Praxis. Berlin.
7. FALK G., HOPPE W. GIS – Ein Gewinn für den Geographieunterricht? Überlegungen zum
Einsatz moderner Geoinformationssysteme im Unterricht. Praxis Geographie 2: 10−12.
8. KERSKI J. 2001. A National Assessment of GIS in American High Schools. IRGEE Inter-
national Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, Vol. 10 (1): 72−84.
9. MALONE L. et al. 2003. Mapping our World – GIS Lessons for Educators, ESRI Press,
Redlands, [Link] Y. 2005. GIS im Geographieunterricht. Unterrichts-
Konzepte, Stark-Verlag. Freising.
11. U.S. Census Bureau. 2002. Current Population Survey, Washington, D.C., USA.
12. WEST B. 2003. Student Attitudes and the Impact of GIS on Thinking Skills and Motiva-
tion. Journal of Geography 102: 267−274.
13. WIEGAND P. 2001. Forum Geographical Information Systems (GIS) in Educa-
tion. IRGEE International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education,
Vol. 10 (1): 68−71.


 Remote Sensing in Geography Education,
illustrated by a vegetation dynamics study
(Kikwit region, Democratic Republic of Congo)

Lieselot Vandenhoute

KATHO department RENO

Sint-Jozefstraat 1, 8820 Torhout, Belgium.
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
As in many other sciences, the evolution in geography goes fast. New technologies take over
old ones, new insights has to be implemented in the existing theories. Therefore geography
education has to evolve. One of those new technologies is Remote Sensing. More and more,
satellite imagery is used for all kinds of applications and many different sciences use this new
technology. But there has to be a science which is occupied with the basics of Remote Sensing,
and not only his applications. Since geography is always been the science occupied with al
kinds of maps and map making, why not integrate the images and image maps as a study object
of Geography. In the scientific Geographical milieu, the study of Remote Sensing has already
been implemented. In schools nevertheless, it has not yet become a habit to instruct the basics
of Remote Sensing. The education field is dropping behind on the work field.
This paper handles the implementation of Remote Sensing in geography education. About
how we can reduce the gap with the working field and make our pupils aware of the importance
and relevance of Remote Sensing. This is illustrated with a practical case, which will show
how the vegetation dynamics of a certain area in the Democratic Republic in Congo, near
Kikwit, can be studied without field work and, of course, using satellite imagery. Based on this
case, and given the practical information about useful software and imagery many different
(simplified) studies can be done, to teach the youth about satellite images and their use.

Key words: Remote Sensing, vegetation dynamics, satellite imagery

Introduction
Remote Sensing is a quite recent science that deals with the study of vertical images
of the world. This paper will focus only on satellites’ imagery, since the accuracy
has recently become almost as good as imagery derived from air photography.
Neither is the wide world of GIS mentioned in this paper. Satellite images are used
for many different applications: the study of the consequences of earthquakes,
volcano eruption, forest fires; natural enquiries as study of disintegration of coral
reefs, erosion, pollution effects, global warming, vegetation degradation; military
purposes, espionage, study of historical changes, landscape changes; all kinds of
mapping applications; and many more. Therefore our education should include the
basics of this ‘new’ technology to anticipate on future developments and make our
pupils aware of the technological applications of geography.

89
 In the educational field it is known that students can be motivated best for a subject
when the relevance of the subject is shown. Therefore this paper mainly consists of
one clear illustration how remote sensing can be used to study a relevant problem.

Basic Approach
Teachers can help make their pupils familiar with remote sensing imagery at quite
an early age when learning about the environment and the world, using map material
together with the images. Very simple examples from their own environment can
serve as the pupils’ very first contact with the wide world of remote sensing.
The technical background and actual registration process can be explained during
the final years of secondary school, since a basic foreknowledge about the electro-
magnetic field is recommended as well as an all-round background for understanding
the core of remote sensing principles. A general interest in and knowledge about the
remote sensing and cartographic application should be present as well to motivate the
pupils. For example when studying the vegetation degradation in a certain area, the
basics about the global vegetation forms should be known, as well as an idea about
the treats of vegetation degradation and its consequences.
Explaining all technical details of remote sensing at the level of secondary schools
would be a mistake. The science of remote sensing is too wide and lots of facets are
irrelevant. Therefore a severe and correct simplification of the remote sensing matter
is required. The basic knowledge about satellite images has to be highlighted in
order to keep the students’ interest, as well as the application(s) the teacher is going
to use as illustration. The following basic aspects are to be mentioned to situate the
remote sensing science:
• The basic remote sensing vocabulary including terms as: resolution, pixel, raster,
layers, colour composites, etc.
• The electromagnetic spectrum and the use of different waves for registration of
typical features at the earth surface, spectral signature and the use of colours for
visualisation
• The basic kinds of remote sensing satellites: from low resolution meteorological
satellites, such as Meteosat, over traditional earth observation satellites, as SPOT,
Landsat and ASTER, to very high resolution registration systems, such as Corona
and IKONOS
• The image development process: from registration over modifications and visu-
alization possibilities to actual interpretation.
Depending on the target group and the educational level, each of the above
mentioned items can be approached on a more or less scientific level. Mentioning
the possible inaccuracies and corrections can also be a possibility for remote sensing
courses on an advanced level.

Example: Vegetation dynamics study in Democratic Republic of Congo

The vegetation dynamics study in Kikwit, DRC, will be illustrated here on a level
that advanced geography students should be able to understand. This way it shows
how remote sensing is being used to gain new insights from satellite imagery.
90
Introduction
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a country situated in the heart of the
African continent. Its central basin is for the greater part covered with rain forest,
the vegetation north and south of this region has known a severe degradation during
the last centuries and is now mainly covered with savannah and steppe vegetation
(Résume de la monographie sur la biodiversité, 1997, sp.). Deforestation is a serious
problem and has negative consequences globally (climate changes) as well as locally
(erosion, soil degradation and loss of biodiversity).
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has a quadruplicated population since 1960
(Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2001, sp.), which could have a significant impact
on the natural (forest) vegetation. This study will examine the vegetation dynamics in
a part of the country, using satellite imagery. The study area chosen for this purpose
is situated in the Bandundu province, about 50 km south of Kikwit.
The study area can be described as a huge savannah plateau, intersected by dense
forest vegetation in the river valleys. This forest vegetation consists of “palmerais”
(palm groove), “foret galerie” (gallery forest) and “foret claire” (open forest) (Nicolai,
1963, pp. 68−79). The dense rural population is mainly self-sufficient and still uses
wood as primary source of energy (Fresco, 1986, passim). Increase of this population
is thought to have a manifest impact on the vegetation.
Remote sensing has proven to be a very useful tool for this kind of study. Satel-
lite images complete the little information that is available of the area. They are an
excellent tool for a multi-temporal study and visualise not only the visible part of
the electromagnetic spectrum, but also the Near-Infrared light, which gives extra
information about the vegetation. To cover a long time period, it was necessary to use
satellite data from completely different sources. Images used for this study are:
• Corona images taken on the th of June 1965 with an original resolution of about
2.74 m × 2.74 m.
• Landsat image taken on the 16th of February 1985 with an original resolution of
30 m × 30 m at nadir.
• SPOT images taken on the nd of July 1987 (Id number S1H187070209110); on the
25th of May 1988.
• ASTER scene taken on the st of July 2001 with an original resolution of
15 m × 15 m at nadir in the Visual and Near Infrared bands.

Image classification
The image processing was done in ILWIS 2.2, a GIS-software created by the ITC
(Enschede, 1997), in the Netherlands. False colour composites of these images were
created. These visualise the green light of the electromagnetic spectrum in blue, the
blue light in green and the near-infrared light through the red colour.
The Corona negatives, which are panchromatic, were put together into a mosaic,
enclosing the study area. The remaining resolution after the pre-processing was
11 m × 11 m, instead of the original 2.74 m × 2.74 m.

91
Table 1. NDVI-classes and their correspondence with the ground truth Classification of the
Name NDVI-values Ground truth multi-spectral images
(Landsat, SPOT and
NDVI0 -1.00 to -0.60 burned and post-burned areas
ASTER) was based
NDVI1 -0.59 to -0.20 villages, fields and bare steppe
on t he N DV I-value
NDVI2 -0.19 to 0.00 steppe (Nor malised Differ-
NDVI3 0.01 to 0.20 regenerated steppe ence Vegetation Index)
NDVI4 0.21 to 0.40 “foret claire” (Lillesand, Kiefer, 1994,
NDVI5 0.41 to 0.60 “palmerais faible” and “foret galerie” pp. 506−507).
NDVI6 0.61 to 0.80 “palmerais faible” and “foret galerie” T h e N DV I -v a l u e
NDVI7 0.81 to 1.00 “palmerais dense”
was calculated for all
multi-spectral images
clouds digitised clouds and cloud shadow
and a slicing technique
divided the different NDVI-values into eight classes as shown in table 1 and Figures
 and :

Figure 2. NDVI-classified SPOT image Figure 3. NDVI-classified ASTER scene

NDVI-classification was impossible
on the Corona image. Therefore three
clear vegetation categories were inter-
preted and digitised (Figure 4): ‘palm-
erais’, ‘forêt galerie’ and ‘forêt claire’.

Compar ison of the classi f ied

images
Vegetation dynamics can be visualised
and interpreted using multi-temporal
colour composites. For this it is advis-
able to create binary images first, which
undoubtedly facilitates the interpreta-
tion of the composite. These binary

Figure 4. Digitised Corona mosaic

92
images visualise the “tree vegetation”: value “1”
was assigned to the vegetation classes “palmerais”,
“forêt galerie” and “forêt claire”. For the multi-spec-
tral images these categories correspond with the
NDVI-classes NDVI4 up to and including NDVI7
(all parts with NDVI-values over 0.4). On the
Corona image all digitised parts were visualised.
Combining these binary images results in
multi-temporal colour composites. To illustrate
the procedure, three images taken in the dry
season were compared (Figure 5). This way
seasonal variation should be eliminated.
The binary ‘vegetation’ categories, as defined
above, on the Corona image of 1965, the SPOT
scene of 1987 and the ASTER image taken in
2001, are combined in Figure 5. Corona is visual-
ised in blue, SPOT in green and ASTER in red. Figure 5. Multi-temporal colour composite

Interpretation of the multi-temporal colour composite

A multi-temporal colour composite is a very useful tool to compare different images.
This way seasonal as well as temporal variation can be visualised. The example
shows how this method can be used for different studies.
The colour composite in Figure 5 allows a quick visual interpretation of the vegetation
dynamics in the study area over a period of 36 years. Together with the statistics (table
2), which are derived from the composite, following conclusions can be drawn.
The considerable amount of blue on the image, which stands for vegetation that
has disappeared since 1965, is the result of the high geometric inaccuracy of the
Corona and of the fact that digitised vegetation categories were compared with
NDVI-classified images.
The cyan coloured part in the central area of the image stands for vegetation that
was present on the image of 1965 and on the image of 1987, but not on the most
recent ASTER image. This apparent vegetation degradation is caused by a haze on
the central part of the ASTER image (Figure 3) and is no indication of the disap-
pearance of valuable vegetation.
There is a considerable white part visible on the composite. This means that
vegetation has been present on all three images, since white is the combination of
blue, green and red.
These three points lead to a remarkable conclusion. The vegetation in the study
area has not degraded in a significant way since 1965, in spite of the enormous
population growth.

Classroom application
This study illustrates how a useful application of using remote sensing for interpre-
tation and analysis can be done in class. With experiments like this, students can
93
be shown how new information can be created from existing imagery. Nevertheless
detailed preparation of the imagery and software is necessary. The different working
steps have to be carefully explained and illustrated.
This case is on a quite advanced level of study, but parts of it could be used to
illustrate how remote sensing scientists work. For example, students can digitise
an image such as the vegetation on the Corona image. This way they learn how to
digitise and how to interpret a satellite image or students can make a multi-temporal
colour composite using given binary images. In this way students learn actively how
to work with the colour cube, the software and the interpretation of the resulting
image. Many other parts of the study can also serve as an example.

Conclusion
Education in remote sensing is becoming gradually more important, since it is a
widely used science with lots of applications. Therefore geography education should
teach students the elementary use of remote sensing. As in many other subjects, the
relevance of the study object has to be shown in order to motivate students for the
matter. Examples, based on realistic cases and exercises, are one of the most efficient
ways to draw students’ sincere attention. Therefore an example of how to work with
remote sensing imagery and software was written out in this paper. Hopefully it can
inspire others to use satellite interpretation exercises in their class practice.

References
1. ANON 1997. Résume de la monographie sur la biodiversité en République Démocratique
du Congo. Natural science, [Link] 20/09/2001.
2. FRESCO L. O. 1986. Cassava in shifting cultivation: A systems approach to agricultural
technology development in Africa. Royal Tropical Institute, The Netherlands, pp. 240.
3. HUYBRECHTS A. et al. 1985. Du Congo au Zaire. Centre de recherche et d’information
socio-politiques, Bruxelles, pp. 422.
4. LILLESAND T. M. en KIEFER, R.W., 1994. Remote Sensing and Image Interpretation.
John Wiley & Sons, Canada, pp. 750.
5. NASA 2001. ASTER. Asterpage from Nasa,
[Link] 08/11/2001 en 20/12/2001.
6. NICOLAI H.,1963. Le Kwilu: Etude géographique d’une région congolaise. CEMUBAC,
Bruxelles, pp. 472.
7. SPOT Image, 5 rue des Satellites, F-31031 Toulouse cedex 4, France.
[Link]
8. TOLLENS E. 2002. Food Security in Kinshasa, Coping with Adversity. In: Trefon,
T.(Ed.), Titel nog onbekend. ULB, Bruxelles, sp.
9. University of Maryland, Institute for Advanced Computer Studies. 2002. Earth Science
Data Interface. ESDI, [Link] 20/03/2002.
10. USGS 2001. Order number 0500110120002. USGS Corona,
[Link] 12/10/2001.
11. VANDENHOUTE L. 2002. Studie van de vegetatiedynamiek ten zuiden van Kikwit
(Bandundu-Democratische Republiek Congo) aan de hand van multitemporele satel-
lietbeelden. Unpublished Master thesis, Ghent University, Department of Geography,
Gent, pp. 207.

94
 PART TWO

Professional Development
and Geography

95
96
 Developing Undergraduate GIS Study units
– The Experience of Malta

Maria Attard

GIS Laboratory, Geography Division, University of Malta, Msida, MSD06 Malta

e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
The GIS Laboratory of the University of Malta was set up in 1996 and has since then provided
academic support to a number of departments within the University on the concepts and
application of Geographic Information Systems. The objectives of this chapter are to (a)
identify key elements of an introductory undergraduate GIS study-unit; (b) identify the
problems of teaching GIS at undergraduate level in various disciplines; and (c) discuss the
role of student self-learning in the application of GIS. This chapter will use the experience
gained at the University of Malta and the multi-disciplinary approaches to teaching GIS.

Key words: GIS, undergraduate level, geospatial skills

Introduction
The process of developing undergraduate GIS courses is made up of a number of
stages. This paper aims at (i) identifying key elements of an introductory GIS study-
unit (ii) identifying the problems of teaching GIS at undergraduate levels to various
discipline (iii) discussing the importance of student self-learning in the application
of GIS.
The University of Malta is the highest teaching institution of the State. The Geog-
raphy Division is part of a multidisciplinary institute for social science and arts
subjects. The GIS Laboratory has been linked primarily to the Geography Division
since the coordinator forms part of the Geography staff compliment.
The University of Malta has since 1996, supported the setting up of a GIS Labo-
ratory with the assistance of the Environment Systems Research Institute (ESRI).
Since its opening the Lab has provided GIS study-units to a number of departments.
Originally starting with Computer Science and Geography, the Lab has expanded its
teaching to other departments such as Archaeology, Biology, Engineering, Archi-
tecture and Education. Apart from teaching, the Lab also supports research for local
academics and student projects.
The results so far have been encouraging. In 2004, 20 per cent of the geography
degree graduates were directly employed on GIS for agriculture, transport and
mineral resource management. The experience gained over the past eight years of
tutoring, research and administration will be presented in this paper. It is hoped that
the discussion and conclusions will help and encourage other institutions to introduce
GIS in their curriculum

97
Key elements of an introductory study-unit
The introductory course to GIS is a crucial point in the student’s undergraduate years.
Amongst the factors that will influence his/her career decision whether to become a
GIS specialist or simply a casual user, is the understanding of the main concepts of
a GI system. Today, there are a number of help tips on the Internet which point any
newcomer to the teaching of GIS in the right direction and since GIS is a relatively
new technology and the industry competition is very fierce a number of study aids
are available. Setting the course structure however is only one element. Other factors
come into play when preparing for the academic year.

a) Understanding your audience

With today’s varying degree of computer skills in class, it is very difficult to gauge
your audience’s adaptability to understanding and using a GIS. Most students
outside the computer and IT studies have background knowledge of Office tools and
some basic computing. Having prepared courses for Geography, Archaeology and
Biology students, it is important to understand in the early days of your study-unit
the computer literacy of your class. Ideally students should have a basic knowledge
of databases (tables) and information systems or have been exposed to software
such as Microsoft Access, Microsoft Excel and Computer-Aided Design (CAD) to
understand the structure of a GIS.
In the case of non-geography classes the spatial relationships must be explained
at length before any attempts are made at explaining the concepts of a GIS. It might
be useful at this stage to explain the importance of geography in certain fields of
study. Non-geography classes have difficulties to understand the applicability of GI
systems because of a lack of understanding about spatial relationships and the value
of spatial data.
With today’s multi-disciplinary approach to University studies, it is becoming
very difficult to have homogenous groups of students. There will be varying degrees
of computer skills and different understanding of what spatial relationships are.
The next step is to try and identify the basic concepts and components of a GIS for
students to start using such systems.

b) Main components of an introductory GIS study-unit

During the course of one semester of an undergraduate course there is an opportunity
for introducing both the theoretical elements of a GIS and the practical sessions on
some software. Over the years, the course structure of the introductory study-unit at
the University of Malta has changed to reflect the needs of the students. Originally, the
study-unit covered aspects of history and GIS development, map projections, image
processing, data collection and storage, applications and digital terrain models. Over
time, this structure was simplified to allow students more time to use the software
and work on real-world applications of GIS.
The most important elements for direct tutoring in class have now been rational-
ized to four main topics. There is a good review of these concepts in introductory
textbooks such as Heywood (2002), Clarke (2002) and the GIS Dictionary published
98
by Wiley (McDonnell and Kemp, 19995). These elements are structured in a way to
cover half of the semester and include:
• introducing GIS – definitions, history and development
• data concepts – data types, sources and issues of data quality
• GIS functionality – data input, structure, management, analysis and visualization
• Implementation – methods and applications
Refining these lecture components is an on-going process. With increasing
computer literacy and accessibility to internet, some of these topics over time become
redundant. However, the four main components listed in this section are deemed the
most relevant to help the student grasp the basic theory of GIS, understand what the
system can do and apply it more efficiently.

c) Coordination of lectures and practical sessions

Depending on the resources and time available for the study of GIS, it is possible to
divide the introductory course into theory and practical sessions. At the University
of Malta a two ECTS study-unit covers 14 weeks of 2 hour sessions per week. This
gives a total of 28 contact hours with the students and 40 hours of related study ‘at
home’. Within this framework the first part of the study-unit is dedicated to the theory
where the students get an introduction on the main components of a GIS, in addition
to demonstrations of how GIS is applied. During this period the students are required
to review literature on the subject and think of a mini-project applying GIS.
During the second part of the study unit the students prepare a project proposal
in which they identify a research question, the study area and the data requirements.
These projects are generally carried out between groups of 2−5 students, thus intro-
ducing the students to team work.
Once the projects are discussed and approved, the students collect the informa-
tion from the field (when necessary) and input the data. At the GIS lab, the students
have the options of using scanners or digitizing tablets for input. Once the system
is populated with information, the students start the process of spatial analysis. The
map outputs and a report are submitted for assessment at the end of the semester.

d) Use of teaching aids for higher education

There are a number of useful teaching aids for GIS study-units in higher education.
The fact that GIS is a relatively young technology and most advances in the system
have been recorded and are available on internet is probably the most useful aid.
Conference papers, journal articles and now even books are available for download
(see for example Longley et al., 1991).
Another invaluable resource is the ESRI Virtual Campus which is an online
training site for using GIS ([Link]
FTOKEN=59283972). In this case however the University would require the use of
ArcGIS software, and provide access to its students for use of the training sessions
online. Alternatively students might take the initiative and pay directly for some of the
courses on offer. This site is particularly useful for students who do not find training
available locally. Also this website provides a Library dedicated to GIS literature.
99
 Some textbooks also provide self-learning tools with software demos and case
studies. Students should be encouraged to invest in one of these textbooks to get
as much hands-on experience as possible. Specific textbooks relate to particular
software and even though the technology changes relatively quickly and such books
might become dated, it is always useful for students to undergo individual training
on the use of GIS (see for example Ormsby et al. 2004).

Teaching undergraduate GIS to various disciplines

The major problem of teaching GIS to various disciplines is the instructor’s disposi-
tion to the different applications of GIS. Despite students having a fixed structure to
follow at the beginning of the course, some of the more professional degree courses
have industry specific requirements which the instructor should be aware of. In the
case of Architecture and Education, expectations by the industry must be understood
before undertaking any teaching.
Fortunately for most disciplines there are both textbooks and exercises which can
help the tutor to use industry specific case studies (see for example Malone et al.,
2002).

The role of the student

The student has a very important role to play in the delivery and success of GIS
study-units. Mostly it is the adaptability to use computer software which depends on
the student’s background subjects in secondary and post-secondary education.
Students should understand the importance of hands-on experience to learn about
GIS. Most students today are keen at using the software from an early stage of the
study unit. It is important however that during the first tutorials the tutor is ensuring
students understand the processes that are going on in using the software. It is also
important for the student to take an interest in seeing how systems are operated in
the real world, and in the case of Malta this is possible with site visits to particular
industries which have applied GIS in their work processes.

Conclusions
This paper aimed at identifying the opportunities and problems of developing under-
graduate study units about GIS. It focused on the course development and problems
of multi-disciplinary teaching but also on student aids and the importance of self-
learning. The demand for geospatial skills is growing worldwide (see Gewin, 2004)
with more scientist required to understand the processes of integrating use of GIS
with spatial phenomenon. This on its own should be an incentive for higher educa-
tion to invest in the teaching of GIS from undergraduate levels.

References
1. CLARKE K. 2002. Getting started with GIS, Prentice Hall, England.
2. GEWIN V. 22nd January 2004. “Mapping Opportunities”, Naturejobs, Nature Publishing
Group, England, pp 376−377. Available online at [Link]
[Link]?file=/nature/journal/v427/n6972/full/nj6972-376a_fs.html

100
3. HEYWOOD I., CORNELIUS S., CARTER S. 2002. Introduction to Geographic Infor-
mation Systems, Prentice Hall, England.
4. LONGLEY P., GOODCHILD M. F., MAGUIRE D.J., RHIND D.W. 1991.
Geographic Information Systems First Edition, Wiley, USA. Available online at
[Link]
5. MALONE L., PALMER A.M., VOIGT C.L. 2002. Mapping Our World GIS Lessons for
Educators, ESRI Press, California.
6. MAP SERVER. 2005. Available online at [Link]
?[Link]&1, Malta Environment and Planning Authority.
7. MCDONNELL R., KEMP K. 2004. International GIS Dictionary, Wiley, USA.
8. ORMSBY T., NAPOLEON E., BURKE R., GROESS, C., FEASTER, L. 2004. Getting
to Know ArcGIS desktop, ESRI, California.
9. TOMLINSON R. 2003. Thinking about GIS: Geographic Information System Planning
for Managers, ESRI Press, California.

101
 Geography programs and Bologna

Theresa Barata Salgueiro

Departamento de Geografia, Universidade de Lisboa

Alameda da Universidade, 1600-214 LISBOA, Portugal
e-mail: tbs@[Link]

Abstract
Up to now modifications of the Lisbon University geographical curriculum has been the
consequence of job opportunities for the growth and transformation of geography. Nowa-
days Bologna represents an important external push for modification, which we evaluate
in three main dimensions: increasing competitiveness between universities, employability
versus specialization after first cycle and competences. An analysis of course proposals in
Geography shows that the main goals are still stated in terms of scientific knowledge.

Key words: Geography, curriculum, competencies

Introduction
The 1970s and 1980s have seen a big expansion in Geography at Portuguese univer-
sities. Between 1970 and 2004 the number of public universities offering degrees in
Geography increased from 2 to 6, plus 1 private institution, the number of Geography
students at the University of Lisbon has multiplied by 4 (from 150 to 600) and the
teaching staff three-fold.
The change was not strictly only quantitative since it also included diversification
of the structure of the programs, as reported by Amaral (1980) and Barata Salgueiro
(2003). The successive reforms at University of Lisbon, especially the introduction of
new themes and perspectives, have profited from the international contacts of staff
along with an increasing demand for geographers in the labour market, which has
been suffering an important transformation, as Claudino et al. (1991) have shown.
As a matter of fact, in the last 30 years, the traditional job for geography graduates,
the teaching in high school, has declined quite a bit and new opportunities have
arisen in planning, in the management and protection of natural resources, in civil
protection, in tourism, and so on.
Today an external component, represented by the so-called Bologna process is
very important and adds new dimensions to the restructure discussions. My intent
is thus to bring some insights on this matter.

Competition and social relevance

The main goal of the Bologna Declaration is the building of a European higher education
space which favours the mobility and employability of European citizens and is inter-
nationally highly competitive. A large proportion of the documents already produced
deal with programs comparability in order to facilitate student mobility, but there are

102
also economic reasons, although these may perhaps be less explicit. The decrease in the
number of years needed to complete the first degree cycle aims to save public invest-
ment and family expenses with the formation and training of the students.
One major consequence of mobility expansion is an increase in competitiveness and
consequently differentiation on the rank attained by each university and department.
Possibly we will see a relative standardization of the first degree cycle, offered in many
places, although certain institutions can already be differentiated by their higher quality
and a more limited and more competitive offer as soon as we progress to the higher
degrees. The best diplomas, the most desired ones are only offered by a relatively small
number of universities, the more central ones, the more attractive, those whose quality
is ranked higher. Having more candidates, they can demand higher tuition fees, making
more money they may offer better human and material resources. They will also help
to propel its city to a better position in the system of cities.
In this context universities, departments and even individual courses and tutors
will have to develop pro-active strategies, benchmarking practices, careful selection
of strategic bets in terms of courses offered, learning experiences, teacher’s profiles
in order to attract students and reinforce their prestige and quality.
In this competitive environment, Portugal’s main weakness comes from its
geographical position and language, but the country also has some advantages tied
to the high level of research and prestige in some areas, good climate and environ-
mental quality, the advantageous level of prices and good relationships with southern
countries, especially Brazil and some African countries.
To overcome the threats I would like to discuss the follow propositions:
• The ability to offer programs not only for the Portuguese market but also which
can interest other Europeans too. Furthermore we should consider the important
role that Portugal can have in the qualification of African and Brazilian human
resources.
• Besides its contribution to research development and knowledge diffusion, univer-
sities have the social responsibility of future citizen’s education and training.
Thus in the curriculum organization it seems important to consider subjects with
social relevance, like citizenship and environmental questions, housing, planning
at different scales, development and community action, to enhance geography’s
contribution to the understanding and solution of the problems that affect our
societies and are more able to interest youth, and have an immediate relationship
with job opportunities and people’s daily lives.
• Another line for exploitation deals with the possibility of organising second cycle
programs in partnership with prestigious foreign institutions and the introduction
of English in some courses, both in the lessons and in student assignments.

Employability and competences

The Bologna’s declaration pretends that “the first cycle diploma will be relevant to
the European labour market as an appropriate level of qualification” which raises
confusion between ‘professionalisation’ and employability. Graduates employability
and the competences they should have depend on their professional activity and its
103
requirements. In the faculties of Arts and Social Sciences employability is associ-
ated with a generalist formation (made of a set of transferable competences and
knowledge) useful for an enlarged and diversified number of activities and cannot be
compared with a professional specialization. This can only be obtained with a second
cycle program, at least with some depth of specialisation. The general and open
features of the first cycle, as we see it, should not prevent some specific orientations
for those students that already might have a specific professional activity in mind.
Since the 1970s the transformation of the Geography program at the University of
Lisbon represents an effort to give the students a more solid professional preparation,
specifically in the field of planning. This has been done through the reinforcement
of the methodological component, the increase in the specialization possibilities and
a better articulation with current professional practice. The concern with methodo-
logical questions can be seen in the introduction of courses on statistics, quantitative
methods, analytical tools, graphic presentations, cartography, GIS techniques and
also epistemology courses.
In Lisbon, the actual model of curriculum offers five specializations and it has for
the very first time some obligatory specific courses along with optional ones. These
can either reinforce the specialization or oppose it, if the student prefers a more
generalist formation. Thus, the program contains a common part for all students with
104 ECTS, distributed by Human Geography (36 ECTS), Physical Geography (36
ECTS), Methods (32 ECTS) and then the specializations. For instance, the students
that choose Urban Planning (Urbanism) have to do 91 credits in specific courses like
Urban Design, Physical and Social Environments, Urban Problems, Planning Tools,
plus 45 credits in optional courses.
The bridge with professional practice has been tested by means of training periods,
nevertheless only for the students enrolled in education is the training a credited unit.
For the rest of the students we use the th year course to bring the students closer to
some activities by means of study visits or longer stays in appropriate departments
and institutions and using this contact as case study for the assignment they have
to do to complete the course. This report can have either a more practical (problem
solving) or more theoretical orientation. The students enjoy this experience as we
can see in the evaluation report (Barata Salgueiro et al, 2003), so it deserves more
development and expansion.
Bologna also implies a different way to think about teaching and learning, almost
a new paradigm which contains a different type of academic and training education,
academic formation in a wider basis, focus on competence acquisition, and learning
upon teaching. There is no doubt that the focus on these two last features will oblige
us to think more deeply about the course structure and organization as well as the
teaching methods in a completely different way than we use to. Competences will play
a more central role in the way we think about teaching at the university (Cachinho,
2005). Despite the great number of our colleagues interested in these questions the
discussion in geography departments is still in their infancy.
There is a good convergence between learning outcomes and competences. In the
Tuning Project (Gonzalez and Wagenaar, 2003) learning outcomes are expressed in
104
terms of competences, they define what the student knows and is able to do at the end
of his learning period, and are evaluated by performance levels. Thus they specify
the minimum conditions to receive the credits. As we all know, there are generic
competences which represent a dynamic combination of features, capabilities and
aptitudes and subject specific competences characteristic of each field of study.
A study of 12 course proposals for the first degree cycle in Geography at the
University of Lisbon, Oporto and Coimbra by teachers in the upper middle part of
their career shows that the main goals were still stated in terms of scientific knowl-
edge, despite their discourse. Student evaluation is divided between a final exam
and the production of a project normally developed within a group with fieldwork.
However the discussion of texts, of political objectives and tools, of solutions for the
problems analyzed already show a new orientation.
Concerning the generic competences differences are not big, although in Portugal
they appear to be more connected to the specific knowledge mainly because of the
material I used as source of information. Everyone agree on the need to be able to use
ICT to communicate fluently by written, oral and visual means but it does not seem to
be necessary to enumerate these competences in the context of a program proposal
For the specific geographic competences (Table 1) the Portuguese are more worried
about action, with the application of knowledge in practice than with theoretical models,
more interested with the concepts, the techniques of data collection, treatment and
analysis, with the knowledge of different theoretical and methodological approaches.
Table 1. Specific Competences in Geography
At international level1 Portuguese teachers2
Understand and interpret landscapes, the Understand the interdependence of social
meaning of spatial relationships and build actors, of regions and locations; discuss the
spatial models at different scales; spatial policies and the process of territorial
management;
Understand different forms of spatial organ- Identify patterns and explain the differences
ization, the diversity and interdependence of in spatial distributions; understand develop-
regions, places and locations; the processes ment disparities; interpret the process of
that lead to the spatial segregation, and the change and its nature;
nature of change;
Collect, compare, analyze and present Appropriate use of geographical methods
geographical information; use diverse tech- for collection and analyze geographic
niques and approaches in Geography; information; knowledge of different ap-
proaches in the explanation of geographical
phenomenon;
Apply and understand geographical con- understanding of geographical concepts;
cepts; communicate geographical ideas, apply geographical knowledge to identify
principles and theories by written, oral and problems and look for solutions, make pro-
visual means; posals;
Sources: 1 – Internet sites of Herodot and EUnet networks, Tuning Program (EU), University of Liege
and United Kingdom universities;
2 – Programs for courses in Geography in Lisbon, Oporto and Coimbra

105
 Even though this only is a short and preliminary analysis, the collection of compe-
tences is very impressive of the challenges implied in the preparation of a plan of
studies and organization of a learning process in this basis.

Conclusion
Taking in account the importance Bologna has in the restructuring of higher educa-
tion across Europe, I would like to conclude with three questions:
1. How can each course contribute to the development of what competences?
2. How should we transform the process of learning and teaching in the context
of a university that is more student-oriented, and more focused on competence
acquisition?
3. How to start the discussion on the relationships between competences and knowl-
edge?
All this leads to the need for discussing new methods of teaching, to exchange
experiences and diffuse good practices and pedagogical experiences. So I would like
to challenge the formation of a network for:
• exchanging information on the duration and organization of geography programs
across European universities;
• opening the way to creating international diplomas coming from the partnership
of several universities, eventually looking for some EU support to ensure their
effectiveness and quality.

References
1. AMARAL I. 1980. Apontamentos para a história do ensino universitário de Geografia em
Portugal, II Colóquio Ibérico de Geografia, Comunicações, Lisboa, vol I, 1982: 135−138.
2. BARATA SALGUEIRO T. 2003. L’enseignement universitaire au Portugal, Geographes
Associés, 27, Universidade de Liège, 37−43.
3. BARATA SALGUEIRO T., BRUM FERREIRA D., SIMOES J. M., CACHINHO H.
2003. Relatório de Auto-avaliação de Geografia, ano lectivo 2001−2002. Lisboa, FLUL
(policopiado).
4. CACHINHO H. 2005. Formação e inovação na Educação Geográfica. Actas do 2°
Colóquio Ibérico de Didáctica da Geografia. Lisboa. APG e AGE, 453−472.
5. CLAUDINO S., MUNOZ I TORRENTE X. 1991. A formação e a actividade profissional
dos geógrafos em Lisboa, Barcelona e Copenhaga, V Colóquio Ibérico de Geografia.
Actas, Ponencias y Comunicaciones. León, 69−83.
6. GONZALEZ J., WAGENAAR R. 2003. Projecto Tuning Educacional Structures in
Europe, st phase, in: [Link]/TUNINGProject/. Programs for courses in
Geography.

106
 The added value of international students
groups in geography classrooms

Tine Béneker, Leo Paul, Rob van der Vaart

Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University

Postbox 80115, 3508 TC Utrecht,The Netherlands
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
The department of Human Geography and Planning has been participating in international
exchange of students from the beginning of the Erasmus programmes for higher education
in the 1980s. In 2002 we stopped organising special modules for international students and
instead we integrated modules in English in our new bachelor program in Human Geography
and Planning. Overall, the experiences of teachers and students with these ‘multinational or
multicultural classrooms’ are positive. Apart from some language problems, the students
appreciate the international sphere in the classroom. The added value of the presence of
foreign students is highest when teachers explicitly make use of the multiperspectivity (in
the minds of the students) in the design of their courses.

Key words: Geography, education, student exchange, international classroom

Introduction
Foreign students participate in an increasing number of modules in the bachelor
and master programmes at the Department of Human Geography and Planning in
Utrecht. It is expected that within a few years English will have become the dominant
language in our Masters programmes. The multinational classroom, with students
from different linguistic, national and academic backgrounds, offers new challenges
and opportunities. In this paper we will discuss the experiences of teachers and
students in some of our modules taught in English. How do we benefit from these
international classrooms in our modules?
In the final section of this paper, we want to discuss the larger issues involved
in teaching and learning in multinational or multicultural classes. What about the
cultural bias of the home institution in terms of academic style and approach to the
discipline (geography)? How can variety in linguistic skills, academic backgrounds,
and in perceptions of the subject be dealt with? And most importantly: how can
the multiperspectivity of an international student group be used as ‘a strength’ in
academic courses? Inspired by the cultural turn in geography and in the social
sciences at large (see for example: Crang 1998), many teachers will use issues of
representation and a multi-perspective approach in the design of their courses and
reading lists. A multicultural and multinational classroom will hugely enlarge the
possibilities of using variety of perspectives and representations as a pedagogical
tool and learning strategy.

107
Background of international students in the geography course in Utrecht
Since the start of the Erasmus programme in the second half of the 1980s, the depart-
ment of Human Geography and Planning has participated in the exchange of students.
Each year about 50 to 60 students visit our department for one or two semesters. During
the academic year 2004−2005, the Faculty of Geosciences hosted 74 international
students, the majority of whom taking modules in Human Geography and/or Planning.
Erasmus students come from all over Europe (numbers for 2004−2005): from Southern
Europe (15 from Spain, 4 from Greece, 4 from Italy, 2 from Portugal), from North-
Western Europe (5 from the UK, 6 from Denmark, 4 from Sweden, 3 from Finland,
1 from Norway), from neighbouring states (2 from Belgium, 4 from Germany) and
also increasingly from Central Europe (5 from Poland, 2 from the Czech Republic).
The number of students coming from outside Europe, through various exchange
programmes, has been increasing and in 2004−2005 4 students from the USA and
Canada and 7 from Australia studied at our Faculty. Students from non-Western coun-
tries until now only form a very small minority and rather an exception.
The start of our Erasmus program in the 1980s led to the organisation of a
separate one-semester course in English. The programme was tailor-made for
foreign students, with its own starting moment in January and with modules such
as ‘Geography of the Netherlands’. A lot of students came to Utrecht to study GIS.
The separate ‘international programme’ was designed because there were too many
obstacles for integrating courses in English in the regular programme. Also not all
the teachers were prepared for teaching in English. This international programme has
successfully existed for about 15 years. The good reputation of the department and
the programme caused the relatively large number of guest students. Our European
students association (EGEA) played (and still does play) an important role in the
introduction period for foreign students. The students active in this association visit
several international meetings and are real ambassadors of our department.
Some years ago the situation changed, more and more people were convinced that
we could benefit from the integration of the international students in our regular human
geography and planning course. It was felt that it would reduce the workload of the
teachers and, moreover, Dutch and international students would get a better opportunity
to meet each other and study together. The transition to a new bachelor-master struc-
ture starting in 2002 facilitated the full integration of the regular and the international
programmes. In the study year 2004−2005 international students had a choice of 19
modules in English (14 bachelor modules and 5 master modules). Students take part
in four modules per semester and foreign bachelor students are allowed to choose one
master module per semester as long as they meet the relevant entry requirements.

The teachers’ perspectives

While preparing this paper, we organised an evaluation panel with six colleagues who
have been teaching in courses with multinational and multicultural student groups.
They were involved in four bachelor modules (Regions in Development; Cultural
Geography of the Netherlands; European integration; Introduction to Geograph-
ical Information Systems) and two master modules (Geography and Citizenship;
108
Methods & Techniques for International Development Studies). The teachers have
different approaches to how they take into account the international character of the
student group in the design of their modules. In three modules the multi-perspective
nature of the international student group is explicitly used. These courses build on
the input of students from their own national and cultural perspectives, in relation
to themes or problems addressed in the course. If these courses had only be open
to Dutch students, the teaching and learning strategies – in terms of using students’
representations and perspectives – would have been different.
The module on European Integration uses the background of the students in two
ways Van der Vaart, Béneker and Paul 2005). The course starts with some lectures and
role-plays; these role-plays are used to get an idea of the different political cultures in
the home countries of the students. It is crucial to be aware of these political cultures
when studying decision-making processes in the European Union. The second half of
the course takes the form of project work where multinational student groups have to
represent a region in the EU. If someone in a group comes from the region of study
(and for example can read Swedish, Spanish or Hungarian), this may have consider-
able added value. The module on Cultural geography of the Netherlands benefits from
the presence of both Dutch students knowing a lot about the Netherlands and foreign
students with a completely different way of looking at our country, its image and identi-
ties. The participation of students from other disciplines (not every foreign student is
a human geography student) gives an extra dimension to the multiperspectivity. In the
module on Geography and Citizenship students have to use their personal ideas about
their own citizenship and their experience with citizenship education in classroom
discussions. Later on in the course they have to organise a seminar in multinational
groups. The groups are relatively free in the choice of a seminar topic and are able to
use the backgrounds of the students for making all kind of comparisons. For example,
in 2004 one group chose to compare the citizenship debate in Hungary with the debate
in the Netherlands. In the other modules, teachers stimulate students to work together in
combined groups but leave the decision to the students. They suggest the Dutch should
speak English all the time, including during coffee breaks. Often these modules start
with the students introducing themselves.
The teachers from these six course modules made the following remarks
concerning the advantages and disadvantages of working with multinational student
groups. Most of the time they had the same opinion. One important benefit of these
courses, in the eyes of the teachers, is the international atmosphere in the classroom.
They refer to an increased interest of students in each other and the often open
atmosphere in which information is being exchanged. The foreign students often
are an example for Dutch students because they are usually very motivated. The
students coming from other academic cultures like the openness and accessibility
of the Dutch teachers, according to the teachers in the evaluation panel.
Most teachers see language as a point of concern. One teacher even feels that it is
not possible to go into depth during discussion sessions because of the limited English
language skills of most of the students and the teacher. Another teacher refers to
problems with regard to writing papers in English and to the big differences between
109
students in their language skills. The range of differences between students is larger
than in a normal Dutch course group. Many Italian students, for example, have no
previous experience whatsoever in writing course papers and essays, whereas many
British students have been doing this in most of their home courses. One teacher
observed some differences between Dutch students, who were in his opinion fairly
good in terms of their academic skills, and foreign students who were better in the
application of software and techniques for data analysis. But, he said, as soon as
these students work together things works out very well.

Student evaluations
Student evaluations of the modules on European Integration and Geography and Citi-
zenship give us a better idea of how students value working in multinational student
groups. 38 students filled in the evaluation form of the European Integration module (in
2004). Their reaction to the statement ‘I have learned a lot from working with students
from other countries’ was very positive. Over 75% of the students agreed with this state-
ment (agreed or agreed ‘very much’). Students were asked to sketch the positive aspects
of the international character of the course. They mention the fact that the course was in
English (22 students), that they were dealing with different points of view (16 students)
and that they met and worked with foreign students (10 students). The disadvantages
were the lack of English language skills of some students (3 students) and some teachers
(2 students) and the problems of making yourself clear in English (5 students), so that
(according to 1 student) often the same students take the lead in discussions. Critical
comments of the students (the majority who filled in the form were Dutch students)
focused on problems with language. The evaluation shows that they see the struggle
with language as an advantage (good training) rather than as a disadvantage (22 versus
11 students). The guest students are more used to English as a working language
(although they do not necessarily speak it better than the Dutch students) and hardly
refer to it as a problem or an advantage.
The students who participated in the Geography and Citizenship module were
also positive about the international character of the course. One student wrote:
“The topic was interesting especially because you were working with students from
other nationalities”. They were especially positive about the multi-national classroom
discussions about citizenship issues. Almost all students mentioned one specific part
of the course as a positive experience: peer review of the individual course papers.
Towards the end of the course all students had to comment on and discuss the papers
from fellow students. The topics of the papers were chosen by the students but had
to fit well in the conceptual and theoretical frameworks of the module. They found
the paper review a great idea because it gave them different perspectives and an idea
of comparative quality and style of students work, also internationally. They were
very surprised by the different conventions in various countries on how to write
a paper. On the other hand they agreed completely on which were the best papers.
One Polish student gave the following comment: “The most strange for me was the
public evaluation of the individual papers but while reading other peoples papers
I learned almost as much as when writing my own”.
110
Discussion
In spite of all sorts of practical difficulties, both students and staff are predomi-
nantly positive about working in and with international student groups. Students
like the extra dimension of making new friends from other countries, practicing
their English, hearing about perspectives from and academic practices in other
countries. For both teachers and (exchange) students, the evident bias in (i.e. Dutch)
academic style may pose a problem. Dutch courses are generally characterised by
active learning approaches, rather strict attendance rules, a climate open to discus-
sion and participation, and a specific (highly structured) convention for coursework
and essay writing.
It is a matter of debate what elements of this profile should be negotiable and
changeable when the student group is international. We believe that it would not be
wise to lean towards something like an invented ‘European average style’ in attend-
ance, participation, or learning and teaching approaches. This would be the type of
homogenisation that many fear as a result of the Bologna process and the construction
of a “European Higher Education and Research Space” (see, for example: Kwiek
2004; Trondal 2002). It is important for guest students to become involved in a typi-
cally Dutch academic experience; the possible ‘difference’ from their home experi-
ences is one of the assets of studying abroad. Strictly applying ‘Dutch’ rules for essay
writing or for doing presentations, however, specified in detailed course descriptions,
would probably be counterproductive. It is interesting for Dutch students to experi-
ence how their colleagues in other countries have learned to build up an argument,
use references, or structure an essay or presentation and vice versa. Variety is a gain
here and the common basic rules should be modest.
Linguistic problems are, to a large extent, practical problems and very likely
only temporal ones. Communication is the basis of academic learning and therefore
sufficient language skills (i.e. in English) are non-negotiable, for both students and
teachers.
Multiperspective features are often a consideration in the design of courses, and
a multicultural and multinational students group gives an extra dimension to the
multi-perspective approach, as a learning tool and an element of motivation.

References
1. CRANG M. 1998. Cultural geography. London: Routledge.
2. KWIEK M. 2004. The Emergent European Educational Policies under Scrutiny. The
Bologna Process from a Central European Perspective. In: V. Tomusk (ed.), The Bologna
Process – Voices from the Peripheries. Kluwer.
3. TRONDAL J. 2002. The Europeanisation of Research and Higher Educa-
tional Policies – Some Reflections. European Integration online Papers 2 (12).
[Link]
4. VAART R. VAN DER, BÉNEKER T., PAUL L. 2005, Getting geography students
involved in European integration. Paper presented at the Herodot conference, Torun.


 International collaboration in distance education
for geography students – experience of Vilnius University

Donatas Burneika

Vilnius university, Department of General Geography, Faculty of Natural

Sciences, Ciurlionio 27/21, Vilnius, Lithuania
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
The aim of the paper is to present experience of Vilnius University in using distance education
methods for teaching bachelor students. In general ordinary old-fashioned ways of teaching
still prevails in Department of General Geography, when main source of knowledge for
students is ordinary lectures. However during the period 1999–2003 our department was
involved in Baltic Sea region Study programme and common courses for students in various
Baltic Sea countries were organised. Main methods of teaching involved tools usually used
in distance education – audio-lectures, Internet and WebCT. Students in different countries
had to work together, prepare comparative projects and present them. There was a lot of
new and interesting experience for students, teachers and tutors, which will be discussed
in the article. Beside some positive experience there were problems, which also are to be
mentioned in order to have objective opinion on such way of teaching.

Key words: teaching geography, distance education

Introduction
The aim of the paper is to present the experiences of Vilnius University in using
distance education methods for teaching bachelors-level students. Ordinary, old-
fashioned ways of teaching still prevails in the Department of General Geography,
where the main source of teaching for students is ordinary lectures. However during
the period 1999–2003 our department was involved in the Baltic Sea Region Study
programme and common courses for students in various Baltic Sea countries were
organised. The main methods of teaching involved tools usually used in distance
education – audio-lectures, the Internet and WebCT, a virtual learning environment.
Students in different countries had to work together, prepare comparative projects
and present them. There was a lot of new and interesting experience for students,
teachers and tutors, which will be discussed in the article. Besides some positive
experience there were problems, which also are to be mentioned in order to have
objective opinion on this approach to teaching.

Geography in Lithuania and at Vilnius University

The general situation in geography teaching at university level is not very prosperous
in Lithuania. There are only four geographical departments in three universities:
Department of General Geography in Vilnius University, Departments of Geog-
raphy and in Geography in Vilnius Pedagogical University and Department of Social

Geography in Klaipeda University. There are also very few departments of related
subjects in the same universities. None of the other higher education institutions
have any geographical or even geography-related departments and actually there
are no geographical disciplines in their study programmes. Vilnius University has
the oldest traditions in geography studies and at present it holds the strongest posi-
tion in Lithuania. Table 1 illustrates the situation in Geography teaching at Vilnius
University.
The methods of teaching in the whole of Lithuanian higher education including
Vilnius University are very traditional – old fashioned lecturing dominates. Other
teaching methods involve seminars, practicals, field practice and self-learning
(particularly when preparing project work) but their significance is less important.
The main reasons why traditional lectures dominate are related to the lack of possi-
bilities for self-learning. Students don’t have sufficient reading materials, there are for
example very few text books in Lithuanian, which is related to the very low demand.
Readings in English are also not readily available and on the other hand very few
students can read in English adequately enough. Modern teaching equipment like
multimedia projectors have only just been introduced in recent years, but at present
they are used just occasionally. It seems that this situation will not change radically
in the near future because above-mentioned reasons will not disappear overnight.
Table 1. Personal structure of Department of General Geography of Vilnius University
Number
Level Remarks
of persons
Every year 30 students enter to the department and approxi-
Bachelor studies 110
mately 25 receive bachelor diploma. It is 4-year studies.
Postgraduate Up to  students enter the master programme and ap-
30
(Masters) proximately 12 receive master degree.
Every year one or two persons enter to the postgraduate
Postgraduate studies, which last usually 4 years. VU is the only institu-
6
(PhD) tion with the right to prepare PhD students in geography
in Lithuania.
Stable number. Assistant professors prevail in the teach-
Staff 
ing personnel.
However our department started to take part in the project raised by colleagues
from Turku University (Finland) in 1999. The project was organised as a part of
the Baltic Sea Region Studies Programme and involved Universities from Finland,
Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The programme mainly involved the international
exchange of students between Baltic Sea countries. The main idea of this project was
to employ distant education techniques and methods for international collaboration
in preparing geography students through international studies via virtual reality
without physical journeys. The Internet and audio conferencing were the main tools
of learning. Finally two different disciplines of human geography were designed and
have been completed several times during the period between 1999 and 2004. This
was a completely different experience both for teachers and students. The main idea
of such learning, its advantages and minuses will be presented in the next section.

Designing and teaching the distance education courses in geography
The idea of using modern techniques for exchanging information is old enough as
well as that of distance education, which permits learners to receive information and
knowledge without known limits of the usual forms of teaching. So it isn’t strange that
this type of education is most popular among the working population, who have no
possibilities to attend regular lectures, this is effectively tuition by correspondence.
In this case the decision was to employ technology for achieving different tasks. The
approach meant more to break the constraints of space rather than these of time.
It was decided to try to develop international collaboration, to exchange experience
and learning without expensive travelling costs.
The next step was to find “hot” topics that would be interesting for all parties and of
course these courses had to fit to the whole curriculum of bachelor studies in each of the
different universities. Finally the development of a course in urban geography “Transfor-
mation of Urban Space” was chosen to be the first to be prepared. Later another course
in regional geography “Region Development and Region Policy” was produced.
Organisational aspects involved team meetings in Finland where all participating
persons from each of the universities involved were presented with the idea and main
principles of distant learning and audio conferencing. Some practice of audio lecturing
was given for tutors. Also the course content was discussed and established (agreements
concerning main topics that were to be studied were made). However later experience
has shown that these meetings were not critical, particularly if there is one leading
department, whose experts prepare the course content and takes all the organisational
responsibilities and the other university partners accept this content and the design of
the course. On the other hand collaboration happens more smoothly if all the persons
involved know each other through face-to-face meetings and not just virtually.
Design of the course was prepared both by the experts of distance education
and geographers. Though the main initiators of the course were distance education
centres, later their involvement in course development was not so dominant and the
role of the geographers increased.
Departments of distance education in the universities were responsible for the
technical aspects of the project – they provided the equipment necessary for audio
conferencing and web based tools. The general ideology of the course was determined
by the ideas and theories then dominating in distance education. Audioconferencing
was seen as a very good opportunity, because of five reasons mentioned by Michael
G. Moor: “Audio conferencing is a learner – centred, relatively inexpensive, robust
and flexible medium, that can be well integrated with other media in a distance
education program” (Moore, 1994). It was perceived then that adoption of high cost
delivery systems was giving way to a new trend towards an appropriate selection of
a delivery systems based on course content, course design and intended audience.
(Hardy and Olicott, 1995). So it was decided that audio conferencing should just be
an additional learning tool, while the main accent was related to active self-education
and communication via the Internet. Later experiences showed that the proportion
of audio lectures could have been reduced even further.


The learning process
The learning system of the course was rather complicated and involved many types
of learning processes. The main processes involved were:
• Tutoring (not lecturing, just helping students);
• Audio meetings:
• Independent learning;
• Internet based learning.
• Group work (preparing common projects)
Every University formed a group of students wishing to learn the subject. It of
course was not a compulsory discipline and a good knowledge of English was a neces-
sity. Hence the formation of the group of 6–12 persons, the recommended student
group size in every university, was not an easy task bearing in mind the rather small
total number of students in our department.
Promotion of the idea of the course among the students played an important role
and this was one of the tasks of a tutor. Among the other tasks of the tutor were, to
lead conversation during audio conferences, assist students with their assignments,
to present study material, to explain Internet-based learning environment but not
to give lectures. Notwithstanding that tutor doesn’t have to give lectures their role
remained very important and active, requiring a lot of time. Though there were no
lectures planned, in reality meetings with the student group took place every second
week and sometimes they held very strong resemblance to the usual lectures or
seminars. Actually good tutoring was essential in this case and the tutor involved
needed to be a well motivated person interested in new technology like the Internet
and the subject, urban geography in this case.
Independent learning was the main way of that the students gained knowledge. It
was based on study materials, which were provided for the students. Generally these
involved copied articles, relevant chapters from different issues of full textbooks, which
played the role as a main source of information for students. In our case learning mate-
rial were collected by experts from the leading university and sent to the tutor via mail
or sometimes by fax. Experience has shown that in some more complicated cases, like
controversial, more difficult topics, lecturing would have helped students to better under-
stand the subject. So lecturing could also be involved in this learning system. Anyway, the
course requires independent work from students collecting additional information on the
course subjects and especially preparing project work. The given material concentrated
on general theory, main trends in the urban or regional geography, so students had to
find information concerning their own city or region to supplement it.
The number of audio meetings varied from 7 in 1999 to 4 in 2004. Firstly audio confer-
ences used to take place every two weeks, lasting two academic hours, but it became
evident that the attention needed for this type of learning was too great. Two hours of
listening to even very interesting topics in English was too difficult for the students and
in general audio conferences became more a tool for discussion and presentation than
for delivering lectures. At the beginning five audio meetings were devoted for lectures
(including of course some discussion on related topic) and there were two for the presen-
tation of projects prepared by different student groups. Finally there were only two short

115
audio lectures – one for presenting the general ideas of the topic and second for explaining
some special cases, both were given by an expert on the subject. And the next two were
devoted for presenting project work, which were to be placed on the Internet.
Internet based learning was organised by our colleagues from Turku University.
Web course tools were used for communication between students, tutors and experts.
All written material was presented there as well as useful links and other related infor-
mation so every participant was able to use it and to give their remarks. WebCT also
provided space for presenting project work. Students had to use the site several times
each week to find out the tasks given by experts or answer questions given by other
participants. The problems with Internet accessibility in Baltic countries as well as
rather poor computer skills were the main difficulties at the beginning of the project.
There were two assignments to be made during the course. First of all local
groups prepared project work concerning some local case, placed it on WebCT and
presented it during the audio conference trying to compare different cities. Usually
every student had specific tasks depending on their skills. Students had to collect
information, make analyses, to write in English, to put the presentation on Internet
and to present it during the audio conference. Then groups were formed from students
from the different participating universities and they had to work together on some
specific problem in the different cities. Such international collaboration was very
interesting for students though the organisation of work was rather difficult. The
number of students involved from the various countries differed considerably, as well
as their skills and motivation so the results were very unpredictable and the quality
of the project work was very different. Finally, after two years the idea of working
in international groups was rejected purely because of these reasons.

Conclusion
When finalising the description of this experience it also should be mentioned that
in general such ways of learning opens a lot of new opportunities for students and
teachers. Students can obtain various skills in very different fields – understanding
geographical subjects, developing communicational abilities, improving English,
group work skills, and so on. Also in some cases it is an appropriate alternative to
expensive international travel. On the other hand there were some organisational
issues, for example it is rather difficult to include such subjects into the regular
curriculum, because it depends on the will of many participants, finding finances
for such activities and there is always some uncertainty concerning sustaining the
activities. However notwithstanding some negative features every participant agreed
that, in general, such methods of learning enrich the usual ways of learning very
effectively. The experiences, which students and tutors obtained, helped everybody
to improve their geographical knowledge and learning skills.

References
1. HARDY D.W. AND OLCOTT [Link]. 1995. Audio conferencing and the adult learner:
Strategies for effective practice. The American Journal of Distance Education 9 (1).
2. MOORE M.G. 1994. Audioconferencing in distant education. The American Journal of
Distance Education 8 (1): 1−4.
116
 The Role of the Geography Teachers’ Association (Malta)
in the Professional Development of Teachers

Moira Buttiġieġ

Mediterranean Institute, University of Malta, Msida

e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
The Geography Teachers’ Association (Malta) was set up in 2000 with the aim of promoting
geography as an academic discipline and keeping teachers of geography up to date with
developments in the subject. The Association has been trying to achieve these aims through
the organisation of lectures and fieldworks and the publication of papers on geography and
geography education. This paper will investigate teachers’ perceptions on the role that the
Geography Teachers’ Association (Malta) plays in their professional development.

Key words: Geography education, Geography Teachers’ Associations, professional devel-

opment

Introduction
In Malta, the provision of educational and training courses for practising teachers has
traditionally been regarded as being the responsibility of the employers of teachers,
whether these are schools or local educational authorities. As the concept of profes-
sional development evolved to include a wider range of learning experiences, the
spectrum of potential providers of continuing professional development experiences
for teachers should have also widened. Despite this evolution, the potential contribu-
tion of teachers’ associations to this aspect is often underestimated or even unrec-
ognised. The aim of this paper is to investigate teachers’ perceptions of the role of
teachers’ associations in their professional development focusing on the Geography
Teachers’ Association of Malta.

The Geography Teachers’ Association (Malta)

The Geography Teachers’ Association of Malta (hereafter GTA) was set up in the
year 2000 with the aim of fostering the teaching of geography amongst all sectors
of the population (GTA, 2000). Today the GTA has 72 members. It is perhaps not
accidental that the GTA was set up in the year following the publication of a new
National Minimum Curriculum in 1999 which directs that the number of geography
lessons in secondary schools be reduced to one lesson per week throughout the
five-year secondary course (Ministry of Education, 1999) and that the subjects of
geography, social studies and history should be integrated into one curriculum subject
under the name of environmental studies. The setting up of the GTA also followed a
long period of shortage of geography teachers and decreasing numbers of students


 enrolled in geography courses at post-secondary and tertiary levels. At this critical
time teachers of geography must have realised the truth in Walford’s (1998) words
“the survival of the subject will be dependent on the enthusiasm and expertise of
those who represent it in the classroom.” (p. 64)

Despite the fact that the professional development of teachers is generally not the
primary aim of subject teachers’ associations, the latter can indirectly contribute
to it. Definitions of professional development can be broad comprising all forms of
learning undertaken by teachers ranging from courses organised by higher educa-
tion institutions to private reading. The term can also be used in a narrower sense to
refer to post-graduate degrees or in-service training. For the purpose of this paper,
Day’s (1999) definition of professional development is to be used:
“professional development consists of all natural learning experiences and those
conscious and planned activities which are intended to be of direct or indirect
benefit to the individual, group or school and which contribute through these to
the quality of education in the classroom.” (p. 4)

Within the context of this definition, activities organised by the GTA, that were
aimed at enhancing and refining the knowledge and skills of teachers related to
specific geographical issues may potentially contribute to the professional develop-
ment of participating teachers. Since its setting up the GTA has been organising
three main types of activities: it annually publishes a set of papers on geography
and geography education, it regularly organises talks on geographical themes and it
organises field trips to areas of geographical interest about six times a year. Through
these activities, the GTA aims to keep teachers up-dated with latest research in
geography and geography education. It recognises that enthusiastic teachers can
utilise the insights they gain through these activities to plan and deliver geography
lessons that are more exciting
and relevant to the needs of their
students. Ultimately the GTA
hopes that the participation of
teachers in its activities results in
an improvement in the teaching
and learning of geography.

Teachers’ perceptions of the

contribution of GTA to their
professional development
With the aim of investigating
teachers’ perceptions of the
opportunities for professional
development that the GTA is
offering them, a questionnaire
Figure 1. Teachers’ perteptions of the GTA activities was distributed amongst geog-

raphy teachers who are GTA members. In the questionnaire no definition of profes-
sional development was offered to teachers with the specific purpose of allowing
teachers’ own notions of what constitutes professional development to be expressed.
A response rate of 52 per cent was achieved.
In answer to whether they think that the GTA is contributing to their professional
development all respondents invariably agreed that the association does contribute
to their professional development. Teachers were asked how the GTA is actually
enhancing their professional development (Figure 1). The field trips were considered
by all respondents as the activities that offer most opportunities for teachers’ profes-
sional development. Teachers claim that field trips help them to discover new natural
and man-made landscapes of geographical interest. After familiarising themselves
with these newly discovered places teachers then evaluate the potential of these sites
for fieldwork sessions for their students. The papers that are annually published by
the GTA are perceived by teachers as a means of circulating the results of research
in geography and thus keep them updated with new developments in geography as an
academic discipline and geography education. Teachers remarked that the knowledge
and insights they gain from the reading of these papers facilitates the inclusion of
up-to-date examples in their lessons.
The opportunity to discuss and exchange ideas with other teachers of geography
and geographers was the third most cited reason why teachers consider GTA activi-
ties to contribute to their professional development. Matters related to the geography
syllabus and national examinations seem to be the most popular topics informally
discussed by teachers during these activities, despite the fact that these themes are
the least focused on in GTA activities.
Teacher members of GTA were also asked to suggest other activities that the GTA
could organise to enhance the professional development of its members. The most
popular response was the organisation of seminars to discuss various aspects of
school geography including syllabuses, textbooks and teaching aids. The setting up
of a resource database or centre that facilitates the sharing of teaching aids amongst
teachers is also regarded as an activity that could enhance teachers’ professional
development. Field trips to places outside the Maltese Islands are also perceived as
an activity with a potential to develop teachers’ knowledge about places and concepts
taught in school geography. A number of teachers suggested that students should
be invited to attend to some seminars and field trips with the specific purpose of
discussing aspects of the geography syllabus that interest them or that they would like
to change. Besides these activities it should also be noted that two teachers sitting on
the GTA committee have been nominated by the association to attend international
conferences organised by EUROGEO, the association that brings together geography
teachers’ associations from across Europe.

Discussion
Joyce and Showers (1988) advocate that professional development has an impact on
different levels of an individual, namely on awareness, knowledge, skills and applica-
tion. They suggest that the level of impact is dependent on the type of professional
119
development experience. Whilst Craft (2000) acknowledges the different levels of
impact of professional development identified by Joyce and Showers (1988), she
argues that an improvement in pupils’ learning should ultimately be the goal of
teachers’ professional development. The findings of this survey indicate that the
GTA activities are not merely serving to raise their awareness and updating their
global knowledge but also to plan lessons that include up-to-date information and
examples and fieldtrips to new sites. Whilst the influence of these on pupils’ learning
was beyond the scope of this study, it might safely be assumed that an improvement
in pupils’ learning is more likely to be registered in classes where teachers bring
geography at the research frontiers closer to their students. Thus it might be argued
that GTA activities are achieving the maximum level of impact identified by Joyce
and Showers (1988), that is application, and Craft’s (2000) ultimate goal of profes-
sional development, that is an improvement in pupils’ learning.
Adey (2004), whilst criticising traditional professional development courses for
teachers for their lack of teacher involvement and passive lecturing-style, claims that
professional development of teachers can be effectively achieved by giving teachers
the time and means to learn from one another. This feature is probably one of the
strengths of GTA activities, in bringing teachers of geography from different levels
of the educational system together, teachers are given the opportunity to exchange
ideas on curriculum matters and to discuss issues that are at the heart of their day
to day practice.
Adey’s (2004) strong belief in teacher-to-teacher learning indicates the direc-
tion that future GTA activities could follow in order to enhance its contribution
to teachers’ professional development. The GTA should further capitalise on the
strengths of all its member teachers by encouraging participation in collaborative
projects both between teachers within the same educational setting and between
teachers from different levels of schooling. GTA could also play an important role
in encouraging and, perhaps, facilitating the participation of Maltese teachers
of geography in European and international projects and research work thus
exposing its members to developments in geography and geography education in
other countries.

Conclusion
The results of this survey indicate that geography teachers’ associations can have
an important role in the professional development of their members, despite this not
being their primary objective. Through their activities teachers’ associations can
make geography at the research frontiers more accessible to teachers of geography.
Through their expertise in pedagogy teachers can transform the latest geography
to meet the learning needs of their students and the requirements of the curriculum
– a process that benefits the individual teacher, the status of geography in schools
and the quality of geography education.

120
References
1. ADEY P. 2004. The Professional Development of Teachers: practice and theory. London:
Kluwer Acaemic.
2. CRAFT A. 2000. Continuing Professional Development: a practical guide for teachers
and schools, nd edition. London: Routledge/Falmer.
3. DAY C. 1999. Developing Teachers: the challenges of lifelong learning. London:
Falmer.
4. GEOGRAPHY TEACHERS’ ASSOCIATION (MALTA). 2000. Statut ta’ l-G]aqda
G]alliema tal-{ografija.
5. JOYCE B. AND SHOWERS B. 1988. Student Achievement through Staff Development.
New York: Longman.
6. MINISTRY OF EDUCATION. 1999. Creating the Future Together: National Minimum
Curriculum. Malta, Floriana: Ministry of Education.
7. WALFORD R. 1998. Geography: the way ahead. Teaching Geography, 23(2), pp. 61−64.


 Networking and social diffusion of Critical Geography
in Galicia (Spain): The “Abalar” Project

Xosé Constenla-Vega, Miguel Pazos-Otón,

Xosé Manuel Santos-Solla, Luis Ma Ulloa-Guitián

University of Santiago de Compostela. IDEGA.

Avenida das Ciencias, s/n. E-15782 – Santiago de Compostela, GALICIA, SPAIN
e-mail: abalargaliza@[Link] xosec@[Link]
luismaulloa@[Link] xexss@[Link] mipaot@[Link]

Abstract
The Abalar (to shake, in Galician language) Project is an attempt to create new plat-
forms of debate and new spaces of discussion and networking for geographers in Galicia.
This is a Spanish Authonomous Region, a nation located in the Northwest the Iberian
[Link] with its own language, very close to Portuguese, and a very remarked
geographic specificity.
Traditionally, official geography was developed around the Faculty of Geography and
History, in the University of Santiago de Compostela. But in the last years, Galician Geog-
raphy has been reorganized; geographers not belonging to academic world have tried to
create their own organs of expression, like the Galician Society of Geography or the Galician
Proffesional Association of Geographers.
The last of these projects is Abalar. It is constituted by group of geographers (from the
University and not), which meet regularly to talk and debate about Geography, from a social
and critical point of view. Abalar organizes meetings, conferences, discussions, “geograph-
ical-cafés”, lectures, commented-films and also publishes its own journal, called Abalar
(3 numbers per year). The whole of the Abalar Project and the journal are based on horizontal
relationships, and open to everybody who wants to improve the diffusion and knowledge of
Geography and Geographers in Galicia, networking from a social and critical approach.

Key words: Abalar, Critical Geography, Galicia, Networking

Introduction
“Geography must show a critical face, or it won´t be called Geography”. In 1950
Carl Sauer was very clear about it: the Geographic Sciences -in front of social and
political conflicts arising as an oposition (or as a consequence) to the unequities in
the distribution and use of a territory- should be an instrument and a tool.
In 2002, among the university refugees and the professional left-overs, was born
in Santiago de Compostela (capital of Galicia, a historical nation placed in the NW
of Spain), the ABALAR Project, a “shaking-group” in our subject (Figure 1). As
its own Galician denomination implies (“to shake something without breaking it
completely”), this organization aims to question the evolution of all spatial studies.
Its aim is to move, dislocate, swagger and shake their structures. In order to do it,
ABALAR is created as an inter-generational group, in which all the tendences since

the end of the 1980s are represented. As an innova-
tive characteristic, is it built not only by students and
professors, but also by professionals, administation
workers and the unemployed.
In November 2002, a group of people decided to get Figure 1: heading of the journal and logo
together to talk and to debate about Geography-related topics. A diverse agglom-
eration of people with a common subject: concerns about Galician Geography, and
how to make it useful for the society. Despite the fact that some of the members of
the collective were part of the educational institutions of Galicia, also taking part
in “official” initiatives, this path recently has shown a landscape full of illusion but
not exclusion.
Ours is an open and plural association with critical formulations related with
Geography and the present World. The interchange of ideas from very different vital,
job perspectives and ideological positions, the supression of hierarchies or the study
of topics which cannot be comfortable for Academia, are some of our basis in order
to build for our future (Editorial of Abalar Journal, № 0, 2003).
Dignifying Geography in Society is taken as a previous idea and has been adopted
as a starting point. The Project must be based on the social utility of everything,
of all our products including writings, speeches and thoughts. A very important
issue is the concern shown towards all the problems directely related with Galicia.
ABALAR was the only geographical organization which explained to society its
position with regard to the Prestige disaster (an oil spill with dramatic ecological
consequences in Galician coasts in 2002). Firstly, the journal EL PAÍS published
a manifesto (26-11-2002), and afterwards, a complete report was published in the
number 0 of the ABALAR journal.
The journal is the most visible part of the project wich tries to put the basis of
the new (we are hoping) construction of Galician Geography. Nevertheless, at the
same time this association is concerned and worried about global conflicts, like
the war in Iraq or the celebration of the World Social Forum, the Brazilian MST
– “Movemento dos Sem Terra” among others. But the ABALAR Project demands
and claims to be something more than a journal. Roundtables, lectures, symposiums,
field trips, cinema-forums or meetings are activities in which ABALAR is in charge
of organizing. This mobilization made possible that ABALAR is now counted as
one of the main groups of Critical Geography in Spain. This was recognized by
García Ramón in the recent “IV International Conference of Critical Geography”,
celebrated in México DF in January 2005 (see García Ramón, 2005: “Does it exist
a Critical Geography in Spain?”). It also is important that the organization the First
Symposium of the Group of Geographical Thought within the Spanish Association
of Geographers, with the title: “Histories, Geographies, Cultures” will be celebrated
on 27−29 June 2005 in Galicia.
Galicia must be shaken with energy, in its structures, in is conscience, in order to
awake from the false dream of the opulence of capitalism, wich sometimes seems to
become an authentic nightmare. Rural areas are becoming more and more regressive,
the sea has became black, the cities and villages are badly managed, the territory

is mistreated, the culture is a-cultured, and Galician people are migrating or dying.
We cannot be happy by just waiting: we want to shake this great Atlantic rock, and
everybody who wants to work with us will be welcome.
We need to think bearing Galicia in mind. If our territory, our culture, our society
has unique elements, also our way to think and to make things has to reflect these
circumstances. But we cannot forget that we are and we want to continue being in
the World. This obliges us to reflect and to have conscience that an hypothetic change
in the global scale only can be possible through a lot of changes in the local scale.
Nowadays, Galician Geography was only able to have a little growth, despite that
the existence of very good approaches of professionals working and researching in
Galicia. Also regarding to this we are an appendix of what it is currently done in
Spain.
The building of a Galician Geography from a critical-radical perspective was a
complicated task. It was necessary to show less well-known authors in Galician Geog-
raphy through works, notes and papers. This has been achieved with David Harvey,
Doreen Masey, Neil Smith, Don Mitchell, among others. It was also necessary to
link Galician problems with the new trends in spatial analysis: the analysis of the
landscape (E. Cuínas), the concerns about gender and exclusion spaces (X. Santos),
the climatic evolution and the associated hazards (A. Martí and M. Cabalar), the new
interpretations of the urban universe, with issues like gentrification and segregation
(B. Estêvez, M. J. Piñeira and R. Sanz), the mobility as the big challenge of the 21th
century (M. Pazos), the topic of Social Geography associated to demographic proc-
esses (J. A. Aldrey), the territorial configuration, the concept of border and human
territoriality (R. C. Lois and X. Santos), the cultural transformation of societies, the
spatial context and the arising of a new scientific episthemology in the postmoder-
nity (X. Constenla), the conflict of the industrial sector in Galicia (A. Miramontes
and L. Ulloa), and also the problems associated to the fishing sector (analyzed by
several authors).
In this aim, the constant invitation to non Geography-linked people enriches the
debates. We want to build Galician Geography, without closing our ears to experi-
ences which can be useful for us. In order to do this, we invited to participate in our
project -in the journal but also in the activities- to professors and professionals from
Catalunya, the Balearic Islands, the Basque Country or Madrid, but also to people
working in Brazil, Paraguay, Japan and Europe (Bulgaria, Germany, the Netherlands,
Ireland or Portugal).
We don´t want to lose our identity and ideology, nor our language or culture. This
is the reason that our activities run in Galician language and we renounce –to have
clear ideas and clean hands- institutional economic help. We opted from the begin-
ning for self-management.
It is important to say that ABALAR does not have associated people. There are
not ecomomic fees nor hierarchies: ABALAR has horizontal structures, where a
universitary professor has the same category as an unemployed person. Somebody
publishing something in the journal, somebody participating in our activities, but
also somebody taking part in them is counted as a member of the Project.

 After a long wait, we can say that Galician Geography
–in the context of Social Sciences in Galicia– has been
in a period of uninterrupted expansion for more than a
decade (aproximately). Nevertheless, the members of
the Galician Geography scientific community cannot
be satisfied nor shout too loud, basically because this
sentence, despite being true, is also very weak and very
new. We are not facing a situation of scientific hegemony
(and we wouldn´t want it for Geography), nor also are we
a wide and well-organized community. The opposite is
the case, we must talk about the fact that this situation is
the result of the “doing” and “thinking” of a non-shaped Figure 2. Drawing for the number 3 of the
community, without institutional help (Figure 2). journal (Designed by Ultravioleta).
Fortunately, Geography as a science and also as a (“Galician Geography under construc-
profession has shown once again that it is over all of us tion”)
and all the personal
interests that can and
could exist. Never-
theless, with all the
processes in move-
ment in Galicia, we
must try to support a
meeting space. Gali-
cian geographers
need it, because we Figure 3: Cartoon for the first edition of the Journal (Desgined by Ultravioleta)
are used to live back (“I am a Geographer and I am proud of it… Sometimes more than another ones”)
to back among us, lying in the deepness of ostracism and in the most serious of the
vulnerabilities. As a result, to appear suddenly in History or Geography means to
forget about our scientific and personal prejudgements, bearing in mind that the
important issue in these structures is the usefulness to the collective which integrates
them and, as an extension, to the rest of society –in this case to the citizenship of
Galicia–, hosting them.
A different question from crazy enthusiasm and from overflowing arrogance is
pride (Figure 3). Pride as a symptom of dignity. We must be proud of being geog-
raphers in Galicia, originators of the very much needed spatial-based studies. Most
still live in deep ignorance of this sense, facing away from Geography. So: we must
have self-esteem, of course, but this must be corrected by prudence and humbleness.
We still are the “poor sister” of Social Sciences, despite everything.

References
1. ABALAR. 2003. “Editorial-Manifesto”, en abalar, a xeografía galega en construcción.
Abalar (№ 0), Santiago de Compostela.
2. ABALAR. 2003. “Editorial”, in abalar, a xeografía galega en construción. Abalar (№ 1),
Santiago de Compostela.

125
3. ABALAR. 2004. “Editorial”, in abalar, a xeografía galega en construción. Abalar (№ 2),
Santiago de Compostela.
4. ABALAR. 2005. “Editorial”, in abalar, a xeografía galega en construción. Abalar (№ 3),
Santiago de Compostela.
5. ALNETSNOC AGEV E. 2005. “O Principino e a xeografía na Galiza”, in Abalar,
a xeografía galega en construción. Abalar (№ 3), Santiago de Compostela.
6. GARCÍA RAMON M.D. 2005. “¿Existe unha Geografía crítica en Espana?” (inédito),
Conference in: IV Conferencia Internacional de Geografía Crítica, México DF.
7. SAUER CARL. 1950. “Cultural Geography”, in Encyclopaedia of the social sciences,
Vol. VI, New York, McMillan Company.

126
 The place of Geoinformation technologies in the education
and professional development of European geographers

Stelian Dimitrov, Anton Popov

Faculty of Geology and Geography, Sofia University “[Link] Ohridski”,

15 Tzar Osvoboditel Bd, Sofia 1504, Bulgaria
e-mail: stelian@[Link]

Abstract
This paper discusses the importance of GIS and related geoinformation technologies in the
processes of capacity building of geographers. In the analysis of different teaching programs,
the accent is placed onto European practices in teaching GIS. The paper is trying to depict the
situation of GIS education in Europe and to propose a view for the changing of the teaching
approaches of GIS and GI technologies as a whole in the geography curriculum.

Key words: Geography, GIS, teaching, Geography education, Geoinformation technologies,

professional development, capacity building

Introduction
In recent years the use of computers and information technology as a whole changed
dramatically the system of higher education. Today we cannot imagine the tradi-
tionally very conservative academic world without ICT. In the case of academic
geography this role is played more or less by Geographical information Systems
and related Geoinformation (GI) technologies. Those technologies made geography
“high-tech” discipline and the majority of professional geographers have already
accepted this fact today. For the last two decades GIS found its natural place in
geography curricula and the GIS skills today are an integral part in the professional
development of the contemporary geographers.
But is it enough to simply put some GI courses into the curriculum? Is there a
need for a new approach in teaching GI and GIS? Do we need to be “rethinking” the
place of GI and GIS in the professional development of geographers?
To answer those questions is not a simple task, but we believe that opening such
discussion among European geographers is very important for the future of academic
geography and for the position of the geography and geographers in society. The
answers of such questions are directly related with issues like “employability”, which
are of vital importance for our future as a community.
Why GIS and GI are important for professional development of geographers?
To answer this question, first we have to answer the question what makes GIS
technology so important? On first sight the answer is simple- because we need infor-
mation about the space and the different phenomena in it and GIS is very effective
tool which makes this. And because geographic information is a major information
category, there is a need to have a specialized information system, which is able

to gather process and store spatial data, to support the analysis of this data and to
generate geographical information for different purposes
But if we look deeper, the development of GIS and related GI technologies only
happened because of geography. The geography has provided the necessary funda-
mental approaches to gathering geographical data, methods for analyzing the data
and generating geographical information, spatial models etc., and the IT provided
the framework where the geography and geographers could operate more effectively.
Of course GIS is not only geography and geographers are not the only competent
developers and users, but they should be the most prepared professionals, who can
understand the complexity of space. That makes geography important for GIS and
GIS important for the professional development of the contemporary geographer.
On the other hand, the perceptions and the vision about GIS are changing. GIS is
not only an Information System – it is a whole branch of human activities, integrating
business and science in one whole. This branch needs different kind of specialists,
but geographers could be one of the most valuable, if they have the necessary compe-
tences to work with this technology. And the time and technology are working for
our cause. Today GIS is not a new technology for the world – it has entered its fourth
decade. While in the beginning it was very “technical”, now it is more science driven.
The contemporary technology is simplifying all the time the “interaction” with the
computer hardware and software and offering more and more opportunities for the
user to operate with the artificial (digital) geographical environment. This could make
the geographer the “right” constructor and manager of this environment.

The place of GI in geography curricula across Europe

To study the actual statement of GIS in geography programs at the European universi-
ties, about 350 geography departments from 32 countries from Eastern and Western
Europe were reviewed. About 230 of those departments (or 65.6 %) recognise GIS
as main research and teaching area. This is demonstrates that academic geography
in Europe counts GIS as a very important geographic subject. The percentage varies
across the continent, but we can group the countries in following major groups:
• Countries with a small number of geography programs, but where all departments
recongnise GIS as one of the main research and teaching areas. In that group
are Greece (4 departments), Denmark (3 departments), Estonia (1 department),
Serbia and Montenegro (2 departments), Slovak Republic (2 departments), Malta
(1 department).
• Countries with a big number of geography programs and high percentage of
programs, where GIS is recognized as one of the major areas. Among those
countries are UK (from 73 reviewed programs, in 68% GIS is recognized as
major field), Germany (83 programs; 58%).
• Countries with a relatively high number geography programs (more than 10) with
high percentage of programs, where GIS is recognized as one of the major areas.
Most countries are in this group, including the Czech Republic, Netherlands,
France, Norway, Spain etc.


• The group of countries with a small number of programs (less than 10) with high
percentage of GIS – Russia, Slovenia, Croatia, Finland, Romania etc.
• The group of countries with a small number of Geography programs with less
than 50 % of the departments, which are recognizing GIS as major field. Here are
Bulgaria, Italy, Switzerland etc.
• The last group includes the countries, where GIS is still not recognized as major
subject- Macedonia, Latvia, Albania, Moldova etc.
From the above classification we can conclude that GIS is widely recognized as
a major teaching and research area in European geography departments. However,
if we compare the situation in Europe with this in USA, Europe is still behind the
States. In the reviewed 225 geography programs in USA, about 79 % of them declare
GIS to be one of their major teaching and research areas.

Do we need a different approach in teaching GI?

Teaching GIS is not a simple task. Very often it requires the ability to offer abstract
concepts of digitial representation to students who are sometimes unfamiliar with
computer science. On the other hand teaching GIS also requires the development
of relationships between theoretical concepts. These concepts include space, loca-
tion analysis and the spatial models with the capabilities and the features and the
“language” of the different software packages. Very often the GIS education is not
more than GIS training, where “point and click” is the leading teaching approach.
According to Rhind and Raper (2001) “there seem to be about 2 million GIS users
at present. About 2000 universities run courses on GIS and hundreds of other courses
are run by non-academic organisations, such as software vendors. Those taking
the courses come from a huge variety of backgrounds – environmentalists, people
working in local and central government, utility companies, the military and not-for-
profit bodies. Yet, despite all this, GIS education and training is astonishingly similar
world-wide and – in our view – is mostly stuck on historical tram lines.” (Rhind and
Raper, 2001, GIS: time for rethink, GeoEurope May 2001 10 (5), 47).
Therefore the question “Do we need new approaches in teaching GIS?” is
becoming more and more significant. This is because the GIS and GI literacy are
not formed only by technical skills, but demands more than ever before basic spatial
culture and understanding. A proper GIS education must place an emphasis on the
scientific fundamentals of the technology and on the deployment of concepts and
analytical skills, rather than keyboard commands.
When we are answering the question “Do we need a new approach in teaching
GIS?”, we must take into account the role, which we think geography plays in GIS
– as has already been pointed out, it is only the scientific fundamentals of GIS and
the technology that gives the framework. Despite the fact that, operations in GIS
appear to be largely technical in nature, one of the most important issues for the GIS
operator or user is to be aware of the geographical concepts that inevitably underpin
any GIS operation. This is what we believe differentiates GIS education from any
other IT discipline. Based on this, we can propose five basic principles, to express
our vision why the teaching GIS should be changed:
129
1. Fundamental to understanding GIS is the recognition that the GIS model is not only
a specialized computer model like conventional databases. It is an interpretation
of geographical space, and therefore the modelled objects and phenomena need
to be as close as possible to the real world.
2. GIS is ‘as different as it is similar’ to traditional geographical analysis and
mapping, meaning that the GIS education should be organized in close relation-
ship with the core Geography program of the department or faculty.
3. Taking into account the above principle, we have to point that there are different
types of GIS specialists, these might include:
• GIS users
• GIS developers and
• GIS “architects” and managers.
The level of geographic competence needs to be different for each type of specialist.
A GIS teaching program should be designed to serve either a specific level of GIS
specialist or to gradually build knowledge through each specialism, from GIS
user to GIS “architect”. In this case, the “GIS architect” should be familiar with
all geographical concepts that GIS technology is built upon.
4. The didactic, two-stage educational approach (introduction, followed by an
advanced course) is simply not efficient in GIS education. A case study approach
with extensive hands-on experience provides better focus, but also puts a greater
burden on individual instructors and facilities.
5. GIS is no longer a camera-based discipline – modern GIS and geoinformation are
mobile and thus a significant part of GIS education might be organized on the
field.
Considering the above principles, we think that GIS teaching programs must be
designed in four mutually penetrating and interacting stages, which have to be tightly
connected to the fundamentals of geography as an academic discipline:
1. GIS fundamental module: This module must give the necessary theoretical knowl-
edge about the geographical concepts behind GIS technology, Geographical (Spatial)
modelling, traditional and computer based mapping, Principles of GIS, etc.
2. GIS attributive module: Here students need to receive the necessary computer
literacy, as well as knowledge and skills in Remote sensing, Geodesy, Photogram-
metry, Statistics, and all other related disciplines.
3. GIS application module: the leading approach here must be so-called “problem-
based learning”. A case study approach is foreseen so that students will get to
know how real-world problems are solved through GIS.
4. GIS practicum, including field work thanks to the so-called “mobile GIS” applications
The organizational time line of the programme needs to be slightly different from
the standard ‘two stage’ approach: introduction and an advanced level, including
applications. This approach more or less produces only GIS technicians, instead
of GIS specialists with competences to design more reliable and representative
computer-based geographical representations. Therefore the fundamentals must be
formed on geographical concepts and courses, developing spatial thinking among
students.
130
Conclusion
With the topics developed in the paper, we are aiming to open a discussion within
the European geography community about the place of GIS and GI technologies
in the geography curricula in Europe, as well as, their role in the capacity building
of European geographers. We think that GI literacy and the capacity to work with
geographical data and information are among the key characteristics of the contem-
porary geographer. Those capabilities are playing an important role not only in the
terms of improvement of the employability of geography graduates, but also they are
very important for the promotion of the geography as a discipline and professional
field in contemporary society.

References
1. KOTSEV A., DIMITROV S. 2004. Problems and potential solutions for the implementa-
tion of GIS within the Bulgarian Statistical System, th Biennial Conference on Regional
and Urban Statistics: Understanding Change, Mineapolis, USA pp. 151−158.
2. MARBLE D. F. 1997. Rebuilding the Top of the Pyramid: Structuring GIS Educa-
tion to Effectively Support GIS Development and Geographic Research. Proceedings
of the Third International Symposium on GIS and Higher Education (available at
[Link]
3. RHIND D., RAPER. J. 2001. GIS: time for rethink, GeoEurope May 2001 Vol. 10 (5),
pp. 47−48.


 The Future of Geography and Geography Education
in Southeast Asia: Issues and Challenges

Kim Chuan Goh

National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University,

1, Nanyang Walk, Singapore 637616
e-mail: kcgoh@[Link]

Abstract
Southeast Asia has again captured world attention with the recent December 26, 2004
tsunami disaster. Earlier, in 1997 it experienced a major financial crisis, followed by SARS
and Avian Flu epidemics and terrorist attacks that had significantly affected the economies of
many countries in the region. Despite these setbacks, the region is vibrant and the economy
is picking up. With the strong resolve to move forward, Southeast Asia through the ASEAN
(Association of Southeast Asian Nations) grouping will become more cohesive and will
remain a fast growing region. Also, with greater exposure to globalisation, modernisation
and wide use of ICT the region will again be a key player on the world stage.
Ironically in this milieu of economies, political systems, different stages of economic devel-
opment and diversity in languages, culture and environment, and global impact geography,
which once held an important position in schools and universities in Southeast Asia, is facing
a crisis. This paper discusses this crisis, in terms of issues and challenges geography is facing
and in the context of systemic educational reforms that are taking place in many countries
in the region. References will be made to the position and role of geography in other regions
as lessons learned from outside could be applied to geography in Southeast Asia.

Key words: Southeast Asia; geography; geography education; crisis

Introduction
My paper focuses on issues and challenges facing geography as an academic disci-
pline in schools and universities in the Southeast Asia. Because of the complexity of
the region any attempt at synthesizing these themes will be inadequate; nevertheless
an attempt will be made to provide an understanding of the status and future of the
discipline and research.
I will draw from my own experience in Singapore, Brunei and Malaysia where,
in total, I have spent some thirty years at tertiary institutions, as well as published
materials and inputs from colleagues from other parts of the region that I received
through correspondence and interaction at the past seven Southeast Asian Geography
conferences I helped coordinate. My paper recognises trends and developments in
geography outside the region, not only in terms of geography education per se, but of
the broad educational reforms that are taking place in many countries throughout the
world. It is in the context of such educational reforms that we can assess the position
of geography in the educational system of the Southeast Asian countries.


Challenges facing geography in Southeast Asia
Geography has been under siege in schools and universities in Southeast Asia (see
papers published in Malaysian Journal of Tropical Geography, Special Issue, 1990).
In many countries the position of geography is declining mainly because of the
wrong perception of its worth. I think the way the subject is taught is also partly to
be blamed. One cannot agree more with Unwin (1992) when he remarked that what
is taught as geography at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels, and the way it
is taught, are thus absolutely central to the understanding of the social practice and
acceptance (emphasis mine) of the discipline. In Indonesia, for example, Adikusomo
(1990) lamented the state of geography in high schools outside Java where more
than a quarter of the geography classes was taught by teachers who had no college
training of any kind in geography. This situation worsened with the economic and
social instability that followed the radical political changes after 1997. In this situa-
tion, fieldwork and other geographical knowledge and skills would not be properly
taught to geography students, if they were taught at all. It is vital that given the
complexity of geographical studies that the subject should be taught by well-trained
specialist teachers.
Then, there is a perception that geography is a subject that merely provides a good
general education with useful knowledge of the environment, and skills to aid in
that understanding. In some countries like Malaysia, history has been preferred for
a proper appreciation of nationhood, and this resulted in geography being sidelined
at the upper secondary schools levels (‘O’ and ‘A’ Levels). Consequently, geography
in some secondary schools in Malaysia has ceased to exist, and geography teachers
have been re-deployed to teach other subjects.
One more challenge facing geography is the fact that the discipline has been inte-
grated into a wider course such as Social Studies (US and Singapore). In Singapore,
for example, recent education reform has seen the removal of physical geography
altogether in favour of a paper called ‘Combined Humanities’ where some aspects
of human geography integrated with history and economics form the basis of the
module. There is now a vociferous call to move back towards discipline-based
subjects in the school curricular as the integrated approach is looked upon as anti-
intellectual and populist (see Gardner, 1986; Powell, 1997; Biddle, 1999). Physical
geography will make a comeback in Singapore secondary schools in 2006.
In Singapore pragmatic, economic reasons very often take precedence over purely
academic considerations.
a. There is a perception that geography is a ‘soft option’ and therefore its study will
not be crucial to the development of Singapore. Disciplines with strong business,
technology, life science orientations are perceived to be the ones that will make
a difference to the country. Singapore’s pragmatic approach towards manpower
planning with obvious bias towards these subjects would sound most logical but
the consequence on geography enrolment in schools and universities is predict-
able.
b. In many countries geography has been subsumed under two broad sciences – earth
sciences and social sciences. This may possibly be the start of the marginalization

 of geography. In Singapore Social Studies has gained greater importance as it is
recognized as a useful vehicle for National Education or citizenship education.

Opportunities for Geography in Southeast Asia

Geography has intrinsic qualities that make it relevant but it must also be made useful.
Its relevance and usefulness can be appreciated through the following arguments,
which also apply to Southeast Asia.
a. Intellectual rigour – geography today is very different in intellectual content, depth
and rigour than what it was three or four decades ago. A cursory glance at a book
entitled “Geography in the 20th Century” edited by Griffith Taylor (1951), indicates
that from the 50 papers presented the traditional treatment of the sub-disciplines
in geography showed no resemblance to what they are today. This reflects the
vibrancy of geography in light of new developments in science and technology
and geopolitical and socio-economic environments.
b. Today, human awareness of and concern for environmental degradation and
resource depletion is at its highest. Geography, more than any other science,
has traditionally been associated with the study of the environment and human
occupation of that physical space. The decade 2005−2015 is the UN Decade of
Education for Sustainable Development and geography is in an enviable position
to play a crucial role in helping to achieve its goals. At the very least, geography
curriculum should continue to emphasise this objective of creating environmen-
tally literate citizens who would be able to transform cognitive understanding of
the environment gained in the classroom to environmentally friendly behaviour
and actions in real life.
c. In its ability to handle IT, geography can strengthen itself through the introduction
of the IT and GIS related skills to schools. Much progress in this has been achieved
in the west, but gradual inroads are being made in Singapore schools (Zhu, et al,
2004). But the same cannot be said of the other countries in Southeast Asia.
In Singapore, geography is still vibrant. As a small island state with no natural
resources, the economic success of Singapore makes it a unique model of successful
development. In this microcosm of human society issues such as limited space,
environmental conservation, housing, population growth, ageing, extraterritorial
catchments for both investments and resource development (for example, growth
triangle, water resource development), and its geographical location as the regional
and international hub of Multi-National Corporations, telecommunication giants,
airline and shipping companies, and flows of goods and services, to name a few, all
lend themselves to rigorous geographical scrutiny.
Efforts at integration of ASEAN as a regional block will open up opportunities
for geography. Through fieldwork conducted outside ones own borders students of
geography obtain a good appreciation of their neighbours. It is through this famili-
arity with life outside ones own, gained through field research that can contribute
towards building a more cohesive region.


Research and Publications
Southeast Asia has a milieu of interesting ingredients that afford a range of research
interests in geography. A significant number of geographers have been trained in
different traditions outside the region, particularly in Europe, the North American
Continent, Australia and New Zealand. Significant influences can also be traced to the
links Southeast Asian countries have with their past colonial countries. It is discern-
ible that traditions from the French geography have influenced the way the subject
is organized and taught in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. The British traditions
have to a large-extent influenced geography in Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar and
Brunei Darussalam, while the American influence is discernible in the Philippines.
In Thailand, although it had no colonial links, I think, the American influence is
more significant. Invariably, developments in the subject in these parts of the world
have a direct trickle-down effect on geography in Southeast Asia.
Given this variety of exposure, landscapes and cultures geography in Southeast
Asia should be a rich amalgam of influences and traditions. Unfortunately, this
is not the case, as the variety of national languages as mediums of instruction in
schools and universities preclude not only this amalgamation, cross-fertilization of
the discipline and research, but of contact and communication as well. This obstacle
is slowing being eroded as more and more academics in the region become proficient
in English. It would soon be feasible for a network to be formed to link geographers
from within the region together like that of HERODOT.
For geography in the region to move forward, there is an urgent need to know what
is going on in each of the ASEAN countries. This has been made possible through
publications, and to a small extent, by the holding of the biennial Southeast Asian
Geography Association (SEAGA) conferences since 1990. As regards publication,
the more established international journals from the region are the Singapore Journal
of Tropical Geography, The Malaysian Journal of Tropical Geography, Journal of
Southeast Asian Studies, Asian Affairs, and Pacific Viewpoint. Apart from articles
in these journals and the sharing of research findings at conferences, books have
also been written and published on many aspects of geography in the region. There
is considerable interest in research on the region by academics from outside, who
together with indigenous colleagues have contributed a rich array of publications.

Concluding remarks
What then is the future and direction of geography education in Southeast Asia?
The above discussion has shown that the subject is facing similar challenges as in
the developed countries. While still capitalizing on its intrinsic strengths geography
must also revitalize itself by aligning it to new developments in the world of place,
technology, and educational reforms that are taking place in many Southeast Asian
countries. There is an urgent need in the world of the new millennium to build new
geographical imaginations (Massey, 1999). I cannot agree more with what Fitzhugh
(1992) has articulated that we need to define geography; develop systematic, sequen-
tial curriculum; prepare geographically literate teachers; and develop tests which
assess more than memory recall. In light of recent educational reforms the teaching of
135
geography should become much more student centred, ‘conceived with the develop-
ment of students as geographers and individuals’ (Gold, et al, 1991). In many ways,
we at the National Institute of Education, Singapore that prepares teachers have
adopted this approach and have been engaged with the Ministry of Education in
influencing curriculum and policies. The future of geography depends on students’
exciting experience of learning the subject. Students should be nurtured to develop
their own critical approach and to find meaning of the world they live in.

References
1. ADIKUSOMO S. 1990. Geography education in Indonesia: changes and challenges,
Malaysian Journal of Tropical Geography, 21(2), pp. 63−70.
2. BIDDLE D. 1999. Geography in Schools. Australian Geographer, 30(1), pp. 75−92.
3. FITZHUGH W. P. 1992. Reforming geography education: what research says to teachers
about geography instruction. Paper presented at the meeting of the National Council for
Geography Education, Apr. 1992.
4. GARDNER D. P. 1986. Geography in the school curriculum. Annals of the Association
of American Geographers, 76, pp. 1−4.
5. GOLD J.R., JENKINS A., LEE R., MONK J., RILEY J., SHEPHERD I., UNWIN D.
1991. Teaching Geography in Higher Education: a manual of good practice. Oxford,
Basil Blackwell (Institute of British Geographers Special Publication №24).
6. Malaysian Journal of Tropical Geography, 1990. Special Issue, 21(2).
7. MASSEY D. 1999. Geography matters in a globalised world. Geography, 84(3), pp.
261−265.
8. POWELL J. 1997. The pulse of citizenship: reflections on Griffith Taylor and “Nation
Planning”. Australian Geographer, 28, pp. 49−51.
9. TAYLOR G. 1951. Geography in the Twentieth Century. New York, The Philosophical
Library.
10. UNWIN T. 1992. The Place of Geography, Hong Kong, Longman Scientific & Tech-
nical.
11. ZHU XUAN., LIU SUXIA., YAP LEE YONG., TAN GEOK CHIN. 2004. Issues in the
Design of GIS Resources for Secondary Education, Paper presented at the 7th SEAGA
International Geography Conference 29 Nov-2 Dec, 04, Khon Kaen, Thailand.

136
The status of geography in Norway; an issue of grave concern

Arild Holt-Jensen

Department of Geography, University of Bergen, Fosswinckelsgt 6

N-5007 Bergen
e-mail: [Link]-jensen@[Link]

Abstract
The uneven status of the discipline of geography from country to country is a theme that
has not been much analysed. One reason is clearly the lack of data, but this will now be
somehow remedied by the survey that has been carried out by HERODOT for the European
Commission on ‘Tuning Educational Structures in Europe’. Some of the data collected for
the survey will make it possible to compare the status of the discipline between the European
countries. Still a lot of quantitative date will be lacking. And then we must ask: How to
measure ‘status’? One measuring rod will be the number of students enrolled for geography
compared to other disciplines, but in some countries the enrolment is controlled and limited
so sheer numbers may not give the right answer. Other ways of measuring ‘status’ would
be by the relative mass of scientific publications, by opinion polls for ranking useful disci-
plines by the general public, or use position in the school system as a barometer for status
in the decision making system. Here we have used the simple number of students and staff
in the university system as basis for saying something on the status of the discipline. On
this basis we can conclude that geography has a weak position in the Norwegian University
system which also must be seen as an indicator of its weak status in the population. We also
have found that the discipline is rather strong in many other countries at the same level of
economic and educational development. A number of hypotheses can be assessed, tested is
too ‘strong’ word, to give some explanations of these international differences.

Key words: Norway, status of geography, survey, curriculum, economic development

Introduction
Almost 20 years ago the author carried out a survey intended to give en overview
of the status of geography in the Nordic countries. This was presented at a meeting
of the IGU Commission on the History of Geographic Thought, in Bundanoon,
Australia prior to the IGU Congress in 1988. My intention was to trigger off a wider
IGU study as I had found in my Nordic survey that understanding these differences
in status – in whatever way these were measured – are closely linked to the national
histories of the discipline. Such a broad survey has, however, not to my knowledge
been carried out.

Some striking international differences

Through international contacts, we know that geography is on the verge of extinction
in the university system in some countries, whereas in other countries it belongs to


the handful of disciplines that has the largest relative number of students and faculty
members and produce candidates that are rather sought after in the labour market.
Seen from abroad the US geography is a large enterprise with more than hundred
institutions offering MA degrees and more than 50 offering PhDs in the discipline.
American geographers are often the ones invited as keynote speakers and the produc-
tion of textbooks and scientific publications are quite large. BUT. Compared to other
disciplines US geography is small and marginal. The geography departments in the
IVY-league private universities have almost all been closed down. As guest professor
in Seattle in 1985 I witnessed the struggle to save the department at the University
of Chicago. Many departments have a steady fight for survival, and if you are out it
is pretty difficult to reintroduce the discipline. If you do not attract enough students
or produce enough science you are threatened. This is of course gradually also the
case in Europe, but still in a milder form of educational market economy. When in
the USA, you soon see one striking difference to European departments: There is
not an intention for a department to cover the broad canvas of the discipline, physical
– ecological – human geography. At the University of Washington, the focus was
on economic geography – regional development and cartography – GIS when I was
there. But on the margins some peculiarities survived, as a course that was given
every year by one staff member on the history of the ‘great discoveries’ from Marco
Polo and the Vikings to Stanley and Roald Amundsen. This course survived because
it attracted every term a number of students. We know of course also from Europe
that students may choose a course because it is ‘easy’ to get those ECTS grades or
because the lecturer is rather good and popular. But then we need to ask: Is this type
of educational market system the best to lift the quality and ability of candidates?
US geography departments are thus struggling for survival, whereas just north of
the border, in Canada, the discipline is rather strong and the closing of departments
much more unlikely. This is more or less the case in most of the countries that once
belonged to the British Empire. In the UK, as far as I know, geography still is among
the most chosen disciplines by the enrolling students. In most universities geography
has larger staff and more students than other social sciences. In Germany and the
Netherlands the discipline is also rather strong; in both countries ‘Diplom-Geog-
rahie-Studenten’ is provided an applied geography education primarily opening up
for jobs in planning. Many departments across the world, struggling to find their
location in either the Faculty of Social Science, Faculty of Natural Science or Faculty
of Arts, they envy the situation at Rijksuniversiteit in Utrecht for its ‘Fakulteit der
Geowissenschaphen’! In some countries in Europe the discipline is on the other hand
on the verge of extinction (Italy).
In the former state-socialist countries in East and Central Europe geography in
general seems to be in a relative strong position. Traditionally most departments
are attached to Natural Science faculties, and often have larger part of the staff
in physical geography, landscape geography and cartography than for instance in
a human geography working on more critical analyses of planning and locational
issues. The change to a market economy makes a new approach to planning and
locational analyses necessary and geography is well suited to provide this if it gets

the resources to develop such studies. Student numbers seem to increase in Eastern
and Central Europe, an impression I have got after visits and contacts with depart-
ments in Hungary, the Czech Republic and Estonia.

The relative position in the Nordic countries

The survey I made in 1988 on the situation of geography in the Nordic Countries was
based on questionnaires I sent out to all the Nordic departments. I got answers back
from almost all departments with data on staff numbers, graduate and undergraduate
students in geography as well as at the total numbers of students at the institution.
The percentage of geography students of the total student number at the institution
does not give the ultimate measure of position; some institutions may include for
instance faculty of medicine, dentistry etc, while others have a more limited education
choice. But the survey led although to the following general conclusions: The status
of geography measured this way confirms that the status and position of geography
varies between the Nordic countries with a much stronger position in Finland than in
the other Nordic countries. Less than 1% of the university students studied geography
in Denmark and Sweden at that time, a bit more than 1% in Norway and Iceland. In
Finland, however, 2.5% of the university students were enrolled in geography. (See
summary of survey in Norwegian in Holt-Jensen 1990).
In Denmark geography had lived through a period if internal strife in the 1970s
and 80s and departments were closed down. Later, however, the large department
at Copenhagen University and the Department at Roskilde University Centre have
been consolidated. I do, however, not have more recent quantitative data. A particular
feature in Denmark is, however that geography has a rather strong position still in the
school curriculum and in teacher seminars which educate teachers for the primary
schools.
Wärneryd (1987) points out that there is a clear difference between the way in
which geography is taught and organised in Finland and Sweden. With the excep-
tion of Umea University and University of Linköping, geography is separated into
human and physical geography at the universities and also in the Swedish educa-
tional system, most importantly in the high schools (gymnasiums). This separation
started in the early 1950s and means that every university has both a department
of physical geography and a department of human geography. In the school system
geography does not any longer exist as a separate discipline, but is partly represented
in the curriculum for ‘social sciences’ and partly in ‘natural science’. The reason
for this partition goes back to the ‘spatial science’ period when it seemed that the
‘core of geography’ – in general linked to the ‘regional paradigm’ – did not provide
sufficient basis for advanced studies. Swedish geographers managed to use the new
period of scientific development in a way that gave success both internationally and
as experts in the home country. And this gave candidates access to a new and inter-
esting jobs in planning and public administration. On the other hand; the general
knowledge in the public about geography as a discipline became much reduced as
it does not exist as a clear discipline in the schools. Incoming students know very
little of what geography is about. Scientifically Swedish geography is rather strong
139
and respected and the institutional situation is much better than in Denmark as there
are geography departments in all major universities. In Denmark there has however,
not been the same argument to split physical and human geography; this is mainly
due to the fact that physical geography in Denmark is much more focused on applied
research than in Sweden and Norway. The reason for this is obvious; the physical
changes in the Danish moraine and sand dune coasts and landscapes are much more
influenced by recent human action than the mountains and fjords of Scandinavia.
Physical geographers in Norway and Sweden have concentrated their research on
landscape formations before humans entered. Danish physical geographers have had
large projects on present coastal reclamation and development. It is of course easy
to argue that methods in geomorphology and in social geography differ greatly, but
the position geography has as a bridge between physical and social sciences has
become much more important in recent decades with the growth of environmental
studies (biogeography and eco-geography), landscape studies and planning, which
also most fruitfully can utilise GIS.
With a population of less than 300 000 Iceland is too small to sustain a complete
university education in all fields. Icelandic students to a large extent has to go abroad
to take graduate degrees. Haskola Islands (The University of Iceland) has a joint
department of geography and geology. There is no reason to split human and physical
geography in a country which has to cope with active vulcanism and hot springs as
integrated parts of the daily life. Geography has a rather sound position in Iceland.
Geography holds, however, its strongest relative position in Finland. It is well
established as a discipline in most Finnish universities and economic geography is
also taught at the Schools of Business Economy. It is interesting to note that geog-
raphy is regarded as an important discipline in the regional planning education at
Tampere and Joensuu Universities. This contrasts particularly to Denmark where
geography hardly exists at the Schools of Economics and has a meagre role in plan-
ning education. In Finland enrolment of students in different disciplines is, as far as
I know, still regulated, which could mean that geography could have more students
than is actually enrolled. And this is in relative terms double as many as in the other
Nordic countries.

The position of geography in Norway

Geography has a minor position in Norwegian universities, although MA candidates
in geography have fewer problems in getting relevant jobs than candidates from a
number of other disciplines. Of the 5 Norwegian universities (Oslo, Bergen, Trond-
heim, Tromso and Stavanger) geography is only taught in the first three. In the major
Oslo University geography is split between two faculties; Faculty of Natural Sciences
where physical geography is taught within the Department of Geology and Physical
geography and Faculty of Social Sciences at which human geography is taught in
the Department of Sociology and Human Geography. We may link this split to the
fact that Norway very often copies what is earlier done in Sweden, but local factors
such as academic contradictions at the personal level also is part of the explanation.
This split may have had some positive effects on academic productivity, but the grave
140
result is that geography has a dubious identity in the media which is to a large extent
dominated by TV and press in the capital. At the University of Bergen the Depart-
ment of Geography is located in Faculty of Social Science but educates candidates
up to MA and PhD levels in both human, environmental and physical geography. In
Bergen there is also teaching of economic geography at the Norwegian High School
of Business Economy (NHH). At NTNU University in Trondheim Department of
Geography is located at the Faculty of Social Sciences and gives education up to MA
and PhD levels in human and environmental geography.
In the recent decades Norwegian geography has lacked the strong iconoclasts that
attracted attention to Swedish geography; the small number of university teachers
have fought to cover the broad canvas of geography themes in total and to make
this teaching attractive to the students that have enrolled. In Bergen we have the
strange situation that social anthropology has double the number of undergraduate
students as geography, whereas on the other hand geography offers twice as many
undergraduate courses as the social anthropologists. In addition to the basic courses
in human, environmental and physical geography we also are responsible for courses
in local and regional planning and environmental science, plus of course GIS. The
heavy teaching engagement is a burden for academic publication activity, but in
fact also leads to a situation where students continue to MA when they first enrol in
geography. University teachers have not had any possibility to influence the situation
of the discipline in the high schools. Geography still exists as a separate discipline
with 2 teaching hours per week in the second year at high school. But 10 years ago
we had 3 hours per week.
The school curriculum has been changed a number of times in the last decades;
the political leaders have in all cases very little understanding of what knowledge
and skills the discipline can provide for the youngsters. And it has been very difficult
for the few active geographers to reach the decision making bodies in an effective
way. The secretaries of state for education have been some rather strong personalities
with virtually no knowledge of geography as a learning instrument.

Reasons for the differences in the status of geography

Although the presentation given above on the status of geography in Norway and
other countries at the same economic and development level is rather scanty and
incomplete, I hope it may give some basis for curiosity and reflections. When we
now set up some hypotheses that, at least in part, may explain the differences, we
must realise that it is impossible to test them in a scientific way. One reason is the
lack of comparable data, the other that most hypotheses are of a kind that could only
be evaluated by historical and qualitative reasoning. The set of hypotheses are:
1. The status of geography in a country is directly correlated to the position of geog-
raphy in the school curriculum.
2. The status of geography is dependent upon how early it was institutionalised, i.e.
when a university degree in the discipline was required to teach geography in high
school.


3. The strength of school and university geography today depends on the degree to which
the subject in the past was considered to further the cause of national identity.
4. The status of the discipline is dependent on the degree to which geography is
maintained as a united discipline encompassing both man and nature
5. Leading personalities (iconoclasts) or lack of such may in many cases explain the
growth or decline of the discipline.
6. The status of geography is to a large extent dependent upon its image in the press
and among common people.
7. The status of geography today is dependant upon the degree to which it has
succeeded in educating candidates for planning and other jobs outside the educa-
tional system.
8. The status of geography is dependent upon its ability to adjust to new develop-
ments in society and to adopt new research trends.
9. Growth has a tendency to foster growth, decline may accelerate decline.
10. Student enrolment reflects current happenings and ‘fashions’ as reflected in
the media, disciplines that market themselves by what is seen as ‘old-fashioned’
descriptions suffer.

I will only comment briefly on these hypotheses:

On 1. Historically the weak position of geography in universities seems to be a direct
consequence of a rather weak position in the school curriculum. Fotheringham (1984)
stresses that’ the single most important reason for the popularity of geography in
British universities is probably its strength in the school system’. A comparison
between Finland and Norway seems to confirm the same. In Finland geography is
taught as a separate discipline on all levels in the school system, whereas in Norway
it is part of a general ‘orienteering’ subject in primary school and only a definite
separate discipline for one year in high school. In Denmark however, geography
still exists as a separate discipline in schools and this is also supported by a relative
strong organisation of school teachers in geography, but the position of university
discipline is much weaker. Here we may look for other explanations.
In general we may also note that up to the 1970s the educational system was the
main job market for geography candidates so a correlation between geography in
schools and universities seems reasonable.
On 2 and 3. The institutionalisation of geography was in most coutries a direct
result of the new primary and secondary educational system which superseded the
old ‘latin schools’ in the years 1860−1900. New pedagogical ideas gave the basis
for ‘Heimatkunde’, knowledge through experience of the children’s own neigh-
bourhood and home country (See Holt-Jensen 1999, pp. 30−32). Geography was
found useful in this connection. The discipline was established in the universities
often by political decision, sometimes against more or less open resistance from
the universities. As pointed out by Stoddart (1986) geography became established
in Oxford and Cambridge mainly because the Royal Geographical Society covered
the main costs for the lectureships over a period of 35 years. Other disciplines, such
as biology, geology, anthropology feared that they would lose support from the

geographical societies if geography became a university discipline. The political
influential members of the geographical societies saw, however, a broader role for the
discipline; it could fulfil a role which- like that of history- was essential for the new
generation in the epoch of nation building (Capel 1981). Further it was rather useful
in a period of colonial expansion. The anarchist geographers Kropoptkin and Reclus,
however, argued for the discipline as an aid to mutual international understanding,
an argument that suits us better today.
At the end of the 19th century both geography and history was given a position in
school curricula, but their relative positions in the educational system largely came
to depend on the degree to which it was history or geography that seemed most
useful in building up the idea of national identity. Norway had no disputed borders,
but national identity building during the union of crowns with Sweden 1814−1905
was fostered by teaching about the glorious history of Viking times and the precious
liberal constitution of 1814. Hence history came to dominate over geography with
many weekly hours of teaching at gymnasium level. Finland, on the other hand, which
also experienced in the same period a union of crowns with Tsarist Russia, lacked
the legacy of a glorious history and the border of spoken Finnish and Finnish types
of agricultural practice became of more importance; in the Finnish liberation process
the Atlas of Finland (first edition in 1899) was an important medium. Geography
became an important discipline in Finnish school system as it also became in the UK
school system. Quite interesting today is the building of national identities that is
taking place in the Baltic states; there are striking differences between Lithuania in
particular and Estonia. Lithuania can point to a glorious past; the technical university
in Vilnius is named after the medieval leader Gediminas and the country uses much
money to rebuild medieval palaces that are only traced as patches in the ground.
Estonia, on the other hand, cannot point to any glorious past as they were ruled by
others from medieval times. National identity has to be built more on geography, on
the language, folk songs, dances and customs linked to the common people attached
to the land. Estonia has the same background as Finland, Lithuania more the Norwe-
gian. This new nation building may, however, not have any bearing on the attraction
of geography and history as university disciplines.
On 4. Whether the discipline has been maintained as a united discipline or not
seems to be one factor that can explain growth and decline in recent years. In Denmark
geography was lost as a discipline when university education was separated in human
and physical geography in the 1960s; both were simply closed down. And Finnish
geography seems to flourish as a united discipline. The division in human and
physical geography in Sweden and in Oslo in Norway seems, however, to prosper
in academic terms. My concern is that geography as such is not ‘understood’ by the
media due to this division; and thus it is easier for media people to consult sociolo-
gists or geologists.
On 5 and 6. Not all can, however, be blamed on the educational system and the
legacy of institutionalisation; to a large extent development has also been promoted
or reduced due to the activities and choices by disciplinary leaders. A successful
start of a discipline often depends on the brilliance of the first appointed professors.

It is quite clear that Vidal de la Blache in France, Halford MacKinder and Dudley
Stamp in Britain had a very strong influence on the development of the discipline,
mainly as they influenced national politics. In small countries as the Nordic ones,
everything depended initially on one or two persons. In Finland they were very
lucky in having three leading geographers following each other; Hult, Rosberg and
Granö (Rikkinen 1988). In Sweden, Torsten Hägerstrand definitely was an important
inspiration for modern Swedish geography and opened new job opportunities for
the graduates. The image geography has got in media and in the general public is
to a large extent dependent upon the activity of the leaders. In Norway geographers
have had problems in attracting attention in media, whereas social anthropologists
are very often contacted and their opinions focused. The rather strange situation is
that social anthropology attracts more students than geography although their job
opportunities are less. And anthropology also has no position in the school system.
Since the 1970s, however, few geographers have chosen to work in the high school
(gymnasium) system as the discipline has a relatively minor position. This makes
direct recruitment of new students problematic.
On 7. This hypothesis can to some extent be tested. Examples could be drawn
from a number of countries like Germany, The Netherlands and UK, but I will
refrain from that here. When we compare Norway, Sweden and Denmark we find
that growth or decline of the discipline in recent years to a large extent seems to
have been dependent on opportunities lost or taken in the development of applied
research and planning. The main market for Norwegian MA candidates in geography
is in public administration, primarily in local, environmental and regional planning
where their skills have been well received. This is now strengthened by the geography
courses in GIS. In Bergen we have added planning theory and field courses in local
and regional planning, environmental studies as well as coastal zone management
to ordinary geography courses. This is creating a problem as we have to cover many
different courses with a too small staff. On the other hand it is quite clear that it is
the candidates with qualifications from some of these more applied courses that have
the best possibilities in the job market.
Hypotheses 8,9 and 10 I leave uncommented for further reflection. It should only be
concluded that the recruitment of students with high abilities and ambitions is a matter
of grave concern in Norwegian geography departments. New students think they
know what geography is about, based on a rather mediocre presentation of selected
themes at the high school level and more often they choose other disciplines they
believe are more interesting. It is also quite clear that students will often unreflecting
follow new ‘fashions’ or themes that are in media focus, without considerations of job
opportunities in the future. In 1958 50% of the very large number of new entrants to
natural sciences in Norway wanted to be specialists in nuclear physics! At present a
large number of new students in social science and humanities want to be ‘Middle
East specialists’ studying Arabic, social anthropology etc.! The majority of them
will of course be stuck with a specialisation of meagre use when they finish. With
a BA in geography they would have a much broader canvas of choices when they
have studied for some time. And we see the positive effect that the small number of

them that eventually choose to study geography tend to stay on in the discipline and
end up with an MA degree.
References
1. CAPEL H. 1981. Institutionalisation of geography and strategies of change, p. 37−69 in
STODDART, D.R. (edit.): Geography, Ideology and Social Concern. Basil Blackwell,
Oxford.
2. FOTHERINGHAM A. 1984. Geography in the United Kingdom. The Professional
Geographer. 36, 482−486.
3. HOLT-JENSEN A. 1990. Geografiens innhold og metoder. [Link]. Universitetsforlaget,
Oslo.
4. HOLT-JENSEN A. 1999. Geography; History and Concepts. 3rd edition. Sage,
London.
5. STODDART D.R. 1986. On Geography. Blackwell, London.
6. WÄRNERYD O. 1987. Geografi – på gott och ont Geografiske Notitser, XLV, ,
55−56.

145
 Effective Practices in Distance Education in Upper
Secondary Level Geography in Finland

Eila Jeronen1, Sirpa Anttila-Muilu2

1
Department of Educational Sciences and Teacher Education,
University of Oulu P.O.B. 2000, 90014 Oulu, Finland
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]
2
S. Anttila-Muilu, Oulun Lyseon lukio
Kajaaninkatu 3, 90100 Oulu, Finland

Abstract
During the last decade, there have been large changes in the society and the school system
in Finland. This article briefly describes the curriculum for upper secondary school geog-
raphy, to be introduced by the st of August 2005. In the new curriculum, communication,
media skills and technology are listed as important teaching methods. The article also offers
a specific set of pedagogical and assessment strategies found to be successful in distance
education in Geography. Distance education offers students an opportunity to have upper
secondary level education also in small rural village schools, which do not have teachers in
all the required subjects.

Key words: multiform teaching, net-based learning environments, geography education

Introduction
Finland launched a special information society strategy in 1995 (Ministry of Educa-
tion, 1995) in which the use of information and communication technology (ICT)
in teaching and learning figured as a key to accelerating the progress in the chosen
direction (Sinko and Lehtinen, 1999). In 1999, the Ministry of Education updated
the ICT strategy. This was a continuation of earlier governmental efforts to steer
national growth towards an information society through learning and education.
The main concept in the programme was a ´learning citizenship society` (Ministry
of Education, 1999). The third strategy was published in 2004. This Information
Society Programme can be divided into three categories: knowledge, content and
the operating environment. The programme is targeted to all players in the educa-
tion, training and research fields and it concerns all citizens as users or producers
of information society services. The programme is geared 1) to develop all citizens’
information society knowledge and skills, 2) to enable educational institutions to
use information and communications technology (ICT) in a versatile way in their
activities, 3) to establish ICT-based procedures in education, training and research
and 4) to promote social innovation through the use of ICT (Ministry of Education,
2004).
The ICT strategies have affected the processes at schools. All schools have
an Internet connection, and systematic staff development has started. Innovative
146
projects are running and in the best cases, they are a natural part of school life
(Niemi, 2003).

The curriculum for upper secondary school geography

In the Finnish national curriculum for upper secondary school geography, the main
goal is that a student becomes aware of the relationship between the human being and
nature, and understands the earth to be a changing and diverse living environment.
The students should acquire a readiness to analyse regional environmental questions,
and to find solutions in accordance with sustainable development. Geographical
education integrates topics from both natural and social sciences. There are two
obligatory courses to be studied: The Blue Planet and The Common World. The
Blue Planet course consists of Physical Geography. The content includes topics such
as Geographical Thinking, Position of the Earth in the Solar System, Atmosphere,
Hydrosphere, Weather and Climate, Changing Topography of the Earth, Vegetation
Zones, Landscapes through Maps and Figures. The Common World course consists
of cultural geography. Its main topics are The Nature of Cultural Geography, Popula-
tion, Natural Resources, Primary Production and Environment, Industry and Energy,
Traffic and Interaction, Landscapes and Land Use, and Globalisation and Sustain-
able development. In addition, there are two optional courses named The World of
Hazards and Regional Research. The first course includes threats and risks, both from
natural phenomena and the action of human beings. The second one includes Cartog-
raphy, GIS (Geographic Information Systems), and regional geographical research
by the students. In upper secondary level geography, the areas to be evaluated are
the development of geographical thinking skills, mastery of geographical concepts,
stating arguments for conceptions, and skills to observe regional dependences. The
skill to interpret, evaluate and use geographical information, and presentation and
co-operational skills are also to be evaluated (Opetushallitus 2003).

Distance education in Oulun Lyseon Lukio School.

The geographical courses studied in Oulun Lyseon Lukio School are Natural
Geography, Human Geography, Geography of Hazards, and Regional Geography.
One course consists of about 30 hours of teaching during the six week period. The
lessons are each usually 75 minutes long. There are two 75-minute lessons and one
lesson of 45 plus 75 minutes during each course week. Therefore, the student has
three geography lessons in a week. This is the situation in normal contact teaching
in Oulun Lyseon Lukio School.
In distance education, there are two possible teaching approaches. The first is
called multiform teaching, which is used at Tyrnävä and Ylikiiminki satellite schools.
The teaching can be distance teaching all the time, it can partially take place in a
normal contact situation – meaning that the teacher and the students are in a same
classroom at the same time. Usually this happens only once during the course when
the students commute from Tyrnävä and Ylikiiminki to Oulu. The teacher, however,
has the possibility to drive either to Tyrnävä or to Ylikiiminki to give the class and
meet the students in one of the satellite schools and have the videoconferencing going

on to the other satellite school. Of course this is possible only if the teacher only has
a few lessons to be taught overall, because it takes from 35 to 45 minutes to drive
from Oulu to Tyrnävä or to Ylikiiminki. Many teachers do like to drive to the satel-
lite schools whenever it is possible, and the students seem to especially appreciate it.
They feel that the teacher is ready to make some efforts for them. They appreciate
that the teacher really would like to get to know them.
The second approach follows the principles of distance teaching more closely.
It takes place within the Northern Ostrobothnia Distance Teaching Network
(NODiTeN; Pohjois-Pohjanmaan etälukioverkosto in Finnish). The teaching and
learning environment needs technical devices such as computers, phones and maybe
videos. The system is close to virtual schools, but is more effective, because there
is a closer connection between the student and the teacher. In a virtual school the
teacher and the students really do not meet or see each other at all. But in the Northern
Ostrobothnia Distance Teaching Network, there are usually two 100-minute vide-
oconferencing sessions per course. During those two lessons, the students and the
teacher see each other, and can communicate through videoconferencing. Basically,
the sessions have started to resemble normal classes where the difficult parts of the
course are discussed.
The course outlines are presented on the net in a learning environment called
Optima Discendum. Optima provides teachers with possibilities to choose the desired
type of Web-based learning and decide how to implement it. The workspace is a
mode in the environment in which the teacher carries out their training or project.
In principle, an environment can contain any number of workspaces. The workspace
always has an owner who has administrative rights to the workspace. The supervisor’s
role is to create an operational environment in which the venture (or learning activity)
is carried out. The supervisor can assign users to the environment as workspace
members. A user with access rights to one or more workspaces is called a member.
Each user automatically has their own folder, created when the user account is created
or imported into the environment. The user’s personal folder is an environment-level
function, and therefore available regardless of workspace membership, as long as
the user has an account in Optima. Through the desktop, the user can conveniently
and centrally administer the messages, documents, annotations, bookmarks, and
settings in the environment. Messages and documents can be easily located using a
search engine (Discendium, 2002).
There are discussion forums and working environments for each course, which
contain the goals and specific guidelines and materials needed for the course. The
type of the course material depends on the teacher. Sometimes the materials are
similar to virtual schools in that everything is included. However, this is not neces-
sary as the students may still have textbooks and other resources. The students have
given feedback that the material provided should be clear and precise. There is so
much information dealing with geographical issues, that the basic guidelines and
the core material were valued as more important than the amount of information.
The teachers’ job is thus to sieve the core material as clearly as possible. Back to the
basics is the guideline for a distance teacher.

 A variety of methods are necessary to assess student performance and learning.
Evaluation and assessment is an integral part of the teaching-studying-learning
processes. Formative evaluation is embedded in activities and interaction between
students and between students and teachers. The teachers use the information gath-
ered to make corrections and changes in the study plan. Teachers can also use e-mail,
bulletin boards, chat rooms, self-evaluation and product evaluation for assessment.
At the end of the course the students have summarised evaluation tests. This evalu-
ation is based on numerical values. Teachers also make a summarised evaluation of
the students in the form of the final grade. The students´ progress measured using
formative assessments throughout the course is taken into account in the final evalu-
ation. Also this is given in numerical form.

Conclusion
Developing ICT with distance education as a part of it in schools is a long process.
It requires an effective technical infrastructure, psychological and cultural changes
in teaching and learning. It seems that schools are in the middle of this process.
Teachers do not resist implementing ICT, but it seems that they are not completely
convinced of its advantages. In order to fully utilize ICT, they require better learning
materials and digital content in Finnish. In addition, the teachers have problems
integrating ICT in the curriculum, and they feel that the schools lack both effective
technical facilities and support to maintain these environments (Niemi, 2003).
However, distance education is becoming an important component in all educa-
tional sectors in Finland. In this article, some pedagogical features have been
presented that are good to consider when teaching on distance education. In order
to create a rewarding online learning experience, evaluation needs to be combined
with an effective learner-centred pedagogy. When teachers set clearly defined
learning goals and expected outcomes, develop criteria for evaluation, and use
multiple methods of assessing learning and teaching, they promote an environment
that is conducive to learning. By providing activities and leaving time for discussion,
a dynamic community of learners can be constructed.
Finally, course organization strategies, such as scheduled activities and messages
from students and teachers form an integral part of the learning experience. Ongoing
communication and interaction is imperative to support students and help assess-
ment and evaluation made by teachers. That way distance education can also be a
good personal experience and give stimulation and interaction as much as traditional
contact teaching in a classroom.

References
1. Discendium. 2002. Discendum Optima´s flexible architecture 2002. Available:
[Link] (30th April 2005)
2. Ministry of Education. 1995. Education, Training and Research in the Information
society: a national strategy. Helsinki: Ministry of Education.
3. Available: [Link] (30th April 2005)

149
4. Ministry of Education. 1999. The information strategy for education and research
2000−2004. Helsinki: Ministry of Education.
5. Ministry of Education. 2004. Information Society Programme for Education, Training
and Research 2004−2006. Publications of the Ministry of Education, Finland 2004:14.
Available: [Link] (30th April
2005)
6. NIEMI H. 2003. Towards a learning society in Finland: information and communications
~
technology in teacher education. Technology, Pedagogy & Education 12(1), 85103.
7. Opetushallitus. 2003. Lukion opetussuunnitelman perusteet 2003. Nuorille tarkoitetun
lukiokoulutuksen oeptussuunnitelman perusteet. (National Core Curriculum for Upper
Secondary Schools 2003. National Core Curriculum for General Upper Secondary
~
Education Intended for Young People.) Vammala: Vammalan kirjapaino. 14 0142.
8. SINKO M., LEHTINEN E. 1999. The challenges of ICT in Finnish education. Juva:
WSOY.

150
 Primary and Secondary Educators’ Attitudes on School
Geography

Aikaterini Klonari1, Kostis C. Koutsopoulos2

1
Department of Geography University of the Aegean, University Hill, 81100,
Mytilene, Lesvos, Greece
e-mail: aklonari@[Link]
2
National Technical University of Athens, Department of Geography and
Regional Planning, Zographou Campus, 15780, Athens, Greece
e-mail: koutsop@[Link]

Abstract
This research is an attempt in investigating the attitudes of primary and secondary
teachers on teaching geography at primary and secondary schools. A written ques-
tionnaire was filled by 155 primary and 80 secondary teachers who were participating
in a continuing education program at the University of Athens. The analysis of the
questionnaires has shown that although all the educators accept that Geography
is a useful subject and that it should be taught at schools, nevertheless % of the
primary school teachers and 65% of the secondary report that they don’t like the
subject of geography; they don’t want to teach it and they would prefer to teach other
subjects instead. The teachers stated that negative attitudes towards the subject are
due to: a) their insufficient knowledge (they haven’t been taught at all or they have
been taught the subject insufficiently at the University), b) their bad experience as
students themselves (memorization, irrelevant educators etc.), c) the lack of suitable
teaching material which could make the subject attractive and d) the lack of time for
the preparation of the subject according to the demands of the “new Curricula”.

Key words: Geography, Primary and Secondary Education, Teachers’ Attitudes

Introduction
In recent years in Greece, significant attempts have been made towards the improve-
ment and modernization of the geographical knowledge provided at schools, by
means of new geography curricula (Government Gazette Issue [GGI]: 241/1996,
335/2000, 1375/2001, 364/2003), new school textbooks (Galani et al., 2002; Kara-
mbatsa et al., 1997; Karambatsa et al., 1998), creation of new supporting material
(Anagnostopoulos et al.,2001) educational software and, finally, training seminars
for geography teachers. Despite all these efforts, however, the improvement of Geog-
raphy’s image as well as changes in teaching this subject at schools has barely taken
place, if at all (Klonari and Karanikas, 2004).
The literature in general (Lumpe et al., 2000) as well as experience in Greece
(Chalkia, 1999) has shown that the present state of teaching Geography in Greek

151
schools is the result of the role educators are assuming in teaching geography as
well as the attitudes they adapt towards the subject matter of their teaching. This
of course should not be surprising, since the overwhelming majority of educators,
both in primary and secondary schools, have acquired their knowledge of geography
mainly from relevant courses they had taken themselves as students during their
high school education. More specifically, it was found that 92,9% of primary school
geography teachers and 95% of high school geography teachers during their college
education were not taught any Geography courses or they were inadequately exposed
to Geography (subject matter, materials and teaching methods).
Based on these facts it was deemed particularly important as well as extremely
interesting to examine the attitudes and points of view of educators teaching geog-
raphy towards their subject both in primary and secondary schools. This research
attempts to identify the issues that affect the educators’ attitude towards the subject of
geography. To this end, 155 geography teachers of primary schools and 80 geography
high school teachers, from the greater Athens area, were provided with question-
naires containing “open-ended” type questions. The characteristics of the chosen
sample (their composition in terms of sex, age, experience, specialty etc) closely
resembled the national average, creating a statistically credible sample to work
with. As for the questionnaires they contained both positive and negative questions
(e.g. “I like teaching geography because…” and “I do not like teaching geography
because…” or “The subject of geography is essential to students because…” etc), as
well as other more general questions (e.g. “When you say that an educator teaches
geography “properly”, you mean that…” or “When you say that an educator has a
good command of geography, you mean that…” etc) etc. The processing of these
answers led to the formation of a “map” of answers reflecting the attitudes and points
of view of educators regarding geography teaching as well as the image projected
by the educators themselves.
In addition, the questionnaire results were analysed using the “SPSS 10” statistical
package for Windows, in order to investigate whether factors such as sex and years
of service have an effect upon the attitude and points of view of educators regarding
teaching of geography. Finally, one-way ANOVA was utilized in order to discover any
differentiations among various groups of educators. For this purpose, the following
two major groups were established: primary and high school geography teachers.

Results
The results were categorized into four sections and are presented separately. The
first section is related to the teachers’ point of view regarding the subject matter of
geography and their attitudes.
The results show that the overwhelming majority of both the primary and high
school teachers believe that the subject of geography repels students (83,9% and
98,75% respectively) because of four common reasons (the required memorising of
facts, the difficulty of the subject matter, the inadequate or incorrect teaching and
inappropriate educational materials).

152
 The interesting thing, however, regarding these results is that whereas there is not a
statistically significant difference in the view that geography repels students, primary
and high school teachers differ significantly in their justifications of the reasons that
lead to this result. More specifically, the primary school teachers believe that the main
reason is that memorising is required, an opinion that indicates that they have not put
the effort to familiarize themselves with the spirit and rationale of the new curricula
and the changes that they have been brought to the teaching of Geography (method
of teaching, aims, etc); on the other hand, the high school teachers believe that the
lack of educational materials is the main reason, thus shifting responsibility to the
Ministry of Education for not providing schools with the appropriate resources.
These responses should not be surprising given that educators from both the
primary and secondary schools believe that an educator has a good command of
geography when he has knowledge of the countries and continents (49,1% and 60%
respectively), knows how to “read” and use maps (24,5% and 12,5%) and, of course,
employs the appropriate teaching methodology and educational materials (16,1%
and 18,75%).
It should be noted, however, that although both groups reckon that knowledge
plays the most significant role in the subject of geography, there is a statistically
significant difference between primary and high school teachers in terms of the
role of teaching methodology. That is, primary teachers are more sensitised towards
this issue as compared to the high school teachers who claim that if you know the
subject’s material, you can actually teach it well.
The second section of the questionnaire has been concerned with the subject of
geography at school. The two questions concerned with the answers of the educators’
points of view and their justification as to whether the subject of geography is essential
to students and, therefore, should be taught at schools showed the following:
There is absolute agreement between the two groups of teachers, since almost 90%
of them believe that geography must be taught at schools. However, in terms of the
reasons for which they believe that geography must be taught as well as what exactly
it is that students should learn, there is a difference of opinion. That is, primary school
teachers believe that geography should be taught so that children will learn about
the world as well as their country, whereas secondary teachers believe that students
should learn simply how to use maps.
There was a statistically significant difference between primary and high school
teachers in the following question: “What do you mean when you say that an educator
teaches geography properly”. The majority of the primary teachers posed four main
prerequisites: first, to trigger the students’ interest (23.2%), second, to know the
subject-matter (21.3%), third, to use maps and other educational materials (20,6%)
and, finally, to be able to communicate knowledge effectively (15,5%). On the
contrary, high school teachers believe that the first and foremost factor in order to
claim that somebody teaches geography properly is to use maps and other educational
materials (46,5%) and, of course, to know the subject-matter (27,5%).
The third section was concerned with the actual teaching of the subject of geog-
raphy. The answers to the questions of this section show:
153
• A statistically significant difference between secondary and high school teachers
in terms of their enjoyment in teaching geography. Both groups do not seem to
enjoy teaching this subject (52,3% vs 35% respectively). The reasons they provide
for their negative attitude towards teaching geography are: it is not their area of
expertise (high school teachers 27,58%) or they are not properly trained (primary
teachers 13,50%), there is a lack of appropriate educational material (15,20% and
23,50% respectively) and, of course, there are no appropriate books facilitating
the teaching of geography (12.9% and 10% respectively). A considerable number
of educators state that they have a negative attitude towards geography because
of their bad experience as students.
• The majority of primary teachers (47,8%) state that they prefer teaching other
subjects such as history, grammar, arts, math and science. The same is true for
the high school teachers who regardless of their area of expertise state that they
prefer teaching other subjects.
• In terms of high school teachers all specialties, regardless of sex, they prefer
teaching other subjects as a first or second preference; even geologists, for whom
geography is their primary assignment, rank geography 5th or 6th in their prefer-
ences, placing physics and chemistry at the top.
• It is rather impressive that 65% of all high schools teachers place geography after
the 5th place in their order of preference.
• Finally, the majority of educators, both primary and high school teachers (,%
and 72,5% respectively), feel that they do not teach geography properly and the
reasons they provide are: there is a lack of teaching materials, they do not have
time to prepare according to the new curricula requirements and they have not
received further specialization or appropriate training.

The fourth section refers to the relationship educators had as students with the
particular subject. The majority of primary and high school teachers (49,1% and
70% respectively) stated that they did not like geography even when they were
students, because their teachers demanded simple memorising and did not teach
it properly. It is worth mentioning that the majority of all educators stated that
they recall the following in terms of their geography teachers: they were putting
emphasis on remembering facts and drawing maps, they were taught the subject
by non-specialist teachers and geography was considered as a secondary subject.
A significant percentage of them (17,4%) stated that “it feels as if I haven’t been taught
geography at all”. As a result it was revealed that a strong correlation exists (one-way
ANOVA) between the teachers stating they dislike geography and those who had
a bad experience with geography as students. The same type of analysis (one-way
ANOVA), however, identified statistically significant differences between primary
and high school teachers concerning their attitude towards their teaching preference.
Primary teachers display a more positive attitude than high school teachers. Finally,
the analysis showed that there are no statistically significant differences between men
and women in terms of their attitude towards geography.

154
Proposals
From the results reported here and those that were omitted due to lack of space the
following proposals can be made regarding the teaching of Geography in Greece:
• Curriculum changes and introduction of new textbooks and materials should
follow the appropriate training of educators.
• Geography should be taught in all pedagogical departments as a cognitive subject
including geography teaching techniques and methods.
• There is a need to redefine the position and significance of Geography within the
Greek educational system.

References
1. GALANI L., KATSAROS G., KATSIKIS A., TSOUNAKOS Th. 2000. Learning
Greece, Textbook 5th grade, Athens, Organisation for the Publication of Educational
Books (OEDB), (in Greek).
2. KARAMBATSA A., KLONARI A., KOUTSOPOULOS K., TSOUNAKOS Th. 1997.
Geography Textbook th grade, Athens, Organisation for the Publication of Educational
Books, (in Greek).
3. KARAMBATSA A., KLONARI A., KOUTSOPOULOS K., TSOUNAKOS, Th. 1998.
Geography Textbook th grade, Athens, Organisation for the Publication of Educational
Books (in Greek).
4. ANAGNOSTOPOULOS E., KLONARI A., PIGAKI M., TSOUNAKOS Th. 2001.
Educational Material on Teaching of Geography, Athens, Pedagogical Institute, (in
Greek).
5. KLONARI A., KARANIKAS G. 2004. “Comparison of exam questions for the subject
of st grade gymnasium Geography at the June exams of 1999 and 2003”. 10th Panhellenic
Physics Convention, F., Volume A, Education and Teaching of Physics, Loutraki January
29th – February st 2004, pp. 159−162 (in Greek).
6. LUMPE T. A., HANEY J. J., CZERNIAK M. CH. 2000. “Assessing Teachers’ Beliefs
about their Science Teaching”, Context 37, 3, pp. 275−292.
7. CHALKIA KR. 1999. “Attitudes of Greek Educators of Primary and Secondary Educa-
tion as a first teaching of the Subject of Physics”, (Methodology of construction of the
equivalent tool for attitude measurement), Modern Education, 106, pp. 47−56.

155
 Charles University geography graduates in practise:
the relationship between the concept of education and
professional success

Miroslav Marada, Dana Řezníčková

Faculty of Science, dept. of social geography and regional development,

Charles University in Prague, Albertov № 6, 128 43 Prague 2, Czechia
e-mail: marada@[Link] danarez@[Link]

Abstract
In recent years there has been increasing demand for geography studies at Charles Univer-
sity in Prague. In developing high quality of geographical education and making necessary
adjustments we have taken the professional success of our graduates into consideration. For
that reason a wide questionnaire survey among graduates from geographical disciplines
has been done. Nearly 400 respondents answered questions about their carreer, income,
reasons for changing jobs, quality of education regarding their profession etc. The data are
presented here with help of statistical indicators, tables and charts. Several conclusions for
future conception of education programmes at our department are drawn.

Key words: Geographical education, professional successfulness, questionnaire survey,

data analyses

Introduction
The Czech Republic has been undergoing number of conceptual, legislative and
organizational reforms in last fifteen years of societal transition. The changing
external conditions create a new demand on quality of human recourses and on the
concepts of education. Czech universities have modified their study programmes
into three-stages (bachelors, masters and doctoral degrees). There are new special
bachelors programs i.e. for employees in self-administration or in regional develop-
ment and many so called “expert schools” have been established.
At present, geographical education at Faculty of Science, Charles University in
Prague, is traditionally divided into two “universal” branches, one for future geog-
raphy teachers and for so-called professional geographers. However the curriculum
was essentially changed in the 1990’s. New topical subjects, such as regional and
local development, physical planning, behavioural geography or spatial polarization,
have been implemented. Teacher training is taught only in masters programmes and
is either in various combinations of two school curriculum subjects (geography with
maths, history, physical training or with biology; other combinations are possible in
the form of an individual study plan) or as geography itself. After graduation from
bachelor studies, professional geographers and demographers could specialize in
Masters programmes of social geography, regional geography, cartography and GIS
or physical geography and geoecology.

156
 Geographical studies at the faculty have shown an increase in popularity. At the
beginning of the 1990’s there were approximately 80 students a year, now there are
about two hundred. Though the characteristics of applicants are well known due to
the obligatory entrance exams, the professional assertion of geography graduates is
relatively unknown, though they are successful. Professional success may reflect on
the quality and conception of the study programmes, therefore a wide questionnaire
survey among graduates from geographical disciplines was done in 2004. For this
contribution we only present the results of some of the most interesting questions.

Methodology of the survey

A survey on the professional success of graduates is often part of a department’s self-
evaluation. In the Czech Republic surveys have taken place at Masaryk’s University
in Brno from 1997–2002, at South-Bohemian University from 2002–2003 and there
has been older research in author’s department (Bičík and Řezníčková 1998). In a new
survey four hundred geography graduates from years 1998–2004 were addressed by
e-mail and classical mail and we received 183 filled in questionnaires via the website
or mail. The main aims of whole research were to identify the professional trajectory
of our graduates, their present position and, of course, their opinion about quality
of preparation for their profession by the faculty. Below half of the questionnaires
(43%,) were answered by graduates from the teacher training programmes and 57%
were answered by professional geography graduates. 50% of respondents were men,
45% women and 5% did not state. The number of respondents decreases with the
number of years since graduation – we received only 5 filled-in questionnaires from
1999 and 40 from 2004. For structure by study programme see Figure 1.
Figure 1. Structure of 183 answers by
graduate’s study programme
Source: Řezníčková et al (2005)
Notes: Teacher training programmes:
ma-geo = maths+geography, bio-
geo = biology+geography, his-geo=
history+geography, pt-geo = physical
training+geography, geo = only geog-
raphy, other teach. = other teacher
training subject
Professional geography: soggeo =
social geography, reggeo = regional
geography, physgeo = physical geog-
raphy and geoekology, cart = cartog-
raphy and GIS, demo = demography,
other prof. = other professional subject

Selected results of the survey

The majority of respondents stated there had no problem in finding jobs and most
of them started their work in the profession they had been prepared for (Table 1).
157
Table 1. First job in studied field Thanks to the specific
preparation they are
“Something Not
Yes No Total given, teacher-training
between” stated
g radu ates st ated a
Share (%) 57,4 , , 6,6 100,0
stronger focus on work
Source: Řezníčková et. al. (2005) i n educat ion (53%
“yes” against 47% in case of
professional-geography gradu-
ates)
There was variability in the
type of institution where the
respondents started to work in
the year of their graduation.
State institutions and firms have
prevailed during whole period of
analysis. The highest proportion
took place in 2001 when new
provincial (regional) authorities
were established as a part of
major administrative reform.
Geography graduates from
Figure 2. Graduates by present-day job according to year of gradu- Faculty of Science, Charles
ation (%) University in Prague, have
Source: Řezníčková et. al. (2005) found jobs mainly in education
as geography teachers, in admin-
istration mostly as specialists on
regional development, human
resources or environmental
problems and protection. Some
of them continued their studies
and work as researchers and
lecturers at universities (see
Figure 3). Almost three-quar-
ters (74.4%) of respondents
stated they work in positions
which needed tertiary education
studies. Thirty teacher-training
graduates responded that they
are not working in education
(Table 2). Despite the low
number of answers this can be
Figure 3. Field of graduates’ present-
day job (%)
Source: Řezníčková et. al. (2005)
158
explained due to the particularly low salary in education and the lost of interest about
the teaching profession as main reasons. Many teacher training graduates discover
the difficulty of the profession after their first teaching experience in the seventh
term when they are facing “real” life problems.
Table 3. Evaluation of preparedness for work
There is Badly Job out
I lost Other Not
no job in paid job in of place Total
interest reason stated
education education of life
Share
6,7 20,0 0,0 20,0 , 40,0 100,0
(%)
Source: Řezníčková et. al. (2005)
Note: 100% = 30 respondents
T he quest ion nai re Table 3. Evaluation of preparedness for work
also asked for the quality Graduates Graduates
Skills Difference
of education that was 1998–2001 2002–2004
received at the faculty, Theoretical and meth-
1,79 , 0,01
from the necessary skills odological preparation
point of view. Comparing Special knowledge of
, 1,85 0,03
the evaluation of earlier the subject
and later graduates we Practical skills , 2,51 0,21
find no significant differ- Language skills 3,39 3,29 0,10
ences (Table 3). However Communicative skills , 2,56 0,22
it is true that for profes-
Organizational skills , 2,49 0,35
sional needs the opinions
of both types of gradu- Computer literacy , 2,59 -0,15
ates changes over time. Source: Řezníčková et. al. (2005)
Some important conclu- Notes: 1 = very good, 2 = good, 3 = bad, 4 = very bad
sions can be made from
the answers of graduates Table 4. Positive evaluation of preparedness by graduates working in studied
working in field they field (%)
were trained for (Table 4). Skills Very good Good
These respondents espe- Theoretical and methodological prepa-
cially stressed the good ration 28,6 56,0
quality of theoretical and Special knowledge of the subject 29,7 49,5
methodological prepara-
Practical skills , 31,9
tion and the learning
of geographical facts Language skills , 35,2
and knowledge, which Communicative skills , 29,7
traditionally formed the Organizational skills , 27,5
main content of tertiary Computer literacy 11,0 36,3
education. On the other Source: Řezníčková et. al. (2005) Note: 100% = 91 respondents
hand, general skills such
as computer literacy, communicative skills or learning foreign languages had lower

159
importance in geography study programmes. This fact will be taken into considera-
tion in the future reforms of the study programme curricula and content.

References
1. BICIK I., ŘEZNÍČKOVÁ D. a kol. 1998. Uplatnění absolventů Univerzity Karlovy.
Závěrečná zpráva grantového projektu FRVŠ, PřF UK Praha, p. 60.
2. ŘEZNÍČKOVÁ D., MARADA M. 2000. The Selection Process for the Study of Peda-
gogic Geography. In: Šulcová, R. (ed): Sborník příspěvků Science and technology educa-
tion in new millenium. [Link] IOSTE, Peres, Praha, p. 292−296.
3. ŘEZNÍČKOVÁ D. 2003. Geographical Education in the Czech Republic – the past,
present and future. International Research in Geographic Education journal, 12 Vol., 2
No., p. 148−154.
4. ŘEZNÍČKOVÁ D., MARADA M., CHROMY P., KULDOVA, S. 2005. Uplatnění
absolventů geografických oborů z let 1998–2004. Závěrečná zpráva grantového projektu
GA UK, p. 23.
5. Průzkum uplatnění absolventů JU, [Link]
6. Uplatnění absolventů Masarykovy univerzity 1997−2002 v praxi. Final report, http:
//[Link]/pcentrum/pcmu/[Link]

160
New Training Structure in Geography Education in Hungary

Gábor Mezősi

Department of Physical Geography and Geoinformatics – University of Szeged

H-6722 Szeged, Egyetem str 2. POB 653, Hungary
e-mail: mezosi@[Link]

Abstract
On the base of the Anglo-Saxonian model all training systems will be adapted by 2006 in
Hungarian higher education, though medical, law, and artist education are excluded. The
plan for the new Geography undergraduate programme has been prepared collectively by
the national institutions of the higher education and submitted to the Hungarian Accredi-
tation Committee with request for foundation. The education structure is simple, as it is
based on a module system framework. We suggest dividing the education at least into three
professional streams. Those undergraduates who leave the system after the completion of
the undergraduate education (“acquiring a degree”) should acquire knowledge that can be
applied in actual practice, as a part of their curriculum, as well. Those students who would
like to continue their studies in a narrower field on Masters level (academic stream) should
study “more courses on the special subject”, and those who would like to become teachers
should learn something different. Students can leave the third differentiated stream for
the labour market having a professional qualification. According to our ideas, they can be
employed as for example geoinformation specialists, managing area development and tourist
or environmental geographical managers. During the training, several professional outputs
can be ensured within the framework of studies. In the module of differentiated professional
knowledge students will have to obtain 65−75 credits (from 180 B level credit), however,
there are possibilities to transfer credits between the different streams, thus students do not
have to decide “early”, or rather there is no deadline determined when s/he should commit
her/himself to a stream.

Key words: teaching structure, Higher Education, Geography, Hungary, Module-based

programmes

The system based on two cycles

In 1999 the member countries of the EU agreed that the systems of higher educa-
tion in Europe should converge. At that time, the objective was to ensure that the
educational-research capacity and the performance of the European Area of Higher
Education should become number one in the world by 2010 and it should also exceed
the American system. Regarding efficiency, the European system of labour force
– compared for example to the American one – has apparently two weak points.
Firstly, the labour force is less mobile and secondly it is difficult to compare the
many different qualifications. Basically, the establishment of this converged system,
called the Bologna-process, serves to remove these disadvantages from European
higher education.

161
 The Anglo-Saxon model was collectively chosen by the Ministers of Education
as the suggested system. Higher education based on Prussian traditions is applied in
Hungary. It is dual, consisting of two types described as college and the university
education. Colleges provided a shorter education (typically lasting 3 or 4 years), and
they trained teachers for teaching pupils aged between 10 and 14, they issued degrees
of applicable knowledge for example in Information Technology. This education
was not a sufficient basis to allow students to progress towards a PhD. Universities
providing a five-year long education trained professionals, e.g. graduate geographers
and teachers (to teach pupils aged between 15 and 18).
The reformed system is to be adapted to all training systems in Hungarian higher
education, though medical, law, and artist education are excluded, by 2006. The
introduction has several features that are known in the similar efforts in Europe,
however, there are a lot of education segments that feature individual characteristics
and it cannot be denied that this system still contains a lot of ambiguous elements.
These include:
1. Although the needs of the labour market cannot be forecasted precisely, there are
some well established international trends, such as that the future professionals
should be available for the labour market within a shorter period of time, and that
they should have practical knowledge and skills that will need to be improved
further. This is in harmony with the objectives of the government to increase
efficiency, that is, the educational programmes should last shorter and the students
with useful knowledge should leave during the first cycle, the bachelor cycle earlier
and should enter the labour market.
2. An important objective was to increase mobility of labour force – to increase the
free movement of students (and teachers), to establish for transferability within
the system, employable education abroad and professional training, and last but
not least, to achieve readable and comparable qualifications and degrees on a
European level.
3. Regulating the system was an individual Hungarian feature. The bachelor and
master educational levels should usually last 6 terms in a value of 180 credits, or
4 terms in a value of 120 credits respectively. However, in order to introduce new
programmes, it was necessary that the two thirds of the given professions agreed
to it. The Hungarian Accreditation Committee – HAC accepted this as a founda-
tion document.
4. The colleges were generally able to produce BSc/BA programmes, but in order to
deliver Master level courses, the HAC had to accredit it, and colleges were not in
the position to develop Masters courses automatically. This is a considerable source
of conflict as far as the education reform process in Hungary is concerned.
5. A big problem is that the labour market in Hungary does not know or understand
the BSc/BA education system, in addition, there is no experience concerning the
extent to which it should be based on a professional or a more general, theory-
based system. The pattern solves this conflict by being based on the profiles of
the previous university education of five years as a professional stream (based on
a general professional basis).
162
6. These concerns and uncertain outputs (for example, with one third of the students
graduating can go on to Master level according to the plans), and those especially
regarding the unemployment of graduates (nowadays more than 45% of the genera-
tion in question studies in the higher education) make many people uncertain about
supporting this reform.
The new system restructures education to a great extent. In Hungary, there are
400 university and college programmes available for students, whereas, the number
of the undergraduate programmes will be cut down to 100−105 from 2006 onwards.
This also means that the parallelism of university and college training will disap-
pear, complying with some relatively well determined rules, where the institutions
may be accredited for undergraduate and Masters education. Thus, a college may
provide Masters level education if it can produce the personal resources and assets
required in order for it to be accredited. In addition, theoretically, it is also possible
that an existing university will mainly only offer undergraduate education. So, like
other systems in Europe, two-cycle education does not consist of two but rather of
four levels. Apart from the above-demonstrated undergraduate and Masters educa-
tion, studies could begin with post-secondary training, which is not very popular in
Hungary, and might end in doctorate education.

Professional background for the undergraduate level Geography programme

The professional background of the new undergraduate programmes actually means
an easier transfer, an increased willingness to mobility and that students can more
freely acquire knowledge, but first of all, that students can acquire skills that can be
applied in the labour market. The new undergraduate education strongly requires that
at the end thereof students shall possess skills. As far as Geography is concerned,
in order to solve this problem, we would suggest (the situation is supposedly similar
to programmes of sciences and teacher training programmes of Arts) dividing
the education at least into three professional streams. Those undergraduates who
leave the system after the completion of the undergraduate education (“acquiring a
degree”) should acquire knowledge that can be applied in actual practice, as a part
of their curriculum, as well. The HAC calls it practical stream. Those students who
would like to continue their studies in a narrower field on Masters level (academic
stream) should study “more courses on the special subject”, and those who would
like to become teachers should learn something different. As we know it now, there
may exist undergraduate programmes – such as Physics -, where other streams could
be added to these three main streams (practical, academic and teacher). Anyway, we
do not intend to increase the number of internal streams at the undergraduate level
in the practical stream, of course. The government intends to support the different
trainings, which are considered to be very important, in a way that it gives a state
support for further 30 credits (ca. one term) to those students who would like to leave
the undergraduate education with a supplementary profession in order to acquire
the necessary knowledge.
This is the point where we should really think of the situation of Geography. It
is said in many institutions of England that Geography is not a profession but an
163
academic science. I do believe that Geography can exist as a profession for the
labour market, as well. Besides this, training for related professions known on the
labour market could be better considered, which are taught in several institutions of
higher education anyhow nowadays (such as tourist, region development manager
or specialist of geoinformatics), and they can provide other training for accredited
professions other than that for geographer assistant or technician. As for students’
graduation, as a practical output all post secondary training could be considered.
According to the regulations, teacher qualification will only be acquired as a result
of Masters-level education. This means a uniform teacher training system, thus the
existent system, in which teacher training is divided into university and college
education, will be discontinued. Graduate teachers shall be eligible to teach pupils
aged between 10 and 18. It means a real loss of position for Geography and similarly
to other subjects such as natural science,), as the teachers of primary education will be
entitled to teach a smaller part of the specific subject to pupils aged between 10−12.
The uniform teacher training approach may seem to be unusual to some people
involved, but this should not induce insecurity. However, it is certain that if despite
all the curriculum framework and regulation of the pupil competences, if Geography
as a subject wants to make advances, then something different should be taught in
a slightly different way in a slightly different structure too.
The regulation of the two-cycle system concerns “at least one and a half
programmes”, as far as teacher training is concerned the half programme is used to
constrain the integrated programmes into a system which is similar to the German
system of majors and minors. Theoretically, this is dual education, that is to say the
study of one major plus one minor is supported. It is not easy to fit this to the above-
demonstrated system, but it can be solved if the programmes of arts, that of skills
(such as drawing, singing-music) and that of natural sciences can be combined ad-lib.
As for the solution, it should be taken into consideration that there is no separate input
for teacher training, students shall base their higher studies on a professional input.
It is the teaching profession which is stressed by external and internal interests and
real professional problems at the same time.
As for Geography (like the majority of the liberal arts and natural sciences) the
key point of the solution is included in the undergraduate programme, Geography
students acquire the majority of knowledge here (e.g. two thirds thereof, three quar-
ters thereof), which is sufficient to acquire further knowledge in a research stream or
even in a practical stream in the future. The students who want to be teachers could
gather credits in “another major” such as Biology or Art in the remaining period (in
one third or one quarter of the 180 ECTS), in order to establish the basis thereof. The
student can also begin their studies related to the teaching profession (at least to the
value of 10 ECTS). Therefore, in the teaching stream of undergraduate education
there is a kind of one-sided teaching, more “majors” and fewer “minors”. This system
enables the students to alter their studies flexibly, and if they realize that they cannot
meet a certain challenge, they can transfer to another stream with relatively few
difficulties. The training can be adjusted at Masters level, where students have fewer
courses in their main major subject and more in their “second major” area, therefore
164
the two majors will be balanced at this level to a total value of 100−110 ECTS credits,
respectively. To this value a total of 50 ECTS credits related to teaching profession
can be added. Teaching practice is also allowed for in the teacher stream. In order for
students to be able to start their job with more experience, a further 30 ECTS credits
of school practice is provided for them, if this was a residential system, they can then
do teaching practice for another half year at school under real life circumstances.
Details regarding this issue have not been elaborated yet.
If the geography profession enforces its interests adequately and if it can demon-
strate that it can provide valuable training for society in Hungary, then the institutions
of higher education will be able to maintain the number of the admitted students
whose education is financed by the state because there is demand for it (admitted
as full time students). On the basis of what we know now, it can be estimated that
approximately 900−1000 students can begin their undergraduate Geography studies
in the new system in 2006. From among them 200−300 students will be able to enter
the master grade of the teacher training in 2009, this number meets the needs for
teachers. Actually, there is no problem with having 200−300 researchers profession-
ally in the sense that there is a model for the training of geographers as far as the
content of the education is concerned. The situation of the students who leave the
system by completing undergraduate level cannot be solved – at least provisionally
– by saying that there is no demand for people with such qualifications on the labour
market, we do think that the successful institutions will create training that students
will find attractive and that the labour market accepts. The institutions of higher
education in Hungary have a regional scope that is that the majority of their students
come from their respective geographical region. It suggests that there will be great
competition between the institutions at Masters level and not undergraduate level.
Therefore, the situation concerning Masters level education may have a surprise up
its sleeve regarding this issue and generate high competition between institutions.
This whole situation will further be complicated by the fact that there will also be
an undergraduate programme called Earth Science, however, it has similar output
weaknesses with that of the BSc programme of Geography (it is an undergraduate
programme that is not considered to be a teaching training programme). There
has also not yet been discussion of how we will admit students coming from other
undergraduate programmes into the graduate programme and who will accept the
BSc degree in Geography for entry to Masters level courses.

The structure of the Geography undergraduate programme

The plan for the new Geography undergraduate programme has been prepared
collectively by the national institutions of the higher education and submitted to the
HAC with request for foundation/accreditation. The education structure is simple,
as it is based on a module system framework. The modules are divided into three
groups, the basics, the professional core material and the differentiated professional
group. For each module (and for the courses in “core subjects” thereof) minimum
and maximum credit points have been determined by a committee in order that the
undergraduate programmes in Hungary can be developed in parallel and that they
165
can convene. Details of these modules are provided here with the total ECTS credits
that can be achieved when completing the course indicated in brackets:
1. Fundamental modules
A. Natural and Social Science fundamental module (total of 10−16 credits
required)
Compulsory contents: Mathematics, Informatics, fundamentals of Natural
Sciences (Chemistry, Biology, Physics), fundamentals of the European Union,
fundamentals of Economics and Social Sciences ( such as Sociology, Demog-
raphy), and other fundamentals of Natural and Social Sciences in compliance
with the traditions and opportunities of the specific institution
B. Earth Science fundamental module (total of 13−21 credits required)
Compulsory contents: Climatology, Cartography, other basic studies of Earth
Science
C. Geography fundamental module (total of 13−21 credits required)
Compulsory contents: Geomathematics (Statistics, Dynamic Geography,
Quantitative Geography, Area Statistics and so on), Geoinformatics (GIS,
RS, Digital Mapping, Relation-Analysis and so on), Geographical Thinking
(Historical Geography, Environmental Protection, introduction to Geography
and so on), methods and techniques of geographical analysis and research
2. Professional core material
A. Natural Geography core module (total of 12−20 credits required)
Compulsory contents: Geomorphology and Internal Forces, Soil Geography,
Biogeography, Hydro Geography, and other courses in compliance with the
traditions and opportunities of the specific institution (such as Country Ecology,
Zonality, Synthesis)
B. Social Geography core module (total of 12−20 credits required)
Compulsory contents: Population and Settlement Geography, General
Economic Geography (Geography of Agriculture, Transport, Industry, Infra-
structure), and other courses in compliance with the traditions and opportunities
of the specific institution (such as Political, Ethnical, Religion Geography)
C. Regional Geography core module (total of 12−24 credits required)
Compulsory contents: Natural and Social Geography of Europe, Natural and
Social Geography of Hungary (Carpathian basin) other Regional Geography
3. Differentiated professional module
The feature of this training is that besides the basic and professional core mate-
rial students can acquire further professional knowledge during their studies,
which is divided into the following three main professional streams, groups:
A. Module for the teaching profession (teaching stream)
B. Module preparing geography/earth science – geographer – researcher (research/
academic stream)
C. Module preparing practice (practical, professional stream)
It can be seen that each of the three module-groups have different orientations,
they prepare students for different things. Attending the teaching stream, students
can study introductory courses in teaching and the basics of their minor studies. In
166
the research stream, students are provided with further basics in order to be able to
do the professional Masters education in the future. Now we think that this stream
also needs some central points, however, it will strongly depend on what kind of
Masters education the institutions prepare for. According to existing national ideas
the main points are likely to be:
• rural and environment geography,
• area and settlement development,
• social and natural science, and
• further fundamentals of informatics of this profession.
Students can leave the third differentiated stream for the labour market having a
professional qualification. According to our ideas, they can be employed for example
as geoinformation specialists, managing area development and tourist or environ-
mental geographical managers. During the training, several professional outputs
can be ensured within the framework of studies. In the module of differentiated
professional knowledge students will have to obtain 65−75 credits, however, there
are possibilities to transfer credits between the different streams, thus students do
not have to decide “early” in their studies, or rather there is no deadline determined
when s/he should commit her/himself to a stream. 5% of the credits are optional
during the training programme. Certainly we have tried to elaborate the streams in
more detail including the students’ competences, as well. Thereinafter, the struc-
ture of the programme geography and that of another major in the teaching training
(major/subject x) is presented:
Undergraduate education (180 credits)
80−100 credits in Geography
55−65 credits in a professional subject of major x, which contains the core material
of the undergraduate education of major x
10−15 credits in the teaching module
10 credit in thesis (in Geography)
10−15 credits optional
Master education (120 credits)
15−25 credits in Geography
40−60 credits in minor x
30−40 credits in teaching module
10 credits in thesis (in Geography or minor x)
4−6 credits optional
Teacher training is being carried out in two majors in the spirit of uniform teacher
training within a disciplinary framework. During their studies, students thus can enrol
for teaching courses or for the courses of their other major (minor) at any time.
The real challenges are only now arising for the institutions. They shall put into
their structure this “from-till” system. It is a big question whether the institutions
have enough power to use this structural reform also for updating the course content
as well, or will they decide to choose the well-beaten path they had been using until
now. In our view, the fact that the practical training was immature has established
pressure to undertake action, however, also modernity and diversity of Masters level
167
preparation and to some extent, teacher training with its new structure will have to
do the same.
Some consequences of the two-cycle system affecting the geography teaching in
the primary and secondary education
Starting the new undergraduate level of the higher education in 2006 does not only
reform the university-college education and establishes a uniform framework for
them, but it also affects the two main participants of secondary education (teachers
and students) and the consequences to the curriculum of primary and secondary
schools that are worth discussing can be determined, as well. Experienced and
competent teachers certainly will be able to suggest relevant methods to teach the
latter one.
Discussing the curriculum requires slightly different approach. This impulse will
be provided to the participants included in the teacher training, as well. It is a bit more
difficult in cases such as Physics where it is clear what natural law in what context
should be taught in order that a complex picture and a utilizable knowledge shall
emerge in the students. In case of Geography, there are no natural laws, there are only
procedures proceeding statistically. There is a great lack of the analysis thereof or of
discussion, however, the main problem concerns the competences that can be applied
also in practice. If Geography cannot demonstrate this and it remains a basically
descriptive subject, it cannot count on the great support of society. Certainly, many
people say that relationships cannot be analysed without information. This might
be true, but we do not think that the key to practical knowledge is only this. If one
obtains more information regarding the geography of Brazil, it does not necessarily
help people handle the natural and social questions easier. In accordance with our
modern age, one shall reply to practical questions with competent answers.

168
 Evaluation, assessment and geographical education

Finn Møller

University College of West Jutland, Skolebakken 171, 6705 Esbjerg, Denmark

e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
Within the last ten years various Danish politicians have been focusing on the use of evalua-
tion and assessment as tools to increase the general quality of education in the Danish primary
and lower secondary school, including Geography education. This article describes the actual
situation regarding Geography education in state schools in Denmark and offers recommen-
dations as to how Geography teachers may address the self-evaluation of their own teaching
and assessments of students’ learning. Furthermore, the article will include reflections on how
teacher education and in-service training can contribute to qualifying this effort.

Key words: evaluation, assessment, geographical education, school geography, lower

secondary School, in-service training, Denmark

Introduction
Danish school geography these years is in a position of uncertainty as a consequence
of a present debate on the quality of education in the Danish primary and lower
secondary education. On one hand it is generally acknowledged that schools need
to focus on and improve the quality of science education, because international
surveys demonstrate that the level of Danish students’ scientific literacy is too low
compared with students’ results in other countries. Different initiatives have been
taken over the last couple of years to change this situation. National standards in
every subject have been made, and the number of examinations increased. On the
other hand, it seems to have been a shock for some politicians to realize that young
people in Denmark in fact do have very little geographical knowledge. During some
years now school geography has been a low status subject in Danish schools and that
may be the explanation for this present situation.
There has not been a tradition in Danish schools for using systematic evaluation
and assessment for many years. Assessing and judging the results of the education
and the students’ learning and knowledge has been handed over to the teachers, who
themselves have had to make the decisions of how this had to be done. This situa-
tion is currently under change. Teachers now are being instructed to assess related
to the national standards.

Evaluation and assessment in school geography: the situation of today

In the ‘Act on the Folkeskole’ (the Danish Primary and Lower Secondary School)
the use and function of assessment is being described this way: “As part of the
teaching, there shall be a regular assessment of the pupils’ benefit from the teaching.

169
The assessment must form the basis of the guidance of the individual pupil with a
view to further planning of the teaching.” (Danish Ministry of Education, 1996a, p.
12). This should indicate an already existing use of assessment in Danish schools,
but the reality is that assessment and evaluation are treated in various and often
random ways by the teachers.
Geographers dealing with school geography from an outstanding point of view agree
this is a great problem for geography as a subject as well for the students in developing
their geographical competencies. The problem seems to be connected to the content in
the education of teachers where this theme is not properly dealt with.
It’s difficult to get a clear picture of Danish school geography as it is practiced. It is
also complicated to get an overview on the way teachers are handling evaluation and
assessment in this subject. That’s the reason I decided to conduct a survey focusing
on this theme (Moller, 2004). Results from this will be given below.

GeoGlimt: a survey on evaluation and assessment in Danish school geography

‘GeoView’ is the translation of the title of the survey ‘GeoGlimt’ into English,
meaning a modest glimpse on geography. It turned out that only sixteen teachers
returned the questionnaires so it has been unrealistic to make statistically satisfying
conclusions about the situation for school geography in Denmark in general. There-
fore only qualitative statements from the participating teachers are summed up in
order to illustrate some of the circumstances geography is dealing with.
The intention of this survey was to get an overview of different aspects in rela-
tion to evaluation and assessment used in geography education in primary and lower
secondary schools in Denmark. The outcome was to be able to return recommenda-
tions to the teachers. The aspects selected to be focused on were (1) how evaluation
and assessment is practiced in school geography, (2) the methods used for evaluation
and assessment, (3) the view on evaluation and assessment, and (4) an identification
of problems, difficulties and possibilities related to the work with evaluation and
assessment.
Before looking at the results of the answers given in relation to the first focus
it’s necessary to understand the teaching concept used in this survey. Teaching is
understood as a four step process in relation to any lesson or project: (a) working
out aims based on the curriculum as well as the students qualifications, (b) planning
the way the teaching has to be carried out in order to reach the aims (selection of
books and other educational materials, organisation of the way the students have to
work, agreements with colleagues about cooperation, information to parents, etc.),
(c) the education (the students’ work), (d) evaluation of the three former steps. The
students’ work is thus described as part of a learning process or simply learning, and
the purpose is to acquire knowledge, skills and competences.
Although teachers generally should work out education aims not all of them do it
and not many of them do it before each lesson or project, and the national curriculum
is only used now and then.
The teachers surveyed seem to evaluate the education formative in some extent,
and when it takes place it is often carried out unsystematically. When summative
170
evaluation is done it normally involves assessment of the fulfilment of education
aims. The reason for assessing students’ fulfilment of learning aims is explained in
two ways: primarily, the intention is to give the teacher information about his or her
teaching in order to be able to develop it over time, secondly, it is to get an overview
of the students’ learning process and their achievement of knowledge.
In the Danish geography curriculum a series of education standards are described.
The GeoGlimt survey asked the teachers how much they integrated these standards
into their teaching, with about half of the teachers answering that they never did.
The other respondents reported that they used the standards now and then in their
teaching.
The methods used for evaluation and assessments are almost unsystematic and
based on informal conversations with the students. Tests are very seldom used
whether it is for the evaluation of teaching or assessment of learning. A large majority
of the teachers believed that an obligated summative assessment at the end of the
geography study will raise the quality of the education in general and the students’
commitment to and interest in geography.
It is remarkable that in spite of the fact that evaluation and assessment are not
systematically carried out there appears to be a common understanding amongst
teachers that evaluation and assessment are necessary, important, and useful for the
development of quality of geography education in school.
The implementation of evaluations and assessments in the Danish teaching culture
seem to be difficult because of the teachers’ uncertainty about doing evaluation and
assessment. These problems are primarily caused by the fact they have never been
trained to evaluate and assess and therefore do not know technically what to do. The
teachers themselves say they need help and support if evaluation and assessment is
to become an integrated part of their professional work.

Geography: the substance of evaluation and assessment

School geography seems to have a low status in many countries all over Europe these
years, and this is also the case in Denmark. That is a problem for the subject itself
and for geographers and others. In particular, those who find geography of great
value as a contribution to children’s’ and young people’s development as democratic,
responsible, caring, and well informed citizens in the local, national, and global
world are troubled by this.
In addition to this, it is difficult for teachers and others to decide the essence in
geography, when low status leads to low levels of knowledge about school geography.
Knowing what geography is and is not, and what is of importance, is necessary if
you’re teaching this subject. This fundamental understanding of geography will be
an initial requirement needed to deal with evaluation and assessment of the subject.
Today the aim of geography education is described this way:
“It shall be the aim of the teaching in the subject of Geography that the pupils
acquire knowledge about and an understanding of the natural and cultural prereq-
uisites for the conditions of life in Denmark and in other countries as well as of
the societies’ exploitation of the natural basis and resources.

 The teaching shall build on the pupils’ own observations, experiences and inves-
tigations and on geographical sources so that they develop and interest to improve
their knowledge about the surrounding world on their own.
The teaching shall further the pupils’ understanding of foreign cultures and give
them the opportunity to develop commitment, independent attitudes and responsi-
bility in relation to problems regarding the exploitation of the natural basis, resources
and the culture-created surroundings and the consequences for the environment and
for the conditions of life.” (Danish Ministry of Education, 1996b, p. 43)
Geography education takes place at th to th level in primary and lower secondary
education for pupils thirteen to fifteen years old, and in a few years time it will also
be at 9th level (fifteen to sixteen old pupils). At 1st to 6th level (up to thirteen years old)
geography is taught to pupils together with biology, physics and chemistry, integrated
in the subject science. The consequences of the introduction of standards in Danish
schools is still too early to describe, but there is an increasing awareness are present
among teachers and geographers in general of the problems created by changing
teaching from a focus on the essence of the subject to a dependence of the standards.
Focusing on the purpose or the intention of teaching geography, it is important to
define the geographical competences and then place this concept in dialogue with
the concept not well known in Denmark: geographical literacy.
The conclusion reached is that the competence concept is much wider than the
literacy concept. Where geographical literacy demands geographical knowledge,
skills, and use of geographically working methods, geographical competence in addi-
tion includes the capability of critical reflection on the elements that geographical
literacy demands, together with the ability to act in daily life as an independent
and democratic citizen. Of course this influences the geography education in the
two cultures of educational thinking, and is directly illustrated in the difference in
evaluation and assessment traditions.
Supporting students in developing geographical competences, teachers have to
involve their active participation in their own learning process. It’s not sufficient
just to help them in identifying their learning results in geography education such as
how good they are in solving standardised multiple choice tests or delivering factual
knowledge. Teachers have to create frames or conditions for the students working
in geography, so they will be able to handle public matters of current interest and
relevance to the students by using geographical knowledge and methods. Students
need to experience that geography education is not only a matter of reaching stand-
ards. They have to learn by experience how they can use geographical knowledge
to make decisions based on critical assessments so they’re capable of analyzing and
understanding how people lives their lives in interacting with each other and the
local and global environment.
The development of the use of assessment and evaluating geography education
takes place by working with the process. Assessment and evaluation relevant to
supporting teachers is necessary in their efforts to qualifying to teach geography,
and also in helping the students in developing their own geographical competences.
Standardized evaluations and assessment systems only gratifies external interests,

such as for example politicians and parents, but it is no guarantee to create a better
education.

Recommendations: evaluation and assessment in Danish school geography

Evaluation and assessment in geography education should be looked at as an inte-
grated part of the evaluation and assessment culture in any school. Teacher educa-
tion and in-service training should support teachers by concentrating their focus on
some divided areas of interest for the success and quality of geography education,
namely:
(1) the school management (management style, etc.)
(2) the school geography (conditions, resources, etc.)
(3) the geography teachers (education, competences, in-service training, etc.)
(4) the geography teaching (aims, teaching methods, etc.)
(5) the evaluation and assessment work (research methods’ and design, etc.)
(6) evaluation of the geographical teaching (purpose, relevance, information, etc.)
and
(7) assessment of the students’ benefit from the geography education (self-evaluation,
etc.).

References
1. DANISH MINISTRY OF EDUCATION 1996a. Act on the Folkeskole. Consolidation
Act № 55 of 17 January 1995. København: Danish Ministry of Education.
2. DANISH MINISTRY OF EDUCATION 1996b. Aims and Central Knowledge and Profi-
ciency Areas. København: Danish Ministry of Education.
3. MOLLER F. 2004. Evaluering & Geografiundervisning. Kobenhavn: Danmarks Pada-
gogiske Universitet.


 The Relationship between Geography and Other Disciplines
in Spanish Higher Education

Manuel Mollá

Department of Geography, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid,

28009 Madrid, Spain
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
The training of the professional geographer is one of the great challenges before the conver-
gence arising from the Bologna Agreement, in a Europe with borders that are more and more
diluted. In this context, it is necessary to return to think how to develop studies of Geography
that give answer to this challenge. In recent years, Spanish Geography has moved away from
disciplines that were their essential tools. In front of a formation more and more specialized,
with a clear vocation towards the territorial planning, I believe that Geography must recover
its character and again places concepts in front of the technological development.

Key words: Professional geographer, Bologna Agreement, interdisciplinary studies

The process of “European convergence” for Spain

If we accept that modern Geography was born with Humboldt, we can also say
that Geography is the process of convergence of different disciplines and sciences.
Without making history of the geographic thought, from that naturalistic birth of
Geography, and with figures of reference like Ratzel or Vidal de la Blache, to mention
only two, Geography is elaborating a complex theoretical body of knowledge, in
which one thing was always clear, or seemed to be, that Geography was a discipline
or science – I do not want to introduce that controversy, where geographic concepts
converge – many of them adopted and transformed, and those that have arrived
from outside.
Although Geography was born basically like a discipline into the hands of the
naturalists, the first class of Geography in Spain, appeared at the end of the 19th
Century, in the faculties of Philosophy and Letters, and thus it has always stayed
there, although it is common that in the studies of Geology there are also classes of
physical Geography, taught usually by geologists. During the second half of the 20th
Century, university Geography education was changing (Valenzuela et al., 2004)
from humanistic studies – where the future geographer had classes of Latin, Philos-
ophy, Language, Literature, History, Geography… to studies much more specialized,
as they are the new curricula of 1993, in which for the first time a Geography degree
appears with broken links to the other humanities.
It is possible to say, in its institutional birth, the Spanish Geography left one of its
fundamental bases, the natural sciences, when it had been taken into the humani-
ties schools. Even Physical Geography and its different branches (Geomorphology,


Climatology, and Biogeography, to indicate a few) were lost. The influence of French
Regional Geography (Vidal de la Blache) affected Spanish Geography during the
second half of the 20th Century.
During the 1980’s, in my opinion, there was an important change in the mentality of
those in universities, as well as in society as a natural consequence. Greater speciali-
zation, adapted to the new times and a more specific labour demand influenced each
other. The answer to this is demonstrated in the new curricula, which is much more
fragmented. From the Geography and History degrees (with three common years
and then two of specialization in which it was possible to be chosen by: Geography,
Ancient and Middle Ages History, Modern and Contemporary History, History of Art
and Prehistory and Archaeology), came three new degrees (Geography, History and
History of Art), without common bridges or classes. For example, in Geography there
were no longer studies of History, not even a general history of Spain. There were
similarly no studies of History in History of Art or Geography in History either.
The definitive rupture of the Humanities is now delivered in this way, at least
in university education. However, almost in a contradictory way, there has now
appeared, for the first time in Spanish university history, a Humanities degree. This,
in general, is a reminder of the old studies in the faculties of Philosophy and Letters.
This degree has not had much take-up; it has been developed only in few universities
and it has been seen, by many, as the kind of degree for those people who want to do
something at university, but without an aim or certain career. It thus has developed
as a kind of “general culture” degree.
It is necessary to also say that the reforms of beginnings of the 1990’s implied
an important formal transformation in Spanish universities with an atmosphere of
wide debate in the academic world. Semesters were introduced as the organizational
form, as opposed to annual classes; European credits would be the measurement
system; the Erasmus program filled our classrooms with university students from
other countries and allowed mobility for many Spanish students, Europe began to be
a different reality. This “formal transformation” however was not accompanied by
a parallel process of educational renovation. In many cases, the old annual classes
were divided into two, I and II, and in others, the programs were reduced. But the
old formula of the class based on the skilful lesson of the professor, stayed almost
intact. This has been lost time when reform might also have included renovating the
learning and teaching approaches.

The professional geographer and the interdisciplinary sciences

The new reforms impelled by the process of “European convergence” force us to
open the debate about educational innovation. At this moment, the proposal of the
Spanish Consejo de Coordinación Universitaria (Council of University Coordina-
tion) reduces the number of degrees by half, from over 140 to little more than 70.
Some of the new degrees will disappear, as is the case of the Humanities, and in
others they will become combined (History of Art would become united to History).
Geography is not affected, but the proposal made by the Spanish geography depart-
ments (led by the Association of Spanish Geographers -AGE) to create a degree in
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Geography and Territory Planning has not been accepted. The Geographers White
Book with this proposal can be seen at the web page of the Asociación de Geógrafos
Espanoles ([Link]
In addition, thinking about the classes in ECTS terms appear to be a great
opportunity to renew our lessons and to exile for ever from the Spanish universities
that “contract” by which the professor arrives at the classroom and speaks and the
students write. Or alternatively they do not write, nor do they attend the class but
later on they copy notes of their companions. This reform is a difficult task because
there are already groups of professors and students fighting against the “capitalist
globalization” that they say is meant by the Bologna process.
Since the 1980’s the general aim was for Geography students to participate as active
agents in land use management and to learn many techniques; but most of the time,
their career aspirations were limited, once they completed their studies, to entering
companies of automatic cartography and GIS, where they would spend most of their
time digitizing in front of a computer screen. Were their studies necessary for this?
Land use planning is, basically, in the hands of architects, and geographers and is
carried through work delegated by them. For that reason the proposal of the Associa-
tion of Spanish Geographers in the White Book did not have a favourable echo from
the authorities. It is not difficult to guess that the group of architects carried much
more social weight that that of the geographers. This therefore reflects to the question
of how the new studies adapt and prepare students for the labour market.
I have the impression that, from an ideological perspective, the situation of geog-
raphy as a subject is very serious. Spanish students of Geography seem to be losing
any critical perspective. The disciplines that, traditionally, contributed with their
content and ideas to the geographic task are no longer linked. Geography seems to no
longer concern itself with major issues. For example, it is interesting to observe in the
Spanish bibliography that geographers are rarely represented in discussing questions
like the problem of the nationalism or the conflicts and wars of recent years. Without
a historical or economic perspective it is impossible to make a correct geographic
analysis. But instead it is the sociologists, and anthropologists who are occupying the
spaces that geographers have left empty. So we should ask why geographers in Spain
no longer concern themselves with places where previously we had much to say.
The professional development of the geographer is thus one of the great chal-
lenges that we face in the new common Europe, for that reason our reflections must
consider the history of the discipline and what we can offer to society. On one occa-
sion, Professor Emilio Lledó said, in reference to the technological progress and the
role of Humanism:
“(…) La transformación y agresión que la naturaleza sufre, debida a ese progreso
tecnológico, es tan grave que la fundamentación del un humanismo renovado
tendría que partir de esa situación. Basta leer la prensa diaria para percibir, clara-
mente o entre líneas, los múltiples problemas sin solucionar que arrastra el logro,
más o menos aparente, de ciertas parcelas del llamado “bienestar”. Esta palabra
supone una doble vertiente: por un lado se refiere a la gratificante instalación de
nuestro cuerpo en un espacio adecuado y, me atrevería a decir, fraternal. Pero,
176
 además, supone el goce capaz de asimilar esa instalación, aprovecharse de ella,
vivir con ella y, en casos excelentes, crear desde ella. Y este sentimiento sería
imposible si supiéramos que el estar de ese bienestar, el lugar real o ideal en el
que se despliega la vida tiene sus días contados, y que esa proliferación de medios
técnicos lleva consigo la implacable contradicción de destruir la base de un estar
natural sobre el que necesariamente ha de asentarse toda forma civilizada de
bienestar” (LLEDÓ, 1998, 20)
At heart, the creation of The Archipelago of the Humanistic Thematic Networks
groups eighteen higher education thematic networks that are registered under the
common idea of Humanistic Arts and Sciences is not only an answer to the Bologna
declaration, but it also tries to go further on, looking for common or complementary
spaces that have always existed as those that would not normally be able to exist.
Therefore, it is not only professor Lledó who calls us to think of the world before
technological development, but that most of us also are conscious of the permanent
aggressions that nature suffers and of the necessary answers to this. Geography
has the forms to analyse, to describe and to denounce those processes, as well as to
look for solutions. But from my “old fashioned” concept of Geography, I understand
that it is not possible to do this with the training that we are currently giving to our
students in university. Thus, in the main, techniques classes are the foundation on
which Geography is constructed, therefore, they must occupy a central position in the
curriculum; only then should Geography be concerned with subjects of a general or
regional character, where Spain, Europe, Latin America, or other places are shown,
though they must not be devoid of scientific foundation. The classes on geographic
thought, often considered “useless” by students has led to an inversion of values,
where the thought, the conceptual bases ought to be left is dazzled by the new tech-
nologies. Many years ago, the first thing my professor who was going to give us the
class of “Techniques in Human Geography” said to us was: “the techniques are tools
at the service of an idea or a concept”. Today, our students reject the ideas and the
concepts and only remain with the techniques.
Why has this inversion of values taken place? I believe, sincerely, that it is the
result of our bad understanding of the impact of the training and specialization of the
new geographers. When we compare Geography to other disciplines, the geographers
seem to have simply become technicians at the service of other professionals, who
are in turn, replacing them when considering spatial or land use terms. If that is what


“Nature suffers transformation and aggression because technological progress and it’s so
serious that the basis of a renovated humanism should have to begin from that situation. It
is enough to read any newspaper to understand, clearly or between the lines, certain parts
of usually called “welfare” have created too many problems without solutions. This concept
has two ways: our own situation in a very suitable place, even fraternal. But in addition, it
means the enjoyment able to assimilate that situation, to take advantage of it, to live with it
and to create from it. And this feeling would be impossible if we knew the welfare, the real
or ideal place is almost in its last days, because the proliferation of technical instruments
carries itself the contradiction for destroying the natural site which is the necessary base
for any civilized form of welfare.”

we wished, of course we have obtained it. Nevertheless, I think that this, in general,
has been a mistaken development of the curricula which has led to these results. It is
necessary consequently to return to thinking about the basic concepts of Geography
and on the position of the discipline, and the Humanities in general, in providing for
the needs of the world. Hence I propose a revision that leads us to analyse the rela-
tionship of Geography with other sciences and other disciplines, because only then
will the geographers be able to offer to society something truly excellent, beyond
“degree courses” where geographers can compete in the labour market.
If we consider the traditional definition of Geography as the study of the relation-
ships between human beings and the means with which they live, we would provide
a perfect account of the wide range of knowledge and complex relationships that are
necessary to make economic, political or social decisions, or we would not have the
global vision necessary to act suitably on that space. This does not mean that the
studies of Geography must turn into an amalgam of diverse classes coming from
different specialties. It means, simply, that the geographer in training for professional
futures must recover the capacity for synthesis from different perspectives that tradi-
tionally has characterized the discipline. Without this we will be resigned to our own
idiosyncracies. The adoption and application of sophisticated and novel techniques
will dominate rather than maintaining their place at the service of ideology, as under-
stood in the wide sense as provided in the Dictionary of the Real Academia Espanola,
“Conjunto de ideas fundamentales que caracteriza el pensamiento de una persona,
colectividad o época, de un movimiento cultural, religioso o político, etc.”.

Conclusion
Finally, it is worth considering the role of Geography in the education of other special-
ties. We must also think how to incorporate Geography into the education of other
disciplines, due to its interdisciplinary characteristics. In some of the newer Spanish
universities, the Humanities are comprised of the common heritage of all the students.
In the same way, it is necessary to think that Geography can play a similar role. It is
evident that for a student of Chemistry Geography may not contribute significantly,
but there are many studies in which Geography can represent a basic tool. Without
making a thorough analysis, subjects like History, Environmental Sciences, and
Prehistory and Archaeology need of Geography as a tool. Geography thus becomes
a way to break the disciplinary isolation that has resulted in higher education and
more generally in a more and more technical society as a whole, where it seems that
only very concrete studies have value. The education of the professional geographer
is based in the modern, global and always changing world, but only with the right
sort of training will we obtain optimal results. In order for this to take place, it is
necessary to be open minded about what surrounds to us and what always has been
common to geography. I would thus like to finish with words of Professor Pilar
Toboso, the person in charge of the Congress that was organized in the Universidad
Autónoma de Madrid on “Humanities and Investigation”:

“Set of fundamental ideas that it characterizes the thought of a person, community or time,
of a cultural movement, religious or political, etc.”

 “La especificidad, la importancia, la necesidad social de las humanidades, a pesar
de su escasa valoración social en estos momentos, fue expuesta a lo largo de las
diferentes reuniones, tanto en las ponencias que se presentaron, como en los
debates que siguieron, convirtiéndose en Congreso en un foro donde filólogos,
filósofos, geógrafos, arqueólogos, historiadores, lingüistas, historiadores del arte,
de la ciencia, algún que otro economista, etc., se reunieron durante tres días para
intercambiar ideas, preocupaciones, inquietudes y propuestas, ya que de alguna
manera todos los que ejercemos cualquiera de estas profesiones estamos metidos
en una especie de “saco común”, cuando nuestra realidad es sumamente compleja,
pues los saberes de unos y otros se complementan y necesitan; de ahí que antano
todos se englobaran en ese ente común, denominado Facultad de Filosofía y Letras,
de las que quedan pocos ejemplos (el de la Universidad Autónoma de Madrid es
uno), la realidad actual es distinta y desde luego no tan simple. Son muchos los
geógrafos, por poner solo un ejemplo, que se preguntan si sus métodos de “hacer
geografía” no están más cerca de las investigaciones de un físico, que las de un
filósofo o un filólogo, con los que sin embargo conviven física y administrativa-
mente. Pero como senalaba anteriormente, la realidad es compleja porque si bien la
afirmación que acabo de hacer puede ser evidente para algunos, no es menos cierto
que las herramientas y los conocimientos históricos, por continuar con nuestro
ejemplo, son también imprescindibles para un geógrafo.” (Toboso, 1998, 9−10)

References
1. GEOGRAPHY: White Book of Geography at [Link]
2. LLEDÓ E. 1998. “Humanidades: una reflexión previa”, en TOBOSO, P. (coord.):
Humanidades e investigación. Actas del Congreso, Madrid, UAM, pp. 17−24.
3. TOBOSO P. 1998. “Caracteres y problemática de la investigación en Humanidades:
necesidad de una conciencia colectiva”, en TOBOSO, P. (coord.): op. cit., pp. 7−16.
4. VALENZUELA M., MOLLÁ, M. AND DE LÁZARO, M. L. 2004. “Geography in
Spain”, Belgeo, 1-2004, pp. 145−158.


“The specific character of Humanities, its importance and its role in social necessities were
expounded as much in presented papers as in debates, in spite of its little social evaluation,
becoming the Meeting a forum where philologists, philosophers, geographers, archaeolo-
gists, historians, linguists, historians of art, historians of sciences, some economists… have
met each other during three days to change ideas, concerns, worries and proposals, because,
in some way, all of us are in a kind of “common basket”, when our reality is extremely
complex, because the knowledge of ones and others are complementary and necessary; that
is the reason long time ago all of us were together in this common place named Faculty of
Philosophy and Letters, of which they are left few examples (the Faculty of the Autonomous
University of Madrid is one of them), but the present reality is different and of course no so
simple. There are many geographers, to take just one example, who ask if their methods and
techniques “to make geography” are closer from a physicist than a philosopher or a philolo-
gist, why they live together with the last ones. But, I said it before, the reality is complicated,
because that I just said is true for some geographers, to continue with our example, it is also
true that historical knowledge and tools are both very important for a geographer.”
179
 Why Managers from Multinational Companies Must
Have Specialization in Geography

Kliment Naydenov, Peter Slaveykov

Sofia University “[Link] Ohridski”, Faculty of Geology and Geography,

Bulgaria, Sofia 1000, Tzar Osvoboditel blvd. 15
e-mail: naidenov@[Link] slav@[Link]

Abstract
Many multinational companies make business in different regions in the world. In this
way they prevent risk from making business in only one geographical market. Many multi-
national companies have a geographical organizational structure. They work with people
from different cultures, religions and economies and that is a holdback to development of
this companies. Many of them want to know the spatial behavior of their customers. Those
are the reasons in brief which makes us consider that managers must have specialization
in Geography.

Key words: Geography, Geographical organization structure, Managers, Culture, Religion,

Spatial Behavior

We eat Mexican, Asian and Italian food. We wear shoes manufactured in Italy, shirts
from Taiwan, jeans and trousers made in China. Most of the parts for automobiles
are produced in Japan. Most of the multinational companies and to be more precise
their enterprises operate beyond the borders of their own counties. Most of these
companies operate on the different continents. In that way they escaped from the
risk of operation on only one geographical market.
During the creation of the organizational structures of multinational companies,
supporting the information is very difficult, because they come from scattered
geographically decision making centers. Multinational companies usually used three
main organization structures for overcoming this problem (Herbert, 1984):
a) production structures
Multinational companies used this structure, when its markets are distinguished
by production lines in scattered geographically regions.
b) geographic structure
Multinational companies group all functional and organizational responsibilities
by geographical regions. That is the “geographical design” and
c) functional structure.
There are many conflicts between the goals of corporations and the economic and
political goals of the countries in which companies work. The effective international
manager must carefully recognize and evaluate potential differences in culture,
economy, policy and ideology. This provides opportunities for the development of
courses and training in economic and political geography. On the other hand, the

180
recognition of the location and extent of natural resources of separated regions of the
world in combination with knowledge in transport geography is precondition for good
business. The former Soviet Union has a unique combination of natural resources and
an advantageous geographical position and wide uncommitted markets. This is the
biggest railway market in the world. It is for this reason for example that American
companies sell in that market (Kvint, 1990).
When multinational companies evaluate the possibility for developing their busi-
ness, they need to thrash out factors like: geographical position, language community,
structure of population – ethnic, religion, age, education (Donnelly et al., 1992). The
following examples illustrate why we should know about stereotypes, particularity
of language and ethnic structure and integrate them into training:
• the lemon spray furniture polish of S.C. Johnson & Son has very low sales in
Japan. The population of the country does not buy sprays, because they think it
smells like a W.C. disinfectant used in the Second World War. Once the company
decreased the amount of lemon essence in the spray their sales increased (ibid).
• in Japan the Barbie doll of “Mattel, Inc.” does not have big sales. The reason was
that the doll was too tall, too long-legged and it had blue eyes. After cosmetic
changes – short body, brown eyes and an Asian figure, they sold  millions dolls
in 2 years (Alden, 1984; Thackray, 1985).
• Coca Cola brand changed their name, due to the fact, that in Chinese it means “bite
that wax tadpole”. “Coca Cola” marketing experts didn’t realise that few Chinese
people speak English (Alden, 1984; Thackray, 1985).
• “Dunkin’ Donuts” realised that Japanese don’t like to eat doughnuts with sugar,
so the company creates little doughnuts with little sugar (Kvint, 1990).
Many international managers didn’t understand the different specific cultural,
language and ethnic characteristics of countries around the world. In that way we
think that these mistakes can be prevent with help of geographical courses.

Linking business needs to Geography courses

Many companies before buying or building a factory are interesting in the structure
of labour force in different regions. They are interested in sex and age structure
of population now and in the future. From that future labour force depend of the
company. On the other hand educational structure has an affect on possibility for hire
highly skilled workers. Many of the companies want to know the spatial behaviour
of the customers. A GIS course could help with this.
Ethnic structure is very important for defining culture particularity of labour
force, because on that depend apposite decisions which managers take connecting
with staff motivation. Although, there are specialists, whom companies take for
educating managers, we think that the international managers must have good
geography knowledge.
The religious structure of population is very important for business planning, goals
and work of multinational companies. For example in Muslims countries, people
think that destiny define their future, not the personal enterprise. That thinking is
under the influence of religion. It is therefore important that companies should be

able to have training in different aspects of life, culture, social and political systems
of the countries. Many mixed companies (40%), go bankrupt in the first 3−4 years
(Karrigan, 1987). This is largely due to mixed management, different cultures and
values systems. On the other hand effective management of multinational companies
need managers who should understand the necessities and expectations of people in
the different countries. Manager style and motivation methods in USA, Great Britain
or Canada for example, will not work in Mexico, Africa or South America. People’s
needs vary in different countries. It is for that reason some companies create “culture
camps” for managers. Within these camps, advisers train managers in cultures and
traditions of countries. These advisers should be geographers. If managers have
knowledge of cultural geography, geography of religion or ethnogeography, it will
be easier for them to establish the necessary “cultural bridges” between business
playmates. For example, there are many differences between eastern and western
cultures. Individuality and straightforwardness are characteristics of western culture.
Eastern culture appreciates belonging to and in society. They think that individuality
hurts people and they don’t demonstrate anger (Rapoport, 1990). When businessmen
from the East want to make business, they asked for the families of their partners
first. In contrast to Western culture, in the East to be late for an appointment is not
a big problem. In many cultures everything is family, not the prosperity.
These are some of the reasons for our thinking, that good managers must have
specialization in geography. Only geography can give them this knowledge. We
thus consider that it would be useful to create a course “Geography for Managers”.
There we could include such subjects as: Business Geodemography (Slaveykov
and Iankov, 1997), Geo-marketing, GIS, Physical geography, Human geography,
Ethnogeography, Confessional geography, Social geography, Economic geography
and others. This course could be developed to suit different regions in the world,
such as “Geography for European Managers” or “Geography for Asian Managers”.
Alternatively individual courses for specific company needs could also be created.

References
1. ALDEN V. 1984. “Who Says You Can’t Crack Japanese Markets?” Harvard Busuness
Review.
2. DONNELLY J. et al. 1992. “Fundamental of management”, IRWIN, Boston.
3. HERBERT T, 1984. “Strategy and Multinational Organization Structure: An Interna-
tional Relationships Perspective”, Academy of Management Review.
4. KVINT V. 1990. “Go east, Young Man”, Forbes.
5. KARRIGAN K. 1987. “Joint Ventures That Endure”, Industry Week, NY.
6. RAPOPORT K. 1990. “You Can Make Money in Japan”, Fortune.
7. SLAVEYKOV P., IANKOV, R. 1997. “Geography of population and settlements”, Faber,
Veliko Tarnovo.
8. THACKRAY J. 1985. “Much Ado about marketing”, Across the Board.


 A multilevel approach to professional development
The example of the Department of Human Geography
and Planning in Utrecht

Leo Paul, Tine Béneker, Rob van der Vaart

Department of Human Geography and Planning,

Faculty of Geographical Sciences, Utrecht University,
P.O. Box 80.115, 3508 TC Utrecht, The Netherlands
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
This paper discusses various aspects of professional development at the Department of
Human Geography and Planning of Utrecht University. The multilevel approach proves to
be successful one, as was experienced during the introduction of a new curriculum, neces-
sary because of the introduction of the bachelor/master system. An intensive exchange of
ideas on different levels, the availability of professional help, and a tradition of innovations
led to a relatively smooth transition.

Key words: multilevel approach, professional development, curriculum change, bachelor/

master

Introduction
Professional development of academic teaching staff is a major issue in most Euro-
pean universities. The reasons may be internal (the raised awareness of the impor-
tance of high quality teaching; critique from students about teaching practices) or
external (accreditation criteria or ranking exercises; competition for students), and
will generally be a mixture of internal and external factors (Qanu protocol, 2004).
Professional development of academic staff includes many aspects, ranging from
enhancing awareness of teaching or assessment strategies, via skills in the use of new
technologies in teaching and learning, to a sense of joint responsibility of staff for a
complete course or curriculum. Incentives and policies for professional development
include national guidelines, university-wide teaching and learning strategies (see for
example Gibbs and Coffey 2004) and departmental policies.
Professional development in the field of academic teaching is always under pres-
sure in the research-intensive and generally ill-funded academic context. In this
paper, we discuss the multilevel approach to professional development in Utrecht
University, using Human Geography and Planning as a case study at the departmental
level. We believe that consistent and mutually reinforcing professional development
policies at all levels, from the institutional level to the levels of faculties, schools, staff
teams and individual staff members, are the most promising way forward, although
the pressures of justified research orientation and lack of (financial) resources will
always pose a threat to teaching quality.

Context
Utrecht University is a large, classical university with a wide range of courses and
approximately 25,000 students. Its schools and research institutes are embedded in
seven Faculties, one of which is the Faculty of Geosciences. “Human Geography and
Planning” is one of the four departments of this faculty. This department is among the
largest of its kind in Europe, with roughly 750 students and a scientific staff of about
40 full staff equivalents (fse). The Faculty of Geographical Sciences as a whole has
a scientific staff of 172 fse (apart from 106 fse PhD students) and about 1,950 regis-
tered students (2004). The Department of Human Geography and Planning offers
a three year bachelor programme and eight Master’s programmes. The main fields
of specialization are urban geography, economic geography, regional geography,
international development studies and GIS/cartography. Research is concentrated
in the Urban and Regional Research Centre Utrecht (URU). Most staff time is spent
on teaching.
About ten years ago Utrecht University started to counterbalance the traditional
policy focus on research and to give more weight to teaching and learning. It was
decided that everybody involved in teaching and learning should have a teaching
qualification (either a junior or a senior qualification, see Keesen and Vermeulen
2005). The university board also started a policy of more flexible career paths,
including more and better career possibilities for staff members who mainly spend
their time on teaching. The Board also started annual university-wide conference
days exclusively dedicated to issues of teaching practice, that by now have become
a ‘tradition’ in the university.
These decisions revitalised the role of the Faculty Development Department,
which is part of the wider University Centre for Teaching and Learning (IVLOS).
This Centre plays an important role in qualifying the teaching staff and improving
their skills. They offer a wide set of courses that can be attended by staff members
on a voluntary basis. For new teachers some of these courses are compulsory, in
order to get a junior teaching qualification. For all university teachers IVLOS offers
‘personal consultancy’, which means that everybody involved in teaching can ask for
advice in the design or daily practice of courses, including observations and advice
in a classroom situation.
The Department of Human Geography and Planning has a long tradition in
improving its curriculum and course modules. Part of this tradition is the overall
attitude towards teaching: it is considered as normal (although not always welcomed)
that the staff are stimulated permanently to improve their skills as teachers and their
courses.

Multilevel approach to professional development

We now want to discuss aspects of professional development at various levels in
Utrecht University: at the level of the university as a whole, at the Faculty level, the
level of the School of Human Geography and Planning and finally the level of delib-
eration among peers (staff). This short paper does not allow us to discuss the role
of students, directly and indirectly, nor will it be possible to elaborate all the instru-

ments used, at the various levels, for professional development. The final discussion
will be about the mutually reinforcing effects of the policies at the various levels,
as well as about some of the opportunities and threats for professional development
in the future.

a) University level: the Centre of Excellence in University Teaching

In 2000 the university formed the Centre of Excellence in University Teaching
(CEUT). Each year about fifteen promising teachers with a (future) role in manage-
ment are selected from nominations by the deans of all faculties. The CEUT-training
lasts one and a half years, with monthly  hour meetings, an individual project and
two study trips abroad.
The idea is that the participants will function as boosters of innovation, and apply
their skills in their management functions. Three members of the department of
Human Geography and Planning have attended this course so far. Their individual
projects have been about the improvement of the course evaluation system, the set-
up of an academic Masters, and the introduction of timesaving assignments (for
teachers). According to their experience they really can play a key role in innova-
tion and management. The multidisciplinary character of the CEUT course group is
highly appreciated, especially the exchange of experiences and the sharing of daily
problems in so called intervision groups.

b) Faculty level: Honours programme

As one of the leading faculties in the Netherlands an honours programme was
introduced in 1997 for students with ambition and good results (see Wolfensberger,
Van Eijl and Pilot 2004). For this group of students the standard curriculum is not
challenging enough, and leaves enough time for extra courses. Within a framework
of regular meetings, supervised by a staff member who is coordinating the Honours
Program, students organise and attend four extra courses or workshops each year. At
the end of their bachelors program they get a testimonial on this. Before the honours
program started we had the impression that some of the best students switched to
other studies; now we keep them on board, and some of them go on to do their PhD
after graduation. The honours program provides an opportunity for teachers to launch
new methods or subjects to an interested audience. Vice versa the motivated group of
honours program students have sometimes indicated that some elements or subjects
are missing from the basic curriculum.

c) Level of the School of Human Geography and Planning: Yearly staff meeting
Every year in February the curriculum for the next academic year is discussed on
‘Teaching and Learning Day’, organised outside the university buildings. On this
day all kinds of practical information is provided, but most of the day consists of
workshops, dedicated to several themes. The social element (drinks and dinner)
is also important. Almost all the staff is present, accompanied by about fifteen
students who participate in the management team and several committees dealing
with education.
185
 Typical is the very open atmosphere during discussions, and the good relationship
between staff and students. The very active student organisation for geographers,
which organises many social and scientific events during the year, has been successful
in bringing staff and students together. Many staff members were active in this
organisation during their studies.

d) Level of the staff as a network: Good practices and regular lunch meetings
Each 4−6 weeks during lunchtime a meeting for the teaching staff is organised,
where good examples of innovations are shown and discussed. On average about
fifteen teachers attend these meetings, and experience of these presentations of ‘good
practice’ has been stimulating. Subjects that were discussed are: peer-assessment, the
use of e-learning, student-led excursions, student-led seminars, alternative writing
assignments, experiences from Canadian geography departments.

Evaluation and discussion

The introduction of the bachelor/master system in 2002 is a good example of using
the opportunities of different levels to change the curriculum. Utrecht University
chose to introduce a curriculum model based on small scale education (classes with
25 students), active learning, and multiple assignments that would make it possible
for students to compensate bad results during courses; this was necessary because
resits were abandoned.
The yearly staff meetings at the level of the Department were not only important
to inform the staff about all these changes, but made it possible to approve a new
curriculum that was acceptable to most staff members. The university, by means
of IVLOS, provided tailor-made courses that were helpful to modify the design of
courses. Staff members appreciated the ‘down to earth’ approach: not too much
theory during these courses, but a focus on training new techniques during ones own
courses. Teachers with special wishes asked for ‘personal consultancy’ by IVLOS.
The university-wide conference days were useful to exchange ideas with university
teachers from other disciplines.
After the introductory phase of the bachelor/master system several problems
occurred. An increase in the number of assignments caused an extra burden for the
teaching staff. Students complained about the lack of variety in assignments, teachers
about the low quality of work and the extra work-load. In the same period staff reduc-
tions due to cost-cutting measures were necessary. This led to intensive discussions
within the staff (during the regular lunch meetings), but also with the student organi-
sation. The result was a mutual effort of staff and students to investigate alternative
assignments, led by one of the teachers who had attended the CEUT-course.
The general picture of professional development at the Department of Human
Geography and Planning is positive, but some final side-notes can be made. There
is a discussion about costs and efficiency of the CEUT-course. It costs about 10,000
euro per person, to be paid by university and faculty on an equal basis. For our faculty
with two participants each year in the CEUT-course this means about 15 percent
of the total budget for training. For the same amount of money more teachers could
186
profit if the course was shorter. Some elements of the course should be compulsory
for everybody involved in university education, and several guest speakers deserved
a larger audience.
The turnout at the regular lunch meetings on Departmental level could be higher,
and there is a trend of declining attendance. It takes a lot of effort for the organisers
to keep the spirit alive, in a time of staff reduction. At the moment contacts between
the four departments of the faculty on innovation and curriculum improvement
hardly exist. There are regular meetings of the Directors of Education, but their
discussions are mainly about technical and organisational affairs. But in general we
experience that the multilevel approach is a right way to improve the quality of staff
and curriculum. The opportunities given by the university and the faculty meet with
a wide response at the level of the department.

References
1. GIBBS G., COFFEY M. 2004. The impact of training of university teachers on their
teaching skills, their approach to teaching and the approach to learning of their students.
Active learning in Higher Education, 5 (1), pp. 87−100.
2. KEESEN F., VERMEULEN E. 2005. Acknowledging teaching qualities in academic
careers – a systematic effort at Utrecht University, the Netherlands. Available on
the World Wide Web, [Link]
Utrecht%[Link]
3. QANU PROTCOL 2004. Guide to external quality assessment of bachelor’s and master’s
degree programmes in research-oriented universities. Utrecht: Quality Assurance Neth-
erlands Universities.
4. WOLFENSBERGER M. V. C., EIJL P. van, PILOT A. 2004. Honours Programmes as
Laboratories of Innovation: A perspective from the Netherlands. Journal of the National
Collegiate Honors Council, 5 (1), pp. 115−142.


 Times of Change for Geography Education in Slovenia

Tatjana Resnik Planinc

Department of Geography, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana,

Aškerčeva 2, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
e-mail: [Link]-planinc@[Link]

Abstract
The article presents the actual situation of geography education in Slovenia from the
viewpoint of many of the rapid and profound changes we are dealing with nowadays. The
feasibility and structuring of professional development, formal and informal relations that
might enable professional development and the identification of ongoing needs for geography
teachers are discussed. It also questions the changing identity of academic geography within
the restructuring of work and the tensions between teaching and research.

Key words: geography, teacher, education, student, Slovenia, knowledge, skills, practice

Introduction
Together with Europe Slovenia has recently undergone many rapid and profound
changes. Every nation, region and city has to face challenges arising from the differing
needs and expectations. Differences in culture, in behaviour, in values and standards
do not have to conflict but lead to enrichment and strengthening of a society.
Geography as a field of study is at an interesting stage of development in Slovenia.
When seeking to provide descriptions and comparisons of systems, it is important to
create a dialogue about the social, economic, political and cultural contexts within
which geographical studies occur. Most studies of geography have been narrow in
their focus, concentrating on issues of developing content and curriculum, without
reference to context.
At the forefront of change geographical education should involve the study of
sociological, psychological, political and cultural aspects of learning and teaching
geography. Students should have the opportunity to develop their own knowl-
edge, skills and confidence in ways increasingly emphasised for employment in
geographical education-related occupations. Therefore the teacher training should
follow students’ personal interests about the nature, purposes and contents of educa-
tion, and equip them with a set of transferable skills. (Resnik Planinc, 1998, Resnik
Planinc, 2001)

School Geography in Slovenia

Geography teaching can contribute a lot to knowing and understanding people
and places, although research shows an alarming situation in geography teaching
and knowledge all over the world (Haubrich, 1998, 106). The recent changes and
development of Middle, South Eastern and Eastern European countries are the


result of European integration Table 1. Simplified version of school system in Slovenia
and globalisation. From the AGE CLASS /
geographical standpoint these TYPE OF SCHOOL
GROUP GRADES
processes and changes demand primary school 6–15 1–9
immediate action regarding
secondary vocational
the creation of new curriculum schools 15–17 (18) 1–2 (3)
structure and contents.
secondary technical schools 15–19 –
The concept of traditional
geography with its division into grammar school 15–19 1−4
general and regional geography is the basic characteristic of the geography syllabus
and the entire geography curriculum in Slovenia. Since the attainment of independ-
ence the educational system in Table 2. Geography content and the number of geography school
Slovenia has changed. The basic hours per classes in 9-year primary schools in Slovenia. (Geography
changes began with the reform Syllabus, 1998)
of the previous -year primary SCHOOL
CLASS GEOGRAPHY CONTENT
school system. As a candidate HOURS
for the European Union Slovenia 6th The planet Earth 35
was required to carry out several Regional geography of Europe
reforms that renovated the school th 70
and Asia
system in order to move closer Regional geography of Ameri-
to the school systems in other th ca, Africa, Australia and polar 52
European countries. Slovenia regions
decided to have 9 classes in 9th Slovenia – our homeland 70
primary school. The reform All together 
project started in 1999 and is
still in progress. Geography contents are involved into syllabi from the first grade,
while geography as an independent subject begins in the sixth grade. In Table 2 a
distribution of geography contents from sixth to ninth grade is presented.
In Slovenia the syllabus for Table 3. Geography content and the quantity of geography school
grammar schools was reformed hours per grades in grammar school in Slovenia. (Geography
in 1998. Geography became a Syllabus, 1998)
subject which should help young SCHOOL
people to acquire the knowledge GRADE GEOGRAPHY CONTENTS
HOURS
and skills needed for the under-  st
General geography 70
standing of the global world Regional geography of the
(Table 3). nd 50
world
General geography, which Regional geography of Europe
rd 50
includes both physical and and Slovenia
human geography, is taught in 40 + 35
th / not Slovenia + final exam prepa-
the st grade of grammar school (general ex-
obligatory ration
and in the first two grades of amination)
secondary technical schools Total 170 or 245
(by using practical examples).
Its structure is comparable to the scientific approach adopted by university study
189
where it is divided into specific branches, such as geomorphology, waters, climate,
soils, biogeography, population, settlements, economy etc.
According to the national curriculum regional geography is taught in the 6th, th
and th class of primary schools and in the nd, rd and th grade of grammar school.
On the primary level regional geography deals with the world, Europe and Slovenia
very systematically. The whole system of general geography reflects in the approach
to all continents, Europe and Slovenia. In grammar schools regional geography of the
world, Europe and Slovenia becomes more thematically oriented (problem-solving
approach, case studies, practical examples etc). To a certain extent regional geog-
raphy is also part of the geographical syllabi for vocational and technical schools.
The basic frame of regional geography in schools is to know the Earth, its conti-
nents and their smaller units – regions. This concept of regional geography was
established by Hettner in the 1930’s. Although the description of individual parts of
the Earth was suitable for those times it does not meet the needs of today.
Our understanding of the landscape with all the elements, mutual relations and
processes is getting more and more complicated, so a description of the characteris-
tics means a pure accumulation of more or less important facts. The results are that
the textbooks have become increasingly encyclopaedic in nature and they promote
ex-cathedra teaching otherwise teachers, according to their opinion, cannot meet the
requirements of the syllabus. Consequently the knowledge of pupils and students is
less and less appropriate for our time. (Popit, 2001)
Syllabus changes always raise difficult questions and comments relating to
unnecessary content. How and what should be reduced is a growing dilemma not
only in primary and secondary education but also in the university courses. This is
the situation that Slovenian school geography faces and will have to deal with and
find a solution.
Conceptual change should not lead to the complete absence of systematic approach
to studying countries. A survey of some German, English and French textbooks
shows that exemplar and thematic approaches to the problems of larger, more exten-
sive and global meaning are often put forward (Popit, 2001). Consequently, a certain
country or countries can be completely ignored in a syllabus or in a textbook. The
result is a reduction in the comprehensive nature of the curriculum but an increase in
depth of analysis. Because of the use of a limited number of themes that deal with a
specific part of the world, teachers have to choose those which provide an extensive
meaning according to the milieu from which the textbook or syllabus originates. So
the attention might be given to the problems or examples of minor significance while
the most important processes and phenomena remain unmentioned. Therefore, to
develop important concepts of geography in education needs considerable coopera-
tion between subject experts, researchers and authors from different countries. Only
then will the result be a flexible and adaptable system that successfully introduces
changes into syllabus, and provides an appropriate education of future geography
teachers (Popit, 2001).
In current Slovenian textbooks a systematic division of Europe and the world
is a basis for the structure of chapters while a chosen area is discussed systemati-
190
cally and problematically. If geographical studies aim to deal with the situation
in Slovenia and Europe then teachers and teacher trainers should try to answer the
following questions:
1. What kind of identity, regarding European citizenship, will pupils and students
develop as the result of our education?
2. What will be the effect of a division of Europe into smaller, stereotypically
described geographical units or regions?
3. Does a regional approach with a division of Europe into smaller units develop a
notion of European dimension in geography teaching?
The answer to these is all but simple when teaching about Europe. The under-
standing of a space is a basis for the understanding of the world. And place cannot
be understood separately from the world. Therefore the understanding of relations
and processes inside a particular region and between regions on local and global level
is more important than individual characteristics of geographical units of Europe
or countries. Learning about the physical and human geographical characteristics
of a geographical unit or a county soon leads to encyclopeadical gathering of data
and facts (Popit, 2001).
Instead of a small-unit-division the reformers ought to include the processes, which
form and change places. The new paradigm of (regional) geography should thus be
based on the concept of a place, while its object of conception is not a chosen region
but a functional structure of a place or space.
We are convinced that the experts of individual fields, writers of syllabi and didac-
ticians should make an arrangement about the methodology. A proposed moderni-
sation of syllabi and educational aims also demands a modernization of textbooks
and other teaching aids. Geography teaching has to make the contents interesting
and offer new knowledge, experience and methods with real and applicable value.
This, according to Petauer (2001), is the right way to develop intellectual curiosity
and self-confidence among young people.

Geographical Education in Slovenia

Geographical education cannot sit back and relax as the world progresses. Those people
who profess to be geographical educators must recognise that their future is not guaran-
teed. Reflection on past developments in curriculum will offer clarification of the roots
of the field of learning. These are important, but they should be tempered by careful
contemporary analyses of state of geographical education. As a result, close monitoring
of other societal and educational policy developments should be considered in the
formulation of insightful futuristic statements that offer directions for geographical
education to follow in the coming years. (Gerber and Lidstone, 1996).
During the reform of geography curriculum in Slovenia different competing
tensions, which had been already mentioned by Naish (1996), included:
• the call for an emphasis on basic skills, vocationalism and instrumentalism, versus
the view of education as humanitarian, liberal and progressive, of intrinsic value
in its own right rather than to be seen as preparation for the future,
• academic versus child centred education,
191
• traditional versus progressive approaches,
• didactic teaching versus enquiry learning.
According to Naish (1996) it is possible to categorise these tensions to propose
various concepts of education. One such grouping of ideologies of education suggests
four main orientations (McNeil, 1977, Naish, 1996), namely:
1. Humanistic orientation, which prefers a curriculum which will provide satis-
fying experiences for each individual such that the learner’s natural ability will
be nurtured. The emphasis is on the individual as a learner rather on the details
of subject matter, the aim being to enhance personal development;
2. Academic orientation, which views the curriculum as a vehicle to introduce
learners to the academic disciplines;
3. Technological orientation, which sets out to produce and achieve certain pre-
determined ends. There is a strong emphasis on aims and objectives and the main
purpose of the curriculum is to achieve these ends;
4. Social reconstruction orientation, which gives preference to the needs of society
over the needs of the individual.
In Slovenia both academic and technological orientations are very much in the
forefront of geographical education. This often leads to the socialisation of children
into the norms and values system of the particular society in which they live. It
would however be much better to regard the education as development, as suggested
by Kelly (1990), in which the individual fosters her or his abilities, capabilities
and understanding. The curriculum should thus enable and encourage students to
recognise, explore, evaluate and, where appropriate, challenge all views of culture
and all value systems.
It has to be accepted that whatever ideology of education one follows, education is
“not a random or neutral process but purposeful and value oriented with” (Stanley,
1985, Fien, 1996). As Grant and Zeichner (1984) explain:
“There is no such thing as a neutral educational activity. Any action that one takes
in the classroom is necessarily linked to the external economic, political and social
order in either a primarily integrative or a creative fashion. Either a teaching activity
serves to integrate children into the current social order or it provides children with
the knowledge, attitudes and skills to deal critically and creatively with that reality
in order to improve it.” (cited in Fien, 1996, 78)
In Slovenia geography education has had a proud tradition and contribution. The
momentum must not be lost. Future decades will provide challenges which require an
expanded and redirected application of the outcomes of geographical education.
Lidstone (1996) believes that geography teachers are proud inheritors of a vibrant
and exciting discipline comprising scientists who are seeking ever new ways of
telling the story of our world of change and teachers who must be allowed to exercise
their wise and discretionary judgment of what is best for their students. Currently
it seems that structural changes are placing such stress on teachers that they are no
longer able to exercise that judgement about content and approach that makes them
professional. Hargreaves (cited in Lidstone, 1996) explains that the struggle can be
seen in teachers’ roles in four main ways:
192
1. The teacher’s role expands to take on new problems and mandates, although little
of the old role is cast aside to make room for these changes.
2. Innovations multiply as change accelerates, creating a sense of overload.
3. Moral certainties collapse and our confidence in our mission and purposes begins
to crumble.
4. The methods and strategies that teachers use, together with their underlying
knowledge base are constantly criticised – even amongst educators themselves
– as scientific certainties lose their credibility. Teachers then ask themselves “If
the knowledge base of teaching has no scientific foundations, on what can our
justification for practise be based?” (Lidstone, 1996, 153).

Conclusion
I consider that for the future development of school geography in Slovenia the
following assumptions are important:
• the quick and effective flow of information,
• geography teachers will be better organised regarding contacts with other coun-
tries (through exchanges, personal contacts and exchange of materials),
• there will be vertical and horizontal flow of information between institutions,
• self sufficiency will be avoided.
One must agree with Lidstone that “our own search for knowledge and that which
we encourage in our students should be directed towards regaining enchantment
with geographical stories within the context of a global geographical culture. Only
thus can we retain and renew our professionalism as geographers and geography
teachers” (Lidstone, 1996, 161).

References
1. FIEN, J. 1996. Teaching to Care: A Case for Commitment In Teaching Environmental
Values. Developments and Directions in Geographical Education (ed. Gerber, R.,
Lidstone, J.), Clevedon, Channel View Publications.
2. GERBER, R., AND LIDSTONE, J, 1996. Reflecting on Development and Directions in
geographical Education, in Gerber, R., Lidstone, J. (eds.), Developments and Directions
in Geographical Education, Clevedon, Channel View Publications.
3. HAUBRICH, H. 1998. Geographie hat Zukunft. Wege der Geographie und ihrer
Didaktik. Kallmeyersche Verlagsbuchhandlung. Seelze –Velber, 270 p.
4. LIDSTONE, J. 1996. Professionalism in geographical Education, in Gerber, R., Lidstone,
J. (eds.), Developments and Directions in Geographical Education, Clevedon, Channel
View Publications.
5. NAISH M. 1996. The Geography Curriculum: A Martyr to Epistemology? in Gerber, R.,
Lidstone, J. (eds.), Developments and Directions in Geographical Education, Clevedon,
Channel View Publications.
6. PETAUER M. 2001. Soils as a subject of study in Slovenian primary and secondary
schools curricula, IV. International Conference on European Dimension of Teaching
geography in the Middle, South Eastern and Eastern European countries in transition.
Maribor, Ljubljana, Faculty of Education; Maribor, Faculty of Arts, Ljubljana.
7. POPIT S. 2001. Comparison of geography curriculum and geography textbooks in
Middle, South Eastern and Eastern European countries. IV. International Conference
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 on European Dimension of Teaching geography in the Middle, South Eastern and Eastern
European countries in transition. Maribor, Ljubljana, Faculty of Education; Maribor,
Faculty of Arts, Ljubljana.
8. RESNIK PLANINC T. 1998. Evropska dimenzija pouka geografije v Sloveniji – magis-
trsko delo. Ljubljana, Oddelek za geografijo, Filozofska fakulteta.
9. RESNIK PLANINC T. 2001. Zahtevnejše geografske učne vsebine kot izobraževalni
problem. Doktorska disertacija. Ljubljana, Oddelek za geografijo, Filozofska fakulteta.
10. Učni načrti za geografijo. Ministrstvo za šolstvo in šport Republike Slovenije.

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 The Evolution of a European Student Network

Gert Ruepert, Anouk Adang, Sandor Kreuze

Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80.115,

NL-3508 TC, Utrecht, The Netherlands
e-mail: [Link]@[Link] [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
The European Geography Association is a European network of Geography Students and
young Geographers, founded in 1988 by students from Utrecht, Warsaw and Barcelona.
Today it has around 73 entities in 29 different countries. Its goals are to exchange knowledge
and information between geography students and young geographers. To achieve these goals,
congresses and exchanges are being organised and an Internet forum was created.
The aim of article is to find out how the EGEA network has developed. There is not a clear
geographical direction in how the EGEA network developed but there are some striking blank
spots on the EGEA map that can be explained by the local context of these countries. The
Internet plays an essential role in the communication in the network, but to make receivers
adapt the EGEA idea, face-to-face contact is more successful.

Key words: Geography, Networks, EGEA, Students Association.

Introduction
In the spring of 1987 a group of geography students from Barcelona, Warsaw and
Utrecht met in Leon (Spain) to discuss the possibility of forming a European Asso-
ciation for Young Geographers. Its purpose would be to facilitate and improve the
interaction and exchange of ideas, information and students, which was commonly
felt to be lacking in the field of geography. In February 1989 the first EGEA Congress
was held in Zaborow, Poland with 80 participants from 23 different universities.
Sixteen years later EGEA has, according to the website, 73 entities in 29 different
countries. Every year five official congresses are organised and many other activi-
ties. The EGEA network expanded and it shows great dynamism. The aim of this
article is to trace the development of EGEA over the years. Which entities are and
have been active in the network? Can a geographical pattern be identified? Which
factors play a role in the origin of entities?

Networks
Hägerstrand described in his book “Innovation Diffusion as a Spatial Process” an
innovation in a rural area in Sweden. Innovation adopters inform others in their social
network in their proximity. In this way innovation spreads like an oil slick: contagious
diffusion (De Pater 1996). Communication factors dominate the acceptance process.
Critics pointed at the underestimated role of the adaptors (Blaut, Blaikie) and the
local context. The importance of the local context is shown in the diffusion of the air
conditioner, which was much more adapted in Texas then in Montana (Ormrod 1998).
195
With the ongoing development of telecommunication techniques the emergence of a
‘space-less world’ and the virtualisation of human communication were predicted.
By modelling the relation between telecommunication and face-to-face contact
Gaspar and Glaeser (1998) showed that telecommunication is not a substitute but
a complement for face-to-face contact and it can even increase the need for face-
to-face contact. Besides the revolution in telecommunication the revolutions that
ended the Communist era in Eastern Europe made communication and travelling
between different European countries easier. The expansion and the integration of
the EU continued. Student mobility increased enormously because of the Socrates
and Erasmus programs. Because of fading borders, economic growth and European
integration we might expect more mobility in the EGEA network. On the other hand,
some destinations might have become less ‘exotic’ and new travel opportunities may
compete with EGEA events.

Methods
To find out how EGEA (geographically) developed we wanted to know which entities
were active during which period. This was researched by analysis of the participa-
tion of the Annual Congresses. The participation lists of the Annual Congresses
provide a fairly reliable picture of entity involvement, although it is possible that an
otherwise active entity is not able to delegate a member to the Annual Congress. It
is also possible that individuals that participate in an Annual Congress, are not (yet)
involved in other EGEA events. However, that said, the participant lists provide us
with a sufficiently accurate view of the development of the EGEA network. Data
available from other activities is fragmented and to specific to be used.
To say something about which factors and means of communication play a role
in the expansion of the network we asked by email the entities’ contact persons if
they knew how their entity got involved in the network. 36 entities responded. In
those cases of entities that have been reactivated, we used the information on how
the entity was reactivated.

The European Geography Association

EGEA, the European Geography Association for students and young geographers,
was founded in 1989 after the first congress. In 1992 EGEA registered in Utrecht
as a foundation. The entities form the general board of EGEA. At the Annual
Congress they appoint the Board of Executives. EGEA is divided in four regions;
the Northern and Baltic region, The Western region, the Eastern region, and the
southern ‘Euromed’ region. Every region has one regional representative chosen
at the regional meeting during the Annual Congress. The four regional representa-
tives form the Board of Executives of the EGEA foundation. They divide the tasks
of chairman, secretary, treasurer and vice-chairman. The fifth member of the Board
of Executives is the organiser of the Annual Congress of the next year.
The current entities are very different in age, size, and activities. The organisa-
tional structure of the entities range from well organised independent foundations

196
to entities with only one active individual, other entities are part of the local student
organisation and some exist out of a small group of friends.
The main event of the EGEA foundation is the Annual Congress, usually taking
place for six of seven days in September or October. The congress exists of work-
shops, excursions, presentations, parties and meetings. Since 1990 there was, besides
the Annual Congress, every year a Western Regional Congresses organised. From
1997 also the other regions organised a regional congresses. Regional Congresses
are smaller and one or two days shorter than the Annual Congress.
The other main activity organised in the network are the exchanges. Two entities
visit each other for a week or a weekend. The host entity takes care of the program,
food and accommodation. Other activities organised are the New Year Party, national
weekends, and seminars. Some entities organise introduction and other activities for
the foreign exchange (Erasmus) students at their Universities.
Today an important feature of the organisation is the website. On the extensive
forum members stay or get in contact with each other, activities are announced and
European issues are discussed.

The Annual Congresses

The general picture shows great dynamism in which entities visited the congresses.
From 1995 till 1997 the total number of participants is relatively low (Figure 1). It
does not necessarily have to mean that EGEA was smaller at that time. There could
have been a maximum to the accommodation. But except for the last Annual Congress
where over 300 people subscribed and where only 206 could be invited, we did not
find evidence that people had to be rejected on a large scale in the past.

Figure 1. Number of participants at Annual Congresses

The EGEA entities from Amsterdam and Warsaw attended all 15 congresses
(Figure 2) The data from the third Annual Congress in Rackeve, Hungary are missing
and the data from Prague 1990 are a bit unclear. At the first congress we already
had participants from 22 different universities. Figure 2 does not include the total
number of participants from an entity present at a congress.

197
Figure 2. Present at Annual Congresses per entity
This does not show a clear geographical pattern in the development of the EGEA
network. But we see very active countries and some ‘blank spots’ on the EGEA map.
The Netherlands have been active from the beginning, with Utrecht and Amsterdam
as main entities. All Dutch cities with academic geography studies are active in the
EGEA network. The number of Dutch participants at congresses has always been
high. Germany has the most entities and often the most participants at congresses.
Germany is of course a big country with around 44 geography departments. The
active EGEA entities in Germany are changing. Germany has many entities that
‘died’ and have been ‘revived’ again (for example Hamburg, Münster, Göttingen,
Bremen, Bonn, Hannover, Mainz). Poland has been active and relatively stable from
the beginning, with Krakow and Warsaw that have always played an important role
in the network. The Czech Republic has been active in the early days of the EGEA
network but at the moment there is no EGEA entity there any more. Bratislava in
Slovakia has recently been revived again.
Finland has been active from the beginning with several entities, only Oulu
managed to survive over the years. Scandinavia has been almost absent over the
years. In the very beginning and since very recently Sweden is on the EGEA map. The
Baltic States have two very active entities, with Tartu in Estonia active from almost
the start of EGEA. In Russia, Saint Petersburg has a long EGEA history, Moscow has
198
Figure 3. BoE years per entity and Annual Congress organisers
been recently revived again. Greece developed into an active EGEA country since
Mytilene started in 2000. Slovenia has a strong entity in Ljubljana, responsible for
the start of other entities in the region. Zagreb is a very active entity in Croatia since
1999, and in the recent years Belgrade and Novi Sad are developed into two active
entities in Serbia. From Spain many different entities have participated in EGEA
congress, but they seem unable to establish a sustainable entity.
One of the EGEA founders, Barcelona died more or less in 1994 and was back
in 2000 and 2004. Because of efforts from EGEA Valencia, new entities have been
established in Spain. Portugal has been very active in the network, especially Porto
and Lisbon, but at the moment there is not much activity. France has a relatively
low number of entities, compared to the size of the country. The United Kingdom
is heavily underrepresented in the EGEA network given the number of geography
departments. Since 2000 Glasgow is a steady entity. Italy has been totally absent
in the whole EGEA history except for one participant from Genoa in 2000. From
the beginning EGEA was present in different parts of Europe. The development of
EGEA does not show a specific geographical direction of growth but there are some
striking blank spots on the EGEA map.
The number of members that an entity has had in the Board of Executives – BoE
(Figure 3) tells something more about which entities played a main role in the network.
199
It is expected that the more active and bigger entities would have more BoE members.
Warsaw has had nine BoE years, Utrecht and Tartu both seven, Amsterdam four
and Lisbon, Porto and Ljubljana each had three BoE members. The map also shows
which entities organised an Annual Congress. Annual Congresses have mainly been
organised by entities that played a main role in the network In three cases we could
not find the evidence that a representative of the Annual Congress also had a place
in the BoE.

Communication and the start of new entities

In 25 of the 36 answered questionnaires it was stated that mouth-to-mouth contact
has been the way in which people got to know EGEA. Often several communication
channels played a role before an entity became into existence. Ten entities came into
existence because they received a letter or e-mail or were surfing the internet. In two
cases surfing the Internet was the only source to start an entity.
Ten entities started because of students studying abroad, in eight of these cases it
was a student, studying in an ‘EGEA city.’ In two cases a student from an ‘EGEA
city’ managed to start an EGEA entity at their host university. Eight of the entities
have been set up because the initiator(s) has heard from EGEA on a geographical
congress, field trip or excursion. In two cases it was a professor who has heard about
EGEA and told the students about it.
In the EGEA history numerous letters and e-mails has been sent to geography
departments all over Europe. These letters, together with the people that met at a
geographer’s congress in Leon, were the reasons why EGEA already had  enti-
ties present at the first congress. Some entities in particular have been successful in
inspiring other entities. Fifteen entities answered that EGEA Utrecht has played a
role in their founding, EGEA Ljubljana was named four times and Warsaw twice.
The number of entities started with help from Utrecht may be coloured because these
entities might have been more willing to answer the questionnaire.
Geographical proximity and language play a role in the expansion of the network.
Some examples are Mytilene that helped Thessaloniki and the new entity Athens
with their founding, Utrecht has been active to start entities in Belgium, Ljubljana
was responsible for the start of Zagreb and Koper, Saint Petersburg helped Moscow,
and Valencia is making efforts to start entities in Spain.

Conclusion
The EGEA network started overwhelmingly. Enthusiastic people have been
contacting geographical faculties on a large scale to join in their newly created
student network. In a short time a vast network, spread all over Europe, was created.
The cold war division of Europe was already bridged before the downfall of the
Communist regimes.
The EGEA network is very dynamic, with many entities appearing, disappearing
and sometimes being reactivated again. When analysing the countries present at
Annual Congresses we see that The Netherlands, Germany and Poland are the
core of the EGEA network. Looking to the BoE members Warsaw, Tartu, Utrecht,
200
Amsterdam and Ljubljana are the currently existing entities that have been the most
active. Utrecht has been a successful diffuser of the EGEA idea.
The role of the receptors is important. They need the ‘courage’ to start an entity
and to join an activity for the first time. The sustainability of an entity depends on
the enthusiasm and the skills of the adaptor: do they manage to ‘institutionalise’
EGEA at their home university? If it remains a social network the entity is likely to
end if the adaptors leave university.
Spatial distance is not the reason why some countries show very little activity
in almost the whole period. The local context that Ormrod (1990) has brought up
as explaining factors for innovation diffusion seems to be important here. French
(geography) students have a considerable degree of organisation in associations at the
national level but there is a language problem and a lesser interest in going abroad.
In Italy, geography in higher education is less developed than in other countries in
Europe. Students in the United Kingdom are maybe less focused on Europe and
maybe have less time to join extra curricular activities. Except for Slovenia it took
some time before entities in former Yugoslavia have been set up, the local context
of the war played obvious a role here. Nowadays there are relatively strong linkages
between the entities in former Yugoslavia (mutual exchanges, organising congresses
together).
The Internet plays a major role in the organisation. Communication within the
network increased and became faster and easier. The Internet forum made EGEA
more a community where people communicate with each other on a daily basis. The
Internet contact is not a displacement but a stimulus for face-to-face contact.
In the dispersal of the network the Internet plays a role, but face-to-face contact
remains the most important way how new entities start to know about the organisation
and decide to join it. Geographical distance still plays a role in the communication
and the expansion of the network, because of students studying temporally in another
city, because new entities have close contacts with entities nearby or in the same
vernacular region, and because of already existing national geography networks.

References:
1. DE PATER P. AND VAN DER WUSTEN H. 1996. Het Geografisch Huis: de opbouw
van een wetenschap. Bussum: Couthinho.
2. GASPAR J. AND GLAESER E. 1998. Information Technology and the Future of Cities.
Journal of Urban Economics, 43, pp. 136−156.
3. KOBAYASHI K., ROY J. AND FUKUYAMA K. 1998. Contacts with Agreements:
towards face-to-face communication modelling. The Annals of Regional Science, ,
pp. 389−406.
4. ORMROD K. 1998. Local Context and Innovation Diffusion in a Well-connected World.
Economic Geography, 66(2), pp. 109−122.

201
 An evaluation of geography
and geography education in Turkey

Salih Şahin, Servet Karabaǧ

University of Gazi, Gazi Faculty of Education, Department of Geography

e-mail:ssahin@[Link] skarabag@[Link]

Abstract
This research reviews the historical development of geography in Turkey, publications and
research related with geography, the problems of geography and geography education in Turkey
and geography education with regards to university, primary and secondary schools.

Key words: geography education, development of geography, Turkey

Introduction
In Turkey, significant improvements have been gained in the geography and
geography education last century. However some problems still exist. Turkey is a
wonderful laboratory for geography in respect to its natural and human elements.
This research has evaluated these topics:
• Historical development of geography in Turkey
• Publications and research related with geography
• The problems of geography and geography education in Turkey
• Geography education with regards to university, primary and secondary schools.

Historical development of geography in Turkey:

The development of geography in Turkey has taken place during four main
phases:
Before 1933
The period of time before 1933 in Turkey geography was undergoing a preparation
period for scientific research, education and for other activities. In this stage, the
studies related to geography were inadequate. There were some troubles both in
sources and methods. The period has been identified as the preparation period before
the modern geography (Erinç, 1973).
Between 1933−1941
This phase is known as the establishment of the place of modern geography in
Turkey, it is indeed an important one for Turkish geography. During this period,
two geography departments were opened, one of them was in Istanbul, and other
was in Ankara. These still have still an important place in geography. The faculty
members who were brought from overseas to Istanbul University Department of
Geography and then to Ankara University Department of Geography, contributed
to the development of geography there. However, most of the teachers were mainly

202
physical geographers and this resulted in the greater development of physical geog-
raphy compared with other aspects (Erinç, 1973).
Between 1941−1981
A big congress was held in Turkey in 1941 related to geography. This congress took
an important role in the development of geography in Turkey. As a matter of fact, as
a result of this the Turkish Geography Institution was set up and it became the centre
of related studies. With the help of graduating students who had been educated by the
teachers especially coming from France and Germany in the previous period and the
students returning from abroad who had been sent overseas for their education, geog-
raphy reached it’s highest peak in terms of education and publications (Erinç, 1973).
Since 1981
In this period, which still continues up to now, not only have there been some develop-
ments in geography but also geography has entered a standstill period. Even though
the number of the publications continues to increase and lots of new developments
have taken place with new departments being opened, the desired quality cannot
be found.

Publications and research related with geography

Related to physical geography
In Turkey, especially after 1941 lots of physical geography books, which were related
to both local and general topics, were published. The publications related to general
topics were also used as lesson books especially in higher education. The influence
of teachers, who had come to Turkey, is seen clearly in these works.
Related to human geography
In Turkey, the number of the studies related to the human geography is relatively
small. Especially between1941−1980 there were too many general works and little
specialization. In recent years, it is understood that local studies were given impor-
tance more.
Related to Turkey’s geographical features
In Turkey, in the early 1900s the amount of research about the country’s geograph-
ical features was relatively low. It was on this ground that the Turkish Geography
Institution was set up and the departments of geography in the main universities
were opened, the number of the significant studies about the country’s geographical
features has since regularly increased (Izbirak, 1976).
Journals of Geography in Turkey
In Turkey, the geography journals are the publications in which the university
academic research is published. The journal of the Turkish geography Institution
has been publishing Turkish research from the day of its foundation.
The five main geography journals in Turkey are:
1. Turkish Geographical Review (published by the Turkish Geographical Society),
2. Aegean Geographical Journal (published by the University of Aegean),
3. Eastern Geographical Review (Cizgi Publishing House),
4. Marmara Geographical Review (published by the University of Marmara),
5. Geography Research Journal (published by the University of Ankara).
203
The problems of geography and geography education in Turkey
Financial and social problems: There are not sufficient adequate sources for geog-
raphy research and development.
Related to vocational identity problems: In Turkey, there are two kinds of geog-
raphy departments in the universities. One of them is training teachers and the other
is educating graduates to undertake geographical research. But because there are no
exact definitions of their duties there are some difficulties.
Problems related to curriculum: In Turkey, there have regularly been changes in
the school schedules. But curriculum development is behind the times. Currently a
new curriculum is being prepared, this aims to bring Turkish geography accordance
with other countries of the world.
Related to teacher candidate problems: There are few adequate applicants to
become geography teachers because of an out-of-date curriculum and traditional
teaching approaches. This is also due to government policies that do not promote
teaching, candidate teachers in the universities have serious anxiety about their future
(Kayan, 2000, Koçman, 1999).
Related to school book problems: School books generally have inadequate current
information, they are not written to meet the needs of the students and support their
learning.
Inadequacy of practice: Trainee teachers in the geography departments of the universi-
ties have few chances to practice; they thus graduate inexperienced (Kayan, 2000).
Related to lack of training services: There is no adequate in service training for
the graduate students, they therefore cannot be made sufficiently aware of learning
and teaching innovations (Özey, 1998).
Being not able to benefit from the education technologies: A lack of resources
and training opportunities means that teachers cannot benefit from technological
innovations like computers, the Internet and GIS.

Geography education with regards to university, primary and secondary

schools
In Turkey, there are geography lessons in primary and secondary school education.
Geography is taught in social studies (stage 4−8) lessons in primary school, and
there are geography lessons in secondary school (stage of 9−12). In Turkey, there are
currently 19 geography departments in differently university (Table 1).
Table 1. The institutes of geography in Turkey
University Faculty
 University of Afyon Kocatepe Usak Faculty of Science and Literature
 University of Afyon Kocatepe Faculty of Science and Literature
 University of Ankara Faculty of Language history and geography
 University of Atatürk Faculty of Science and Literature
5 University of Atatürk Faculty of Education
6 University of Balikesir Faculty of Science and Literature

204
  University of Canakkale  Mart Faculty of Science and Literature
 University of Canakkale  Mart Faculty of Education
9 University of Dicle Faculty of Education
10 University of Dokuz Eylül Faculty of Education
 University of Ege Faculty of Science and Literature
 University of Firat Faculty of Science and Literature
 University of Gazi Faculty of Education
 University of Istanbul Faculty of Science and Literature
15 University of Sutcu Imam Faculty of Science and Literature
16 University of Marmara Faculty of Education
 University of 19 Mayis Faculty of Science and Literature
 University of Selcuk Faculty of Education
19 University of 100. Yil Faculty of Science and Literature
Total  science and literature faculties
 education faculties

Conclusion
As result, considerable developments have been gained in the area of the geography
education in Turkey. In order to guarantee continuity of these developments and
to increase the international competitiveness, as specified in the Bologna process,
convergence has been created in terms of criteria and methodologies. Additionally,
the ways of transnational education, accreditation, credit systems and quality assur-
ance have been opened so that the intergovernmental cooperation can be achieved.
It is therefore clear that the higher education institutions in Turkey have a unique
opportunity to shape their own European future and to play a crucial role in the
development and implementation of the Bologna process.

References
1. ERINÇ S. 1973. Cumhuriyetin 50. Yilinda Türkiye’de Cografya, Başbakanlik Kültür
Müsteşarligi, Cumhuriyetin 50. Yildönümü Yayinlari: 11, Ankara.
2. IZBIRAK R. 1976. Türkiye’de Son Yarim Içinde Cografya Alaninda Gelişmeler, A.Ü.
Dil ve Tarih Cografya Fakültesi, yay. No: 257, Ankara.
3. KAYAN I. 2000 Türkiye Üniversitelerinde Cografya Egitimi, Ege Cografya Dergisi,
sayi: 11, Izmir.
4. KOÇMAN A. 1999. Cumhuriyet Döneminde Yüksek Ögretim Kurumlarinda Cografya
Ögretimi ve Sorunlari, Ege Cografya Dergisi, sayi: 10, Izmir.
5. ÖZEY R. 1998. Türkiye Üniversitelerinde Cografya Egitimi ve Ögretimi. Özegitim
Yayinlari № 33, Istanbul.

205
 Europe in geographical education – An international
comparison of factors influencing the perceptions of primary
school pupils

Daniela Schmeinck

Department for social and scientific studies in primary education, University of

Education Karlsruhe, Bismarckstr. 10, D-76133 Karlsruhe
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
The way pupils see the world is nowadays not only a matter of learning at school. The way
of life of their parents, holiday trips all over the world, the so called “new” (and old) media
and many other aspects also play a very important role in their development of spatial repre-
sentation. Until now only few empiric studies have been done about the development of these
cognitive spatial representations. The study presented in this contribution is looking on the
perception of today’s ten years old primary school pupils have of the world, the cognitive map
they have inside their mind and which factors of influence are responsible for the develop-
ment of the children’s perception. The results of this study should enable to create a learning
environment which allows to support the development of the children’s spatial representation.
This contribution will present first results of the national and international study.

Key words: Geography, HERODOT, teaching, Primary school, maps, Europe, mind maps,
perceptions

Although much research has focused attention on children’s perceptions of the world
during the recent years we know relatively little about children’s perceptions and the
reasons for their development. One reason for this lack of information is certainly the
Piagetian theory of child development and in order to that the assumption of young
children finding it hard to comprehend abstract concepts. Nevertheless consolidated
findings about the perceptions of children and their genesis seem to be indispensable
for the development of reasonable teaching strategies and aids.
The research presented here provides different aspects of children’s conceptions of
the world and the therefore responsible factors of influence. Evidence was gathered
by a free drawn mapping exercise (mind mapping) with no reference to maps or
globes and a questionnaire survey from children, parents and teachers. The following
questions took centre stage:
• How does the world look like in the perceptions of children?
• Which influence does the travel activity have on these perceptions?
• How far does a medium affect the perceptions of children?
• What kind of influence do current and especially political events (wars…) have
on the conceptions of the children?

206
• Which countries are for example shown in mind maps by the children and why
are they shown (special form, situation...)?
• To what extent are the perceptions affected by the migration biography of the
children?
About 350 primary school children from Germany aged ten years old and another
500 children from around the world (Figure 1) were involved.
The background for this study is the belief that, by knowing more about children’s
perceptions we can devise more effective teaching strategies to enable children to
have a more accurate and durable frame of reference for developing their store of
spatial knowledge.

Figure 1. Countries included in the international comparative study

Within the analysis of the data the maps of the children were first divided in
different categories according to specifically developed criteria (Figure 2).

Figure 2. Example of categories for the mind maps

207
 Then these results were compared to the data of the questionnaire survey for
existing correlations.

Children’s images of the word and Europe

In his study with British children in the age from five to eleven Wiegand found a
strong association with age. “The youngest children drew an archipelago of very
similar, enclosed ‘lands’ indicating little understanding of the difference between
continents, countries and other places. With increasing age, these became progres-
sively differentiated by size and shape. […] By about 7 to 10 years, most children
drew maps which indicated an understanding of how places ‘nest’ inside each other,
such as countries within continents.” (Wiegand, 1998). Regarding the results of the
present study it can be stated that the involved children do not possess a uniform
conception of the world or Europe as map (Figure 3). The drawn mind maps can
be interpreted rather as the result of very different and individual experiences. An
age-related development could neither be diagnosed in the context of the study nor
in the pilot survey with children from kindergarten to university.

Figure 3. Distribution of mind maps in relation to the categories

Another result of Wiegand’s studies was that “even in the later primary years, only
10% of children could make a representation of the world with all seven continents
present and in approximately the correct relative location” (Wiegand, 1998). This
aspect could only be verified for the average of all countries together. However it
can be shown that the referring results in the five countries vary strongly. Thus for
example in the UK and in Switzerland approximately 20 per cent of the children
draw ‘world-similar’ mind maps. In contrast to this there were less then 5 per cent in
France, Germany and Spain. Remarkable in this context is the high proportion of 45
per cent French children, who represented at least sections of the world (Figure 3).
Also the – in the literature frequently described – “centrality”, i.e., the children
draw their own country in the centre of the sheet and place the other countries
around [1, 3, 4], could not be confirmed by an analysis of the mind maps. In those
maps, which represented a recognisable world map (Figure 4), the children usually
208
orientated themselves on “normal” maps of the world, as they are usually used in
the atlases, on wall maps and in the media.
But also in the mental maps, which do not represent an arrangement of the coun-
tries (Figures 5 and 6), so centrality could not be demonstrated.

Figure 4 Figure 5 Figure 6

In the past children explored their surrounding area bit by
bit starting from their own domicile. Thus they became – step
by step – acquainted with larger areas. The development ran
according to so-called “concentric circles” (Figure 7). Today the
close area still is explored by children in the form of circles. The
whole model of development however has got a completely new
form. It is extended by additional islands (Figure 8). The reasons Figure 7. Old model of the devel-
for these islands are very complex, multilayered and individual. opment of a childish habitant
In many cases they can be the
result of holiday trips or current
events such as the Olympic
Games, wars, natural disasters
etc. (Haubricht, 1992)
Thereby the area between
the islands is formed due to
the missing experiences empty
and only bridged by the chil-
dren. Thus perceived distances
between different places of the
children are completely subjec-
tively felt (short flight vs. long
Figure 8. New model of insular development of a childrens habitat
drive).
The results of the questionnaire survey done by the children also shows an enlarge-
ment of the “concentric circles” model. The ranking of the countries mentioned by
German children (Figure 9) shows a clear dominance of holiday countries within
the top ten. However the results reflect also political and current causes. Thus Iraq
is in th position in the German ranking and in 6th position in the ranking of the
UK children. The results are even more surprising concerning the member states
of the European Union. Even though the member states again and again are in the
focus of current affairs and the media and both the implementation of the Euro and
the enlargement of the European Union were treated in school (so it should be), the
majority of the member states is found far below the top fifteen countries
209
Figure 9. Countries mentioned by the 10 year old German children
In the context of the questionnaire survey about 60 per cent of the children knew
their own continent. Only in the UK was Europe named in less than 40 per cent of
the cases. Also, more than half of the involved children concerned (65 per cent) were
able to locate their country on a given world map (Figure 10).

Figure 10. Extract from the student questionnaire

Thereby, the distribution within the different countries was again very different.
In the context of the study, for the children from France, Spain and the UK, the
majority were able to locate their own country on the map (Figure 11). Reasons for
this could be among other things the edge and/or island location of these countries.

210
In contrast to this, only less than
30 per cent of the German chil-
dren could mark their country on
the map. This could be explained
by the missing edge and/or island
location. However Switzerland,
which was represented only as
a small location on the map,
without an edge and/or island
location and thus expected to
be very difficult to identify, was
registered correctly by 52 per
cent of the Swiss children.
Regarding the different factors
influencing the children, the first
results suggest that media as well Figure 11. Location of the own country on a world map
as current events, travel activi-
ties, migration biography, personal interests and special characteristics of countries
have an influence on the perceptions of the children. Measuring the significance of
individual factors was not undertaken in the context of the first results. It offers the
basis of further analyses.

References
1. ACHILLES F. J. 1979. Das Europabild unserer Schüler – topographisches Wissen heute
und Methoden der Vermittlung. Geographie im Unterricht, 4, pp. 289−306.
2. HAUBRICH H. et al. 1997. Didaktik der Geographie konkret. München.
3. HÜTTERMANN A., SCHADE U. 1997. Untersuchungen zum Aufbau eines Weltbildes
bei Schülern. Geographie und Schule, 105, pp. 22−33.
4. KULLEN S. 1986. Wie stellen sich Kinder Europa vor? Untersuchungen kindlicher
Europakarten. Sachunterricht und Mathematik in der Primarstufe, 4, pp. 131−138.
5. WIEGAND P. 1998. Understanding the World Map. In: SCOFFHAM, S. (ed.). Primary
Sources. Research findings in primary geography, pp. 50−51.


 Internationalizing geography in higher education:
initiatives of the association of american geographers

Michael N. Solem

Association of American Geographers, 1710 Sixteenth Street NW,

Washington, DC 20009, USA
e-mail: msolem@[Link]

Abstract
This paper reviews the internationalization program at the Association of American Geog-
raphers (AAG). Two projects are highlighted: (1) A research study examining patterns of
internationalization in US postsecondary geography, funded by the American Council on
Education. (2) The Online Center for Global Geography Education, funded by the National
Science Foundation to develop online course modules that support international collabora-
tive learning. Both projects are providing geographers with an empirical basis for infusing
international perspectives in the undergraduate curriculum and supporting international
collaborations among faculty worldwide.

Key words: Internationalization, geography in higher education

Introduction
Students need international perspectives and high levels of competency in geography
to understand contemporary issues related to the environment, economy, develop-
ment, national security, and human rights. In an age of global interdependence,
students also need social skills that enable them to interact constructively with people
having different cultural backgrounds – and often with very different points-of-view
on matters of foreign policy and international affairs. As global citizens, individuals
must feel committed to international goals, value multilateral approaches to policy-
making, and reject isolationist thinking. In short, global citizenship requires globally
oriented hearts, minds, and actions.
Geography is a cornerstone of global education because it provides a unique
perspective of the world, one that recognizes the interplay of human and environ-
mental phenomena across local, regional, and global scales. And yet, many geography
students are taught primarily through lectures and textbooks, providing them with
few opportunities to engage directly with the perspectives of their peers in other
world regions. Although knowledge of global geography is necessary and important,
such knowledge does not fully encompass the affective and behavioral dimensions
of global citizenship education. A global citizen must also be able to explain why
such knowledge is worth knowing and understand how it can be applied for the
global good.
To what extent is educational practice in geography preparing future global
citizens? In recent years, the Association of American Geographers has launched


a number of projects designed to promote internationalization in higher education.
Internationalization is defined here as “the process of integrating an international
and intercultural dimension into teaching, research, and service functions of the
institution” (Knight and de Wit 1995). This paper reviews two major projects that
the AAG is conducting to help geography faculty members participate in the inter-
nationalization process. The first project involves collaboration between the AAG,
the American Council on Education, and three other disciplinary organizations to
develop an action plan for internationalization. The second project is developing
experimental educational materials for geography in higher education, with the aim
of creating online learning environments to engage students in international learning
and discussion.

Ace internationalization project

The AAG, along with three other disciplinary associations (the American Historical
Association, the American Political Science Association, and the American Psycho-
logical Association) and the American Council on Education (ACE), are part of a new
project promoting the internationalization of teaching and learning at U.S. colleges
and universities. The project, entitled “Where Faculty Live: Internationalizing the
Disciplines,” is being funded by a Carnegie Corporation grant to the ACE. As part
of the project, each association is charged with three goals: (1) articulate global
learning outcomes relevant to its membership that will inform both the major and
general education and communicate those outcomes to the membership, (2) develop
an action plan to promote internationalization within its discipline, and (3) explore
how the work on internationalization accomplished by the disciplinary associations
can be integrated into institutional strategies to promote internationalization.
To assist the participating associations in this work, ACE has formed a steering
committee consisting of representatives of the associations and several other
academic organizations, including the American Association for the Advancement
of Science, American Council of Learned Societies, the Consortium of Social Science
Associations, and the National Humanities Alliance. The committee will serve as a
mechanism for the exchange of ideas among the participants and will explore how
the work of the project and overall institutional efforts to enhance internationaliza-
tion can be mutually reinforcing.
It is expected that the ACE project will demonstrate how disciplinary associations
can take a leadership role in promoting the internationalization of student learning.
The project will also provide guidance to faculty in the participating disciplines to
help them incorporate an international dimension into their teaching and the experi-
ences of their students, in both upper-level courses in the major and in courses that
comprise general education or the core curriculum. To achieve these goals, the AAG
is leading a study to measure how faculty and departments perceive the value of
internationalization for geography education and research. The survey is collecting
data on the social and professional characteristics of academics who practice interna-
tionalization and describe their experiences with international teaching and research.
It is designed to identify the tactics that geography departments are using to inter-

nationalize their undergraduate and graduate programs. Finally, the survey explores
the teaching methods of faculty and their support for global learning outcomes.
The ACE initiative rests upon the assertion that internationalization is necessary
to prepare students for life, work, and citizenship in a globalized modern economy.
In the second project, we are directly addressing this challenge by creating materials
for an internationalized curriculum in geography.

Online center for global geography education

The Online Center for Global Geography Education is producing a series of course
modules to enhance the teaching and learning of global geography. The Center is
partially funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and is being developed
with the full support and involvement of the Association of American Geogra-
phers, Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, International Geographical
Union, International Network for Learning and Teaching, and National Council for
Geographic Education. The project aims to internationalize teaching and learning
by providing geographers with the materials, technology, training, and technical
support they need to start their own international teaching projects.
The Center currently offers three prototype modules: Population, Global Economy,
and Nationalism. An early prototype, Migration, is also available for review. Each
module is a self-contained, collaborative learning environment featuring lessons
that engage students in collaborative projects, promote understanding of geographic
concepts, provide practice using geographic skills, and deepen awareness of inter-
national perspectives about contemporary global issues. Important geographic
concepts and skills are illustrated through data, case studies, and animations drawing
on the AAG’s Activities and Readings in the Geography of the World (ARGWorld)
project. The modules support online collaboration using Blackboard™, a software
platform supporting e-learning. To enable broader dissemination, the modules will
be published in English and Spanish.
The project includes a research and evaluation component to investigate student
learning outcomes and faculty attitudes toward internationalization in higher
education.
For students, key learning objectives include (a) the ability to use the information,
methods, and concepts of geography to examine global issues; (b) knowing how to
use Internet technology for effective learning and collaboration; (c) being able to
formulate and carry out strategies for asking and answering geographic questions in
an international team; and (d) greater interest in the study of geography and appre-
ciation for its perspectives on global issues. Expectations are that student learning
and interest in global geography will be enhanced through online interactions with
peers and experts in different world regions.
The modules are currently being tested by faculty in several countries to
consider what teaching methods and technologies promote the abilities of interna-
tional students engaged in online collaborative learning. Research has shown that
collaborative learning can improve academic achievement and even promote cross-
cultural understanding and goodwill (Bruffee 1993; Calvani, Sorzio, and Varisco

1997; Johnson, Johnson, and Smith 1998; Springer, Stanne, and Donovan 1998). As
yet however, few studies have examined the materials, teaching methods, and tech-
nologies being used to support online international collaborative learning, particu-
larly with regard to (a) how the learning process is affected by language and cultural
diversity (Bonk and Cunningham 1998; Fortuijn 2002), and (b) whether the practice
enhances the learning of geography and appreciation for its perspectives on global
issues (Reeve, Hardwick, Kemp, and Ploszajska 2000; Shepherd, Monk, and Fortuijn
2000). The project’s evaluation will assess achievement of these student outcomes as
well as faculty attitudes toward this approach to global geography instruction. Both
quantitative and qualitative research methods will be used to assess the success of
the CGGE project. Four central research questions are driving the evaluation:
• How does international collaborative instruction affect college student learning
of the concepts and skills geographers use to analyze contemporary issues?
• To what extent does this form of instruction enhance college student understanding
and appreciation of international perspectives about these issues?
• To what extent does this form of instruction foster appreciation among college
students for the geographic perspective on global issues?
• What specific teaching strategies and technologies promote or hinder the effec-
tiveness of online, multilingual international collaborative learning?
A variety of methods are being used to collect the primary data for the research.
Data will be collected from trials conducted by the six module authors and several
additional faculty in the U.S., Northern Ireland, Spain, China, Germany, the Neth-
erlands, Australia, and Chile over two academic semesters beginning in September
2004. Quantitative analysis will use a pretest-posttest design to measure achieve-
ment of specific content outcomes and changes in student attitudes toward global
geography. Qualitative methods will focus on areas where more nuanced data are
sought, such as the analysis of student appreciation for international perspectives
and for reactions to the pedagogy itself. Supplementary qualitative data consisting
of classroom observations and interviews will be obtained at two test sites in Europe
during Spring 2005 by the project evaluator, who has been awarded a sabbatical
leave for that purpose.

Discussion
The initiatives described above are designed to create the materials and information
base that can serve as an empirical platform for strengthening geography in higher
education. Beyond these initiatives, the AAG supports international collaboration
through a variety of ongoing programs. In August of 2004, the AAG assisted junior
and senior scholars attending the IGU Congress in Glasgow through a travel grant
program funded by the National Science Foundation. The My Community, Our
Earth project is currently inviting student projects that reflect the themes of the
U.N. Decade of Education for Sustainable Development. The AAG continues its
tradition of holding a special reception at each annual meeting to honor the presence
of international scholars participating in the meeting. And many AAG Specialty

215
Groups also focus on international themes and regional studies and help members
develop their international networks.
For geographers, internationalization presents some interesting and challenging
questions: What is the role of geography in global education? What should it be? Can
geography education develop individuals into global citizens? Do geographers share
goals with other disciplines in regard to internationalization? How can departments,
institutions, and professional organizations successfully plan and design programs
for internationalization? Though many geographers in the United States are exploring
these questions, much can be gained through international dialogue, and it is in this
spirit that the AAG, together with HERODOT and other like-minded networks, might
begin to explore joint initiatives to enhance internationalization The first ingredient
– a common vision – is already in place. To follow through, we can take advantage
of the disciplinary infrastructure built by the INLT network and IGU Commission
on Geographical Education. Likewise, we can learn from the techniques employed
by various specialty organizations including the International Cartographic Associa-
tion, the International Critical Geography Group, and UNIGIS. For ongoing support,
we will inevitably need to secure funding for our initiatives, and possible US sources
worthy of investigation include the International Program in the US Department of
Education Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education, and the Office of
International Science and Engineering in the National Science Foundation.
Through research and outreach, geographers can engage the internationalization
process underway in higher education and help direct it toward the improvement
of educational practice and student learning. The challenges are great, but so too
are the opportunities to develop global citizens through partnerships between the
professional societies that support the work of geographers in the world.

References
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tive Education, 37(4): 507−523.
2. BONK, C., AND CUNNINGHAM, D., 1998. Searching for learner-centered, construc-
tivist, and sociocultural components of collaborative learning tools. In: C. Bonk and
K. King (eds.) Electronic Collaborators: Learner-Centered Technologies for Literacy,
Apprenticeship, and Discourse, pp. 25−50. London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
3. BRUFFEE, K. A., 1993. Collaborative Learning: Higher Education, Interdependence
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The Position of Geography Graduates in the Labour Market
in Castile and Leon (Spain)

Jose Somoza Medina

Geography Department. University of Leon

24071 Leon (Spain)
e-mail: somoza@[Link]

Abstract
Until a few years ago, people gaining a Geography degree in Spain, as in other European
countries, usually had just one job option open to them, teaching in a primary or secondary
school or at university. Nowadays, Geography students are not keen to be teachers; they
prefer to look for jobs in the professional marketplace. The main problem is that this market
is not familiar with the profession of geographer. Moreover, academic staff at universities
still tend to train their pupils how to be secondary-school teachers rather than professional
geographers.

Key words: Professional geographer, Geography studies, employability

Geography Studies in the Universities of Castile and Leon

Castile and Leon is the Autonomous Region of Spain that has the largest area (at
94,223 square kilometres) but is also one of the least populous (with a population of
2,501,534 in 2005). Its population density is thus 26.5 inhabitants per square kilo-
metre. Furthermore, it is one of the least developed Spanish Autonomous Regions,
with a considerable amount of virtually untouched rural landscape. The nine prov-
inces that form this region have most of their population and economic activities
concentrated in the provincial capitals. If the town of Ponferrada, the region’s only
city of more than 50,000 inhabitants that is not a provincial capital, and a few urban
areas on the edges of the major cites are taken into account as well as the capitals
themselves, the result is that 50% of the region’s population lives in 17 municipal areas
covering only 5% of its territory, while the other half is spread over a further 2,232
municipal areas [roughly equivalent to British civil parishes] that together make up
one of the most extensive and least inhabited regions in Europe, quite comparable to
the “demographic deserts” in the Scandinavian countries. It is also one of the regions
of Europe with the most elderly population, since % of those living there are over
60 years old and only 16% under 20.
In this region eight universities perform their educational functions, four of them
public and four private. In the academic year 2004-05 their combined total of regis-
tered students was 87,327, of whom 0.4% were registered for Geography courses. This,
in a region which, rather as the Canadian Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie
once said when referring to his own country, “has too much geography”.


 Degrees in Geography can be studied in Castile and Leon at the three public univer-
sities of Leon, Salamanca and Valladolid. These each have a syllabus that has recently
been revised (in 2001, 2000 and 1998, respectively). The programmes include the
usual traditional Geography subjects, but also more professionally-oriented courses
on topics such as Geographic Information Systems, Urban Planning, Local Devel-
opment, Regional Policies, Geography of Natural Risks, or Environmental Impact
Analysis. The inclusion of these in the syllabus was as a replacement for other,
more general, subjects like History, Education, or the Humanities. In fact, univer-
sity departments in Castile and Leon, like those in other Spanish regions, designed
their new syllabuses to train geographers so that they could work professionally as
specialists in planning and administration of land use, rather than as Geography
teachers of various educational levels, as was the case until recently. With respect to
Master’s qualifications, the only university that offers the possibility of undertaking
this type of specialized study is Valladolid, although of the two courses developed
there, one is related to Urban Planning and the other to GIS, but they have not been
run continuously.
This radical alteration to the objectives of university degrees was not initially
accompanied by any similar change in academic personnel, because in most univer-
sities new degree courses in Geography had to be put in place on a “no cost” basis,
without the appointment of any new staff. Hence, the changes that students could
see in the first few years were in some cases purely formal, being no more than the
replacement of an old title for a course with a new name, and not achieving the general
aim of training specialists in territorial planning and administration that appeared in
the syllabus. During the 1990s and continuing up to the present, however, there has
been some increase in the staffing of Geography departments, with new academics
generally having a vision of Geography diametrically opposed to more traditional
views. Furthermore, over the course of these years, many members of staff have
performed their educational duties in parallel with professional practice in consul-
tancy firms or multidisciplinary teams in companies and firms, passing on in their
classrooms the experience they have acquired in the private sector. Nevertheless, in
Spanish universities it is still possible to see a mixture of two teaching tendencies,
one that might be defined as generalist-humanist and another that could be termed
professional-vocational.
Over recent years Spain has suffered a major drop in the number of university
students, both as a consequence of a declining birth-rate and because of an increased
proportion of young people who decide to not enter university studies. This drop has
become particularly critical for those qualifications that either do not already have
a long-established university tradition as a major, or single honours, subject nor can
they offer a clear professional or vocational outlet, as is the case for the discipline
being considered here. In the academic year 1998−99, there were in total 7,781
Geography students in the 26 Spanish universities that offered such degrees, while
in 2003-04 the figure was 5,043, a decrease of 35%. In respect of Castile and Leon,
the 1998−99 academic year saw 113 new student enrolments in Geography, while for
2003-04 the number was only 39, a 65% decline (Figure 1). Logically, these decreases
219
 have also affected the number of
Geography graduates. In 2003,
just  students graduated with
Geography degrees from the
universities in this region and in
2004 the total was 58. It is highly
likely that in coming years the
figures will decrease even more,
even though there is an expanding
job market, exemplified by the fact
that in the academic year 2004−05
the University of Leon had more
vacancies for work experience in
companies and institutions than
students able to apply for them.
Figure 1. First year Geography students in Castile and Leon. Academic Geography is going
Source: [Link]; [Link] through a crisis, at just the same
time as the job market is beginning to demand specialists in Geography.

The Profession of Geographer in Castile and Leon

Spanish Law 16/1999, in force since May 1999, created the State-recognized Guild
of Professional Geographers [roughly similar to chartered professional bodies in
Britain]. It lists among the professional occupations of geographers, not just teaching
and research, but also the gathering of territorial and environmental information,
town and country planning, and the evaluation of socio-spatial processes. At the
present time, this professional association has more than 1,100 registered members
spread over the whole of Spain, although the total number of geographers working in
the fields described previously is much larger. This is because professional geography
lacks a corporate spirit at the moment, unlike other professions such as architecture,
engineering, or law, so the process of recruiting members is slow.
Development of a regional, decentralized structure is among the plans of the
current Governing Body of the Guild, to be achieved through the setting up of
Regional Branches. The year 2005 was intended to see the establishment of such
branches in Castile and Leon and in the Canary Islands, branches for Andalusia,
Catalonia, Cantabria, Valencia, the Balearic Islands and Galicia already having been
created.
Contrary to what has happened in other regions, in Castile and Leon the Autono-
mous Regional Government has not really given recognition to geographers’ profes-
sional skills even in an indirect way, through employing specialists and experts
qualified in this discipline in key posts in departments concerned with matters like
urban planning, GIS, rural development, spatial policies, or environment. There
have been virtually no vacancies in the regional administrative bodies advertised as
specifically for geographers, nor have the Region’s Local Authorities acted differ-
ently in this regard. In some cases, official advertisements seeking to hire experts
220
in regional development did not
include people with qualifica-
tions in geography among their
list of potential applicants. In
such an institutional context it
is easy to understand why the
number of professional geogra-
phers in the region has remained
low, although on an upward trend
(Figure 2).
Professional geographers in
Castile and Leon generally work
in the area of rural development,
as employees of local authorities
or of foundations, or in consul-
Figure 2. Guild membership in Castile and Leon.
tancy companies, collaborating
Source: [Link]
in urban planning, geographic
information systems, evaluations of environmental impact and socio-economic
analyses. It is likely that when the Regional Branch is set up the number of Guild
members will grow, as will social recognition of geographers’ work.
With the intention of checking what degree of knowledge consultancy companies
had of geographers’ skills, a survey was carried out involving ten such firms. In all of
them the necessity of undertaking socio-spatial projects in multidisciplinary teams
was recognized. In seven cases geographers were included among the people that it
was stated should form part of such teams. Among the functions that were assigned
as suitable for geographers it is possible to highlight: study of the environment,
cataloguing of elements of interest, socio-economic analyses, field work, broad over-
views and the defining of territorial development strategies. Respondents were asked
how they rated the following factors when recruiting new staff for their company:
initial training, later specialization and professional experience. The last of the three
was indicated as the most important in seven cases and came in second place in a
further two surveys. Specialized postgraduate studies took first place in two surveys,
second in five, and third in two. Finally, initial training, in the sense of a primary
degree in Geography, was put first (as sole factor) in one survey response, was rated
second in two and occupied last place in seven responses. Among the subjects of a
professional-vocational type currently in the syllabuses of universities in Castile and
Leon, the companies consulted mentioned as being most appropriate to their needs
GIS, Regional Policies, Urban Planning, Environmental Impact Studies and Local
Development, although all 15 of the subjects that were included in the question-
naire received some support. On this point, even consultants that had never hired a
geographer also indicated numerous subjects as relevant to work in their companies.
A final question was included about the possibility of taking on Geography students
for work experience within the companies consulted during the next academic year.


The majority answered that they would be increasing the number of such vacancies
for practical placements in the immediate future.

Conclusions
In the light of the analysis given above in respect of the situation of professional
geographers in Castile and Leon, certain conclusions of interest may be drawn:
• The current process of revising university degrees in the context of the European
Higher Education Area should be seen as an opportunity for Spanish academic
Geography, on the one hand to create a 180 ECTS [European university credit]
generalist-humanist degree that will qualify graduates to teach and to work in
consultancy companies, and on the other to design a 120 ECTS multidisciplinary
postgraduate programme of studies that will allow geographers to specialize in
the fields highlighted by the Guild: geo-information technologies, the environ-
ment, town and country planning, demographic and social studies, the information
society and rural development. Academic staff will have to specialize in one of
these two types of programme.
• In the specific case of Castile and Leon, the three public universities could continue
with their undergraduate degrees, but jointly offer a postgraduate or Master’s
qualification in Regional Development. Alternatively, they might complement
each other by choosing differentiated specializations.
• In the design of both the undergraduate and the postgraduate qualifications they
offer, it is of vital importance for them to back up the material learned in the
classroom with the experience that is provided by work placements in companies
and public institutions.
• Lastly, it is very important for the future the profession of geographer in Castile
and Leon for the Branch of the Guild to be set up and developed. It is also highly
desirable for there to be qualified geographers working for the Autonomous
Regional Government, as this is the most effective strategy to achieve social and
institutional recognition of geographers’ professional skills.

References
1. ANECA 2004. Título de Grado en Geografía y Ordenación del Territorio. Omán.
Madrid.
2. A.G.E. 2001. Geografía 21. Compobell. Murcia.
3. COLEGIO DE GEÓGRAFOS 2004. Las salidas profesionales de los Geógrafos.
Madrid.
4. PHILIPPONNEAU M. 2001. Geografía Aplicada. Ariel. Barcelona.
5. RODRÍGUEZ GONZÁLEZ R. 2004. Xeografía, entre cultura e profesión territorial. Ir
Indo. Vigo.


 To have and to have not. Some questions on secondary
Geography in Spain

Maria Villanueva

Faculty of [Link] Autonoma de Barcelona

Campus de Bellaterra. 008193. Spain
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Key words: teacher’s background, teaching methodology, teacher skills, geography

competences

Introduction
An increasing social pressure is currently placing teachers and the school system
in the “hurricane’s eye”. The cultural mix and the need for a change in attitudes
and skills, is pressing the school and the role of teachers is becoming more difficult
and even controversial. In this context, the question “Is there a significant role for
Geography in education?” should be asked. Are teachers equipped to make geog-
raphy a relevant subject in the school? This paper reports on the outcomes of a study
carried out in the framework of wider research on the geography teacher’s profiles.
The work we present here was centred in the analysis of the teacher’s points of view
on some specific teaching aspects, mainly on those related to the use of resources in
the classroom. The study also analyses the relationship between the use of teaching
resources in the geography classroom and the teacher’s attitudes towards in-service
training. The work also provides interesting insights on the teachers opinions about
Geography in the school curriculum.

The context of the research: Geography in Spanish curriculum

In the 20th century, Geography has been sharing the same curricular unit with History
and teachers, both of Geography and History, used to have a History degree. The
origin of this imbalance may be related to the shortage of Geography graduates at the
time. Until the end of the 1960’s, a Geography degree existed only in four Universi-
ties and new departments were established only after the new Education Act in the
1970’s. There are in 2005, 25 Geography university departments in Spain. Neverthe-
less, today historians and geographers still share the teaching of Secondary school
Geography, which has often been considered by History teachers as just an “attach-
ment”. In most universities, Geography has disappeared as such, from the curriculum
of Teacher Training, substituted by methodological subjects; thus geographical
knowledge and skills are becoming poorer among primary school teachers, as in
many cases their geographical background is only that of lower secondary school
(Villanueva, 2000).


 In the Primary school curriculum, Geography is included in a unit called “Knowl-
edge on social and natural environment”, where Geography, History and Civics, are
introduced. In lower Secondary school, Geography is included in the Social Studies
area where it represents 40% of the expected study load. In upper secondary schools
(students aged 16−18) there are 105 hours of Geography taught in the second year
as a compulsory subject for those students taking Humanities and Social Sciences
strands. Overall this is a very low level of provision in the curriculum. The conse-
quence of this limited presence will probably result in too few future Geography
graduates training to be teachers and the persistence of History graduates teaching in
this area; A degree in History has during the last three decades, been a very popular
option among those students going to the faculties of Humanities and Letters and thus
willing to teach in secondary schools. This also implies that Geography will continue
to be taught by professionals not adequately trained in Geographical competences.

The research
The idea of this research arose after participating in international research coordinated
by Sanders and Stoltman presented at the meeting of the International Geographical
Union in Glasgow (Stoltman 2004). This work was designed to compare geography
content and methods used by classroom teachers in Europe and the United States.
Taking it as a starting point, a new enquiry was designed. The objective was to
investigate the teacher’s professional profile, as it was considered to have a close
relationship with the geographical approaches and resources that teachers use. The
research was carried out with a group of 35 Secondary schools; 12 of them, together
with their 30 geography teachers, constitute the sample which will be analysed in this
paper. The schools in this sample belong to three near cities (Sabadell (pop. 193,000),
Cerdanyola del Valles (pop. 56,000), Ripollet (pop. 33,000)). They are located very
close to each other separated by a distance between 2−5 km, nine of them are public
and three private, although recognised by the state.
The enquiry presented three main groups of questions to the teachers:
1. scientific background (academic degree, years of teaching, in-service training
courses attended, specialization),
2. Geographical approaches (topic preferences, contents,...) and
3. the use of resources in the classroom.
The teachers were asked to rank from 1 to 6 (1 = least, 6 = most) different ques-
tions and also from 1 to 6 (1 = disagree, 6 = totally agree) a number of different
statements. Finally, a last open question was added in order to get their opinions and
points of view on Geography in the curriculum and about the role of Geography in
Citizenship education.

Main survey findings, results and comments

The survey results show clearly that 99% of the professionals teaching Geography
in Secondary Schools have not been trained in Geography Departments. 35% of
them have a History degree and %, the former joint degree of Geography and
History; some other professional backgrounds can also be found, for example Art

and Humanities. Five of the teachers also declared their origin as primary teachers.
Until 1992, teachers were able to work in Secondary Schools after a two year post-
graduate course with specialisation in for example History, Geography, Psychology,
Pedagogy and Philology. This possibility was removed after the Reform of 1992.
Their average teaching experience is 12 years. The positive attitude towards attend-
ance at in-service activities was found in only the 35% of the sample and most of
these (90%) had attended only one in-service course during their whole professional
career and 60% of the courses done were not related to Geography. At the same time,
65% of them declared that they had not introduced relevant changes in the curriculum
taught in their classes, not even those related to ICT (Information and Communica-
tions Technologies). This is of special significance since the Spanish school national
curriculum has been reformed twice in the last 20 years. The rest of the teachers said
that they had introduced some changes, especially those concerning environmental
and regional studies aspects.
The second part of the questionnaire was addressed to find out the main compe-
tences chosen by teachers as objectives in their course work. They were given four
possibilities and the results show the competences which can be considered to be the
most geographical. The competence “understanding of spatial relations at different
scales” was only chosen with the highest marks by 55% of teachers; on the other hand,
the competence “to look for and to analyse geographical information”, was marked
as most important by 70% of respondents. The most preferred competences were
“to understand the diversity and interdependence of places” and “ability to observe
and interpret geographical phenomena” which were marked by 80% of teachers with
the maximum score (5 or 6).
The most important topics in geography lessons, were, from the teachers’ point of
view, those related to World Systems and Human Systems, which had been marked
by more than 80% of the sample, in the range 5 and 6. In second place, Europe, our
country, Globalisation and Diversity were choices pointed also in the 71−75% of the
answers. After this, Environment and Places and Regions appeared with highest
scores in 70% of the enquiries. The design and study of maps is placed in the middle
range, appearing only in a 65% of the answers and 25% of the teachers considered
this question to be of a very low importance, whereas only 2% were not interested
in environmental questions. These findings should probably be interpreted, taking
into account the profiles of the teachers. The most basic and specific geographical
knowledge is not considered as fundamental in the answers of the survey; perhaps
the training profile of the teachers could provide an initial explanation.
The least interesting topics in teachers opinions are, Physical Systems and the
questions related to Citizenship and conflict, which are considered only in half of
the answers. These are relatively new fields for teachers, there probably needs to be
some additional professional training.
It was decided to look at the instruments used in the geography classroom as an
indirect way of approaching the teacher’s work, their abilities and skills. This proved
to be a very helpful instrument in the understanding of what was happening in the
classroom. The use of resources is strongly related to the objectives of teaching and
225
the efficacy of the teaching and learning action. It gives a clear idea of the methods
used and the level of updating on new resources that has taken place.
The results of this enquiry reinforce the first hypothesis. The most common
instrument in the Geography classroom is the textbook: 95% chose the book as an
essential guide. At some distance from this maps were second stated by 68% of the
teachers, indeed three of the respondents did not even recognise the use of maps at
all!; newspapers and journals were selected in the third place. The overwhelming
use of the textbook as the main tool could be interpreted in different ways. On the
one hand, a textbook facilitates lesson planning; it gives security on the content and
suggests appropriated activities; in conclusion, somebody (the author) “thought” in
advance for the teacher. On the other, the use of a textbook could be interpreted as
a solution for feeling secure when placed in the situation where the teacher doesn’t
feel confident in teaching a subject. Taking into account the fact that most of the
teachers consulted were not trained as geographers, the textbook could be helpful in
their work, although the use of a textbook, doesn’t mean necessarily that teachers do
not use other resources and combine them. In our research, the textbook constituted
almost the fundamental resource and thus the teachers gave it the maximum mark.
The enquiry provided teachers with a list of many other possibilities, for example
overhead transparencies, slides, Internet, GIS, Webquests, Video and DVD record-
ings. Some of these options were almost unknown: Webquests (0%), GIS (0%)
Internet (3%), transparencies (9%). Only Video and DVD were marked in the 35%
of the answers. In the case of GIS, 54% of teachers did not even know the meaning
of the term.

The place of Geography in education: teacher’s opinions

Geography has not been a separate subject in general schooling in Spain since 1972.
Very few teachers can remember how it was before this time, since they have been
educated under the new system. There are many strong reasons to maintain the inclu-
sion of Geography as part of a more global subject in Primary education. Children
should be introduced to the discovery of the real world through cross-curricular
subjects which have proved to be more flexible and efficient in the learning process.
In the case of Lower Secondary level though, the arguments sustaining the inclusion
of Geography in a broader curricular area need to be questioned. In any case, the
fact that Geography does not have a relevant position in upper Secondary school,
certainly contributes to the low profile of Geography when it comes to students
applying for University courses.
The last part of the survey asked the teachers to mark their level of agreement
with three propositions:
• the inclusion of Geography in the Social Studies area,
• the possibility of Geography as a separate subject and
• the contribution of Geography to citizenship education.
The answers were very similar: 100% of them were absolutely positive about the
inclusion of Geography in Social Sciences area and thus they were clearly against the
segregation of Geography. “Geography has to be integrated with History; it provides
226
the coordinate “space” to the coordinate “time” (Teacher I),“The Geography fields of
work are strongly related to Sociology, Economy and mainly with History” (Teacher
II); “Geography is complementary with History” (Teacher III). Geography was seen
as useful and positive in Citizenship education, “It helps in the understanding of
diversity” (teacher IV); and “Geography introduces critical thinking”(Teacher V).

Some final remarks

“To have and to have not”, the title of this paper, could also be the main conclusion
of the study. Geography is present in Spanish schools but it is not seen by students as
“useful knowledge”, for them Geography does not matter. Is it due to its position in
the curriculum? To what extent is the fact that it is being taught by non-Geographers
contributing to that perception?
In spite of the shortage of geographers in teaching, it can also be said that teaching
was traditionally the main perspective for the few graduates in Geography. Since
1995, the intensive use of GIS and ICT has opened new opportunities for Geograhy
graduates and they are now mainly employed in technical jobs, in planning and
research units. In addition, the access to teaching posts is becoming even more diffi-
cult as the large surplus of graduates in History makes the competition for teaching
jobs even greater.
If we add that because of the birth rate the total number of University applicants has
sensibly decreased, we can conclude that it altogether it will be very difficult to change
the situation and that the recruitment of candidates for Geography degrees requires
a additional efforts. University Geography departments have implemented some
policies based on the dissemination of information to Secondary schools. University
teachers personally visit the schools, introducing the students to the ever widening
range of possibilities for geographers to work in different and exciting jobs.
The results of this survey reinforces the idea that there is a lack of skills and
competences in the teaching of Geography and confirms that secondary teachers do
not seem to be interested in in-service activities to update their competences. How
does this feet with the principle of “lifelong learning”? Probably the most important
outcome of the work should be the need to inform Departments of Geography of
the situation of Geography in Schools and the implications for the recruitment of
students, university teaching and research, and to help the departments concerned
in the reflection of how they should try to encourage geography graduates to work
as Geography teachers and to get involved in the in-service activities needed by
existing teachers and thus in the encouragement of these teachers to improve the
quality, relevance and contemporary nature of their teaching.

References
1. STOLTMAN J., SANDERS R. 2004. Comparing Geographical Education in Europe and
the United States:Content and Concepts. Unedited paper. IGU Conference. Glasgow.
2. VILLANUEVA M. 2000. European integration, social change and new challenges in
the training of teachers in Spain: more questions than answers, in SULTANA, R.(ed)
Teacher education in Euro-mediterranean region. Peter [Link] York.



 PART THREE

Intercultural Aspects
in Geographical Education

229
 What Europe do we teach?
A view from Spanish Geography
Mireia Baylina, Maria Prats

Department of Geography, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona,

08193 Bellaterra, Spain
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
The aim of the paper is to analyse the teaching of the Geography of Europe in Spanish
universities in order to detect the relationship between the practice of teaching and recent
geopolitical changes in Europe, in the context of the evolution of regional geography issues.
We examine the organisation of the subject, the area of study, the focus adopted and the
recurrent, absent or new issues.

Key words: Europe, teaching, regional geography, Spanish universities

Introduction
The teaching of the Geography of Europe in Spain in the early years of the st Century
is set within two important processes: geopolitical changes in Europe since 1989
and the changes in the academic context of geography, most particularly of regional
studies (Childs, 1995; Halseth and Fondahl, 1998).
The end of the Cold War and changes in the map of Europe has implied a process
of redefining Europe and of the search for a clear role on a global level. In this matter,
Europe needs to convey an idea of citizenship, to inform more about Europe itself,
and to create the sensation of “feeling European”. Moreover, through teaching at
all levels, it is possible to work towards this knowledge of the European dimension,
although teaching about Europe should not only serve to legitimise the European
project, but to promote critical awareness of the process and to know and understand
our immediate surroundings.
The geopolitical complexity of Europe demands new analyses of the territory
(Foucher, 1998) and, for this purpose, the concept of a region is crucial. A regional
geography that uses the explanation of what is local as part of a global reference,
and which, in turn, observes historic, economic and social events that have taken
place within the territory, is very important to provide elements to understand the
current situation.
To explore the approaches to teach the Geography of Europe in Spain we have
compiled the syllabi used in the Geography Departments in the Spanish Universi-
ties. Out of the 42 Departments consulted, 38 responses were obtained, 28 of which
were positive ones in that they teach the subject and 10 were negative, they don’t.
This has been complemented with some interviews of Catalan colleagues who have
experience of teaching the subject.

230
Approach, scope and course structure: a worthwhile diversity
It is difficult to generalise about the treatment of the Geography of Europe. The
plurality of definitions for the concept of “Europe” itself clearly reflects the uncer-
tainty, ambiguity and conventionality of which countries actually make up this
territory.
The title by which the course is known appears to be particularly significant.
“Geography of Europe”, “Physical Geography of Europe”, “Human Geography of
Europe”, “Regional Geography of Europe”, Geography of the European Union”,
“Human Geography of the European Union”, The European Union”, “Geography
of the European Community”, Geography of the European Communities”, and
“General Geography of Europe” are the titles given to this subject.
When researching the scope (what is included within the term Europe), in most
cases we observed that Europe is not simply limited to the countries of the Euro-
pean Union, although it is hard to tell from the syllabi exactly where the continent
ends. Course-content descriptions provide an ambiguous answer to the question of
boundaries when describing “Europe”. In some cases, the syllabus makes it very
clear that it is dealing with the “European Union”, while in others there is a clear
sequence of thematic blocks or themes that include countries that are part of the
former “Eastern Europe” and Russia. But, actually, this way of considering Europe
at least as far as the Urals and the Caucasus in all the themes is fairly exceptional.
The attempts appear when dealing with a wider Europe for certain themes (physical
environment, population or geopolitics, for example) and with a more limited Europe
(EU or “Eastern Europe”) to speak about economics or differences in regional devel-
opment. In some cases, the solution has been to provide a thematic focus to half or
more of the syllabus, while the remainder covers it with a review of different Eastern
“regions” (“Russia”, “Russia and Eastern Europe”).
The predominant focus of the syllabi analysed is on classical themes followed
at quite a distance by regional geography, and in only two cases we can speak of
a holistic focus based on a problem-oriented perspective, in accordance with Lévy
(1997). This distribution is no surprise, given that teaching of the Geography of
Europe in most countries of the European Union has developed from the classical
regional focus of French regional geography to a thematic, transversal focus on
the territory. In fact, the discrediting of classical regional geography within the
geographical community, the appearance of new scientific paradigms (quantita-
tive or critical geography) and the political, economic and social development of
the continent have all strengthened this focus. Indeed, integration in the European
Union, common policies and the main problems of the countries (in-migration,
environmental problems, transport congestion, unemployment, etc.) has favoured
the thematic treatment of the subject.
Post-modernism and cultural changes have incorporated new themes and concepts
such as multi-cultural, linguistic and religious diversity, nationalism, cultural land-
scapes, welfare…, and some of these can be observed in the syllabi studied. However,
we have not identified a single syllabus with a clear post-modernist orientation.


 The regional approach is used in one-third of the cases analysed. In this syllabi
it is common to begin with one or two introductory themes related to the whole of
Europe: “the idea of Europe”, “the definition of European space”, “the natural envi-
ronment” or “modes of life”; some also refer to the chosen model of regionalisation
and the criteria of boundaries. The rest of the syllabus is devoted to as many issues
or thematic blocks as there are delimited regional groups. The criteria for regionali-
sation tend to follow geopolitical and geographical questions, and Europe taken as
a whole is not always represented.
In all of the syllabi, we can observe a concern to incorporate a priority for Central,
Balkan and Eastern Europe. But we have to say that the European regional division
established and specially ‘Eastern Europe’ is very heterogeneous and emphasises
the multiple visions of the mental map of this region.
Occasionally, European boundaries serve as a resource for dealing with specific
issues under the umbrella of a greater region. For example, under the heading “The
European Union” there are sub-headings that coincide with the countries of the
Union. However, this scheme can be found for just thirteen countries, with Sweden
and Finland eliminated and included instead as part of the block of “Nordic Coun-
tries”. In other cases, the European Union is rejected as a homogenous regional space,
and a different system of regionalisation is proposed: “Nordic Europe”, “Western
Europe”, “Mediterranean Europe”, “Eastern Europe”, or “Ex-Soviet Europe”.
And in these cases it is interesting to note which countries are included in each
category. For example “Mediterranean Europe” may consist of the Iberian Penin-
sula, Italy and Greece, leaving aside other countries such as Malta, Croatia, Slov-
enia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Albania, Serbia-Montenegro, Macedonia, Cyprus (and
Turkey) to form part of other sub-groups that are more related to other contents than
the basically economic and political “Mediterranean-ness” offered by the countries
referred to above.
It is curious to note how certain countries are included in regions that are created
in an ad hoc manner for some reason or other. For example, the idea of “Norway,
Switzerland and Iceland: countries separated from their natural geographic groups”,
or “European States Receiving of Germanic Influence” to include Germany, Austria
and Switzerland. It is also interesting to note how certain spaces that are usually
forgotten, such as microstates, are included.
These categories provide a glimpse of how known geopolitical categories such as
“Central Europe”, “Eastern Europe”, “South-eastern Europe”, “Balkans”, “Countries
of the former Soviet Union”, and “Baltic States” have been replaced by others or
have taken on new contents as a consequence of the process of the (re-)invention of
regional and national identities. The “Carpathian Bowl”, “Danube Region”, “Black
Sea area”, or a “Central Europe” that extends further east than the traditional mitte-
leuropa are examples of such reformation. However, we should point that all of these
are symbolic geographies, socially constructed concepts, and that their content and
delimitation are difficult to determine.
The headings for the regions in the East of Europe tend to share certain more or
less negative connotations such as “crisis”, “disintegration”, “difficult integration”,

“instability”, “inequality”, “fragmentation”, “conflict” or “transitory problems”,
although there is also a more aseptic or even positive vocabulary of terms such
as “territorial mutations and new horizons”, “highly defined national identities”,
“perspectives for economic growth” and “potential for endogenous development”.

Recurrent, absent and new themes

The geopolitical, economic, social and environmental changes in Europe, along
with the role and relationship of Europe to the rest of the world are introducing new
concerns and interests that little by little are reflected in educational content.
Generally, the most classic themes observed include: physical framework, char-
acteristics of the population, economic activity and organisation of space. Among
the newer ones, the most recurrent are: individualisation of European space, concept
of Europe, geopolitical framework, construction of the European Union and the
political space of Europe, nation-states and nationalism, environment, in-migration,
and regional inequalities.
Paradoxically, a number of contemporary concerns are not particularly visible: the
ethnic, linguistic and religious diversity of Europeans and the general recognition of
otherness (issues of gender, sexuality, poverty and marginalisation). In this sense,
the Spanish panorama shares with other countries (Kitchin, 1999) a slowness in the
incorporation of post-modern, post-structuralist and feminist ideas and a critical
geography focus into academic syllabi.
Meanwhile, there is also a clear need for critical geography to be incorporated into
syllabi in a more obvious way, particularly for the development of critical skills and
attitudes in students, as a means of improving their capacity for the contextualisation
and formulation of evaluations of their environment.
Neither is there a very strong presence of the socio-political and economic posi-
tioning of Europe in the world, nor of the relationship between Europe and other
geographical areas. In particular, when other geographical regions appear, these are
developed areas with which Europe maintains a relationship of economic exchange.
The relationship between Europe and less developed countries rarely appears in
syllabi.
There are few examples of specific places mentioned in the syllabi, those cases in
which they do appear is when the lecturer uses the territory as a case study (“The
Swedish Nordland, for example). However, we are aware that in some universities,
case studies are included on specific territories through not previously detailed in
the description of the course-content.

Final Thoughts
The analysis of the different syllabi leads us to conclude that the main objective
is to transmit knowledge about Europe more than to “europeanise” the students.
Nevertheless, issues related to the European construction or the space of the Euro-
pean Union are emphasized. This can be understood as an implicit will to make the
students face and understand the present European context.


 The syllabi reflect mainly that the introduction of this new subject has not been
accompanied by a renewal of teaching ideas or approaches. On the contrary, the
models of existing regional subjects have been adapted to a new geographical scale.
In other words, the object of study varies, but not the way it is approached.
The teaching of the geography of Europe clearly suggests that there is potential
for regional studies, and although they are not exclusive to geography, they should be
approached and recovered by this discipline. First, because students find such studies
attractive, and second, because they are highly identifiable with geography.
Indeed, it is worth recognising the potential of regional geography courses as a
way to attract students from secondary education and other disciplines into geog-
raphy degree programmes, and as a way of showing what the study of the subject
can involve. Holistic knowledge of territories and societies is fundamental in the
modern world and can offer elements for thinking, deciding and behaving in better
ways and with more solidarity.
Meanwhile, from a methodological perspective, regional geography allows us
to incorporate plurality, synthesis, the relationship between research scales, the
connection between different issues, books or materials, and the very exercise of
regionalisation is, in itself, conceptually of great interest.
Regional studies, and among those, the geography of Europe, can better prepare
students for professional and geographical mobility and for the understanding of
other European languages, aspects that are increasingly more valued within profes-
sional careers.
The global vision of teaching geography of Europe in Spanish universities and
our experience in the teaching leads us to conclude that the elaboration of a syllabus
of regional geography, and specifically of a geography of Europe is a complex task.
Nevertheless, we would not like to finish without presenting here some ideas and
suggestions that could be applicable in the design of future syllabi:
• To incorporate a problem-oriented approach in the development of the course
• To introduce case studies at different spatial scales
• To elaborate a syllabus with a central axis and different subjects, case studies and
specific problems around it
• To promote visits of lecturers from other European countries to participate in the
teaching process.
• To introduce in the syllabus subjects related to otherness, like gender, age,
ethnicity, sexuality, class, either as separate issues integrated into other topics
• To stimulate critical thinking, particularly with respect to key subjects like
migrations, European construction, multiculturality, environmental issues and
so forth
• To promote the study of other European languages in order to improve students
academic and professional opportunities in the current European labour market
where mobility is increasingly valued
• To take advantage of Internet resources to get access to materials produced by
other universities and European institutions.


 In short, we need to leave behind us the decline in prestige that has stemmed
from an over-emphasis on description and a lack of critical force. Courses on the
geography of Europe can show how regional analysis in teaching and research is of
great value to geography nowadays.

References
1. CHILDS I.R.W. 1995. Asia-Pacific geography: A future concern of the discipline in
Australia? Geographical Education, 8 (3), pp. 23−26.
2. FOUCHER M. 1998. La République européenne. Entre histoires et geographies. Paris,
Belin.
3. HALSETH G. and FONDAHL G. 1998. Re-situating Regional Geography in an Under-
graduate Curriculum: an example from a new university. Journal of Geography in Higher
Education, 22 (3), pp. 335−346.
4. KITCHIN R. 1999. Creating an awareness of Others. Geography, 84 (1), pp. 45−54.
5. LEVY J. 1997. Europe. Une géographie. Paris, Hachette.

235
 Geography Forum: Intercultural Learning Online
Margaret C. Keane

St Mary’s University College, 191 Falls Road, Belfast, Northern Ireland BT12 6FE
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
The growth in cultural diversity in most European countries and the increasing contacts
between peoples from all over the world has heightened awareness of cultural difference. It
has become evident that models of geographical education which emphasise ‘tolerance’ and
‘respect’ are inadequate. Instead, there is a need to recognise difference and make sensible
use of the knowledge acquired to deal with difference constructively. Intercultural learning
aims to bring about a change in individual perceptions of the cultural practices of the ‘other’
so as to learning to live and communicate effectively with people of other cultures. As ICT
begins to connect more geographically dispersed Geography Departments, the use of the
online discussion board is increasingly advanced as an accessible tool for intercultural
learning. It is argued that it has the potential to act as the forum for communication with
counterparts from culturally dissimilar backgrounds since it can overcome constraints of
space and time. This paper assesses the effectiveness of discussion boards for intercultural
learning and considers issues of communication, student interaction, team working and the
role played by verbal and non-verbal behavioural indicators.

Key words: Geography,discussion boards, ICT, university, teaching,, cultural diversity,

intercultural education, online learning

Introduction
In a world being re-shaped by knowledge technologies which are impervious to polit-
ical boundaries, young people are living in the conscious presence of cultural differ-
ence yet cultural and national identities still maintain their significance. Racism and
xenophobia suggest a lack of understanding of the pace of change while employers
increasingly seek candidates who are able to cross cultural divides in the workplace.
This paper assesses the effectiveness of computer-based Discussion Boards through
geography activities for building intercultural competence, an indispensable goal of
geographical education today.
From the 1970s, European universities have provided opportunities for geography
students to study in culturally diverse settings. Since 1987, for example, the Socrates-
Erasmus programme and other European programmes have widened the horizons of
thousands of students. Now virtual global classrooms are available to those with the
right facilities. Discussion Boards are a powerful forum for geography students to
learn through dialogue and collaboration; they afford vital opportunities for moder-
ated debate on controversial topics and they are a convenient means of linking
geographically dispersed students. Sensitivity to cultural diversity and improved
critical thinking are just two of the outcomes which have been noted by Merryfield

236
(2003). Ma (1994) considers these Boards to be an ideal means of sharing cultural
information and increasing cultural self-perception. Chen and Starosta (2000) add
that writing skills can be improved and critical thinking developed although others
have pointed out that the effects of cross-cultural communication online are either
inconclusive or minimal (Fabos and Young 1999).

Intercultural Pedagogy
Changes in concepts of intercultural learning relate to prevailing socio-cultural
and geopolitical circumstances. “International understanding” stems from the
post-war era and shaped intercultural education implicitly and explicitly until the
1990s. Hence, models of geographical education which emphasise ‘tolerance’ and
‘respect’ and the belief that intercultural problems can be prevented or solved in
a spirit of unprejudiced good will assumed that all people share the same values.
The resulting pedagogies emphasise cultural similarities and the development of
unprejudiced minds.
Now the relevance of cultural difference has shifted the paradigm for intercultural
learning to deal with difference constructively. The learning process is viewed as a
phased progression with individuals starting in a state of ethnocentrism and ending
when they have incorporated the cultural differences of the other culture into their
own behaviour and simultaneously possess the knowledge and skills. It is an ideal
state. Bennett (1993) models six stages beginning with the learner in Denial followed
by Defence against difference. By Stage 3 there is recognition, though Minimization,
of superficial cultural differences. Stage 4, describes Acceptance of difference and
is, he asserts, the minimum requirement for cross-cultural communication to take
place. Adaptation to difference through developing empathy at Stage 5 is a step closer
to Integration at Stage 6. The movement is from “awareness” through “sensitivity”
culminating in “intercultural communication”. And so, interaction of increasing
intensity is needed to enhance students’ sensitivity to the cultural meanings of
diversity and to increase their ability to live and work effectively and harmoniously
with people of other cultures.

The Geography Forum: Exploring Nationalism

This paper reports on  undergraduates from Belfast, Northern Ireland who collabo-
rated in 9 international teams with 38 students from San Bernardino, California in a
four –week online Geography Forum, the core component of the Online Centre for
Global Geography Education Project on ‘Nationalism’. The theme was deemed to
have rich potential for intercultural learning. The central components were a website,
core content, learning activities, on-line reading and assignments. The module used
‘Blackboard’ to support an asynchronous threaded Discussion Board with e-mail,
attachments and personal web pages. The materials and tools were designed by
Luna-Garcia, Smith, Solem and Ray (2004). The data set for this analysis consisted
of transcripts of 547 online contributions, focus group and individual interviews and
pre- and post-test questions.


Was Intercultural Competence promoted?
By the end of the course, almost all St Mary’s students claimed to have a greater
understanding of local and global problems, especially nationalist conflicts. Their
cultural self-perception increased as they became more aware that nationalism was an
important issue in Northern Ireland; a few even showed reflection on their personal
understanding of it. Attitudes to difference may have changed through conversa-
tion, too. One in three had begun to accept that cultural differences exist and may
account for alternative behaviours and values. Even this limited cultural interaction
moved this group of students toward Bennett’s Stage 4 – his minimum requirement
for intercultural awareness. Before the Project, one third of the students were sure
that all young people had similar attitudes to world events – the other two thirds
were “uncertain”, some also of communicating with “others”. After the project, only
a couple remained hesitant about contact. However, enthusiasm for cross-cultural
project work was dampened. Disappointingly, after the module finished, no further
contacts took place.

The Experience of Intercultural Learning

Belfast students were given the opportunity to comment on their experience. The
majority (61%) focused on “the chance to learn about their own or another culture”
whereas only 7% considered the opportunity to reflect on their own or others’ atti-
tudes as “a main advantage of the Project”. The remainder highlighted the chance to
work collaboratively. After citing the time-pressured nature of the activity, the most
frequent concerns were poor team-work and various communication difficulties.

a) Communication Issues
The reality of an asynchronous Discussion Board was that feed-back was unsatisfac-
tory and message senders noted that their enthusiasm had often evaporated by the time
a response was received and the point of the exchange may even have been forgotten.
Time delay, along with infrequency of contact, was frequently mentioned as a diffi-
culty. These factors may account for the reduced involvement of some members
by mid-module. Language difficulties also inhibited discussion and informal rules
requesting the use of standard English was not adhered to by students; some of the
idioms, dialect words and constructions used were inappropriate. For a number of
students difference in styles of expression was of greater importance. Most, though
not all, of the Northern Ireland students are from “high-context” cultures (Hall,
1979; Dunlop, 1995) where communication is typically less explicit in the early
stages when the need to build relationships is felt to be important. Such students
approach conversation differently to those coming from “low-context” cultures
where direct communication is preferred. They were slow to build a rapport with
low-context partners until they had ‘situated’ the latter. The compressed timeframe
was a factor but the significance of the absence of verbal and non-verbal cues soon
became apparent. The addition of a face-to face component such as a video-confer-
ence would have enhanced the cross-cultural learning experience; indeed students
felt “depersonalised” and frequently asked “Can we not have a video link?”

b) Team-Working Issues
Intercultural learning uses a collaborative methodology which depends on working
in teams. In practice, there was little international team work in the sense of working
towards a common goal, even if there was interaction between individuals; and
there were local team issues. Although before the Project the majority of students
claimed that they did not mind teamwork, after the project fewer said they enjoyed it,
whether local or international. Concern over team composition and team dynamics,
uncertainty about roles and difficulties in scheduling work sessions were frequently
expressed. On the other hand, for those who enjoyed team work, the interesting
team mix excited them and discussion by email outside the public forum developed
for a few students. This raises a number of points, the main one being why some
students kept their contribution to a minimum. Some claim loss of interest due to
poor team communication, either local or international or both. McLaughlin and Luca
(2001) point to the way in which group unity depends on acknowledging questions,
continuity in discussion and resolving conflicts internally; making decisions within
groups can be problematic if there is infrequent contact between members. Group
dynamics plays a central part in the online collaborative activity so students wanted
agreed discussion guidelines to keep the team together; the Project showed that team
members who went off task had more satisfying intercultural encounters. Perhaps
a better balance between structured activities and opportunities for free exchange
might be considered. This may also alleviate other difficulties; they wanted to be
affiliated to the group and work towards a common goal yet still independent enough
to feel free to state their own viewpoint and comfortable enough to risk sharing
controversial ideas. The make- up of the group, then, needs to be considered very
carefully. Participation must also be effectively motivated if a virtual community
is to serve as basis for meaningful collaborative work. Student motivation revolves
around assessment and, in spite of their awareness that marks would be awarded for
Discussion Board communications, other priorities took precedence. A team assign-
ment needs to be designed for which meaningful Discussion Board participation is
at the very heart. In addition, a weekly journal reflecting on feelings and opinions
would develop intercultural competence and reward individuals.

Conclusion
Online discussion leads to the conclusion that geography students were confident
that they knew more about and had a better understanding of their own and other
cultures. Indeed, the conversations helped some to recognise that the behaviours,
attitudes and values of the “other” are rooted in cultural difference. Developing
an awareness of difference, the foundation on which intercultural communication
is built, may be the realistic online goal. Reflecting on the experience, technology
was not the main problem that students had to wrestle with. Rather, the main issues
concerned people, cultures and interaction. The importance of online interaction for
collaborative learning is emphasised by Harisim (1995) and the study showed that the
issues inhibiting interaction ranged from group dynamics to culturally appropriate
modes of expression. Intercultural competence must become an indispensable goal
239
of geographical education in our universities and schools as global communities
of learners develop. Online communication using a Discussion Board as a tool for
improving students’ learning may prove a promising method to achieve this goal.
That said, face to face collaborative learning is even more necessary, even in the age
of electronic communications.

Acknowledgements
The author would like to record her thanks to the students at St Mary’s University College,
Belfast and at California State University, San Bernardino and their tutor, Michal Kohout,
who participated in the Project, to Waverly Ray (CGGE) for organisational support and
Michael Solem (CGGE) for ongoing advice.

References
1. BENNETT M.J. Towards ethnorelativism: A developmental model of intercultural sensi-
tivity. In [Link] (Ed.) Education for the intercultural experience Intercultural Press,
Yarmouth, ME. pp. 21−71.
2. CHEN G.M. and STAROSTA W. 2000. Communication and Global Society, Peter Lang,
New York.
3. DUNLOP J. 1995. A Precious Belonging: Presbyterians and the Conflict in Ireland,
Blackstaff Press, Belfast.
4. FABOS B. and AND YOUNG M.D. 1999. Telecommunications in the classroom:
Rhetoric versus reality, Review of Educational Research 69(3) pp. 217−259.
5. HALL, E.T. 1979. Beyond Culture, Garden City, NY, Anchor Australia.
6. HARISIM L., STARR R.H., AHILTZ S.R. AND TUROFF M. 1995. Learning Networks.
A Field Guide to Teaching and learning online, MIT Press, Cambridge, MA.
7. LUNA-GARCIA A. SMITH J. SOLEM M. AND RAY W. 2004. Nationalism Instructor’s
Guide, Online Center for Global Geography Education, Washington.
8. MA R. 1994. Computer-mediated conversations as a new dimension of intercultural
communication between Asian and North American College students. [in] S. C. HER-
RING (Ed.), Computer-mediated communication, John Benjamins, Amsterdam.
9. MCLAUGHLIN C AND LUCA J. 2001. Houston, we have a problem! [in:] D. Murphy,
R. Walker and G, Webb. Online Learning and Teaching with technology; Case studies,
Experience and Practice, Kogan Page, London and Sterling VA, pp. 44−54.
10. MERRYFIELD M. 2003. Like a veil: Cross-cultural Experiential Learning Online.
Contemporary issues in Technology and Teacher Education, 3 (2), pp. 146−171.

240
 Geography teaching and European citizenship:
are things changing in France?
Valérie Kociemba1, Mayté Banzo2
1
Agrégée de géographie
e-mail: kociv@[Link]
Maître de conférences
2

Université de Bordeaux 3, UFR de Géographie et d’Aménagement,

33607 Pessac Cedex, France
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
The objective of our contribution is to show how European citizenship in France is built
in French Secondary Education through geography teaching. This presents two specific
characteristics, a great political centralism and the fact that geography has always has been
taught with history and civic education up until now.
The current development of secondary level geography lasts for 5 years and puts citizen-
ship as a training aim. This is expressed by the creation of elitist European classes (opening
towards Europe, disciplines taught in another language, European “baccalauréat”, study
trips…) and the reformulation of history, geography and civic education programs around
European topics. All this allows the pupils to understand better what the European identity
is and accordingly to built their European citizenship. The secondary school involvement
in this reform contrasts with university position where a new reform (the Bologna process)
is also taking place. Having more autonomy, universities develop their own programs. The
consequences are a great diversity in the place given to Europe, and European topics in
university level courses.

Key words: geography, geography teaching, European citizenship, university, European

classes, French education programs, civic dimension, spatial analysis, territories of Nation-
States

Introduction
In France, geography teaching in secondary school is in keeping with the history
teaching. History and geography, as well as civic education, are taught by the same
teachers and they represent 10% of the hours taught in High school. One of the major
problems that geography faces, is the fact that most geography teachers are history
graduates. Most of them are not really comfortable with teaching geography and they
tend to minimise their geography teaching. Geography is thus losing its visibility,
legibility and some of its autonomy as a main subject.
For French pupils, geography is a way to gain access to aspects of regarding citi-
zenship education. Through the different approaches, the teacher must promote not
only national citizenship but also a European one. How can this be done? What are
the means available to reach this goal? That is what we present in this paper, taking

Higher education (University) as a comparative perspective. In order to understand
better the French case, we will start by a quick presentation of the strength of
centralism in the organisation of national education.
The foundation of the French state education dates back to the third Republic
(1871−1940). Le tableau de la géographie de la France by Vidal de la Blache and
l’Histoire de la France by Lavisse have long been at the core of our teaching; they
enabled the headmasters and the teachers to pass on the values of the Republic such
as patriotism and secularism. Today this civic dimension is still present, the two
subjects aim at creating a cultural identity for the young among which Europe must
be one major aspect. This civic dimension in the teaching of these two subjects is
possible because education is national and completely centralized. Teachers in high
school and elementary school are employed as civil servants.
Teachers of high school and elementary schools have to enforce the national
curriculum. It determines what should be studied throughout the year, for every
subject. It shows the number of hours per subject that the teachers should respect.
The redaction or growth of the curriculum of a subject is done by the National Educa-
tion Minister who relies on the national curriculum council which is composed of
university professors and National Education executives. After much consultation,
the curriculum is published. The National Education inspectors and the Headteachers
must take care to enforce it. However teachers can have a certain amount of freedom
regarding its application.
In Universities, the constraints of the content of the subjects are less strong. The
ministry, according to reforms, proposes a referential structure but it is the pedagogic
team of the geographic departments that decides on the general orientation of the
teaching. This model has to be approved by the University and the ministry. Once
the orientation of the instruction is settled then the responsibility for the contents
of the various courses falls on the teachers. Therefore each university determines
its teaching orientation according to its competencies and strategy. This notion of
strategy is develops with respect to the Bologna process and the implementation of
the LMD (licence/bachelors-masters-doctorate/PhD) system. Indeed this system
entails that the training is done to enable the students to reach a certain educational
standard but it also must answer to a number of requirements according to employ-
ment. The approach is no longer national and regional, it is also European and it
places education within a competitive European system.

New tools to promote European citizenship in secondary education

First of all, the curriculum and handbooks/textbooks are the principal tools supporting
the construction of this European citizenship. The Middle school curriculum of 1995
puts Europe forward as early as the 5e (12 years old) but it is particularly from the
e (13 years old) that it becomes central (Table 1).


Table 1. The place of Europe in history-geography curriculum in Middle and High school (1995)
Niveaux Objectifs Éducation
Géographie Histoire
d’étude généraux civique
4ième Fondements • Diversité • L’Europe Les valeurs
(13 years) historiques et de l’Europe moderne communes de
College mise en place actuelle • L’Europe et son l’Europe
des repères spa- • Etude de trois expansion au
tiaux majeurs états Européens XIXe siecle
3ième Europe poli- • L’Union • 1914−1945:
(14 years) tique Européenne guerre,
College dans le monde démocratie, et
totalitarisme
• Construction et
organisation du
monde actuel
2ième Etude des • Les principes de • L’Europe en Citoyenneté et
(15 years) concepts fon- l’organisation mutation dans la civilité,
Lycée damentaux de spatiale première moitié Citoyenneté
l’histoire-géog- (l’Europe n’est du XIXe siècle et intégration,
raphie pas un sujet Citoyenneté et
spécifique) travail,
Citoyenneté et
liens familiaux.
Exemples
dans le cadre
européen
1ère Organisation • Qu’est-ce que • Le monde, Participation
(16 ans) du territoire l’Europe? l’Europe, la politique et
Lycée • L’Europe des France du milieu exercice de la
États du XIXe siècle citoyenneté en
• Réseaux et flux à 1945 France et en
en Europe et en Europe
France
• Les régions en
France et en
Europe
Terminale Europe comme • Les trois • Le monde,
(17 ans) puissance grandes aires de l’Europe, la
Lycée économique et puissance dans France de 1945
politique le monde à nos jours
• La puissance
économique
de l’Union
européenne
• L’Europe
rhénane


 This table shows the importance of Europe in the Middle school and High school
curriculum. It also emphasizes the coordinating effort that needs to take place
between the three subjects (geography, history and civic education). However the
variety of the approaches used in these subjects and the weight of the contents are
likely to lead to repetition. To avoid the problem and lighten the teaching, the teachers
rely on case studies. They enable the students to keep in contact with reality and help
them to work from the environment they live in. The “Itinéraire De Découverte”
(IDD) (Itinerary of Discovery) in Middle school as well as the “Travaux Personnels
Encadrés” (TPE) (Monitored personal work) in secondary school also supports that
idea. In this special course time is dedicated to the Europe theme: the students must
carry out research and must work on a personal or collective project.
Handbooks are also tools that assist in building up citizenship studies. A study
based on the geography handbook of ère (High school) shows how through images
(maps, pictures of landscape, satellite images) the Europe subject is built up in geog-
raphy with “stereotype images of high-profile places, maps of Europe with indefinite
frontiers on the eastern side and clear cuts on the southern side” (Chevalier, 2001). In
spite of these homogeneous images which give a certain profile of Europe, and which
obviously provide an oriented knowledge of it, the author underlines that they offer
different possible interpretations of European people and places which contribute to
pluralistic vision of the European citizen who “craftsman is teacher” (ibid).
Beyond those programs and the tools that are associated with it, European citi-
zenship builds itself up through the implementation of new processes. The most
important of these is undoubtedly linked to the “classe européenne” which had over
160 000 students in 3600 sections in Middle and High schools in 2004. The European
sections aim to provide teaching of a non-linguistic subject in a foreign language and
the deeper knowledge of a country’s culture. The European section exists in German,
English, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Portuguese, Russian, even if the English language
is predominant. They are normally started in the 4e (12 years old) (exceptionally in
6e,10 years old) and has since 2003 led to a baccalauréat (High school degree) with
a European option. In this section, cultural activities and exchanges are organized,
aiming at teaching a deeper knowledge of the civilization of the country where the
language studied is spoken.
Those European sections, established in August 1992 are quite popular, all the
more since the teaching proposed tends to appeal to good students and to create a
selection process: the best students thus study less Latin than they did thirty years ago
but study many languages and have European opportunities. The links with foreign
countries and the participation in projects like Comenius are encouraged.
An experiment carried out at the University of Bordeaux at the beginning of a
course of regional geography testifies to the direct effects that these measures have
had on the orientation of the knowledge of the students. We asked the students to
localize cities on an empty map of France and to indicate the name of the regions
where these cities are. Besides this, we asked them to indicate on a clear map of
Europe the important cities and to identify the countries where they are. Generally
the localization of European towns is more precise than the one of French cities.

The countries are well defined, however for France, the students tend to confuse
the names of the administrative regions and departments. Does this suggest that the
position of the Nation-State is weakening for that of Europe. This is unsure, but it
is perhaps heading this way.
If Europe becomes a major theme in secondary school history and geography,
this is not the case in Higher education. Maybe this is because of the scientific
orientations of geography there. There is a movement to reduce and even to remove
the regional themes in the courses. For example, in the geography department in
Bordeaux, in the new curriculum, teaching about “France and Europe”, “Africa”,
“Asia”, “America” have been removed to make room for a more economic classifica-
tion such as “industrial and post-industrial areas”, “developing areas”, “emerging
areas”, “transitional areas”. Studies that mention the theme of Europe in geography
departments at undergraduate level tend to be general courses, mainly taught during
the first or second year. Only a few universities have courses on Europe at Masters
level. One example is the “Men, cities and territories” Masters course at Lille. During
the first semester there is a course on the “Evolution of policies regarding territory
management and European integration”, and during the second semester there is a
course taught in English: “Europe: european regional organisation and policies”.
Nevertheless, this approach is still marginal in France and it is probably related to
the geographical situation of Lille and also to the strength of special agreements and
links between the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region (France), Hainaut region (Belgium)
and the Kent region (UK).
Europe is obviously not absent from university teaching, nor from research, but
it is less an object of study and more a context. Organizational studies like socio-
spatial dynamics that are studied take place in a European context. Nevertheless,
Europe is a weak scientific paradigm which brings about difficulties regarding its
teaching. Which Europe can we teach? The one that depends on a political will (the
European Union)? The one that emphasises its scientific side that obviously means a
multiple one? Generally, until the 1989−1992 break ups, Europe was not a geographic
object very appreciated by the geographers at University (Foucher, 1998). It seems
that they tend to study more the territories of the Nation-States and they might have
grown away from this only to view the worldwide scale with the tools of spatial
analysis and geopolitics. |During the last few years, French geographers have started
to nurture the Europe concept by studying its cultural dimension (Levy, 1997). This
geography goes beyond the traditional dominant economic approach which started
in the sixties with Pierre George and his “Europe des marchands” (Dessieux Knafou
and Leon, op. cit.).
As this development reaches its end, we can notice a clear cleavage between
secondary school where European citizenship is a academic or pedagogical subject,
and University where, even if it is integrating the European tuning process of higher
education (the Bologna process), it doesn’t label Europe as a scientific culture.
However, although Europe is not really considered as a scientific object, it increas-
ingly participates in our living area, and our representations. The interest is then not
to favour a Euro-focused instruction which neglects the study of nations but to base
245
the studies on what exists, to consider both the project of Europe and the realities
which are being confronted. Higher education geography should not neglect these
topics, if it wants to maintain a certain expertise on questions raised in society from
which the European project should not be excluded.

References
1. CHEVALIER J.P. 2001. «Images de l’Europe dans les manuels de géographie français»,
Travaux de l’Institut de Géographie de Reims, № 109−110, p 23−49.
2. DESSIEUX G., KNAFOU, R. ET LEON, E., op. cit., p 71−75.
3. FOUCHER M. 1998. La République européenne entre histoires et géographies, Paris,
Belin,, cité PAR DESSIEUX G., KNAFOU [Link] LEON E., «L’Europe: un paradigme
scientifiquement faible mai un enjeu civique», in: HAGNERELLE M. (dir.), Apprendre
l’histoire et la géographie a l’école, Actes du colloque du 12−14 décembre 2002, Paris,
Scérén/CRDP Versailles, 2004, p. 73.
4. LEVY J. 1997. L’Europe, géographie d’un devenir, Paris, Hachette.

246
 Teaching Geography in English at Austrian Schools
Models, Practice and Intercultural Gain
Barbara Katharina Mayerhofer

University of Salzburg, Department of Geography, Geology and Mineralogy,

Hellbrunnerstraße 34, 5020 Salzburg, Austria
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
Since the introduction of ‘bilingual’ teaching in Geography at the end of the 1980s in Austria
many schools have met the challenge. Models of ‘bilingual’ teaching, practice in the class-
room and figures about its spread in the country will be presented. The role the teaching of
didactics plays in this context will be depicted. The intercultural gain of teaching Geography
in English – also in the context of web-based teaching – will be pointed out.

Key words: Teaching Geography in English, models, spread, teacher-training at university,

intercultural gain, school

Introduction
While the new challenges of the political and social changes in Europe have triggered
first activities of using a foreign language as a medium of instruction at schools in
Austria, a recommendation of the European Council (Lidauer 2001) and later the
European Commission’s 1996 White Paper have intensified activities in this field. In
Austria English is the predominant foreign language used in this context.

Models of teaching Geography in English

Beside full-time use of a foreign language as a medium of instruction (English in most
cases) in so-called bilingual schools four other models characterise current practice
in Austrian schools (Abuja and Heindler, 1993). Two of them are outlined here:
1. Use of the foreign language for a limited period of time. This approach is taken
when pupils first experience the use of English in the Geography and Economics
classes (in Austria the subject is called “Geography and Economics”, thus in
addition to geographical topics economic topics are also dealt with). It is often
practised in the lower grades of schools which have full-time “bilingual” teaching
from grade 9 to 12 (students between 14 and 18 years of age).
2. Aquiring “skills” in interdisciplinary teaching is another way of taking the first
steps towards full-time “bilingual” teaching. Describing observations, experi-
ments, procedures, comparing and evaluating are among these skills. These
universal skills are supposed to enable students to tackle various geographical
and economic problems in the foreign language.
Currently there are some 30 “bilingual” schools in Austria. In these schools some
(for example: Geography, History, Biology and Mathematics) or all subjects are


 taught in the foreign language exclusively. Moreover English is used as a medium
of instruction in about 200 Austrian Secondary Modern and Grammar Schools.
(Abuja 2001) Recent data show that the number of students using English as a
foreign language in non-language subjects is still rising. In the school-year 2003/04
16,226% more students were taught one or more non-language subjects in a foreign
language than in the year 2002/03. (data from ÖSZ (Ed.) 2005, to be published in
the summer of 2005)

Teacher-training
About 82% of the teachers in “bilingual” classrooms of any type in Austria have a
teaching diploma in the language and the non-language subject they are teaching in
the foreign language. (Grogger and Oestreich, 1997) The subject combination with
a foreign language, however, is not required for teaching the “special” classes. If a
teacher feels able to take up the job, he or she can do so. Neither of the two groups
have a specific didactic training for teaching non-language subjects in a foreign
language. Thus the design of and the practice in “bilingual” learning environments
are predominantly based on personal experiences of teachers and to some degree on
knowledge and insights obtained from in-service teacher-training. Teacher-training
at universities has scarcely offered anything in the field, apart from some courses
on the topic.
The situation is a little different, though, at the “Pädagogischen Akademien”, where
secondary modern school teachers are trained in Austria. Secondary modern schools
in Austria are for 10−14-year-old students who do not attend grammar school. The
grammar school is supposed to focus more on academic abilities whereas secondary
modern schools have a focus on preparing their students for an apprenticeship or
some other kind of vocational career. Some of the “Pädagogischen Akademien” offer
programmes in which their students and practising teachers are trained together.
As none of these “large-scale” activities has so far taken place in Salzburg the
author has begun to offer special training for English as a medium of instruction for
future Geography teachers on a regular basis at Salzburg University. This training
includes theoretical didactic background, designing lessons and practical teaching of
geography in English at a Salzburg grammar school. Special consideration is given
to moder teaching methods.
Many researchers in this field found out that teachers in “bilingual” classrooms
spend more time on structuring the contents of their teaching and on their teaching
methods than average teachers – this actually seems to be a necessity as there is the
“language difficulty” which has to be managed. In addition to that D. Wolff (2002,
p. 48) states that
“The topics relevant in the content and language classroom help learners under-
stand the relevance of forms of collaboration which are unknown in the traditional
classroom, for example group work or project work. ….
On the whole, then, CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) creates
a learning environment which corresponds much better to modern pedagogical
principles than do traditional learning environments.”

Additional Value – Intercultural Competence and…
While many politicians and linguists are interested in the additional time students get
for language acquisition, from a geography-didactical perspective the motivation to
use a foreign language as a medium of instruction is another one. According to most
scientists engaged in geography didactics the most important motivation for the use
of a foreign language when teaching geography (and economics) is the learning target
intercultural competence. (for example, Müller 2000, Hallet 1999, Weber 1993, Ernst
1992). In order to achieve this aim of intercultural competence and – in addition – the
ability to communicate internationally about specific geographic topics Hallet (1999)
claims that three different thematic fields have to be dealt with in “bilingual” classes.
These are firstly, phenomena and issues of the students’ mother-tongue culture and
society, secondly, phenomena and issues of the target language cultures and socie-
ties and thirdly, cross-cultural, culture-comparing, global, and universal phenomena
and issues. This field also implies general geographic themes and from an Austrian
perspective economic topics, too. Besides the use of terminology and the verbalisa-
tion of geographic concepts, reading specialized texts for gist is aimed at.
Getting ideas of everyday lives in other cultures and societies is a current demand
in geography didactics (e.g. Schmidt-Wulffen 1999, Uhlenwinkel 2000). Using a
foreign language in this context is almost a necessity as finding real authentic mate-
rial in the students’ own language is impossible in most cases. Also in the context of
a multi-perspective approach a variety of authentic materials is essential. Within the
framework of thematic teaching in geography there is a great number of case studies
that regionally belong to a ‘target language
country’. Thus really authentic work is
only possible using original material (see
for example the cartoon on immigration in
Figure 1). In this context using the internet
is important for the teacher when preparing
materials for the classes and for the students
when they are supposed to explore certain
topics independently. Of course even inde-
pendent student work needs some guiding
on the part of the teacher. The amount of
guiding that should be given by the teacher
depends on the student’s age and on their
experience with that kind of work.

Conclusion
One might argue that it is strange and
unnatural for many students to speak a
foreign language in a setting in which all
participants speak the same mother-tongue,
an experience which the author partially
shares. A remedy for this awkward situation, Figure 1. „Authentic“ (Aunkhofer, Vossen 2003, p. 38)
249
as K. De Bot calls it, is a variety of “international activities for which the foreign
language needs to be used on a daily basis in natural conversational (including
virtual/internet based) settings”. (De Bot, 2002, p.31) Communicating in a foreign
language can also make sense to the students, however, when they are confronted
with the topic in the foreign language especially as switching between mother-tongue
and foreign language may also pose a difficulty. Moreover it is necessary to train
using the foreign language in a difficult thematic context before using the language
as a lingua franca when communicating with partners and friends that do not speak
one’s mother tongue. Last not least quite a few students say “learning geography in
English is much more fun”.

References
1. ABUJA G. 2000. Fremdsprache als Arbeitssprache in Österreich: Situation und
Perspektiven, Graz, 9 pp. [Link]
(14-05-05).
2. ABUJA G., HEINDLER D. (Hrsg.) 1993. Englisch als Arbeitssprache – Fachbezogenes
Lernen von Fremdsprachen. In: Berichte, Heft 1 der Reihe III, Zentrum für Schulent-
wicklung, Abteilung III, Graz.
3. AUNKHOFER M., VOSSEN J. 2003. Ausgewählte Themen aus der Sicht amerikanischer
Karikaturisten vor dem Hintergrund aktueller Daten. In: Praxis Geographie 33 (7−8),
pp. 37−38.
4. Europäische Kommission 1996. Weißbuch zur allgemeinen und beruflichen Bildung:
Lehren und Lernen – Auf dem Weg zur kognitiven Gesellschaft. Luxemburg
5. DE BOT K. 2002. CLIL in the European context. In: Marsh, D. (author and editor)
(September 2002): CLIL/EMILE The European dimension – Actions, Trends and
Foresight Potential pp. 31−32. (= Report to the European Communities to be found:
[Link]
[14-05-05]).
6. GROGGER G., OESTREICH K. 1997. Der Einsatz einer Fremdsprache als Arbe-
itssprache in nichtsprachlichen Gegenständen: Ergebnisse einer bundesweiten Direk-
torenbefragung an Schulen der Sekundarstufe, im Schuljahr 1996/97. In: Zentrum für
Schulentwicklung des BMUK (Hrsg.), ZSE Report 31, Graz.
7. HALLET W. 1999. Ein didaktisches Modell für den Bilingualen Sachfachunterricht: The
Bilingual Triangle. In: Neusprachliche Mitteilungen 52 (1), pp. 23−27.
8. HOFFMANN: Die Europäische Dimension
9. KIRCHBERG G. 1997. Bilinguales Lernen. In: Haubrich [Link].: Didaktik der Geographie
konkret. München, pp. 244−247.
10. LIDAUER R. 2001. Fremdsprachiger Fachunterricht im Fach Geographie und Wirt-
schaftskunde (am Beispiel des Englisch geführten Unterrichts). In: Sitte, Wolfgang,
Wohlschlägl, Helmut (Hrsg.): Beiträge zur Didaktik des „Geographie und Wirtschaft-
skunde“-Unterrichts. Wien (=Materialien zur Didaktik der Geographie und Wirtschaft-
skunde 16), pp. 140−145.
11. MÜLLER CH. 2000. Fachdidaktik im bilingualen Erdkundeunterricht. In: Geographie
heute 181, pp. 42−43.
12. Österreichisches Sprachen-Kompetenz-Zentrum (Ed.) (to be published in the summer of
2005): Data and information from the Manuscript EAA Serviceheft 6. Graz. (imprimatur
from the ÖSZ.).

250
13. SCHMIDT-WULFFEN W. 1999. Schüler- und Alltagsweltorientierung im Erdkundeun-
terricht. Gotha und Stuttgart.
14. WEBER, R. 1993. Bilingualer Erdkundeunterricht und internationale Erziehung. Nürn-
berg (= Geographiedidaktische Forschungen 23).
15. WOLFF D. 2002. On the importance of CLIL in the context of the debate on
plurilingual education in the European Union. In: Marsh, D. (author and editor)
(September 2002): CLIL/EMILE – The European dimension – Actions, Trends and
Foresight Potential pp. 47−48. (= Report to the European Communities to be found:
[Link]
[14-05-05]).

251
 Do you speak European? or: Why even Geographers should
know more than English…
Olivier Mentz

University of Education Freiburg, Department of French Studies

Kunzenweg 21, D-79117 Freiburg
e-mail: mentz@[Link]

Abstract
The European Union consists of 25 member states in which 20 official languages are spoken
and written. Additionally there are a lot of regional languages which are not seen as official
languages by the European Union. But what do we about the competences of European citizens
in speaking one or more of these European languages? Several discussions during HERODOT
conferences in the last years made a point on the fact that all over Europe the English language
is becoming more and more important and that the other European languages are decreasing.
On the first sight this seems not to be a problem. Isn’t it only important to understand each
other? And wouldn’t English be the best language for this, the ‘lingua franca’?
This paper tries to open new horizons especially for geographers in learning more than
English for working in a European and international and intercultural context.

Introduction
Are you a European? What a question – of course you call yourselves Europeans;
otherwise you would not try to be involved in the discussion, in the discourse and in
the arguments associated with Europe. But do you also speak European? Probably
you will answer this question in the negative, because you cannot really imagine
what this means – contrary to the idea of being a European. Therefore this paper
asks you to think about the idea of speaking “European”.

Being European
In 1994 the Council of Europe noted in its recommendation 1247 that only those
states whose national territory is completely or at least partly located on the European
continent and whose culture also is closely connected with the European culture can
become members of the Council of Europe. Here we are faced with the first difficulty
– on two different levels:
• What exactly is accordant to the European continent?, especially because the
third article of the mentioned recommendation states that until today the borders
of Europe are not defined by international law; and
• What in fact is meant by the European culture?

What is Europe?
There are a lot of approaches to defining Europe. And the shape of “Europe” depends
on the person or the association who defines it. Historically the conventional border-

252
line of Europe is due to Vassili Tatichtchev, the official geographer of Tzar Peter I.,
and was defined by the Urals. At the end of the 19th century Georgian and Armenian
geographers suggested that the southern border of Europe was defined at the river
Arax, located in the south of the Caucasus and representing the border to Turkey and
Iraq (c.f. Foucher, 1993). Based on these borderlines today 46 states are represented
as members in the Council of Europe. But the definition includes also Russia with
a national territory that is reaching up to the Pacific Ocean. And there are other
associations like the EBU (European Broadcasting Union (with members in Africa)
or the UEFA (with members like Israel) whose definitions of Europe go far beyond
these borders.
But, by mentioning “Europe”, who nowadays perceives that this represents the
“full” continent? In most cases talking about Europe is probably only associated
with the European Union which is today covering 25 states, and thereby contains
about half of the states of the Council of Europe. By creating the European Union,
a joint area has been developed uniting Malta and Northern Finland Debrecen in
Hungary and Lisbon. Anyway this marketing area seems to partly look like a Swiss
cheese, because some countries, which are located within these political borders,
are nevertheless not member of the European Union, but many of them are included
in EFTA, the European Free Trade Area.
Besides these three extensive definitions of Europe there are others, covering
smaller geographical spaces: such as Euroland, core of Europe, old Europe… This
list could be extended or completed by “Europe of Nations”, “Europe of Regions”,
“Europe of Cultures”… – and we would probably never come to an end of the various
different “Europe’s”.
The existence of all these definitions is not arbitrary. They rather define both a
geographical area and an idea. Thus there is obviously not just one Europe. Those,
who call themselves European are trailers for an idea, within which one no matter
however Europe is naturally delimited, and they identify things in common. But
which are those things in common?

Common aspects of Europe

“Europe” is older than each European nation state. The borderlines of Europe were
always blurred and over and over again they were newly defined by internal splitting
and external demarcations. Europe has always lived as an area of tension between east
and west. It had already begun with the splitting of the ancient world into a Greek and
a Latin speaking part. The splitting continued under the banner of Christianity with
a catholic and an orthodox orientation. It was followed by further splitting due to the
Thirty Years’ War, which led Europe to the abyss. The last major splitting was into
a western and an eastern, a democratic and capitalist, a dictatorial and communist
part. This last division was overcome as recently as the 1980‘s. The recently achieved
extension of the European Union added 10 further member states and is an attempt
to finally cement the Union and overcome fragmentation.
However, the various splitting of Europe as well as the three major phases of
self destructive war, which the continent has experienced in its history (the Thirty
253
Years’ Religious War in the 17th Century, the national politics of the ascending Euro-
pean hegemonial powers since the th Century and finally the destructions of Nazi
Germany in the 20th Century), did not manage to completely destroy the traces of a
common cultural identity. There still seems to exist certain common cultural aspects,
which throughout all the differences constitute something like a cultural identity of
Europe. (c.f. Nida-Rümelin, 1996)

Does a European culture exist?

Is there a common European culture? What characterises and what threatens it? What
is culture and how can it be defined? On the one side there is the common ground
of having European origins in the Greek classical period, with the connection of
free culture and scientific rationality. There was also the Roman tradition of state
and law, which did not lose its strength and influence during the centuries until the
present times. On the other hand, the Christian religion contributed substantially to
a cultural identity of Europe. And there are at least humanism and enlightenment,
which initiated the cultural conditions for democracy, autonomous science and social
progress during modern times. A European education and science community could
be developed from early modern times, into which became variously interlaced the
basement of the cultural identity of Europe.
Rationality, critical thinking, Christianity, human rights as well as democracy
and a modern version of the welfare state – “culture” seems to be more than a term
from everyday speech, with which for example we can speak about music, about
literature or science (even if especially in this point European-wide mutual influ-
ences are obvious).
Indeed, the term “culture” must be extended in a social and anthropological sense:
Hereby is meant a culture of values, value orientations, ways of living, adjustment
to ecological conditions, thus the kind of the life which differs within Europe and
changes continuously – in European and global interaction.
By setting the term identity to equate to “a basis”, one could speak of a common
cultural identity. Within this identity the diversity and/or the presence of different
currents will be always mentioned and particularly emphasized. The difference of the
cultural and ethnical societies and communities leads to a unit with diversification.
This is a (and perhaps the) typical characteristic of European culture. The variety of
languages additionally belongs to these varieties. In the next section some considera-
tions about this will be presented.

The world of European languages

Article 15 of the common explanation to the 40th Anniversary of the Elysée contract
encourages the idea of diversity: “The variety of the languages is a wealth of the Euro-
pean Union. Learning languages is the source of the development and a chance for
the young generation” (Schröder/Chirac 2003; translation by the author). In today’s
Europe of the European Union 20 official languages exist in the context of 25 States.
Beyond that, there are an additional large number of regional languages, which are
partly spoken by minority groups that live within the European Union. Beyond the
254
borders of the European Union there are also further languages which have so far
remained unconsidered, such as Turkish, Russian or Albanian. It can thus be easily
demonstrated that we live in a Europe of immense linguistic variety.
This diversity has had an important influence on European culture. In the areas of
stress between east and west as well as north and south, there were times, in which
existing languages became replaced by the language of the “conquerors” and/or
were complementary to and enlarged by the language of the immigrants. In the first
case this followed strength as measured by the power of the stronger one. In the
second situation, better communication and integration was ensured by adjustment.
Evidence of the impact of these times are for example the numerous borrowings from
the French language, which are possessed by most European languages.
The conquest of England by the Normans in 1066 had a special influence on the
English language. The use of French by the aristocratic upper-class led to the fact
that numerous French words took their entrance into the English language system
– and thereby also their behaviour was connected and accordingly maintained. This
influence, especially in the vocabulary, was so meaningful that the French linguist
Claude Hagege could prove that the current existing influence of English on French
is far smaller and therefore he speaks of a positive “leaning word commercial balance
sheet” of the French language (c.f. Hagège, 1996a; 1996b).
Various identities are connected with the linguistic component. This is shown for
example in the efforts at autonomy of some European regions which point themselves
out by the special meaning of their regional language(s). Thus some regions exist in
which both the official national language and the regional language are to be found
e.g. on traffic and direction signs. Or as a further example: neighbouring languages
i.e. the languages of the respective direct neighbour can contribute to the regional
identity of humans in a border region (Finger, 2001).
Based on these examples it becomes clear, how much special influence a language
has on identity. The variety of language is a special characteristic of the European
cultural unit and so the existing cultural characteristics of Europe would not be
conceivable without this linguistic diversity. For sure there is the necessity of a
vehicular language because one cannot expect that each person in Europe could
understand or even speak all languages. Not for nothing are there working languages,
for example in the context of the committees of the European Union (English, French,
occasionally German).
Altogether European-wide and far beyond that, an increasing dominance of
English as a lingua franca is shown. Past HERODOT conferences showed this and
as a result communication and cooperation between scientists became easier. But at
the same time the dominance of English as lingua franca leads to a constant decline
in the learning of further foreign languages in nearly all countries all over Europe.
It seems to be like the idea that knowing the English language ensured European-
wide understanding. But why should specifically geographers then be able to speak
more than only English?

255
Why geographers should be able to speak more than just English
The HERODOT survey about the impacts of academic geography on the job mobility
of Geographers in 2003/2004 has shown that the job market for geographers is
very diversified. However in most occupations nowadays, apart from the necessary
technical qualification a linguistic competence is also expected. The knowledge of
only the English language is thereby mostly no longer sufficient for employment in
Europe. Further language knowledge increases the chances of work. Beyond that,
workforce mobility within Europe requires apart from knowledge of English further
profound language knowledge at least of the country in which the person would like
to work. However, improved chances on the job market cannot be the only reason
for learning foreign languages. That would be too little.
Let us therefore not just think of the “large” job market for geographers. We instead
should consider arguments within the discipline. Geographers concern themselves
for example with the question about the meaning of places: “Places are distinctive
and physical, economic and cultural processes create this distinctiveness.” (Owen &
Ryan, 2003, 6−7) These cultural processes have to do also with a linguistic compo-
nent. And if one considers that “[…] geographers view place as a concept that is
experienced by the individual rather than only defined by social and scientific proc-
esses” (Owen & Ryan, 2003, 7), one must come to the conclusion that it is necessary
to come to an approach where the individual will be able to reconstruct the meaning
of places. And this only can happen by personal contact.
Let me clarify this by two examples. The German weekly paper “Die ZEIT”
visited in April and May 2005 four new member countries with – for us – new
languages. The first presented country was Malta. “Malta is bilingual. English is used
by the Maltese only for business and for the tourists. Among themselves they speak
Maltese.” (Straßmann, 2005) While searching for the identity of Malta the author
again and again comes upon amazement, because he is interested in the Maltese
language. Finally, within the discussion with a 75 year old Maltese, he comes to the
conclusion that Maltese is the language of the heart. To come closer to the inhabit-
ants it is important to engage with the language.
The other authors of this series of articles came to the same conclusion in Hungary,
Slovenia and Poland. So those who expose themselves on holiday trips to the trouble
of learning and using at least the most important “fragments of everyday life commu-
nication”, will state that the hearts of the people will open. Few will expect knowledge
of their language, therefore the effort makes everyone happy.
The second example is based on an economic principle, which increasingly
becomes more important. For a company one or perhaps even the decisive function of
a foreign language is communication with the customer. In today’s service economy
the customer strongly affects the behaviour of the service provider. Therefore it is
especially the case that smaller companies aim for close customer loyalty; and that
means that the best language is the language of the customer (c.f. Nida-Rümelin,
1996). The results of a Belgian study on the importance of languages in business
show that 63% of the Belgian enterprises use the German language when working
with German enterprises, and not English (Boulton & Vlieghe, 2001). This trend to
256
use, in business, the customer’s language could probably be demonstrated in each
country of the European Union. Nevertheless we could say that these few examples
are not a compelling reason to produce multilingual geographers. But if geographers
take to their task seriously and really want to explore the earth with all their facets
and their changes they cannot refrain from getting in contact with people who change
and modify the Earth, who are affecting changes and again are themselves being
affected by these changes. The native language of the people is thereby the ideal
starting place.
The peculiarity of Europe exists in the tremendous variety of its languages and
the cultures represented by them. The variety is not a handicap for a common future
of the European languages, because the conservation of language variety is a condi-
tion for the unity in Europe. The Europeans live in the midst of this multiplicity and
should therefore educate their children in several languages (Konrad, 2003).
Eminently the linguistic and cultural variety of Europe demands from us as repre-
sentatives of a cultural-scientifically embossed discipline up to go forward with good
examples and not to look for the entrance to cultures by using only one vehicular
language. Multilingualism is therefore important – also for geographers. Thus let us
explore Europe – with more than just one language.

References
1. BOUILLON H., VLIEGHE, V. 2001. Die Stellung der deutschen Sprache in belgischen
Unternehmen. Untersuchung des Gebrauchs und Bedarfs im Geschäftsalltag. Info DaF
28, 6, 564−584.
2. FINGER B. 2001. Verkehrssprachen in Euroregionen: Sprachenwahl bei grenzüber-
schreitenden Kontakten am Oberrhein. Sociolinguistica. Internationales Jahrbuch für
europäische Soziolinguistik 15, 42−54.
3. FOUCHER M. (DIR) 1993. Fragments d’Europe. Atlas de l’Europe médiane et orientale.
Paris, Fayard.
4. KONRAD H. 2003. Entwurf einer „europäischen Sprachenordnung“. Zeitschrift für
Interkulturellen Fremdsprachenunterricht [Online], 8 (2/3), 157−175.
5. HAGEGE C. 1996. Welche Sprache für Europa? Verständigung in der Vielfalt. Frankfurt,
Campus Verlag.
6. HAGEGE C. 1996. Le Français, histoire d’un combat. Paris, Editions Michel Hagege.
7. NIDA-RÜMELIN J. 1996. Europäische Kultur – Identität und Differenz.
In: ht t p://w w [Link]/themen / WCR D85,,0,Eu rop%E 4ische_Kult u r_%96_
Identit%E4t_und_Differenz.html
8. OWEN D., RYAN A. 2003. Teaching Geography 3−11. The Essential Guide. London/
New York, Continuum.
9. SCHRÖDER G., CHIRAC J. 2003. Gemeinsame Erklärung zum 40. Jahrestag des
Elysée-Vertrags.
[Link]
10. STRAßMANN B. 2005. “Kif inti?” – “Tajjeb!”. DIE ZEIT 18, April 28, 73.

257
 Intercultural education in Italian Geography
Peris Persi, Erika Roccato

Institute of Geography, Urbino University

via Saffi, 15, 61029,, Italy
e-mail: persi@[Link]; [Link]@[Link]; erikar@[Link]

Abstract
Italian geographers have long been interested in migration issues, with their main focus
being traditionally on quantitative and distributive aspects. Since the 1970s, they took up an
interest in more specific issues, such as gender migration and, from the 1990s, integration.
The increasing presence of ethnic minorities in Italy has changed the ratio and relationships
between migrants and locals, as can be most easily appreciable in schools. This has unchained
problems related to integration and exclusion, with special vigour in large urban centres,
where extremism is increasingly manifest. Geographers have become aware of this, and
of the role the discipline can have in promoting the development of a intercultural society.
Thanks to its educational vocation, geography can teach that there is equity among all regions
in terms of rights, in spite of the undeniable environmental and cultural differences. More
and more often geographers have presented papers or promoted specific conferences on
this topic. Intercultural issues are being recognised as the only way forward for the social,
economic and cultural development of the country.

Key words: Italian geographers, geographical education, migration, intercultural prob-

lems

Early Studies
The interest of Italian geographers has been associated with the problems of
emigration concerning their national territory for a long time. This migration was
remarkable between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the following
century and was renewed with “less emphasis” between the two wars and after the
Second World War. In the latter period, migratory flows were in fact character-
ised by a definitive emigration towards the Americas and later towards Australia.
Consequently this produced negative effects on the regions of departure, deprived
of labourers and loved-ones, and also in the areas of arrival because of the difficulty
of social and productive integration into the new territories in which the emigrants
found themselves.
There were several reasons for being interested in these themes, both epistemo-
logical, because they formed part of the geography of population, and related to the
protection of the national communities that were formed in distant countries but also
because they had to face profoundly different natural and political environments,
with different traditions and languages, and other laws and lifestyles. In addition,
Italians were met by the typical diffidence towards the foreigner; they were often
relegated to the least desirable work, and fell into the inevitable tendency to face

258
the new contexts by creating highly cohesive ghetto communities that sometimes
favoured the origin of criminal organisations.

Geography and Migration

It was, not until 1961 before a national Geographic Congress concerned itself with
the geography of migration. On that occasion, Elio Migliorini, after having reaf-
firmed the multidisciplinary implications of the theme of migration, highlighted
the contribution of geographers, pointing out the areas of research most distinctly
of territorial character, without however touching cultural aspects: in any case, the
topic was limited to Italian emigration abroad. In 1975, with the Salerno Geographic
Congress, geographers took note that Italy was now becoming the country of arrival
for the disinherited in search of work (Caldo, 1975), with successive in-depth studies
on the Sicilian (1981) and Piedmont (1984) realities. In these studies the author showed
particular interest in cultural exchanges and, above all, underlined social aspects,
work and housing conditions, the difficult encounter between profoundly different
lifestyles and cultures, and the lack of mutual linguistic knowledge and centres of
associative centres.
Still in the 1980s, in coincidence with the increasing presence of female geogra-
phers, a sensitivity towards more specific themes developed, such as the geography of
gender, aimed at showing the female contribution to immigration and to see immigra-
tion from the point of view of women (Arena, 1983; Brunetta, 1995−96). At the 1983
XXIII Geographic Congress, Vincenzo Guarrasi took up the relationships between
migration and the local culture, with reference to the Tunisian presence in the fishing
town Mazara del Vallo. Then starting from the 1990s, the Italian scientific research
of cultural issues and migration became increasingly richer, coincidently with the
increased weight that foreign immigration was assuming in Italy. Symposia, meetings
and study seminars became occasions for comparison and discussion about the initial
results of research. In-depth and accurate analyses of the phenomenon at different
levels (national, regional, local) were made by the workgroup of the Association of
Italian Geographers ([Link].I) on foreign immigration in Italy, initially coordinated
by Giovanna Brunetta.
In 1993, in Cagliari, Maria Luisa Gentileschi, already coordinator of the [Link].I
workgroup on population mobility in Italy, organised, in collaboration with other
geographers, the first Italian-British Symposium on the Geography of Population
with the title “ Questions of population in Europe: urban areas, ethnicity, centre-
periphery dynamics”. On this occasion, Italian and British geographers confronted
each other on themes of great topicality. As far as the Italian reality was concerned,
specific research highlighted the situation in a number of regions most interested in
the migratory flow: Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Veneto, the province of Messina, and the
metropolitan area of Bari (Gentileschi, King, 1996).
The first meeting of geographic studies entirely dedicated to the theme of recent
immigration was held in Macerata in 1996 with the title: “Immigration and multi-
culture in Italy today: Territory, problems and didactics.” It tackled various aspects,
among which emerged the first most clearly intercultural contributions, the role
259
of geography in the process of integration, and especially the role of the school. A
number of contributions dealt with themes such as: migratory movements between
diversity and mutual acceptance, ethnic conflict and multiculturalism, immigration
and religious pluralism, problems of female immigrants, illegal immigration and
criminality, interculture and new didactics of geography, and intercultural education
in secondary schools and universities (Brusa, 1997).
The appointment in Macerata was repeated two years later in 1998: “Immigra-
tion and multiculture in Italy today: citizenship and exclusion, the Adriatic frontier
and other places of immigration – society and the school”. In this case too intercul-
tural questions were dealt with, such as the geography of citizenship and exclusion,
compared female migratory experiences, immigration and health, immigration
between integration and diffidence, intercultural education and scholastic curricula,
geography and multicultural training (Brusa, 1999).
In Aquila, still in 1998, a meeting took place on the theme “Multiculture: conflict
and living side by side in the multiethnic society”, in which the problems linked to
multiculturalism and identity, immigration and exclusion, racism and xenophobia
were considered (Di Michele, Gaffuri and Nacci, 2002). On the threshold of the new
millennium, therefore, almost all the geographic research on immigration was linked
to the themes of multiculturalism and integration. An international conference was
held in 2001, organised in memory of Giorgio Valussi by the University of Udine and
Trieste, during which Italian and foreign scholars confronted each other on the new
migration issues in Europe and Italy, with study cases dedicated to single regional
realities (Bellencin Meneghel, Lombardi, ed., 2002).
A few months after the Friuli conference, in June 2001, a meeting was organised in
Vercelli on the theme of “Processes of globalisation of the economy and geographic
mobility”, that returned to examining the problem of integration and the exclusion
of immigrants in social, cultural, working and school life in Italy (Brusa, 2002). In
Trieste, in March 2002, a new conference was held on: “Geographic mobility in Italy:
characteristics and trends, regional differences and territorial distribution processes
in the new multicultural society”. During this event it was possible to examine the
first results of the same-named research programme, co-financed by the Ministry of
the University and Research, and coordinated by Pio Nodari. Among the communica-
tions presented, an increasingly growing interest emerged in investigating into the
immigration of foreign women in Italy and the problems connected to their social
and employment integration.

Recent Developments
The aim of the meeting held in Fano (The Marches), in March 2003, entitled “Inter-
culture, Geography, Training” was to promote a debate among institutions (universi-
ties, schools, public bodies, voluntary associations), in order to unite the efforts and
initiatives in support of intercultural dialogue. Other objectives were to reaffirm the
centrality of geography in the processes of intercultural integration and insist on the
connecting role that our discipline can play with respect to other scholars equally
interested in the problem of immigration. The conference, organised by the Univer-
260
sity of Urbino, was divided into the following thematic sessions: the geographical
approach to migration issues, immigration in a regional perspective, the emergencies
created by new migration, immigration between normality and deviance, interculture
in the school and daily life, and the role of associations and local bodies in intercul-
tural activities. New themes were faced during the conference sessions, in particular
training, geographic education for sustainable space sharing, the activity carried out
by Caritas Italia, stereotypes and prejudices towards non-Europeans, the difficult
integration of Roma people, immigration and drug addiction, and finally interculture
and the teaching of geography in teacher training schools (Persi, 2005).

Conclusion
To conclude, in the face of an increasingly enlarged and differentiated European
Union, and in the face of immigration coming not only from the Mediterranean
and Eastern European area, but also from very far-off countries (the Far East, Latin
America, Sub-Saharan Africa), accompanied by the tendency of numerous ethnic
groups to constitute stable and permanent communities, intercultural themes are a
field of great contemporary interest for geographers who intend to work to develop the
education of welcoming, solidarity, and respect for different lifestyles and thought.
To this end, schools and universities would be doing a good job if they managed to
consider diversity as a value and avoid stereotypes and nationalistic or Eurocentric
views. This requires a modernisation of approaches, instruments, textbooks, and
teachers, distinguished by an increasingly more open, integrated, systematic and,
fundamentally, geographic training.
Italian geographers can find important opportunities in the organisation of new
courses, especially those at Masters level, if they are to promote an intercultural
education not only for teachers, but also for personnel working in institutional struc-
tures or, economical and cultural associations.

References
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Studi Emigrazione, pp. 177−189.
2. BARBINA G. 1997. Conflittualita etnica e multiculturalismo, [in:] Brusa C., ed.,
pp. 121−132.
3. BELLENCIN MENEGHEL G., LOMBARDI D., ed. 2002. Immigrazione e territorio,
Bologna, Patron.
4. BRUNELLI C. 2003. Educare all’interculturalita, [in:] Persi, P., ed., Spazi della geografia.
Geografia degli spazi, Udine, Ed. Goliardiche, pp. 185−217.
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P., ed., pp. 39−58.
6. BRUNETTA G. 1995−96. La donna nel contesto dell’emigrazione straniera in Italia, in
Atti e Mem. dell’Accademia Patavina di Scienze Lettere e Arti, II, pp. 61−79.
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i problemi, la didattica, Angeli, Milano,.
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Angeli.

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 9. BRUSA C., ed. 2002. Processi di globalizzazione dell’economia e mobilita geografica,
“Mem. Soc. Geogr. Ital.”, LXVII, Roma.
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Atti XXII Congresso Geografico Italiano, Salerno, II (I), pp. 637−646.
11. DELL’AGNESE E. 1997. Tra rifiuto e integrazione: gli zingari nel tessuto urbano mila-
nese, [in:] Brusa C., ed., pp. 273−284.
12. DI MICHELE L., GAFURRI, L. AND NACCI M. 2002. Interpretare la differenza,
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Persi P., ed., pp. 77−100.
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pp. 539−554.
17. GENTILESCHI M.L., KING R. 1996. Questioni di popolazione in Europa. Una prospet-
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pp. 101−126.
19. GUARRASI V. 1983. Processo immigratorio e culture locali. Il caso degli immi-
grati tunisini a Mazara del Vallo, Atti del XXIII Congr. Geogr. Ital., Catania, II,
pp. 402−414.
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degli extracomunitari, [in:] Persi P., ed., pp. 155−170.
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pp. 163−181.
22. MIGLIORINI E. 1961. Migrazioni interne e spostamenti territoriali della popolazione
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262
Geographical education vs. cultural education and education
of culture in Polish schools – theoretical reflections
Danuta Piróg

Department of Didactics of Geography, Faculty of Geography

Pedagogical Academy in Kraków
e-mail: dbutryn@[Link]

Abstract
The article presents the meaning, place and role of cultural education, education of culture
and intercultural education in Polish teaching of geography. According to the literature these
thematic links can be important elements in reaching the leading goal of education; that is
to prepare students for adult life in individual and social dimensions. The author gives a
justification of this proposed thesis with establishments meaning of cultural education and
education of culture in the context of geography teaching. These changes in programme of
Polish geography education create an enormous possibility for the proper realisation of the
paramount aim of education, that is to prepare students for adult life; the proper realisation
of subject aims in desired hierarchy (from convictions and attitudes, skills to understanding
patterns); while also increasing the prestige of geography as a study discipline and subject
of teaching.

Key words: culture; cultural education; education of culture; intercultural education;

teaching of geography

Introduction
Social, economic, cultural and political transformations in Poland and all around
the world demand from the nation to prepare for new life conditions. Thus, they
are the reason for changing goals and verification of the content of programme of
education. The necessity of adjusting the educational system to emerging needs is
inevitable. Therefore, new spheres of interest have emerged for scientific studies of
detailed teaching including teaching of geography. Piskorz (1997) emphasizes the
necessity of undertaking these challenges in a range of preliminary research and
demonstrates the achievements of polish teaching of geography, the pace and wide
range of reforms of civilization, not only enable, but somehow make it necessary to
include new problems in research work. Among the basic points in his research he
includes undertaking the problem of “education for international agreement, coop-
eration and peace” (p. 202). Piskorz doesn’t use the term ‘education of culture’ or
‘cultural education,’ but he accepts the idea of creating agreement and cooperation,
by which he refers to the tasks of education of culture and cultural education being
emphasized in sociology studies and in teaching of culture. According to Zioło
(2002) geography has a significant potential in this area, as it is in its nature to join
social and cultural matters, to define relation between them in different scale of
spatial structure.
263
 Nowadays, according to the literature, the cultural education and the education of
culture, when considering the conceptions of geography as a subject, and following its
philosophical assumptions, can be the important link in reaching the leading goal of
education, that is to prepare students for adult life in individual and social dimension.
Justification of this proposed thesis requires establishment of the meaning of ‘cultural
education’ and ‘education of culture’ in the context of geography teaching.
The meaning of the word culture in scientific literature, journalism, and in collo-
quial language is presented in many different ways, and in effect is understood
ambiguously. Anthropologists interpret the meaning of a word ‘culture’ very exten-
sively, as the achievement of mankind in almost every sphere of life (economical,
political, social norms etc…). Encyklopedia popularna (1992) defines culture in the
same way, as the combination of material and spiritual achievement, which is being
strengthened and enriched in the course of history. It has been written there that
culture includes the material products, social institutions, norms of coexistence, the
way of behaviour, criteria of esthetic and moral judgments. Teacher of geography
Licińska (1999) understood the meaning of the word culture in a similar way. She
writes that culture is “everything that in the behaviour of individual and in equipment
of members of human societies is a result of mass activity…’ (p. 82)
In everyday life the word culture is used and understood mostly as:
• definition of so called high culture (e.g. painting, sculpture);
• definition of popular culture (e.g. television)
• adjective: a civilized man means the one knowing the norms of good manners, or
a man actively interested in literature, classic music, architecture.

Cultural education
Let’s pass to the establishments of cultural education. Because of the limitation of
the size of this article, the author presents only some of the definitions (apart from
many others) of this term. Wojnar (1995) writes that the education of civilization
is both knowing the cultural heritage of the region and the introduction of its judg-
ments, and participation in cultural life. This education should be aimed at strength-
ening the active and creative participation of people in the world, which is equal to
multidimensional enriching of the human being, not only in mind, but in terms of
sensitivity and expression as well. Regional and cultural education presented in such
a way seems to be very close in its guidelines and meaning to cultural anthropology.
In both the education of civilization and the anthropology of culture appear very
significant indications and references to human beings as a creator of all: we assume
learning about the effects of civilization, industrial and urban changes, the form of
coexistence and way of life. (Olszewska-Dyoniziak, 1991)
According to Banach (2001) cultural education is preparation for choosing values
by “association with culture” both material and non-material, which should enrich
student’s sensitivity and imagination. Żurakowski (2003), a teacher of culture repre-
sents a similar attitude, he defines this process as education directed on purchasing
values by human beings. According to him, in cultural education people should
take over and form the values from the surrounding space. The process of cultural
264
education progresses from the initial contact with the cultural goods, and receiver’s
interior contemplation of this event, up to the creation of culture by himself.
Orłowska (1999) a geographer, interprets cultural education as “a cultural view
on life” which means the synthesis of knowledge about the natural environment and
thus the material and non-material culture of a given region. According to Orłowska
this kind of outlook on the world represented in the process of geographical education
seems to be natural and obvious. At the same time, it creates a chance for a solid place
for geography in the system of education, which is going through transformation.
The outlook of Orlowska is close to the author of this article. (Piróg, 2004)
Nowadays in Poland, geography of culture is growing more intensively. Neverthe-
less the literature of this subject matter does not appear to provide a clear explanation
of the meaning of cultural education in geography. So many questions remain unan-
swered, such as what are its main goals, aims and planned student’s achievements?
Even though the term is frequently used in by teachers and geography teachers.
Therefore an attemot to define this term needs to be undertaken in order to provide
opportunities for meaningful discussion about its final shape.
On the basis of the analysis of the literature and by including the peculiar character
of the subject of geography, cultural education in geography should be a process
-steered by a teacher- of learning, associating and interpreting of the surrounding
space, transformed by the products of material and non-material culture, coming
from a human activity. This association should manifest itself in conscious contact
with the products of material and non-material culture and in the active participa-
tion of the pupil/student in different spheres of cultural life (e.g. musical concerts,
theatrical plays, exhibitions, etc…)
The goals of such a defined cultural education therefore should be:
• learning about the situation of material and non-material culture, typical for a given
region, and consequently understanding the cultural landscape of that area;
• building bonds with the place of living and country; building respect towards
cultural heritage;
• increasing interest of the products of culture and desire to cooperate for its protec-
tion and development;
• distinguishing a role of people in creating culture and a role of culture in shaping
people’s personalities.
• shaping human beings that are sensitive and open towards surrounding space
• developing an inner need (in people) for active participation in cultural life.
The programme of cultural education in elementary school, gymnasium and
high school has been stated in Podstwa Programowa, (2001). The context of the
programme clearly obliges students to deal with this subject matter in almost every
subject at school. In elementary schools pupils should be taught:
• in history about the most important part of polish cultural heritage;
• in art about cultural landscape, and should also experience the contact with art
works by admiring monuments, visiting galleries, exhibitions;
• in nature studies about the interdependence between the factors of natural and
cultural environment.
265
 In the gymnasium and in high school extending, and deepening one’s knowledge
about the above mention subject matters, should take place. The direction of geogra-
pher’s activity in the practical realization of the cultural education should mainly be the
proper realization of the international programme Regional Education – the cultural
heritage of the region. The programme should be undertaken in three areas of educa-
tion, in elementary school classes 4−6; in the gymnasium and in high school.
The educational aims of this way of working with students are most of all to extend
knowledge about the culture of their own region, to provide physical contact with the
local and regional environment, to strengthen national identity and develop a regional
identity. The tasks of the school are focused on the introduction of pupils into the
world of traditions occurring in the region and its’ values, supporting contacts with
people and institutions and dealing with protection and multiplication of the cultural
heritage of the region. The points of this programme include: dialects and regional
language, traditions and habits, the main monuments of nature and architecture
(Dziennik ustaw nr. 61, art.126).
A very difficult task in the process of achieving this programme is combining
the skillful combination of historical and geographical facts with knowledge about
art, and to give coherence to the programme. The historical-geographical charac-
teristic of the region presents no difficulties for a geographer, as it corresponds with
studying and teaching geography. Aspects of cultural education however, can cause
some difficulties, and definitely demands from teachers some self-education in the
subject matter. The natural variety of geographical space can only be revealed when
we become acquainted with the cultural landscape, with emphasizing its aesthetic
and symbolic values.
An effective cultural education of pupils includes, most of all, contact with the
material and non-material wealth of the culture of a given region. The part of a
teacher-geographer is to:
• enable a student to have contact with this reality;
• find and choose from the wealth of the surrounding space the elements of a mate-
rial and non-material landscape;
• support student in interpretation and judgment of this reality and to
• motivate the student to learn, evaluate and judge in an independent and emotion-
ally active way. (Piróg, 2003).

Education of culture
The present and future reality, in which people exist, is shaped intensively by the
processes of globalization and integration. According to Nikiforowicz (2001) aspi-
ration to unity and integration is a positive phenomenon, because in the long run
it causes am increase of self-identity and care of the common values. Concern for
others is also essential, as it causes the disappearance of stereotypes and xenophobia,
development of sensitivity and shaping human’s cooperation. On the other hand,
the inevitable processes of globalization are risky to the above goals because they
encourage standardization, which causes the disappearance of, the much needed
variety, and resulting loss of cultural identity.
266
 It is difficult to avoid tensions and clashes when globalization, integration and
regionalism cross each other. At this point there are many significant opportunities to
mitigate the negative phenomena by education, these are described in the literature as
cultural, intercultural and multicultural. The basic idea of this form of education is to
get rid of negative stereotypes and groundless fear towards other nations, people and
different skin colour by being in touch with their nature and customs. If learning is
conducted in this way, education might be an effective instrument to reduce tensions
and antipathy in relations with foreigners, and improve self-esteem. According to
Golka (2001) a sociologist, thanks to such education, the student might perceive other
cultures not as a thread or unfamiliar and arousing fears but as ‘a window with a
view on the new landscape’.
According to Nikiforowicz (2001) intercultural education is the supporting activity
of individuals and group of people in creating dialectic process and shaping aware-
ness of universal solidarity by:
• getting acquainted and understanding one’s own culture;
• overcoming the tendency to closing oneself in one’s own cultural circle;
• opening oneself, understanding and respecting others;
• the desire to meet other cultures, shaping sensitivity and ability for cooperation.
The terms education of culture intercultural, and multicultural are more common
in Western European countries and the USA. In its meaning they are close to the
above-mentioned establishment of Polish multicultural education. They symbolised
both the activities for getting acquainted and opening to other cultures, which should
be mostly responsible for building tolerance, understanding and respect for different
groups of people in respects of their race, nationality, sex, religion, and the acquisition
of skills in co-existence and cooperation with others. (Anders., 1995)
The education of culture should have a significant place in geography, especially
now that Poland has joined the European Union. In the course of this, the issues of
regional geography should be clearly emphasized as part of the educational aims in
order to make students more tolerant towards diversity.

Conclusions
To sum up, the above paper suggests that thematic links should occupy a very
significant place in the contemporary teaching of geography, because they create an
enormous chance for:
• proper realization of the paramount aim of education, that is to prepare students
for adult life;
• proper realization of subject aims in desired hierarchy (from convictions and
attitudes, skills to understanding patterns);
• increasing the prestige of geography as a study and subject of teaching.

References
1. ARENDS R. I., 1995. Uczymy się nauczać. WSiP, Warszawa.
2. BANACH Cz., 2001. Aksjologiczne aspekty edukacji i kultury. [w:] Edukacja – wartość-
szansa. Wybór prac z lat 1995−2001. Wyd. Nauk. AP, Kraków, s. 88−96.

267
 3. Dziennik Ustaw nr 61 z dnia 19 czerwca 2001 r.
4. Encyklopedia popularna. 1992, Wyd II, PWN, Warszawa.
5. GOLKA M. 2001. Problemy i dylematy edukacji dla wielokuturowości. [w:] Kultury
tradycyjne a kultura globalna. Wyd. Trans Humana, Białystok, s. 137−149.
6. LICIŃSKA D. 1999. Słownik szkolny – człowiek i jego działalność. WSiP, Warszawa.
7. NIKITOROWICZ J. 2001. Wielopłaszczyznowa i ustawicznie kreująca się tożsamość
w społeczeństwie wielokulturowym a edukacja miedzykulturowa. [w:] Kultury trady-
cyjne a kultura globalna. Wyd. Trans Humana, Białystok, s. 15−36.
8. OLSZEWSKA-DYONIZIAK B. 1991. Człowiek – kultura – osobowość. Wyd. Univer-
sitas, Kraków.
9. ORŁOWSKA E. 1999. O potrzebie kształcenia tzw. „kulturowego widzenia świata”.
Geografia w Szkole, nr 1, s. 9−13.
10. PIRÓG D. 2003. Poznawcze, estetyczne i symboliczne wartości krajobrazu kulturowego
Krakowa i województwa małopolskiego istotą edukacji kulturowej i regionalnej.
[w:] Kulturowy aspekt badań geograficznych. Studia teoretyczne i regionalne. Wyd.
U. Wrocławski, Wrocław, s. 101−109.
11. PIRÓG D. 2004. Aktywność kulturalna i edukacja kulturalna jako sprzężenie zwrotne
– rozważania teoretyczne i wyniki badań. [w:] Kulturowy aspekt badań geograficznych.
Studia teoretyczne i regionalne. Tom IV. U Wrocławski, Wrocław, s. 131−145.
12. WOJNAR I. 1995. Edukacja i kultura [w:] Kultura i Edukacja, nr 3, s. 45−61
13. PISKORZ S. 1997. Główne kierunki badań podstawowych i stosowanych w polskiej
dydaktyce geografii. [w:] Zarys dydaktyki geografii (red. S. Piskorza), PWN, Warszawa,
s. 199−204.
14. ZIOŁO Z. 2002. Model aktualizacji treści kształcenia geograficznego. [W:] Edukacja
geograficzna w reformowanej szkole. Teoria i praktyka. Wyd. Nauk. AP, Kraków,
s. 33−45.
15. ŻURAKOWSKI B. 2003. Humanizm pedagogiki kultury. [w:] Pedagogika kultury
– wychowanie do wyboru wartości. Oficyna. Wyd. Impuls, Kraków, s. 13−27.

268
 Developing global citizenship through geographical
education: examples from Kerala, India
Andrew Powell, Urszula Basini

School of Education, Kingston University, Kingston Hill, Kingston on Thames,

KT27LB
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]; [Link]@[Link]

Introduction
The revision of the English National Curriculum in 2000 (QCA 2000) introduced the “new
agenda” of citizenship and sustainable development in primary and secondary schools. This
research project has been examining how primary schools have planned or are planning to
introduce these themes into their curricula. We have considered ways in which the study of
geography, on a national and international scale, can provide a context for teaching these
topics. Some key aspects are:
• The impact of the concept of citizenship in primary education in the UK and the wider
world.
• The rationale for learning about citizenship and sustainability as part of a primary educa-
tion curriculum.
• The development of citizenship and sustainability education through primary geog-
raphy.
• Making connections across the primary curriculum.

Key words: citizenship, education, primary education, curriculum

What is Citizenship Education?

The UK government report on education for citizenship (QCA 1998), the Crick
Report, set out three interrelated strands:
• Social and moral responsibility. Pupils developing self-confidence and socially
and morally responsible behaviour in and beyond the classroom, towards those
in authority and towards each other.
• Community involvement. Pupils learning how to become involved in the life and
concerns of their neighbourhood and communities
• Political literacy. Pupils learning about the institutions, issues, problems and
practices of our democracy.
At national curriculum key stages 1 and 2, from ages 5 to 11, Crick emphasised
the development of social and moral responsibility, community involvement and
some basic aspects of political literacy, for example knowing what democracy is
and the basic institutions that support it locally and nationally. Crick refers to citi-
zenship as entailing both rights and duties and as being concerned to promote the
“common good” (Crick 2000). The report seeks to encourage the education of young
people on the ideas of civic virtue and participation as well as developing personal
autonomy.
269
 Crick advocates these principles by referring back to one of the classic article
on citizenship by Marshall (1997) first published in 1950, “Citizenship and Social
Class” in which he states:
“Citizenship is a status bestowed on those who are full members of a community.
All who possess the status are equal with respect to the rights and duties with which
the status is endowed. There is no universal principle that determines what those
rights and duties shall be, but societies in which citizenship is a developing institu-
tion create an image of an ideal citizen against which achievement can be measured
and towards which aspiration can be directed.”
The Crick report has been criticised for not recognising enough of what some
call the “politics of difference”. Garrratt and Piper (2002) raised an important issue
regarding the role of the monarchy and how this relates to citizenship in Britain. We
in Britain are still “subjects” within a monarchy system and although Crick looked
at this issue he felt the concept of “British subject” and “British citizen” seem much
the same to most people, clearly a contentious point.
Many researchers, including Olssen (2002) feel that Crick failed to acknowledge
or recognise the distinctive characteristics of different cultural groups in Britain and
that it ignores the dimension of multiculturalism. The report tends to overemphasise
curricular as opposed to extracurricular approaches to citizenship education. We
need both, in schools and in the wider community.
These issues were taken up by the Parekh Report which was the outcome of the
Commission on the Future of Multi-Ethnic Britain set up in 1998 by the Runnymede
Trust (2000) an independent group which promotes racial justice in Britain. The
Commission’s remit was to analyse the current state of multi-ethnic Britain and
propose ways to develop a more vibrant and fair society. The report examined the
concept of “Britishness” and advocated the use of “British” in a more multi-ethnic
way such as “Black British” “Asian British”. The report was based on the following
principles:
• All people have equal worth irrespective of their colour, gender, ethnicity, religion,
age or sexual orientation
• Citizens are individuals as well as members of local and regional communities.
Britain is “both a community of citizens and a community of communities”.
• Since citizens have different needs, equal treatment requires full account to be
taken of their differences.
• Every society needs to be cohesive and must find ways of nurturing diversity
whilst fostering a sense of belonging and a shared identity among its constituent
members.
• Whilst respect for difference is important every society needs a broadly shared
body of values, including human rights, ethnic norms which respect human
dignity, the equal worth of all, equal opportunity for self development and equal
life chances.
The Parekh Report thus provides an important counterbalance to Crick in that it
recognises “difference with unity” as its main theme.

270
 An important template was provided by Oxfam with their definition of global
citizenship (Oxfam 1997). This has three key elements:
1. Knowledge and understanding
• Social justice and equity
• Diversity
• Globalisation and interdependence
• Sustainable development
• Peace and conflict
2. Values and attitudes
• Sense of identity and self esteem
• Empathy
• Commitment to social justice and equity
• Value and respect for diversity
• Concern for the environment and commitment to sustainable development
• Belief that people can make a difference
3. Skills
• Critical thinking
• Ability to argue effectively
• Ability to challenge injustice and inequalities
• Co-operation and conflict resolution
Further information to provide guidance to primary schools on teaching global
citizenship is contained in the Oxfam handbook (Young 2002) and by Grimwade
(2000).

Recent research activities

Our research project in the first year involved working intensely with a case study
partnership school St. Luke’s Primary in Kingston, London. Some initial aware-
ness- raising of citizenship issues was completed during two professional training
sessions with teachers. These involved carrying out a citizenship audit of what is
actually happening in the school and developing a strategic plan for the next three
years. The school has developed close links with a school in the Republic of South
Africa (RSA) and this became a particular focus for finding out how citizenship was
being developed there. A subsequent visit to the school revealed that the education
system in South Africa is changing rapidly and that the concept of citizenship there
is only in the early stages of development. Both schools worked on structuring a joint
curriculum for three years which could be developed in the UK and RSA. There have
been many challenges to the development of this programme particularly through
the lack of computer facilities in the RSA.
The RSA has introduced a new curriculum called Outcomes Based Education that
has eight areas of learning. Citizenship is developed in a cross-curricular way through
the Human and Social Sciences Learning and Life Orientation Learning areas. Pupils
adhere to rules that they devise and these are displayed in the classrooms. There are
lessons on positive thinking and raising self-esteem. The children are taught right
from wrong and are made aware of the need to look after their environment e.g. not

dropping litter. There is circle time in some schools. Political literacy however is not
developed in either the primary or secondary curriculum. The children are encour-
aged to know about and to take an active part in their own communities.
Contacts were made during the first year of research with 10 primary schools in
England to determine how they have prepared to include the citizenship programme
of study. Discussions revealed that all the schools had well developed Personal, Social
and Health Education plans and that they were aware of the need to enhance their
activities to include other aspects of citizenship. Currently the global dimension
is under represented and the European dimension virtually non-existent. At KS2,
ages  to , in depth knowledge of local services, local and national government
is weak.
During the first year contacts were also made with organisations such as Oxfam,
Warchild, Centre for Education in World Citizenship (CEWC) the Geographical
Association and the International Geographical Union (IGU). These agencies are
developing relevant resources to support teaching and learning in citizenship and
the IGU organised a British conference on Citizenship in Geographical Education
in 2003 (Kent and Powell 2004). Contacts with several European universities were
also established with a view to collecting further relevant data during the project.
Further advice on citizenship education has been provided by Walkington (1999),
Flew (2000) and Grunsell (2002). The Development Education Association (1999)
in their publication on human rights consider the possibilities of how to include
citizenship issues in the primary curriculum.
It was anticipated that the end product of the project will be to develop guidance
for schools on how to implement effectively aspects of citizenship into the geog-
raphy curriculum. The strategy to achieve this aim will be by producing resources,
organising events such as a Model United Nations General Assembly (MUNGA) for
primary schools and providing in-service training. Linking with the CEWC will help
to further develop ideas to support our work with students and teachers.

Education and citizenship in Kerala, India

The visit to India was a culmination of our research project on the role of global
citizenship education in the primary curriculum. The aims of the visit were:
• To investigate the teaching of citizenship at the University of Kerala, State Teacher
Training College and in primary and secondary schools,
• To investigate the national curriculum for citizenship in Kerala,
• To engage in dialogue with prominent educationalists whose interests are in
developing global citizenship,
• To visit schools in the cities of Trivandrum and Kochi.
• To visit geographical sites in Kerala such as the Backwaters, Farming projects,
Rural self help Projects, hill stations and plantations.
• To determine if an understanding of citizenship differs between rural and urban
areas in Kerala.
• To investigate whether the people of Kerala see themselves as global citizens..


• To increase our knowledge and understanding of Citizenship issues in a developing
world context.
• To provide opportunities for teaching global citizenship issues to current students
on the BA, PGCE and in-service training programmes.
• To provide materials and contexts to inform future Geographical Association
Conference sessions and Publications.
• To develop of a range of contacts around the world for future networking including
possible exchanges involving university and school staff and students from the
Kingston area and Kerala.
• To increase teacher knowledge through in-service training sessions with local
partnership schools.
There is both state and private provision school in Kerala which overall provides
universal education up to the age of 14. Literacy levels are the highest in India at
98% and there are large numbers of students studying post 14 and at higher education
levels. The government supports large numbers of children in the private sector. The
State of Kerala has a long tradition of investment in Education and Primary Health
Care and spends approx. 60% of their budget on these two priorities, considerably
higher than any other state in India.
There is a strong culture of research in education in Kerala and combined with
the long tradition of active political involvement, community and citizenship issues
are popular topics for research. Kerala is also well known in India for the promotion
of women in educational opportunities and there is a long history within families in
the south for female education. This is clearly one of the main reasons for the high
levels of literacy and educational achievement in the state.
Global awareness issues are covered in the social science and geography courses
for trainee teachers. There is no specific course on citizenship, but aspects are taught
via other subjects particularly through the geography curriculum. Political and
community literacy are very prominent topics within the education programmes. In
secondary schools for ages  to  there is a broad curriculum available with students
specialising post 14. Global awareness is covered through social studies, geography
and whole school events, this includes policies related to the design of the buildings,
energy use, nature studies, rain harvesting and landscaping. The school has a very
child centred approach in their teaching and learning programmes. Many schools in
Kerala operate on good environmental principles with recycling, planting, conserva-
tion, rain harvesting and energy saving policies being part of the curriculum. The
children and students are encouraged to develop their own interests and to participate
in the communal life of their schools. Some schools have also established links with
secondary schools in the UK that have fostered exchanges of staff and students.

Teaching and Learning and Citizenship Education in Kerala

The State of Kerala and the population have clearly put a high value on education.
The people are literate, well educated and aspire to a high level of achievement. The
curricula at all levels have an outward looking progressive approach to teaching


and learning. Kerala is an exporter of educated people as currently there are not the
opportunities within the state of sufficient types of employment.
Citizenship teaching and learning is very evident in Kerala from an early age even
when children first start school at five years of age. Throughout the primary stage
the citizenship programme is similar to that of the UK. Young children learn about
themselves, their health, diet, exercise, relationships, caring and sharing. Respect for
the environment is also started at this stage. As children become older the concept of
democracy is explored with examples in some schools of school councils voting for
form captains and making joint decisions. In the secondary stage pupils explore global
citizenship and the effects of globalisation. They also develop political literacy. Many
see themselves as part of the global scene, contributors to a better understanding of
the issues that affect global development. This is though very much dependent on
the type of jobs and level of education they aspire to and the ability to find places
in the best schools.
Our visit in 2004 was during the run up to the national elections and we saw
evidence of many people exercising their democratic rights with a real interest in a
fully participating democracy. There were street demonstrations and rallies on behalf
of the different political parties and a lively debate in the local and national press.
Many of the well educated young people of Kerala see their futures in developed
countries especially North America, Western Europe and the Gulf States and in the
more industrially developed parts of India. We feel there is enormous potential in
developing links with educational institutions in Kerala to promote a better under-
standing between our countries and to share our understanding of the importance
of global citizenship issues in education. Geography can clearly take a lead with
promoting global citizenship in the primary curriculum.
The prospects for developing international links are good at the present time.
The UK government through the British Council and the Department for Interna-
tional Development have a number of programmes that support schools and higher
education to develop intercultural links. A further initiative, jointly promoted by
the British Council and the Times Education Supplement in 2005 called “Make the
Link”, is highlighting examples of good practice and provides a “how to” guide to
help educational establishments. With the growing interest in globalisation issues
and in particular the relationships between rich and poor countries, this is a god time
to consider developing links and exchanging ideas.

References
1. CRICK B. 2000. Essays on Citizenship. London. Continuum.
2. DEVELOPMENT EDUCATION ASSOCIATION. 1999. Human Rights: Education for
citizenship in primary schools. Manchester.
3. FLEW A. 2000. Education for Citizenship. London. Institute of Economic Affairs.
Studies in Education No. 10.
4. GARRATT D., PIPER H. 2002. The Myth of the British Monarchy: Education for Citi-
zenship or Subjecthood. Paper presented at BERA Exeter 2002.
5. GRIMWADE K. 2000. Geography and the New Agenda. Sheffield. Geographical Asso-
ciation.

 6. GRUNSELL A. 2002. Inescapable Issues. Primary Geographer October. Sheffield.
Geographical Association.
7. KENT A., POWELL, A. 2004. Geography and Citizenship Education: Research Perspec-
tives. Institute of Education. London.
8. MARSHALL T.H. 1997. Citizenship and Social Class in Gooden, R. and Pettit, P.
Contemporary Political Philosophy. Oxford. Blackwell pp. 291−319.
9. OLSSEN M. 2002. From the Crick Report to the Parekh Report: Multiculturalism,
cultural difference and democracy – the re-visioning of citizenship education. Paper
presented at BERA Exeter 2002.
10. OXFAM. 1997. A Curriculum for Global Citizenship. Oxford. Oxfam.
11. QCA. 1998. Education for Citizenship and the Teaching of Democracy in Schools. (The
Crick Report). London. QCA.
12. QCA /DFEE. 1999. The National Curriculum in England: Citizenship. London.
13. QCA. 2000. PSHE and Citizenship at Key Stage 1 and 2. London.
14. RUNNYMEDE TRUST. 2000. The Future of Multi-ethnic Britain: The Parekh Report.
London. Profile Books.
15. WALKINGTON H. 1999. Global Citizenship Education. Sheffield. Geographical Asso-
ciation.
16. YOUNG M. 2001. Global Citizenship: The Handbook for Primary Teaching. Oxford.
Oxfam.

275
 The role of geographical education in shaping regional
identity of children
Joanna Szczęsna, Paweł Wojtanowicz

Departament of Geography Education Maria Curie-Sklodowska University,

al. Kraśnicka 2 cd, 20-718 Lublin, Poland
e-mail: joannaszczesna@[Link]

Abstract
The article treats of the role played by school geography in shaping emotional relations and
sense of identity with their place of residence in children. The paper exposes the function
of education in developing such relations at primary school level. It shows how through
the „Sciences” subject, implementing geographical contents concerning the economic and
cultural environments of their own region, students can be made aware of their relations
with the region.

Key words: regional identity, little homeland, cultural heritage, interdisciplinary pathway,
regional education, primary school, landscape of immediate surroundings, teaching experi-
ment, teacher education

Introduction
The turn of the 20th and st centuries has been marked by integration and globalisa-
tion processes. Changes are particularly apparent in Europe. In 2004 the European
Union expanded by accepting ten new countries, more are waiting for access. State
borders are becoming strictly formal in character, as people now move freely among
most of the European countries. Representatives of different nationalities, cultures
and religions, migrate for economic, scientific, or professional reasons to other parts
of Europe, or even of the world. Cut off from their roots, they assimilate, to a greater
or lesser degree, to new places and conditions, often losing their cultural distinctive-
ness. The processes of lifestyle, behaviour, and tastes are being unified, this can be
seen even among people who have not left their home for a long time. The access
to mass sources of information and standards propagated results in people eating,
drinking, and dressing in similar ways, having similar needs and wants, irrespective
of geographical location.
The world, in which unconstrained flows of information and people of different
nationalities is now possible, with no political barriers it is considered friendly
and convenient. There is, however one danger connected with the loss of cultural
diversity. For it is genuine customs, rites, architecture, arts and crafts, clothing, and
cuisine, characteristic for each region and country, that make the world a “colourful
mosaic” which can be the source of inspiration or just a pleasant picture to look at.
A very important task for the contemporary is to preserve that cultural diversity in
the modern world. The proof that we need such diversity, are people travelling to the

276
farthest corners of the earth, seeking places where the original traditions and customs
are still alive and respected. But it is not only foreign cultures that are interesting
and inspiring to us. Very often we know little of our own heritage that is falling into
oblivion, although we would like to preserve it. The Open Air Village Museum in
Lublin is the frequent host of events with folk artists and craftsmen who represent
old, vanishing professions, showing their tools and techniques. Old rites and customs
are presented, that have almost disappeared. The events are immensely popular with
the residents of Lublin and its environs, which confirms the need for learning about
one’s own “roots” and identifying with one’s region’s heritage.
Historical, political, and natural conditions have impact on the longevity of
cultures. Some have continued to exist up to the present day, preserving their distinc-
tive, genuine, and unique character; others have disappeared, and their heritage can
normally only be seen in museums or heritage parks. So, in order to ensure cultural
continuity, we must make sure that tradition and history are remembered, and on
the other hand in order to guarantee the constant development of regions, younger
generations should be raised in the spirit of respect for and attachment to their “little
homelands”. Building and developing one’s own regional identity does not aim to
form conservative or xenophobic attitudes towards all that is strange or unfamiliar.
Being conscious of one’s own “roots” favours waking the sense of responsibility for
one’s own region in the future, it also gives motivation for work in support of its
development. Instilling in young people the sense of emotional ties to their ”little
homeland” increases chances that their adult lives will be connected with their region,
and they would promote the assets of their land in the country and the world, seeking
ways of solving problems and help its versatile development.

Shaping a regional identity through education in the Polish school system

Shaping of regional identity should start in childhood. At the early stage of life, the
bond with one’s own surroundings is natural. The ”little homeland” is the space
where the early phase of learning about reality occurs; first patterns, values, and ideas
about the world are formed. (Hibszer 1997). The child’s immediate surroundings are
for him/her the reference point for everything that is more distant. Children’s strong
emotional bond with their environs can be seen in their idealistic attitude. In a survey
conducted among primary school pupils of the fourth grade, questions were asked
concerning their assessment of the landscape in the place where they live. Most of
the children, irrespective of the true aesthetic value of their neighbourhood, judged
the landscape as very nice, tidy and favourite. Such evaluation was given even by
the children who were living in an unattractive industrial district. Therefore to shape
regional identity is to support the natural bond of the child with his/her environs
by way of instructing and educating. Besides the family, it is the school that has to
accomplish the task. Regional contents are present in the Polish schools’ curricula
at all the levels of teaching.
The education reform conducted in Poland in 1999, has introduced a new form
of classes to the education system, so called cross-curricular, or interdisciplinary
pathways. Apart from their didactic function, they play an important educational

role: they form attitudes, views, principles, and develop competences necessary for
being able to function in the contemporary world and in the adult life. One of these
interdisciplinary pathways is Regional education – the cultural heritage of the region.
This is undertaken from the fourth grade of primary school (nd stage of education)
through to secondary school (th stage of education). It includies teaching about
regional contents at all levels of teaching and indicates how important their realisa-
tion is for Polish education system. The chief goals of the regional pathway are:
• providing pupils with the knowledge from the fields of: nature, economy, and
culture (in the historical as well as present-day contexts;
• helping pupils in creating their own system of values;
• preparing them for performing social roles and for mature life in the regional,
national, and European structures;
• developing of the sense of being a part of regional, national, and European commu-
nities;
• shaping of a patriotic attitude towards their region and country;
• stimulating interest in culture and tradition in the scale of the region, the country,
Europe, and the world;
• developing respect and tolerance for otherness in the aspect of religion, language,
culture, and tradition of other ethnic groups (Piwońska, 2001).
The subject matter of the regional pathway combines the contents that are part of a
number of different subjects: history, the Polish language, civil education, geography,
biology, as well as music and arts. Because of the interdisciplinary character of the
regional pathway, it is implemented by different teachers, either as a constituent of
their mother subject, or in the form of other activities, such as excursions, contests
and projects which are aimed at integrating contents from many areas.

The role of school geography in shaping a regional identity

Geography is significantly involved in implementing regional education. The grounds
for this are, among others, provided in the guidelines of The International Charter of
Geographical Education (1992), according to which, ”Regional Studies select from
the following areas: local community, home region, home country[…]”, as well as
the decades of tradition of the Polish school of geography. Polish geographers and
educationalists over a hundred years ago postulated that the elementary knowledge
of the subject be based on observing one’s own environs. In 1921, Sawicki in his
book ”Metodyka geografii…” („The Methodology of Geography…”), wrote: „Let
us begin to teach geography from the very bases, from the things most immediate
to children, that is from what they know.”.
In Poland, the first stage of geographical education takes place at primary school.
At that stage geography does not appear as a separate subject, but constitutes part
of science that combines the contents of geography, biology, chemistry, and physics
to present a complete and coherent picture of the environment, as well as the rela-
tionship between the environment and human life and activity. A significant part
of geographical contents in “science” refers to the immediate surroundings of the


pupil. This is implied by the entries in Basic curricular requirements (Ministry of
Education and Sport 2002), for example:
• Description of your place of residence (land forms, rocks, types of water, soil,
vegetation).
• The living conditions in your immediate surroundings.
• Orientation in the surroundings, sketch, plan, map.
• The landscape of the immediate surroundings – observations and descriptions:
– elements of the natural landscape
– the ways of land development
– people and culture
– dependence of people’s lives on the natural and extra-natural factors.
• Human influence on the natural environment.
The Basic curricular requirements also specifies competences and attitudes that
pupils should work out while learning “science”. Many of them are related to the
local environment, for instance:
• Noticing the natural values of the most immediate region, knowing about the
legally protected objects and nature areas. Recognising, using atlases and keys,
common species of plants and animals.
• Noticing the relationship between the elements of the natural and cultural environ-
ments.
• Noticing the influence of human activity on the natural environment.
• Solving simple „problem” tasks concerning the place of living and its environs.
• Noticing the culture values of the most immediate region.
The entry in the Basic curricular requirements clearly indicates that while imple-
menting material connected with the landscape of the immediate surroundings,
regional education can be realised effectively. The “landscape” notion is quite a broad
one, it encompasses both natural and human-made elements, joined by a network of
interdependences and interactions. Natural conditions determine to a considerable
degree the way man manages the land; and man transforms all the natural compo-
nents of the landscape, leaving his mark on its quality and appearance, giving it in
effect the look typical of a given region.
The ”Science” curriculum unit that is related to the landscape of pupils’ place of
residence is realised in the fourth grade of primary school. A maximum number of
classes devoted to pupils’ environs should be conducted in the field. Direct obser-
vation gives geographical concepts a concrete, real dimension. Pupils can actively
follow the processes and phenomena occurring in the environment, in order to
understand better their causes and effects, both for nature and for human activity.
Through exposure to the environment, pupils can make observations on how our
ancestors managed the land we inhabit now, what they have left us, and what mark
is being left on it by the contemporary people. During such observation, a child
has an opportunity to see how the past intermingles with the present, and how the
cultural and economic activities of man overlay the picture of natural conditions
(Angiel 2001).

279
 Field lessons can engage the pupil’s activity to the greatest extent, because it is
not only his/her mind, but also his/her body that is at work. Different senses are
stimulated: the incentives sent by the environment are perceived by a child with
sight, hearing, smell, and touch. A contact with the environment, its looks and its
quality, are also the source of positive or negative emotions, leading in consequence
to certain reflections, conclusions, and opinions, concerning the proper management
of nature. During observation and research conducted in their immediate landscape
surroundings, pupils begin to understand the phenomena occurring in it. Emotions
accompanying the process of learning about their neighbourhood, they ground and
strengthen the child’s natural bond with his/her environment. Regional identity is
shaped as if “by the way”.
It is not always easy to organise field activities in school conditions, especially that
most of the school year in Poland is in winter, when neither the length of daylight
nor weather conditions encourage staying out of doors. There are also organisational
difficulties, for example the timetable is inadequate to the needs of the teacher who
wants to conduct field lessons. In effect, the practicality of realising classes out of
doors is very limited. In situations when it is difficult to organise observation for
pupils in the environment, different teaching aids need to be used. It is important,
however, that the contents contained in those materials be also related to the imme-
diate surroundings. Commonly available school textbooks are, of course, not oriented
towards a specific region, because of their universal character. It is the teacher’s job
to prepare suitable teaching aids. In several schools of Lublin an experiment was
conducted: during the landscape-related lessons, the teachers used a text, slides,
and an educational film, prepared especially for the purpose and concerning the
surroundings of the pupils’ residence. The results of the experiment went far beyond
the expectations. The pupils were very positively surprised by the fact that their
vicinity became an object of a scientific project. Using the materials prepared, they
would recognise familiar places and objects, learning new things about them. All the
teachers participating in the experiment stated that the children worked with much
more zeal and emotional engagement than usual. It is thus clear that the contents
related to the pupil’s immediate surroundings are interesting for him/her, irrespec-
tive of the form of classes during which they are introduced.
Cultural heritage, a subject of interest of regional education, is sometimes under-
stood in a narrow sense. It is mainly associated with monuments of architecture
and museums. Whereas cultural heritage should also incorporate natural heritage,
together with economic heritage. Regional education is thus also connected with
ecology, whose one goal is to prepare young people for the implementation of the
idea of balanced development. All these contents will be taught during the classes
that concern the landscape of immediate surroundings, and thus landscape educa-
tion overlaps to a big extent with regional education, both in respect to the teaching
material and the goals to be realised.
The preliminary stage of landscape education, takes place during the fourth grade
of primary school, and as it refers to the landscape in the pupil’s place of residence,
is of a great cognitive and educational significance. It should be implemented with
280
special care dedicated to the selection of contents taught, teaching aids, and methods
employed. Within the curriculum unit concerning landscape, pupils not only obtain
knowledge about nature, it is also a very important element of regional education.
Through the methods of work typical for geography, and seldom used during classes
on other subjects: direct field observation and research, pupils get in close contact
with their environment. In this way, attachment, sense of responsibility, and respect
for the place in which the child grows are developed. It is all that which constitutes
regional identity.
In the new education reform, that is concerned primarily with changes in the
Polish school curricula, there are plans to remove the interdisciplinary pathways.
Many opinions about them indicate that they cause organisational problems for
schools, and their implementation varies among individual schools. If the changes
are introduced, the regional pathway will no longer constitute a separate form of
teaching, and its contents will only be present in the curricula of other subjects. There
is concern as to whether regional education will have proper continuation and will
not become neglected.
In the case of the “science” curriculum, as the framework for implementing
the “landscape of immediate surroundings” study unit, regional contents are well
covered and so the problem does not exist. Landscape education does, and probably
will continue to contribute to developing in children the sense of affinity with their
region, developing interest in its nature, economy and culture, forming their patriotic
attitude, and preparing pupils for their future roles in the society. However, in order
to really be so, the teachers must fully realise the role of and the need for regional
education in a young person’s development.

Preparing teachers to give classes in regional education

It is also essential to adequately prepare teachers to provide regional education.
There are various possibilities for getting qualified in this field. In the department
of Biology and Earth Sciences of the Maria Curie-Sklodowska University in Lublin,
postgraduate studies in regional education are offered to teachers of different speci-
alities. Unfortunately, the number of teachers who take up such studies is limited
due to the cost involved. Meanwhile, teachers of science – a subject which comprises
a theme block entitled “landscape of the immediate surroundings”, have different
educational background. They can be biologists, geographers, chemists or physicists
who have finished a postgraduate course or other. Students of geography are the only
group who have classes on their region as part of the curriculum of their studies.
They include both lectures on the subject and methodology classes, where students
prepare papers on their “little homeland” putting into practice the methods they are
going to use at school later on. Students of other subjects: biology, chemistry, physics
do not have such classes during their studies. In postgraduate studies and courses
qualifying to teach science study, issues of regional education do not receive much
attention. There is no time for this, as classes are run on an extra-mural basis only for
three terms and deal with a lot of other subject matter. In conclusion, it seems evident
that geography teachers are best prepared, both in terms of theory and methodology,

to explore regional issues when teaching science. Other teachers have to supplement
their knowledge on their own account.

References
1. ANGIEL J. 2001. Edukacja regionalna. Poradnik dla nauczyciela. CODN, Warszawa,
pp. 5−12.
2. HIBSZER A. 1997. Mała ojczyzna jako obiekt poznania geograficznego w edukacji
szkolnej. Autoreferat z pracy doktorskiej. Maszynopis, Sosnowiec, p. 19.
3. HRABYK P., SAWICKI L. 1921. Metodyka geografji dla I−III stopnia siedmioklasowej
szkoły powszechnej, Kraków, p. 104.
4. MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND SPORT 2002, Basic curricular requirements.
5. PIWOŃSKA Z. 2001. Edukacja regionalna. Poradnik dla nauczycieli szkoły podsta-
wowej. Wyd. Ośw. FOSZE, Rzeszów, pp. 5−6.
6. COMMISSION ON GEOGRAPHICAL EDUCATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL
GEOGRAPHICAL UNION 1992. The International Charter on Geographical Education.
Washington.


Getting geography students involved in European integration
Rob van der Vaart, Tine Béneker, Leo Paul

Department of Human Geography and Planning, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht

University, [Link] 80115, 3508 TC Utrecht, The Netherlands
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
Most geography departments in Europe offer courses on the ‘geography of Europe’ or ‘Euro-
pean integration’. Very few of these courses, however, employ strategies that make students
aware of and involved in the political processes at the European level that influence the develop-
ment of European space, e.g. through agricultural policy, regional policy, or market-oriented
policies. This paper will describe and analyse the attempts made in Utrecht to involve geography
students in European decision making through the use of gaming techniques.

Key words: Geography, university, education, European integration, simulation, gaming

Introduction
The British geographer Ron Johnston reminded us years ago of the fact that
geographical education, in schools and universities, is not just about ‘technical
control’ (grasping the subject-matter and skills that are indispensable for the labour
market), but also about ‘mutual understanding’ and ‘emancipation’ (Johnston 1985).
Good education is about knowledge and instrumental skills, but also about social
and personal development, as an individual and as a citizen. This wisdom should be
kept in mind in the design of any course or learning experience, of course, but here
we try to apply Johnston’s concept of educational goals to teaching and learning, in
a geography context, about Europe and the European integration process.
The resources for learning about Europe, from a geographical perspective, are
abundant: textbooks and articles in academic journals offer a variety of relevant
themes, empirical research outcomes, case studies at various geographical scales, and
theoretical perspectives. There is no lack of input for the development of students’
knowledge and understanding and for critical intellectual reflection on the develop-
ment of European space of on the ongoing European integration process. The problem
is, however, how to link this body of knowledge to the questions and concerns of
students as national and European citizens, as politically aware individuals.
“European integration” is a third-year module in the bachelors programme
“Human Geography and Planning” at Utrecht University. In this module, we have
been trying over the last five years to establish the links between learning about
European integration, enhancing mutual understanding of each other’s perceptions
of Europe between students from many European countries, and the development of
the students as critical European citizens. Simulation of the European policy making
process has been a key strategy in our approach.


Some background
For a number of years throughout the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, our department
organised and hosted so-called “Intensive Programmes” about the geography of Euro-
pean integration, co-funded through the EU Erasmus Programme. The focus was
generally on issues of regional development and regional policy. Among the partners
were students and staff from Spain, Finland, Norway, France and the United Kingdom.
Three things became very clear in this experience. In the first place, students found
it extremely stimulating to learn about and from each other’s national and personal
perspectives on Europe. Students delivered papers about regional development and
policy issues in their home regions and were active in joint debates about the desirable
future directions of European regional policy. Conflicting (national) perceptions and
interests, as well as (im)possibilities for compromise, became very evident in these
debates. Secondly, students were very positive about the inclusion in the course of
European (regional) policy as a contested arena, and showed special interest in future-
oriented debates about it. Thirdly, the active learning strategies adopted, with debate,
student-led seminars and presentations, and study visits to experts in Brussels for
further presentations and discussions, made the intensive programmes work.
The very successful intensive programmes came to an end for a number of reasons:
the disappearance of the traditional disciplinary Erasmus networks as a result of
policy shifts in Brussels; and probably also fatigue with the annual paperwork for
IP applications and evaluation reports to the European Commission. The idea of
a module about European integration, with an active and collaborative learning
approach, an international student group and with a focus on European policy issues,
was taken further, however, by a group of Utrecht staff members, lead by political
geographer Jan Groenendijk. This resulted in the “European integration” course that
has now been operational for over five years.

Design
Any university course in Utrecht takes place over ten weeks, with a study load
of 7,5 ECTS credits, or 200 hours, or 20 hours of work per week (half time; there
is always a parallel course), with an average of 6 to 8 contact hours per week for
lectures, seminars, presentations, fieldwork, etcetera. The average “European inte-
gration” course will have approximately 60 students, one third to one fourth of
them exchange students (mostly from European countries), and a teaching team of
four members of staff. The course starts in a rather conventional way, with a series
of lectures about aspects of the European integration process that may be relevant
for the students’ project later during the course (see further down). Parallel to these
lectures, the students have some small simulation exercises that make them sensitive
to the importance of national interests and positions in European negotiations and
decision making processes. Thus they start orienting themselves to their projects,
that will really take off after the exam (fifth or sixth week, related to the lectures
and reading materials).
The project has a number of phases. During the first phase, multinational student
groups of four produce country reports – supported by sub-national regional analyses

by the students individually – that result in a SWOT analysis of the country and policy
recommendations for the country with respect to one particular European policy
issue. In the 2005 course, the Lisbon agenda was the policy issue under considera-
tion. As part of the preparation of the report, students have a two-day study visit
to Brussels, during which they interview regional and national representatives, or
relevant sectoral organisations. Loads of relevant documents, course instructions,
group workspaces and address lists for organisations in Brussels are all on the
course website. During this process, students develop an understanding or where
the particular country and its regions stand in relation to (in this example) the multi-
faceted Lisbon agenda for improving European competitiveness. They learn about the
country’s strengths and weaknesses with regard to the Lisbon agenda and about the
opportunities and threats it poses to the country if it were implemented in unaltered
form. They also become aware of the links between the country’s geographical char-
acteristics (relative location, regional inequalities, regional development processes)
and the issue under consideration (the Lisbon strategy).
The final two weeks are the most hectic period of the course. Groups of countries
(for example: new Central-European member states or Southern member states) start
briefing each other about their findings and about what the Lisbon strategy might mean
for their countries. They also look for common ground in the debates that will follow
about the Lisbon strategy. Then all 60 or 70 students are assigned new roles as members
of European political parties, but at the same time they keep the ‘geographical origin’ of
the country they studied earlier. Some students are excluded from this and are allocated
the roles of either a European Commissioner (for regional policy, competition policy,
regional policy, finances) or President/Secretary for the final European Parliament
debate. Everyone receives a ‘faked’ policy compromise document (produced by the
teachers) from the Commission – that links together proposals for the Lisbon strategy,
for the future of agricultural policy and regional policy, and the financial framework
for all this – that will be the object for the final Parliamentary debate. From then
onwards, the political parties have meetings for deciding about their position in the
debate (based on the real party programmes), country representatives from various
parties may meet in order to negotiate territorial interests across the borders of political
parties, the Commission meets in order to prepare its presentation and defence of the
proposal plus the room for compromise. This all feeds into the final debate, that may
take a full day and that is the last element of the course.

Experiences
Evaluations of this ‘European Integration’ course by subsequent groups of students
and by the teachers who are involved in the course lead to a number of observations
about the ‘educational experience’ that the module offers. Technical evaluation
results, about the study load, clarity of tasks, or fairness of grading, are left out from
these observations. We want to focus on the ‘citizenship education’ and ‘political
education’ aspects of the course.
• The close-to-reality simulation of the political process, with roles for political
parties, the European Commission, regional coalitions, national interests, about
285
 issues that will shape the future geography of Europe and the lives of European
citizens, clearly enhances students’ interest in European politics, and makes them
see the relevance of geographical analysis and understanding for debates about
the future of Europe.
• The multinational student group adds an extra dimension to the course. It results
in more lively discussions (about conflicting interests between states and regions),
brings more varied grassroots knowledge and experience into the debates, and
generally leads to a more realistic setting for simulated international negotiations.
• Future orientation appears to be an excellent strategy for bringing together students
knowledge and their personal interests and expectations. Future orientation was
not a conscious choice in the design of the course. But the focus on topical policy
issues implies a future orientation. During the course, it became evident that
students are more engaged and more eager to participate in discussions when these
are about choices for the future, their future. Future orientation deserves more
attention as a teaching and learning strategy in higher education geography.
• The course approach has an important disadvantage as well: during the final
discussion and simulation phase, a clear division may become visible between
those students who can cope with the course strategy and those who cannot.
A substantial group of students does not have the political literacy or sensitivity,
nor the theoretical helicopter view necessary for looking beyond the issues
(or example Europe as a neoliberal project versus Europe as a potential arena for
counterbalancing corporate Europeanisation and globalisation), that are needed
for good arguments and realistic positions in the debates. Maybe the students
concerned can not be blamed for this; the divide may reflect a lack of political
education during the previous years of the geography curriculum. Partially, this
group of students with shallow participation will be lifted up by the enthusiasm
of others and improve their performance. But a lack of relevant education can not
be repaired within a few weeks.

Conclusion
Geography courses about contemporary issues in society may be designed in such a
way, that they contribute to the triple goals of education: ‘technical control’, ‘mutual
understanding’ and ‘emancipation’. The European Integration course described here
is a modest example of this ambition. Although not consciously used as a strategy in
this course, future orientation seems to be an interesting approach for mobilizing and
enhancing ‘the full student’: her/his knowledge and understanding, motivations and
ambitions, values and personal expectations. This approach deserves wider attention
in geographical education.

References
1. JOHNSTON R. J. 1986. On Human Geography. Oxford: Basil Blackwell.

286
 The Role of International Staff and Student Collaboration
in the Enhancement of the Geographic Curriculum
Anne Wheeler1, John Smith1, Albert Rydant2, Serguey Larin3
1
School of Applied Sciences, University of Wolverhampton,
Wolverhampton, WV1 1SB, UK
2
Department of Geography, Keene State College, Keene,
New Hampshire, 03435-2001, USA
3
Faculty of Ecology and Geography, Tyumen State University,
10 Semakov Street, Tyumen 625003, Russian Federation
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Abstract
Internationalisation of the Geography curriculum at the University of Wolverhampton has
been a key feature of the programme over the last 15 years. The activities in the undergrad-
uate and postgraduate programmes have included work placement opportunities, fieldwork
through the EU funded Tempus and Neptune programmes and in the USA, Russia, Spain and
Eastern Europe, a variety of staff and student exchange programmes, and joint curriculum
development projects. There have been a number of advantages to this type of interna-
tional collaboration. These include comparative studies of assessment methods and joint
curriculum development; pooling of academic expertise and economies of scale; facilitating
organisation for foreign partners; enrichment of the staff and student experience through
contrasting cultural experiences and the broadening of European/global awareness.

Key words: internationalisation, work experience, fieldwork, international collaboration,

broadening awareness

Introduction
Many universities throughout the world are investigating ways to enhance and inte-
grate an international dimension into their curricula (Haigh, 2002), and the signing
of the Bologna Declaration has promoted this commitment within the member states
of the European Union (EU). However, internationalisation can encompass several
meanings such as the dissemination of best practice, the collaborative development
of curriculum materials, the facilitation of inter-cultural awareness, or the promotion
of international standards in learning and teaching (Shepherd et al., 2000).
The University of Wolverhampton has been no exception in recognising the
importance of internationalisation of the curriculum and it has been a fundamental
consideration in facilitating widening participation for a diverse student population
at the University for many years. The University strives to achieve, as Haigh (2002)
stated, an “ideal international curriculum that provides equably for the learning
ambitions of all students, irrespective of their national, ethnic, cultural, social class
or gender identities.”


 Geography and Environmental Science, over the last 15 years, has been one of the
most forward thinking subject groups at Wolverhampton to develop an international
dimension through institutional collaboration and the development of a network of
international partners in curriculum development. The development has been mani-
fested in a number of ways, e.g. staff and student mobility through the ERASMUS/
SOCRATES and NEPTUNE programmes, curriculum development projects funded
through the EU TEMPUS and SOCRATES programmes, international fieldwork
and the integration of global and European case studies into the undergraduate and
postgraduate programmes.
It has been argued that the application of information and communication tech-
nologies (ICTs) has enhanced successful collaboration between international part-
ners (Rich et al., 2000) and this has certainly been the case at Wolverhampton. The
increased use and application of ICT has facilitated interaction between staff and
students and also the collaborative development of teaching resources. As noted by
Rich et al. (2000) ICT has been beneficial in providing a low cost resource to enable
regular contact, and access to Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) resources, for
students studying abroad or for collaborative working between students, and staff,
over long distances. The ability for staff and students to share information and
perspectives on concepts or topical issues enriches the curriculum opportunities at
all of the partner institutions.

International Curriculum Development

International curriculum development has been undertaken at two levels: the devel-
opment of an international module in European environmental issues (Smith et al.,
2001) and the modernisation and internationalisation of the geography and environ-
mental curriculum at Tyumen State University (TSU) in the Russian Federation.
The European module was a collaborative development with institutions from
Finland, Czech Republic, Hungary and Ireland and was funded through the EU
SOCRATES curriculum development programme over three years. The module
was designed to explore wider perspectives and attitudes towards the environment
on a pan-European scale. It also aimed to promote an interdisciplinary approach to
learning. The project resulted in a flexible, student-orientated module that benefits
staff and students alike (Smith, 2001). The facility to incorporate new case studies,
and partners, will ensure that the module is dynamic and focuses on contemporary
issues.
The curriculum development project at Tyumen was funded for three years through
the EU TEMPUS programme and involved the University of Freiburg, Germany and
Mikkeli Polytechnic, Finland, alongside the Universities of Tyumen and Wolver-
hampton. The Russian geography and environmental curriculum is controlled
through the Scientific Methodological Council on Environmental Education, part of
the Educational Methodological Association of Russian Universities (Kasimov et al.,
2002). As a result the opportunity to radically restructure the geography curriculum
was not possible, except within certain specialist areas such as environmental protec-
tion and resource management. However, the project was extremely successful and

facilitated the introduction of international case studies, problem-based and applied
learning into the curriculum, as well as providing the opportunity for an international
work experience project for students from five countries on the Russian Black Sea
coast. The project was also able to establish an Environmental Training Unit in the
Faculty of Ecology and Geography at TSU which provides short courses for teachers,
regional government staff and employees in the oil and gas industries. In addition
the centre has been accredited for the training of environmental auditors.

International fieldwork
As mentioned previously, two international student teams undertook a work experi-
ence field project on the Black Sea Coast, for one month in consecutive years, to
produce a fieldwork training manual for the staff at TSU. Students, and staff, were
able to share field experiences and methodologies and worked alongside staff to
identify the essential information to be included in the manual. Although the editing
of the manual is currently being undertaken by a member of Wolverhampton staff,
the content of the training manual is essentially that of the international student
cohort.
There are two field courses to the USA from Wolverhampton, one each at under-
graduate and postgraduate level, within which ICT plays an integral part. The
undergraduate fieldtrip is organised by Professor Rydant from Keene State College,
with staff and facilities also provided by Plymouth State University in New Hamp-
shire. The UK students have the opportunity to broaden their awareness of global
issues in geography and environmental management, implementing ICT to produce
management plans during the trip. The postgraduate trip is a joint trip to Arizona
with UK postgraduates and US students from Keene and Plymouth. Prior to the trip
the students work together in international pairs, via the Internet, to prepare materials
and information packs on various sites they visit. The student pairs were required
to present a seminar paper, with handout, during the trip on a selected topic/site as
a prequel for the following field day.

International exchange programmes

Since the introduction of student mobility through the EU ERASMUS programme
in 1987 Wolverhampton has been active in promoting opportunities for students to
include a period of study abroad as part of their studies. Walters (2003) suggests
that European exchange programmes are a relatively easy and effective way to
enhance the student experience in geography and this is perceived to be the case at
Wolverhampton. In geography and environmental science these opportunities have
broadened to include links with Keene State College and the University of Arizona
and with other EU institutions, through the Neptune programme co-ordinated by
the University of Leeuwarden in the Netherlands.

Issues and Benefits

There are a number of issues that arise from international curriculum development
and these have been addressed by a number of authors. For example Reeve et al.
289
(2000) cautioned an awareness of cultural differences and that there can be “no
assumption of shared preconceptions”. The authors were also aware of the necessity
to provide for the inclusion of local content into a syllabus/teaching and learning
materials. Rich et al. (2000) were concerned about the possible loss of autonomy
with shared courses/materials and that there may be a requirement for formal quality
assurance processes and ‘acceptable standards’ to be introduced. Nairn et al. (2000)
also identified issues with regard to fieldwork such as integration of the syllabus,
sharing of courses (including staff and resources), financial constraints on interna-
tional fieldwork and safety.
Although there must be an awareness of these issues outlined above, it is clear that
international collaboration brings significant and important benefits in enhancing the
geography curriculum. The benefits include the comparison of assessment methods,
the pooling of academic expertise and resources, the economies of scale in fieldwork
and facilitating organisation for foreign partners. The enrichment of the staff and
student experience through contrasting cultural experiences and the broadening
of European/global awareness cannot be underestimated. Graduate skills, such as
problem solving, team working, and enhanced communication skills, are developed
through international fieldwork and student mobility opportunities. Partner Further
Education (FE) institutions have also benefited from these developments as the FE
students have been able to join fieldtrips and staff have had access to resources.
The learning and teaching experience for staff and students is greatly enhanced for
all the partner institutions involved and the internationalisation of the geography
curriculum ultimately provides an accessible and stimulating learning environment
for a diverse range of students.

Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank all of their partner institutions that have been
involved in curriculum development, student and staff mobility programmes and
fieldwork, and have played an important role in the enhancement of the geography
curriculum.

References
1. HAIGH M. 2002. Internationalisation of the Curriculum: designing inclusive education
for a small world. Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 26(1), pp. 49−66.
2. KASIMOV N.S., MALKHAZOVA S.M., ROMANOVA E.P., CHALKLEY B.S. 2002.
Environmental Education in Russian Universities. Journal of Geography in Higher
Education, 26(2), pp. 149−157.
3. NAIRN K., HIGGIT D., VANNESTE D. 2000. International Perspectives on Field-
courses. Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 24(2), pp. 246−254.
4. REEVE D., HARDWICK S., KEMP K., PLOSZAJSKA, T. 2000. Delivering Geography
Courses Internationally. Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 24(2), pp. 228−237.
5. RICH D.C., ROBINSON G., BEDNARZ, R.S. 2000. Collaboration and the Successful
Use of Information and Communications Technologies in Teaching and Learning
Geography in Higher Education. Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 24(2),
pp. 263−270.

290
6. SHEPHERD I.D.H., MONK J.J., FORTUIJN J.D. 2000. Internationalising Geography
in Higher Education: towards a conceptual framework. Journal of Geography in Higher
Education, 24(2), pp. 285−298.
7. SMITH J., WHEELER A., PYBUS C., PUTTONEN A., LOCZY D., GOOZ L.,
RUZICKA M. 2001. The Development of an International Module in Environmental
Education. Proceedings of the Environmental Training in Engineering Education
Conference. University of Florence, 14−17 November 2001.
8. WALTERS G. 2003. Field Courses Provide European Diversity at Low Cost. Planet 10
pp. 22−24.

291
 Geography and Languages in Intercultural Education: does
the spatial diffusion of English hinder or help intercultural
geographical understanding?
Mark Wise

School of Geography, University of Plymouth, UK

e-mail mwise@[Link]

Abstract
English is rapidly strengthening its position as the world’s dominant international language.
Its geographical spread becomes ever wider and it penetrates deeply in a wide range of
linguistic domains. It is pre-eminent in international research and is increasingly used as a
language of instruction in universities and other education institutions outside of English-
speaking countries. English overwhelms other tongues in the global ‘language-market’ with,
for example, well over 90% of secondary school students in Europe choosing it as their main
foreign language. Meanwhile, the learning of languages in the Anglophone countries is in
steep decline. There are more publications in English than any other language and about 50%
of translated works are out of English into other languages. The reverse flow into English is
minute in comparison. This spatial diffusion of English can be seen as a positive development
which facilitates inter-cultural understanding across language barriers. However, others fear
that it poses a threat to cultural and intellectual diversity by facilitating a dominance of ways
of thought (la pensée unique) and ‘world-views’ flowing out of the Anglo-American world.
This debate is beginning to open up within academic geography [Gutiérrez & López 2001;
Rodríguez-Pose 2004]. Thus Garcia-Ramon argues that the ‘growing hegemony of English
as a global language privileges the geographical discourse of the ‘Anglophone world’ at the
expense of other scholarly traditions, with a consequent loss of cultural diversity [Garcia-
Ramon 2003: 1]. Others fear that monolingual English-speakers are culturally isolated by
their lack of language skills [Watson 2004]. This paper will present the main dimensions
of this developing debate and its implications for the teaching of geography along with
languages as means of intercultural education.

Key words: English language dominance, Geographical education, intercultural under-

standing, university and secondary education

Introduction
English is rapidly strengthening its position as the world’s dominant international
language. This geolinguistic phenomenon is seen by some as a positive development
which facilitates intercultural understanding across language barriers and by others
as a negative process which threatens to cultural diversity. This short introductory
paper invites geographers to participate in these debates think about their implica-
tions for intercultural education.

292
The dominance of English as an international language
English is the dominant lingua franca in virtually all international activities
concerned with business, politics, science, academia, travel, popular culture or
sport. It is the working language of many multinational companies based in non-
Anglophone countries, including states like Germany (Deutschebank) and France
(European Aerospace and Defence Systems based in Toulouse, where it assembles
the European Airbuses). Most research publications in scientific journals are now
published in English, whatever the mother-tongue of the author or the country in
which the journal is based and an increasing number of academics from the social
sciences and humanities do likewise. Thus, a 1997 study revealed that 98 per cent of
German physicists claimed English as their working language while the comparable
figures for sociology, philosophy and literature were 72 per cent, 56 per cent and 23
per cent respectively (Graddol, 1997:9). There are more publications in English than
any other language and they are extensively outside of English-speaking countries
(Graddol, 1997). English overwhelmingly dominates as the language of international
conferences, often being the only language that can be used. Associated with all this
dominance, there is often an implicit cultural assumption that any truly ‘modern’
person must have a working knowledge of English.

The reasons for the geographical spread and dominance of English

Political power and its associated economic strength does much to explain this
linguistic dominance. First, the vast British Empire laid the foundations for its
geolinguistic pre-eminence and today the political, economic, military and cultural
strength of the USA builds upon them (Holborow, 1999). The ability of the USA to
promote its culture globally has no match in the contemporary world. Vast numbers of
the publications emanate from its universities and publishing houses and its popular
culture is ubiquitous, diffused by a multitude of audio-visual products to consumers
worldwide from enormously powerful ‘cultural industries’. Other Anglophone coun-
tries share these language-based advantages to a greater or lesser extent.
In addition, a cumulative process compounds these advantages. In a ‘global
language market’ English is perceived by ‘linguistic consumers’ as the most valu-
able ‘linguistic commodity’ to acquire because it offers more scope for international
communication than any other language (Calvet, 2002). English has thus obtained a
truly global role and those who speak it as a second language now greatly outnumber
native speakers of the language (Crystal, 2003). Let us briefly identify some dimen-
sions of its dominance in the educational and cultural domains.

The dominance of English in second language learning in Europe’s schools

In 1998/99 about 93% of secondary school pupils in the EU-15 studied English as a
foreign language compared with 28% and 20% respectively for French and German,
its nearest competitors (Eurostat 2001). The enlargement of the EU to 25 Member
States has not undermined this pre-eminent position (see Table 1).

293
Table 1. The most widely taught foreign languages in secondary education 2001/2002
Country English French German Spanish Other
Austria 98.6 12.8 – 2.0 5.6 (Italian)
Belgium (Fr) 68.2 – 5.3 3.2 72.9 (Dutch)
Belgium (Nl) 70.6 98.0 24.0 0.9 –
Bulgaria 64.4 14.6 21.2 24.5 –
Cyprus 99.8 78.2 1.1 – 0.8 (Italian)
Czech Rep. 67.4 4.2 42.7 0.9
Denmark 98.1 10.2 51.9 6.7
Estonia 89.8 – 33.9 – 55.6 (Russian)
Finland 99.0 13.3 28.3 – 92.2 (Swedish)
France 96.0 – 20.4 39.9 4.6 (Italian)
Germany 93.9 22.7 – 2.4 2.2 (Russian)
Greece 97.6 44.1 17.0 – –
Hungary 51.4 4.6 43.3 – 4.2 (unspecified)
Iceland 82.4 8.2 21.6 – 65.6 (Danish)
Ireland – 69.3 22.0 5.4 0.9 (Italian)
Italy 84.3 31.3 5.7 1.7 –
Latvia 92.6 1.4 27.5 – 40.8 (Russian)
Lithuania 78.6 6.2 31.2 – 53.6 (Russian)
Luxembourg 62.5 99.1 99.1 6.6 –
Malta 96.8 40.3 6.5 – 56.8 (Italian)
Netherlands 98.0 (1999) n.a n.a n.a n.a
Norway 100.0 18.2 38.9 – 0.1 (unspecified)
Poland 77.8 6.9 48.5 – 13.2 (Russian)
Portugal 89.9 54.4 0.5 1.6 –
Romania 86.4 87.0 11.4 – 6.5 (Russian)
Slovakia 61.8 – 48.4 – 5.2 (Russian)
Slovenia 85.0 2.8 36.5 – 2.9 (Italian)
Spain 97.1 36.7 1.7 – 0.1 (Italian)
Sweden 100.0 21.5 35.6 19.8 –
UK – 51.4 20.6 8.0 2.1 (unspecified)
Source: (European Commission 2005)
The learning of English is also spreading rapidly into the primary schools of
continental Europe (European Commission, 2005). The proportion of primary pupils
learning English in the EU-25 rose from 38.5% in 1999 to 46% in 2002 (100% in
Norway, 96.7% in Austria, 85.2% in Spain, 75.1% in Italy and 35.8% in France).
Its nearest competitor in this domain, French, was being studied by a mere 5% in
1999.

294
 In sharp contrast, the learning of foreign languages is in steep decline in both
the schools and universities of the United Kingdom (Table 2). Linked to this lack of
language skills, there has been a sharp decline in the numbers of British students
participating in the EU’s ERASMUS exchange scheme, from 12,000 in 1994/5 to
7,539 in 2002/3 (House of Lords 2005).
Table 2. Evolution of admissions to French, German and Spanish single-honours modern foreign-
language degree programmes in the UK (home students) 1996−2000
Year French German Spanish Total
1996 980  239 1,541
2000  275 259 ,
Source: UCAS 2002

The dominance of English in Table 3. Translation flows into and out of French in 2003
international publishing Translations into French Translations out of
There are more publications in from French into
English than any other language English 825 Spanish 606
(about 17 per cent of global output) German 89 Korean 581
and they are read widely outside
Italian  Italian 572
of the English-speaking countries
Spanish 69 Portuguese 584
(Graddol, 1997; Crystal, 2003; Phil-
lipson, 2003). In addition over half Japanese 68 Chinese 485
of the books translated today are out Dutch 20 English 
of English into other languages. So Russian  German 
those writing in English enjoy a Hebrew  Greek 220
geographical diffusion around the Swedish 16 Romanian 
globe far exceeding that of those Portuguese  Japanese 198
writing in other languages both in
Norwegian 9 Russian 191
the original and the translated form
Polish 9 Polish 
(Melitz, 1999). A brief examination
of literary translations in and out of Others 53 Others 
French in 2003 give some insights Total  Total 5923
into the dominance of English Source: SNE/La Centrale de l’Edition 2003
in this intercultural domain (see
Table 3).

Does the dominance of English threaten intercultural understanding?

This short paper can only encourage geographers to examine this immensely
complex question by making some broad introductory observations. First, fears
that an ‘English-language hegemony’ threatens intercultural understanding emerge
in various contexts. For example, public discourse in France is marked by the concept
of ‘la pensée unique’ which conjures up a vision of a globalising world where many
people assume that, in the words of former British Prime Minister Thatcher, ‘there is
no alternative’ to ‘Anglo-Saxon’ free-market capitalism based on liberal democracy;

295
 the whole world will, according to this way-of-thinking, inevitably move in this direc-
tion towards what the eminent –and globally published- American academic Francis
Fukuyama described as the ‘the end of history’ (Fukuyama, 1993). This diffusion of
this ‘dominant ideology’ is, some argue, facilitated by the global spread of English;
other ideological perspectives evolving in other linguistic-cultural communities
cannot counterbalance this English-speaking cultural juggernaut (Cassen, 2000).
Germany provides another example of anxieties related to language and intercultural
understanding. Its politicians and diplomats are alarmed by the falling numbers
of English-speakers learning German and the paltry flow of translations out of
German into English. This, it is suggested, produces no cultural counterbalance to
the persistence of distorted and ‘negative’ images of modern Germany based on an
almost obsessional study of ‘Nazi’ Germany in British schools (Economist, 2004)
and the incessant showing of World War Two films UK television (Goethe Institut).
In the English-speaking world, some worry that it’s characteristic monolingualism
is isolating it dangerously from an understanding of developments in other cultural-
linguistic communities. The minute numbers of Americans studying Arabic become
Table 4. Country of origin of authors of starkly apparent when demands for knowledge of the
articles published in major ‘international’ developments in the Islamic world increased following
journals, 1991−97 the ‘September th’ attack on New York.
Percentage
of articles Language and intercultural understanding in
Country
published academic Geography
1991−97 In 2001, two Spanish geographers challenged
USA 38.25 the ‘international’ pretensions of some 19 major
UK 35.14 geographical journals based, significantly, in the
Canada 8.58 USA and the UK (Gutiérrez amd López, 2001). They
Australia 3.24 revealed that these so-called ‘international’ journals
Israel 1.51 are heavily dominated by the English-speaking coun-
tries and academics (see Table 4).
New Zealand 1.42
Of course, geographers from countries like Spain
South Africa 1.19 can publish in their own national languages in essen-
The Netherlands 1.09 tially national journals. But few from outside these
China 0.62 linguistic communities are likely to read them. This
Singapore 0.61 produces cultural isolation rather than intercultural
Sweden 0.52 understanding, a point made by another Spanish-
France 0.52 Catalan geographer who argued that the ‘growing
Italy 0.51
hegemony of English as a global language privileges
the geographical discourse of the Anglophone world’
Japan 0.49
at the expense of other cultural traditions (Garcia-
Germany 0.47 Ramon, 2003: 1−4). She argued that articles submitted
Greece 0.47 by native English speakers are more likely to be
Others 5.36 accepted because of their ‘mother-tongue’ advantage
Total 100.00 and because their ‘ways of thought’ are more likely to
Source: Gutiérrez and López, 2001 accord with those Anglophones dominating the edito-
296
rial boards and refereeing systems. In order to counter such trends, she proposed
three strategies. First, ‘we should ban monolingualism in geography’. Second, an
effort should be made ‘to translate more books and articles into English. Thirdly,
she advocates the development of ‘truly international journals where “Other” voices
could be heard… by opening up academic journals to languages other than English
and… by… enlarging the pool from where referees are chosen on the basis of nation-
ality and languages’. In such ways the cultural-linguistic ghettos could be broken
and more genuine intercultural exchange take place.
However, her views were challenged by another native Spanish-speaking geog-
rapher (Rodríguez-Pose, 2004). He maintains that the adoption of a common inter-
national language is the most effective way of exchanging ideas and promoting
intercultural understanding. In the modern world, people simply have to master
English or run the risk of remaining isolated within restricted national communi-
ties doomed to cultural decline. Indeed, he suggests that ‘switching to English is
perhaps the only viable way of preserving the rich national academic traditions that
Garcia-Ramon mentions…’ (Rodríguez-Pose, 2004: 2). He cites the examples of the
Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie and the Geografiska Annaler
as examples of where the decision to use of English projects the work of Dutch
and Swedish geographers to the rest of the world, while publications in French and
Spanish in the Bulletin de l’Association des Géographes Français and the Boletín de
la Asociación de Géografos Españoles remain geographically isolated from intercul-
tural exchange. As a French speaker, the author of this paper has just received an invi-
tation to the excellent annual Festival Internationale de Géographie held in St Dié,
France. The theme of the conference is ‘Le monde en réseaux’ (‘Global networks’).
The language of the conference is French; a count of participants presenting papers
reveals some 132 French academics, 2 Spanish, 1 American, 1 Dane and 16 Italians
(Italy is the ‘guest country’ this year).

Conclusion
This short paper can only introduce an enormously complex problem and encourage
geographers to think more about the links between geography, languages and inter-
cultural education. As educators, they should encourage people to question more
deeply how their understanding of the world around them is moulded by their
linguistic limitations and support those, not least in the English-speaking world
who are fighting to promote foreign-language study. As researchers, they can make a
major contribution to understanding a fast changing world by mapping and explaining
geolinguistic changes. In this article, we have touched upon the spatial diffusion of
English into an increasing number of linguistic domains around the world as well as
the spatial flow of translations from one linguistic community to another. Many other
avenues of geolinguistic investigation are open, not least analysis of the persistent
and, in some cases, increasing linguistic diversity in Europe. Underneath the super-
ficial veneer of ‘global English’, a multitude of languages remain vibrantly alive in
complex geographical mosaics and still dominate the lives of most citizens. This is
a reality which English-speaking geographers in particular should never forget.
297
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tion. Paris: Plon.
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3. CRYSTAL D. 2003. English as a Global language, 2nd ed. Cambridge University Press,
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13. MELITZ J. 1999. English-language dominance, Literature and Welfare. Discussion Paper
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17. UCAS 2002. Universities and Colleges Admissions Service, UK. Can be accessed on:
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Brighton.

298
 PART FOUR

GLOBAL
AND ENVINRONMENTAL
GEOGRAPHY

299
 Sustainable development: let geographers take the lead
(with a little help from some friends)
Barbara Gambini

Istituto di Geografia, Universita di Urbino

via Saffi 15, 61029 Urbino, Italy
e-mail: sognoincatai@[Link]

Abstract
Sustainability is essentially a geographical issue with inherent spatial and trans-scale rela-
tionships and repercussions. More than any other single discipline, geography has the infor-
mation and outlook to address sustainable development in its multiple dimensions. Why then,
in Italy do geographers – along with other intellectuals and scholars – seem to be reluctant to
take up the challenge? A brief analysis of the Italian scene is presented here. Is this reluctance
appreciable elsewhere, and why – or why not? What reserves should geographers have against
undertaking the mission of contributing to the sustainability discourse, given our discipline’s
unique position and the promising directions that are already being explored?

Key words: sustainability, environment, geography, curriculum, Italy

Introduction
Sustainability is geographical in its very essence (Wilbanks 1994, etc.): among all
disciplines, geography is the one that has always dealt with both social and natural
sciences, examining the interactions among these and between these and space
– although not without a certain discontinuity in communication (Castree, 2003,
p. 206), or even mutual suspicion between physical and human geographers. Antici-
pating the most recent, still under-explored trends of the research towards sustain-
ability, geography has also long tackled cultural issues. What is possibly even more
relevant, is that geography has a constitutional predisposition to deal with scales and
inter-scales analysis, which is absolutely essential to a comprehension of the issues
related to sustainability, given the complex trans-scale repercussions of all events,
decisions, policies (Vallega, 1994, p. 20, Cencini, 2001, p. 145−146, Beroutchach-
vili et al., 2004, p. 4). More than any other discipline, geography has accumulated
a wealth of diachronic information on most of the constitutive aspects of sustain-
ability, as are environmental change and vulnerability, resource-, information- and
commodity flows, population and migration dynamics, transports, land planning and
use, behaviour-, perception- and employment geography, health trends, geopolitical
issues, service provision, lifestyles and poverty, bio-cultural diversity, etc. That is to
say, the sustainability discourse badly needs the contribution of geographers.
It seems appropriate to put forth a personal premise, i.e. that with humans’ limited
knowledge it is not possible, and probably will never be, to ascertain and certify the
absolute sustainability of a system – any system. Sustainable development itself is a

300
“non-objectifiable reality” (Kalaora, 2004, p. 160), and yet it has acquired an onto-
logical status by the “objectifiability,” and indeed objective nature of its opposite,
i.e. the un-sustainability of the development model that we are perpetuating. The
opposite of sustainable development is not just business as usual, it is un-sustain-
able development. In other words, the opposition is not between utopia and reality,
it is between survival and destruction. If no absolutely sustainable systems can be
identified, nonetheless the relative un-sustainability and perfectibility of a system
can and must be assessed: since no stasis is possible in nature or history, we have to
choose what direction to take, and we can see sustainability as a “a series of steps
along a pathway that never reaches a final goal” (anonymous quote in Bocchini
Varani, 2001, p. 198). Today, our development model is a “wild-teleology system
(Von Bertalanffy, 1968, pp. 124−130),” in that it continues its evolution without
clear goals and strategies, or more precisely with vague, un-stated goals that claim
tacit public agreement and a yet unconfirmed validity, but without seemingly having
the capability to re-adjust, let alone radically transform its strategies to face patent
changes. It would be of great benefit if the scientific world took a clear stance and
made value assessments.
Yet in Italy, with few exceptions (Cencini, Vallega), geographers are far from
being at the forefront of the sustainability debate, and indeed they are reluctant to
make value judgements, based on the presumed “objectivity” and “impartiality” of
geographical analysis. Apparently, being a geographer is different from being an
ecologist – a geographer objectively and impartially examines a situation from all
points of view and all aspects of the human-land relationship without taking either
position or indulging in bias. Talking about occupational ethics and environmental
education, though, ethicist Alastair S. Gunn speaks of the “dangerous assumption of
“neutrality„”(undated, p. 24). Even in the U.S.A., geographers are often overlooked
by policy-makers, and they themselves seem to “have chosen not to wade into policy
debates” (Wood, 2004, p. 53). Are geographers “abstaining from sustainability” in
other countries, as well? If that is the case, why is it so?
It is not just geographers but the whole of the Italian intelligentsia that seems
to have embraced the issue of sustainability with a remarkable delay compared
to the international agenda: this reflects the attitude of the Italian political world
and public opinion, which have long confined all environmental considerations to
political fringes and niche associations, and considered those through the deforming
lens of the ever exacerbated political polarisation. Having relegated the environ-
ment to even more marginal positions than it had previously held for some time, the
mainstream political activity and theoretical production has long failed to incorpo-
rate the sustainability discourse, only to realise recently, episodically and mainly
locally (LA21), its great exploitability in terms of public popularity and support (and
access to European or other funding). During geographers’ and other intellectuals’
absence, in fact, sustainability has become a fashionable word, and all efforts in
the direction of environmental protection risk to be labelled as “sustainable,” even
when little more than cosmetic or superficial measures. Being extremely vague, the
very concept of sustainability lends itself to manipulations of all sorts; as with its
301
predecessor “green,” or the prefix “eco-,” the adjective “sustainable” already tends to
sell any product (intellectual, political, commercial) with a good 30% of extra value
added, no matter what the real quality of the product. Sadly but comprehensibly, Peter
Timmerman (1994, p. 72) classifies the entire category of “sustainable development”
among those “mild ecological reforms” to which mainstream political parties have
committed themselves. The profusion of the “free riders” of sustainability has further
diminished the credibility of the whole concept- the Italian general public has thus
already developed a pronounced distrust towards the very word “sustainable” before
even understanding what that is about.
Definite and somewhat “revolutionary” value judgements have been made by
Sebastiano Monti (2000, p. 61): “It is a merit of ecology to have shown that no living
being can walk by itself and for itself; that trying to find compromising solutions
via negotiations between individual attitudes is illusory (there is no diplomacy in
ecology); that “struggle” has no sense if against nature (…); that limiting social
dynamics to the individual and state is false (…); that it is not possible to ignore
social positions, whatever they are (shamanism, magic, spiritism, etc) based on an
intellectualistic judgement.” Monti’s uniquely radical position is weakened by the
fact that throughout the book, the author continuously ventures into theological
considerations that seem to be heavily influenced by Catholicism, without much
intercultural – comparative or inclusive – effort.
Far from sharing Monti’s radicalism, the attitude of many Italian geographers on
this relatively novel issue is well summarised by the words of Attilio Celant, who
explicitly links environmental degradation with the well-defined, little negotiable
economic rules operating at present. He adds that although these rules are “certainly
not the best that the organisational and scientific culture of the most economically
advanced communities could have achieved,” they are the rules that “our Societies
have selected and shared.” Therefore, “it is necessary, at least in the short-time frame,
to search for solutions from within the paradigmatic scenario that has become hegem-
onic for about a decade (2001, pp. 119−120).” While the need for the gradualness and
feasibility of changes is certainly not objectionable, should we not actively promote
a shift of direction? Otherwise, will there be a real difference between sustainable
development and all the excellent but un-coordinated and insufficient instruments
identified by scholars and the legislation since the 1970s (in Italy “tutela, recupero,
valorizzazione, protezione,” etc)?
Using the words “holistic,” “organic,” “externality-exporting basins and exter-
nality-absorbing basins” or “Permaculture” (from the fusion and contraction of
“permanent agriculture and culture”) in front of an Italian geographic audience
would send shivers down the spine of the listeners and cause more than a few smiles.
Yet geography can count on its unique familiarity with spatial and environmental
dynamics as a privileged “door” to access and then introduce students and the
general public to even more complex and less obvious implications of sustainability
(Bob Evans, Martha Chillida, International Conference on “Governing Sustainable
Cities,” Fano, Italy, 4th−5th November 2004). Spatial, territorial and ecosystemic
relations are a unique starting point to teach complex ideas such as a development
302
based on a natural curve rather than linear or exponential curve (Kennedy, 1995,
p. 19), or illustrate the concept of circular vs linear metabolism, systems, synergy
and maximization of internal energy and material flows vs monofunction and
atomistic evaluation (Harvey, 1996, Gambini, 2004). Their usefulness is not only
limited to defining information: they are uniquely placed to search for truly isomor-
phic comunicative forms, design and test hypermedia, implicit and non-symbolic
learning modes, that seem to be “much more powerful, effortless and less sensible
to background and individual variations” (see Natale et al., 1994 – although their
assuming that a hypermap is the most isomorphic form for presenting descriptive
geography seems to overlook that maps themselves are highly conventional and
symbolic). Nature, the environment and space in general are privileged locations
for meaningful sensory and game-based experiences, with all the cognitive advan-
tages that these offer (Brunelli, 2004), and with an extrordinary versatility for
the activation of senses and emotions, which are best suited to motivate learning,
understanding, ethic participation and action (Jeronen & Kaikkonen, 2002). More
broadly, environmental and spatial analyses can effectively challenge our general
propensity for linear/bi-dimensional thinking and communication modes, which is
not only determined by the constraints of verbal – written or oral – communication
(text and speech sequencing), but which invests most of our representational and
management domains: maps, time conception, architecture, the idea of economic
growth, accounting, the standard logical notation for and common visualisation of
the cause-effect relationhip, which takes into no account feedback or side effects,
etc… For effective action, planning and policies, geography could create strategic
alliances with “friendly” disciplines, such as recently-born Permaculture, that has
taken much from and has a lot in common with geography, albeit characterised by
a more marked vocation for action and intervention.

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15. VALLEGA A. September/October 2004. “Didattica geografica universitaria: il gioco
della multiprospettiva”, Ambiente Società Territorio n. 5, pp. 3−9.
16. WOOD W. B. 2004. “American Geography and International Research: A Sustainable-
Development Agenda,” The Professional Geographer, 56(1), pp. 53−61.
17. WILBANKS T. “Sustainable development” in geographical perspective, Annals of the
Association of American Geographers 84 (4), 541−556.

304
 The contribution of Geography teachers to Education
for Sustainability: a case study
Jesus Granados

Faculty of Education, Department of Didactics of Social Sciences,

Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Building G5, Office 105, 08193 Bellaterra,
Barcelona, Spain
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

Key words: Sustainability, secondary education, national curriculum

Introduction
This paper presents the results of the first part of some collaborative research in
‘Education for Sustainability’ with a group of Spanish Geography teachers that are
attending a program for in-service teacher development. The aim of this research is to
investigate what Geography teachers can contribute to Education for Sustainability,
that is to say: What Geography teachers think and know about sustainability? How
Geography teaching materials (course books, articles, ICT, among others) deal with
sustainability issues? What kind of handicaps do they have or think they would have
for teaching on sustainability?
The Department of Didactics of Social Sciences of the Universitat Autonoma de
Barcelona is currently undertaking research on how the Education for Sustainability
can be introduced into the Spanish Geography curriculum of secondary education.
The methodology of this research is qualitative and it is based on collaborative
research, where  geography teachers participate and contribute in workshops with
their experiences and thoughts. All the Geography teachers that participate in this
research project teach in the same town, because the aim of the research project is to
define learning strategies and to elaborate educational materials based on education
for sustainability, following the indications of the national Geography curriculum
but specially focused on local issues (due to the proximity and significance for the
students) without losing a global point of view.

Geography and Education for Sustainability

The main aims of this research are to:
• investigate what Geography teachers can contribute to Education for Sustain-
ability
• make recommendations as to how “ESD” can be incorporated into the Spanish
Geography Curriculum
This article shows the results of the first part of the research, which is focused on
part of the first objective: what Geography teachers can contribute to Education for
Sustainability?

305
 Much research in Environmental Education and Education for Sustainability, like
that carried out by Alan Reid in his doctoral thesis (Reid 1998), proposes the necessity
to analyse what knowledge the teachers have regarding these issues, in order to be
able to establish a typology of Geography teachers in general. The methodology used
in these cases is based on personal interviews. In our case we felt it would be better
that the teachers explain what they know and what they think about sustainability
and Education for Sustainability and as a result we used two focus group interviews
to gather the information (in the line of Graham Corney’s research).

Findings
The first focus group interview dealt with the concept of sustainability trying to
answer three main questions:
• What does sustainability mean to you?
• What knowledge do you think you have on sustainability?
• Do you think achieving a sustainable society is possible?
All the teachers agreed, more or less, on the definition of sustainability. They used
the Brundtland Report definition (“a process where the exploitation, the orientation of
technological development and institutional change, are made consistent with future
as well as present needs”) as well as the one introduced by the UICN (“a feature of a
process or a state that can be maintained indefinitely”). Once the concept had been
defined we asked the teachers to explain the meaning of the definitions. At this point,
all the teachers noticed the difficulty and the vagueness of the concept and its definition.
The debate brought out different perspectives of sustainability, as Dobson (1996) notes
and this meant that some of the teachers showed their pessimism stating that: “sustain-
ability is being ideologically instrumentalized”. But some of them stated: “independent
as to how to do it, what is important is to work for sustainability”. As a result of this
first workshop, the teachers came to the conclusion that the knowledge they have that
related to sustainability was diverse, and those who have wider knowledge are those
who had been involved in ecologist groups, those who belong to green schools or those
who are personally implicated with sustainability. The group of teachers that confessed
to have a more limited knowledge about sustainability claim that this topic isn’t their
main worry, above all because they think that “the prevalent trend of today’s society
is unsustainable and sustainability is nothing more than an utopia”.
The second focus group interview dealt with Education for Sustainability. The
questions for the debate were: what does it mean to educate for sustainability? Is it
necessary? How should it be worked in schools? What kind of problems do you have
as teachers to teach for sustainability? In the beginning we started off by explaining
and evaluating the characteristics of Education for Sustainability defined by Stephen
Sterling (1996): “Education for sustainability is: contextual, innovative and construc-
tive, focused and infusive, holistic and human in scale, integrative, process oriented
and empowering rather than product oriented, critical, systemic and connective,
ethical, purposive, inclusive and lifelong”.
According to the teachers participating in the project, introducing Education for
Sustainability into the Geography curriculum with the frame developed by Stephen
306
Sterling (2002) implies: “this kind of education has to develop skills to the students
for action and participation; it is necessary for teachers to have a wide knowledge
of the locality; it requires research on environmental problems that are taking
place in the locality, and the outcomes presented by the students must have social
relevance, that is to say, it must be seen as service learning, because while forming
the students as critical citizens it helps the community to achieve sustainability,
etc.” These teachers, in their majority, consider that Education for Sustainability is
a good theoretical educational model, but it is difficult to put into practice because
of the following factors: “because we are over worked we cannot produce teaching
materials; we don’t have the proper tools to produce these materials; we find that if
outside agents such as the council or private educational companies offered these
materials, we feel it could be feasible: E S has to impregnate the whole school and
there must exist a project in common; we teachers need to have facilities to access
to professional development programs”.

Conclusions
After working together, the teachers participating in this investigation reached the
conclusion that the main factors that might influence Geography teachers in focusing
their teaching on sustainability include whether:
• they think this is important for them as Geography teachers and/or for Geograph-
ical Knowledge;
• they have been sufficiently exposed to Sustainability theoretical frameworks;
• they think doing this is feasible, or they know how to do it;
• the school context management encourages them;
• teaching materials are related to Sustainability.
• they are personally concerned about the need for Sustainability;
• they are involved in external projects that provide motivation; and
• they are involved in educational research concerning Sustainability.
The teachers participating in this investigation agreed that most of Geography
teachers need training for their professional development on sustainability, and they
found that a good way of training was the one conceived as a series of workshops of
collaborative research where a final educational material is produced.

References
1. CORNEY G., SUMMERS M., CHILDS A. 2003. Teaching Sustainable Development in
Primary Schools: an empirical study of issues for teachers, in: Environmental Education
Research, Vol. 9, № 3, pp. 327−346.
2. DOBSON A. 1996. Environment Sustainabilities: an Analysis and a Typology, in: Envi-
ronmental Politics, Vol. 5, № 3, pp. 401−428.
3. HUCKLE J., STERLING S. 1996. Education for Sustainability, London, Earthscan.
4. REID A. 1998. How does the Geography Teacher contribute to Pupils’ Environmental
Education?, Doctoral thesis, University of Bath.
5. STERLING S. 2002. Sustainable Education: Revisioning Learning and Change, Schu-
macher Briefings 6, Green Books Publishers, London.

307
Sustainability, Development and Security in Landscape Field
Practice
Alois Hynek1, Nikola Hynek 2
1
Faculty of Science, Institute of Geography, Masaryk University in Brno,
Kotlarska 2, 611 37 Brno, Czech Republic
e-mail: hynek@[Link]
2
School of Politics, Sociology and Law, The University of Plymouth,
United Kingdom
e-mail: [Link]@ [Link]

Abstract
This article starts with the reflection of a contemporary position and the interconnectedness
of sustainability, development studies, and security studies. It asserts that after the Cold
War structure was dismantled, new agendas, issues, and approaches have been brought to
the fore. The next section investigates these trends within the realm of teaching sustainable
development and comments on the changes that have occurred in the educational process. The
third part “goes practical” and suggests some options for the analysis of cultural landscape
ecosystems. The last section consists of some selected relevant literature.

Key words: geographical/environmental education, landscape ecosystems, fieldwork,

sustainability, security, development

Sustainability, Development, and Security: Initial Reflections

The following text reflects a contemporary position and the interconnectedness
of sustainability, development studies, and security studies. After the Cold War
structure has been successfully dismantled and new agendas have been opened, the
connection between sustainability, development and security has been brought to
the fore. The reaction has taken place at two different levels. The practical level has
been marked by the introduction of various sets of criteria that all share the common
goal- the increase in the sustainability of submitted projects and plans. As far as the
academic and theoretical level is concerned, this has been experiencing the ongoing
process within which theoretical integration and re-connections between disciplines
occur.
The necessary prerequisite for efficient and effective problem-solving has been a
dramatic shift in the ontology of international politics. As the nation-states with their
traditional emphases on national security remain juxtaposed by the new benchmarks
stemming from the practices of global civil society and the legislative activities
of intergovernmental organizations (EU, UN), more and more attention is being
paid to the importance of the needs and milieu of individuals. The result of these
changes is a significant overlap of the political agenda on one hand, and scientific
and educational agendas on the other. Thus the issues selected by gatekeepers for the

308
decision-making process need to be chosen on the basis of their natural links, rather
than having deliberative omissions of their particular dimensions due to “strategic”
or “security” reasons.
The notion of human security and development has been by far the best example
of attempts to de-black-box various taboos of the political process. The image of
political space has been extended and now incorporates the full range of new actors
(NGOs, epistemic communities, bureaucratic coalitions etc.) and their intermedi-
aries (the Internet, independent press etc.). These new actors can be conceived of
as transnational networks that for their own reasons have become involved in the
process of political negotiations and bargaining. It has been largely due to these actors
that a number of former “high level politics”, such as military and economic issues
have been de-securitized, i.e. they are no longer the subject of taboo and privileged
access. As the failure of many post-Cold War solutions that are concerned with
the renewal of war-torn and/or underdeveloped areas have shown, the analytical
barriers between “security”, “sustainability”, and “development” have only been
artificially created and maintained. It has been ever clearer that these issues would
never be solved without a return to the natural links between the socially constructed
categories which had their original purpose in the attempts of power-monopoly
maintenance. How could be peace kept in the area if there remains a general lack
of access to the basic resources? How could sustainable development be promoted
in the area where there is still the heavy presence of civil clashes? How can local
wisdom be incorporated into project design? What is the role of/for education under
such circumstances?
Thus it has become obvious that the educational system in these ‘conflict’ areas
needs to be changed, if not generally overhauled. The role of education can be seen
in the attempts to interconnect all these realms. The issues involved will include
women’s participation in peace-building activities, the use of local knowledge,
the connection between traditional culture and the overall strategy of sustainable
development and the support of grassroots movements to mention a few. All these
paradigmatic shifts require a brand-new and unbiased point of view. The traditional
role of scientists and academics needs to change. They are not any longer the objective
agents imposing their mental representations on reality. They are rather good listeners
and observers in the first instance, they are humans. The Western philosophy object-
subject distinction that has been mechanistically followed since Aristotle continues to
be eroded. Issues are becoming more contextualized. There is nothing like a natural
gap between professional and private activities

Teaching Sustainability
As far as Czech geographical education is concerned, this theme remains a
Cinderella area due to the absence of cooperation between physical and human
geography and the low interest of geography teachers. Contemporary development
is bringing about some improvements, mainly in research, but less so in education.
The Czech geographical education community remains rather inconsistent in spite
of the presence of governmental programmes and a new National Curriculum that
309
includes geography. The context is, however, a very strange one. It distinguishes
between “science” and “humanities”, where the latter does not include geography.
Geographical school practices are also inconsistent and follow the lead of environ-
mental research and education at geographical departments in Czech universities.
This is the reason for the use of foreign experiences: for instance, we could use the
three collections of papers concerning geographical education in England and Wales
as a point of reference.
Without any doubt joining environmental change and sustainable development
in education is a challenge, as Reid (2002) points out in the case of geographical
education in the new National Curriculum for England (DfEE/QCA, 1999). Hicks
(2002) sees the role of geography in connection with citizenship and the education
concerned with sustainable development. Hicks offers four different scenarios for
geography in a process leading towards mastering key skills. McDonald (2000)
promotes a geographical-education shift to ecology and ecological management.
Quite demonstrative of this is the case study of Mauritius: is very instructive, though
the landscape ecology is not included. Morgan (2000) exceeds not only the ‘enlight-
ened traditionalism’ in teaching geography but also the ‘cartographic fetishism’
and directs it towards human geographies tackling social processes, towards the
construction of social reality aimed at sustainable society.
Binns (2002) is aware of problems with defining ‘the development’, his view
emphasizes social and economic attributes, differences between developed and
developing countries and does not ignore field courses. Kent and Foskett (2002) claim
that the experience of fieldwork can accelerate or enhance many aims of geographical
learning as well as establishing links to affective and cognitive gains contributing
to student’s personal and intellectual development. They integrate thinking skills
development into fieldwork planning. Thus it turns student activities from observa-
tion to participation, from dependent to autonomous and from staff-led projects to
group/individual ones. On the other hand Leat (2002) warns us not to overvalue
concrete thinking that could eventually lead to a black-and-white view on the world.
However, ‘formal operational thinking allows the world to be considered more flex-
ibly, because situations can be formulated and represented in some symbolic form’
related to explanation. Nonetheless his examples of practical environmental issues
are very impressive.

Going Practical
Our way of conducting environmentally based fieldwork in geographical education
predominantly focuses on construction of environment by textbooks, media and their
mutual outdoor rectification, personal experience of students and social communica-
tion with local communities (Forsyth 2003). Cultural landscape ecosystems represent
in this analysis basic spatial units for sustainability studies. Here in conclusion is a
form for the outdoor education of Cultural Landscape Ecosystems Local Survey:
1. Representation of landscape reality in maps, information systems, symbols, icons,
visions, metaphors, mass media, art – prose and poetry, painting, music…
• land cover, land use at thematic map – spatial pattern of landscape
310
 • information sources, geographical data – official, non-official, imaginative,
• computer cartography, GIS
• understanding and explaining the landscape
2. Landscape immediate reality in the field work
• authentic landscape/environmental perception
• survey, field observing, key points description, landscape transects
• talking to people, participating, ethnographies
• landscape policy – planning, strategies, programmes, projects
• practicing landscape studies – urban, suburban, subrural, rural issues
3. Landscape spatial pattern
• physical components sandwich (abiotic, biotized, biotic)
• physical/cultural palimpsest (anthropogenetic)
• recent human/nature interactions – physical components as resources
• processes shaping the landscape, the role of technologies
3. Land cover, land use
• functional spatial segments and their owners and users
• applied technologies and human activities in agriculture, manufacture, engi-
neering, transportation, services, housing, recreation, water management,
waste management
• energy production, transmission and consumption
• incorporation into economic and social systems – human resources
4. Landscape ecosystems
• eluvial, transeluvial, transaccumulative, transaquatic, aquatic
• cultural ecosystems pattern, natural/technological systems, infrastructure
• physical structure – matter/energy vertical and horizontal flows
• human activities changing physical landscape to cultural, landscape heritage
• vulnerability and resilience, diversity and biodiversity
5. Detailed (optional) physical components and processes analysis
• landforms as products and factors on rocks, regolith and slope sediments,
anthropogenic landforms
• topoclimate – aspect, local circulation
• hydricity (hydrocycle)
• soil cover structure
• vegetation cover – potential/reconstructed and actual phyto(bio)cenoses
6. Natural capital of landscape ecosystems
• goods and services in the frame of production-distribution-exchange-consump-
tion
• owners and users: assets, stock, yield, income
• labour and finance – inside/outside flows
7. Landscape as a part of human environment
• perception and imagination, mental maps
• pollution, waste production and management
• natural disasters/hazards, risks and security
• environmental management and infrastructure

 • protected areas
8. Landscape sectoral policies
• cultural
• economic
• social
• environmental/ecological
9. Social construction of landscape
• description and interpretation
• evaluation and design
• plans, strategies, programmes, projects
• social capital
• personalities and communities
10. Landscape sustainability – soft, or hard?
• symbiosis/conflicts of nature and technology
• ecological/environmental infrastructure, land use regimes
• land use temporal changes, revitalization vs. deterioration
• local/regional/landscape interface
• development – pros and cons
• processes and responses caused by (non)usage
• landscape as a part of production, reproduction and consumption
• proposals of landscape modifications towards sustainability

Acknowledgement
Special thanks are due to Karl Donert of Liverpool Hope University for his invalu-
able assistance in the editing of the article.

References
1. BINNS T. 2002. Teaching and learning about development,in M. Smith, ed. Aspects
of Teaching Secondary Geography. London and New York: RoutledgeFalmer,
pp. 264−277.
2. BLOWERS A., GLASBERGEN P., ed. 1995. Environmental Policy in an International
Context. Prospects for Environmental Change. London, Sydney, Auckland: Arnold.
3. BUZAN B., WAVER O., WILDE J. 1998. Security: A New Framework for Analysis.
Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers.
4. CLOKE P., COOK I., CRANG P., GOODWIN M., PAINTER J., PHILO C. 2004. Prac-
tising Human Geography. London: SAGE Publications.
5. DALBY S. 1998. Environmental Security. Minneapolis: Minnesota University Press.
6. FORSYTH T. 2003. Critical Political Ecology. The politics of environmental science.
London and New York: Routledge.
7. FOSTER J., ed. 1997. Valuing Nature?Ethics, economics and the environment. London
and New York: Routledge.
8. GLASBERGEN P., BLOWERS A., ed. 1995. Environmental Policy in an Interna-
tional Context. Perspectives on Environmental Problems. London, Sydney, Auckland:
Arnold.


 9. HICKS D. 2002. Envisioning a better world. Sustainable development in school geog-
raphy. in M. Smith, ed., Aspects of Teaching Secondary Geography. London and New
York: RoutledgeFalmer, pp. 278−286.
10. HUBBARD P., KITCHIN R., BARTLEY B., FULLER D. 2002. Thinking Geographi-
cally. Space, Theory and Contemporary Human Geography. London and New York:
Continuum.
11. LEAT D. 2002. Raising attainment in Geography. Prospects and problems, in: M Smith,
ed., Teaching Geography in Secondary Schools. A Reader. London and New York:
RoutledgeFalmer, pp. 134−147.
12. KENT A., ed. 2000. Reflective Practice in Geography Teaching. London: Paul Chapman
Publishing.
13. KENT A., FOSKETT N. 2002. Fieldwork in the school Geography curriculum. Peda-
gogical issues and development, in: M Smith, ed., Teaching Geography in Secondary
Schools. A Reader. London and New York: RoutledgeFalmer, pp. 160−181.
14. McDONALD A. 2000. Ecosystems and their management, in A. Kent, ed., Reflective
Practice in Geography Teaching. London: Paul Chapman Publishing, pp. 11−25.
15. MORGAN J. 2000. Geography teaching for a sustainable society, in A. Kent, ed., Reflec-
tive Practice in Geography Teaching. London: Paul Chapman Publishing, pp. 168−178.
16. PIERCE T., DALE A., ed. 1999. Communities, Development, and Sustainability across
Canada. Vancouver: UBC Press.
17. REES W., WACKERNAGEL M. 1994. Ecological Footprints and Appropriate Carrying
Capacity: Measuring the Natural Capital Requirements of the Human Economy, in:
Jansson A.-M. et al., eds., Investing in Natural Capital: The Ecological Economics
approach to Sustainability. Washington: Island Press.
18. REID A. 2002. Environmental change and sustainable development, in: M Smith, ed.,
Teaching Geography in Secondary Schools. A Reader. London and New York: Routledge-
Falmer, pp. 224−244.
19. ROBERTS J. 2004. Environmental Policy. London and New York: Routledge
20. ROSELAND M. 1998. Toward Sustainable Communities. Resources for Citizens and
Their Governments. Gabriola Island BC: New Society Publishers.
21. SLOEP P.B., BLOWERS A., ed. 1995. Environmental Policy in an International Context.
Environmental problems as Conflicts of Interest. London, Sydney, Auckland: Arnold.
22. SMITH M., ed. 2002. Teaching Geography in Secondary Schools. A Reader. London
and New York: RoutledgeFalmer.
23. SMITH M. ed. 2002. Aspects of Teaching Secondary Geography. London and New York:
RoutledgeFalmer.
24. SÖDERBAUM P. 2000. Ecological Economics. A political Economics Approach to
Environment and Development. London: Earthscan Publications.


 Developing geographical professional abilities:
experiences in Egypt and Brazil
Massimo De Marchi

Dipartimento di Geografia – Universita di Padova

Via del Santo 26, 35123, Padova, Italy
e-mail: [Link]-marchi@[Link]

Abstract
Sustainable development asks for solid systemic and territorial knowledge, abilities in new
decision making processes and skills in recognition and empowerment of local actors. Geog-
raphy can supply the challenge of sustainable development with theory and practice.
This paper deals with the experiences of the author in field work improving students with
geographical knowledge and practices about participatory territorial (land use) manage-
ment.
Two examples are displayed: a seminar with students studying a degree in Development
Cooperation held in Egypt in November 2003 and a seminar “Citizenship, Territory and
Power” in Salvador de Bahia (Brazil), in March 2004, with the degree students in pedagogy
working in a community school.
In the two cases geography represent an important theoretical and practical tool to work
in territorial dynamics, for geography in education it is strategic and compulsory to go back
to “the reality of territory”.

Key words: Sustainable development, professional abilities, participatory management

Introduction
Sustainable development is the result of virtuous interactions in social practices
including: consumption models, social relations and institutions and environmental
systems. This virtuous interaction is facilitated by promoting awareness of the
choices of local societies, which are the keystone of sustainability practice. Facing
the issue of sustainable development means to take into consideration first of all the
interactions among economy, society, environment, focusing on the manner local
society achieves self welfare. This refers to both local resource use and necessary
economic exchanges including mobility, with other societies and countries. The
way local resources are used is related to our efficient use of them and to the main-
tenance of environmental conditions (mainly climate and biodiversity) that allowed
humans to live and local societies to become rooted in specific places. The necessary
economic exchanges relate to critical issues like equity, social justice, because the
welfare in a local society is based on a high quantity of external resources (Bresso,
1993; CSD 1997; Dasmann, 1988; Gadgil, 1995). So, the efficient use of local and
external resources joined with environmental stewardship is the keystone of sustain-
able development. Sustainable development is characterised by three dimensions:


• sustainable development as a local process, the local territory has an important task
in creating local and global networks, region are cornerstones of development
• sustainable development as a planned and communication process
• sustainable development as a participated process, the key is empowerment of
local stakeholders, the construction of a participated decision-making system and
conflict management strategy (Arnstein, 1969,; Chambers, 1992; 1997; IIED,
1991; Redclift and Sage, 1994; UNDP, 1993).

Need for knowledge and skills in sustainable development

Geography is concerned with sustainable development theory and practices and
geography can also supply territorial (landscape) knowledge. It also provides students
with the abilities to actively participate in new decision making processes and skills in
recognition and empowerment of local actors (Bertoncin, Sistu, 2001). Central issues
in any decision related to actors, territories, natural resources are power relations and
the way to achieve consensus and to deal with conflicts. (Floc’Hay, Plottu, 1998)
In the practice of territorial decision making any action should be appraised in
a context wider than the strictly technical and economical issues of the action or
the sectoral and territorial circle directly involved by the plan or programs. Envi-
ronmental and territorial issues deal with social and ecological relationships more
complex than those apparently influenced from the project or the program. The issues
of social equity and environmental carrying capacity are tightly connected (Berkes,
Folke, 1998; Elling; 2000; Funtowicz et al. 1999; Gunderson, Holling, Light, 1995).
Choices concerning the environment have always more to do with distributive poli-
cies; in every project, plan or program at stake is the socio-spatial justice; typical
examples are the location of landfills, roads or dams: the costs are supported by the
receiving territory whereas benefits are enjoyed by territories or populations local-
ised far from the place mostly hit, often there are no compensation measures. This
reasoning does not intend to support the zero hypothesis as the best solution, rather
to project or program alternatives which have to be appraised not only in terms on
environmental impacts, but also against the socio-spatial implications influencing
either the definition of the priorities and the results. In the practice of environmental
assessment this issue of socio-spatial justice has been faced foreseeing the consulta-
tion of the public after the conclusion of the impact statement.
The social network that interacts with every plan or program foresees four typolo-
gies of actors: the proponents, the environmental authority, the directly affected
actors and public opinion. If two actors are traditionally in narrow contact during
all the phases of the evaluation (proponents and environmental authority), directly
affected actors and population have often few opportunities to contribute, so actual
“participatory” models consist in the post-consultation phase which results in a
dynamic that often threatens to crystallise in the classical decide-announce-defend
(DAD) mode.
True public participation processes in decision-making are necessary to improve
the quality of the decisions made and strategic in order to make them more acceptable
and shared within the environmental and territorial policies. Besides this, participa-
315
tion contributes to the growth of environmental consciousness. Citizens and local
actors should participate in the construction of environmental policies on the basis
of common conditions. Articles 6,7,8 of the Aarhus Convention contains indications
concerning public participation on projects, plans, programs and legislative initia-
tives dealing with environment. The directive proposal foresees that the member
States assure: the information of the public on each plan, program or they revision, the
possibility to express comments and observations before the approval, the guarantee
that any observation is taken into consideration before the approval. Member States
take the necessary actions to identify citizens or the groups participating in decision-
making] with particular attention to environmental NGO. Sustainable development
and the framework of the Aarhus Convention represent an important basis to breed
a geographical background with the challenges of knowledge and professional prac-
tices. The two case studies below show how geography in fieldwork can contribute
through knowledge and practice to sustainable development.

From agricultural development to territorial development: lesson from New

Valley (Egypt)
The University of Padova offers a three year degree in Development Cooperation
preparing people interested in working in international organizations, NGOs and
local authorities dealing with development issues. The Department of Geography of
Padova University is the animator and coordinator of this inter-faculty degree (arts,
agriculture, education, political sciences). The degree requires student to complete
a compulsory placement in a development project and offers students some semi-
nars based on cooperative learning. At the beginning of tgheir third year students
participate at the international seminar based on fieldwork in Egypt.
The purpose of the seminar is to identify actors, strategies, resources, networks
which are nowadays leading the local development processes in the New Valley.
At the seminar, organised between 8−22 of November 2003, 35 students partici-
pated with  staff members (a full professor in geography, a lecturer in geography
and 2 tutors). The seminar was located at Mut, about 600 Km south of Cairo. Seminar
work was concentrated in 7 days full time equivalent of fieldwork and cooperative
learning ( days when considering travel from and to Italy and transfers Cairo-
Mut).
Day 1 was devoted to a first contact with the New Valley (reconnaissance survey
and group work) and a keynote lecture (45 min.) on Regional development of New
Valley Each step of the seminar was integrated with groupwork activities for consoli-
dation and preparation of small reports (at the end of seminar a completed report
was issued).
Through fieldwork and cooperative learning during days 2 and 3 (11th and th of
November) the patterns of agricultural development were analysed. The 35 students
were divided in 4 “interest groups” each group was integrated with a staff member
and a translator (from Arabic to French or English). Students were able to visit the
field and to carry out interviews with members and farmers of cooperatives (Gharb
el Maughub, Mut), traditional farmers and leaders (El Sheykh Waly) in order to
316
understand and compare traditional farming based on local management of water and
models implemented by agricultural development projects based in new irrigation
schemes. In the afternoon of day 3 students presented the results of their fieldwork.
The following day was organised as a plenary session giving students the possibility
of comparing their points of view (resulting form fieldwork) with two keynote lectures
done by Egyptian experts on: water issues in the New Valley, agricultural issues in
the New Valley. The debate was interesting and very rich with important contribu-
tions and exchanges of experience among experts and students. This first step was
concluded with a plenary session and a keynote lecture done by the coordinator of
the seminar (P. Faggi) on water in irrigation: changing patterns.
The following day was devoted to rest and it was a good opportunity to gain
knowledge of the wide landscape around the project. During day 6 of the seminar
students worked on the ‘Pattern of Territorial Development’ (through groupwork)
each of the groups analysed a different issue with visits and interviews: these included
the tourist sector, commerce sector, public utilities sector and local government. The
following day students prepared the presentation for the plenary and final session
of the seminar and issued the report. Thus, in just a few days students were able to
practice the knowledge of the first two years of their degree and to enter in a new
place and to develop their skills to identify actors, on going development processes
and to design ways to increase abilities of local actors to deal with development
perspectives. It was also a good opportunity to deal with some critical issues: the
role of insiders and outsiders, development and dynamics local-global, transfer of
technology and development models.

Citizenship, Territory and Power in Salvador de Bahia (Brazil)

The University of Padova has many cooperation agreement with African and Latin
American Universities for student and teaching staff mobility and joint study
programs. In March 2004 (8th−24th) in the framework of the agreement between the
University of Padova and the Universidade Estadual da Bahia a program of thematic
seminars about “Citizenship, Territory and Power” was developed at Salvador de
Bahia with the collaboration of the Departamento de Educaçao Campus 1 e Núcleo
de Estudos Italianos da UNEB (NESTI) .
The seminars involved about 100 students, mainly women, studying for a degree
in Pedagogy working in community schools (curso de Licenciatura em Pedagogia
com abilitação em series iniciais do ensino fundamental). Community schools are
normally primary schools provided by non-profit organizations and community
based organizations to answer educational needs of local poor communities in many
area of Salvador’s suburbs. The experience of alternative education and community
schools are typical examples of citizens’ organization in Latin America (Freire,
1973; 1986).
Seminars were organised by considering the needs of the student-workers, they
are working during the day in the community schools so the theoretical parts of the
seminars were set up for the night session and the fieldwork was integrated with
daily work in the school. The seminars were based on a participatory approach and

cooperative learning using as theoretical tools the geography of power (Raffestin,
1993) and the geography of complexity (Turco, 1988).
Salvador the Bahia represents a living learning environment, the transformation
of the city makes it easy to understand and to see “the geographical interpretation in
action”. So the seminar was based in the recognition of the patterns and the processes
actually governing the urban transformation. The students were able to build and
to map the history of their quarters, to individualise the on-going conflicts among
inhabitants, municipality, other land owners, to individualise the communication
strategy of Government and Municipality, to understand the way in which consensus
and territory control are elaborated. All them are working as teachers, many of them
also developed empowerment through social work in the community, so the expe-
rience represented an important opportunity to improve the tools (theoretical and
practical) for their work in the field of transformation of space.

Walking Sustainable horizons with geographical knowledge and tools

After one decade of patchy experience of sustainability the need now is to consoli-
date sustainability practice and to embody sustainability approaches into current
individual, public, private, actions. Many communities in the world have produced in
these ten years a wide spectrum of experiences in sustainability including research,
business, public administration, civil society, and in different sectors from tourism
to farming, from transport to landscape and territorial management. It is time now
for a second generation of sustainability projects based not so much in pilot experi-
ences but more on consolidation and diffusion of successful practices. So, training,
education, exchange among partners, monitoring of successful experiences, and a
strategic integration among knowledge communication and practices, are the kernels
of definitive transition to sustainability horizon.
Sustainability culture should become a diffused aspect of decision making prac-
tices and not remain the property of enlightened minorities or a theoretical benchmark
far from reality. The land use daily decision making of individuals, firms, public
administrations, have to face conditions of complexity and uncertainity. They need
a vision of sustainability that will help them to take strategic and adaptative deci-
sions. In this changing context sustainability may not be an optional decision, but
is becoming the chosen option. This new decision making paradigm can be easily
supported by the wise diffusion and integration of existing experiences and the
knowledge the practice of geography in educational institutions and in the field of
territorial policies.

References
1. ARNSTEIN S. 1969. A Ladder of Citizen Participation. Journal of the American Plan-
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2. BERKES F., FOLKE C. 1998. Linking social and ecological systems: management
practices and social mechanisms for building resilience, Cambridge University press,
Cambridge.


 3. BERTONCIN M., SISTU G. (eds.) 2001. Acqua, Attori, Territorio/ Water, Stakeholders,
Territory. Cagliari, C.U.E.C.
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Siglo XXI Argentina Editore, Buenos Aires.
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mation tools for environmental policies under condition of complexity. EEA, Copen-
hagen.
14. GADGIL M. 1995. Prudence and profligacy: a human ecological perspective, in Swanson
T.M. (ed.), The economics and ecology of biodiversity decline: the forces driving global
change. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
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of ecosystems and institutions. Columbia University Press, New York.
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PRA Trainers Workshop. RRA Notes 13, August 1991, IIED London, MYRADA, Banga-
lore.
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21 for the southern hemispheres. Wiley & Sons, Chichester.
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Special Session of the General Assembly 23−27 June 1997 – Advanced unedited text
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319
 Studyng climate and water resources management in
Bulgaria in the context of global environmental management
Daniela Zlatunova, Nina Nikolova

Department of Climatology, Hydrology and Geomorphology

Faculty of Geology and Geography, University of Sofia “St. Kliment Ohridski”
15 Tzar Osvoboditel Blvd., 1504 Sofia, Bulgaria
e-mail: nina@[Link]

Abstract
Water resources management and climate change problems are a priority in the EU envi-
ronmental policy. The Bulgarian position is fully in compliance with the EU position. The
country expects to join the EU in 2007. This paper points out that scientific activity is the
essential base for good work of specialized structures for the performance of environmental
policy. The main topics of the Masters degree program “Climate and Water Resources
Management” are presented.
Studying climate and water resources management at the Faculty of Geology and Geog-
raphy, University of Sofia, is harmonized with the legislative documents in the field of
environment – Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EC and United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
The knowledge and experience obtained from the Masters degree program “Climate and
Water Resources Management” improves the prospects of professional development in the
following areas: environmental protection (and especially air and water quality control),
water economy, water and climate melioration, energy resources (renewable resources),
tourism, agriculture, land use, urban and region planning, education.

Key words: Environmental policy, climate change, water resources management

Climate and water policy in Bulgaria, compliance with EU environmental

policy
EU environmental policy combines ecology and economy. Water resources manage-
ment and climate change problems are a priority in EU environmental policy. Bulgaria
has signed the contract to join the EU. The successful outcome of the negotiations
demonstrates the achievements resulting from new ecological legislation in compli-
ance with the requirements of the EU.
In the process of euro-integration Bulgaria faces the many challenges. The key
needs for the future of Bulgaria (Petkova et al. 2004) are the following:
• Consolidation of economic, legal and institutional systems on regional, cross-
border, national and local scale in compliance with the new political and economic
realities.
• Recruitment and training of specialists for management of the environment.
• Securing of funds for tackling environmental problems.

320
 In relation to the environment, the following basic principles are obligatory for
the EU and Bulgaria (Anguelova et al. 2003):
1. Preventive principle – preliminary to avoid the unfavourable influences on the
environment
2. Principle of ‘contaminant pays’ – i.e. the costs for avoiding, removal and compensa-
tion of the negative effects on the environment to be at the expense of the person(s)
or organization(s) responsible.
3. Principle of combating the unfavourable influences on the environment at the
source.
4. Precaution principle – refraining from activities that are likely to have adverse
influence on the environment
To achieve the requirements of EU environmental policy it is necessary for
Bulgaria to:
• develop, apply and distribute technologies, practices and processes that control,
limit and decrease the anthropogenic impact on the environment
• elaborate and apply strategies and measures that should be complex and should
cover all scope of human activity
• work for sustainable management
• ensure the public training, preparation and awareness with regard to the environ-
mental problems such as climate change or water deficit.

Main legislative documents in the field of water and climate policy. What does
Bulgaria do?
The main legislative documents in the field of water and climate policy are the Water
Framework Directive 2000/60/EC and United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change (UNFCCC). The Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EC estab-
lishes a framework for Community action in the field of water policy (Directive 2000).
It has a practical importance for water industry, business, agriculture, NGOs. Sustain-
able use of water and protection of ecosystems form the basis for the framework of
approaches, tasks, principles, definitions and measurements. The Water Framework
Directive ensures strong legal support for integrated water resources management
(IWRM). IWRM is the process, which stimulates co-coordinated development and
management of water, land and water resources for maximum increase of economic
and social well being without compromise or damage to sustainable ecosystems
(GWP, 2000).
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was
adopted in New York on 09.05.1992 and was signed by Bulgaria on 05.06.1992. The
Bulgarian Parliament ratified the UNFCCC in March 1995. UNFCCC put in the fore-
ground the agreement of the nations to work together on the problem of the climate
change, the consequences of which will have greater importance for the future than
for the present generation (United Nations, 1992). The UNFCCC gives also the frame
and the process of negotiation on concrete future activities. Such activities could
be regulated by protocols to it. The Kyoto Protocol was accepted in 1997, signed by
Bulgaria on 18.09.1998 and subsequently ratified in 2002.

 By signing and ratifying the Kyoto Protocol Bulgaria commits itself to work for
the decrease of the anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions by % for the period
2008-2012 compared to their level in 1988 (United Nations, 1997). As Party to the
Convention Bulgaria provides detailed information about its policy and measures
through National communications. Three National communications were developed
– in 1996, 1998 and 2002 years. Bulgaria conducts annual inventories on greenhouse
gas (GHG) emissions and publishes National GHG Inventory Reports.
Bulgaria has a significant experience in applying the mechanisms of the Kyoto
Protocol and until now the country has approved 10 projects which aim to decrease
the emission of the order of 10 millions of tons CO – equivalent. Bulgaria has signed
the agreements for purchase emissions through the mechanism of “joint implemen-
tation”. The mechanism “emission trading” gives an opportunity for separation of
earnings of international emission trading and for induction of green investment in
Bulgaria. Bulgaria has now developed its Second Action plan on Climate Change
for the period 2005−2008. The plan considers the actions for application of policy
and measurement for greenhouse gases decreasing in different sectors as actions
concerning possibilities for monitoring and registering of the emissions and system-
atic assessment of trends and forecasts.

The Masters degree program “Climate and water resources management”

Climate change and water resources problems involve complex interactions between
climatic, environmental, economic, political, institutional, social and technological
processes. This may have significant international and intergenerational implications
in the context of broader societal goals such as equity and sustainable development.
Climate change and adaptation affect most sectors of the economy. It is necessary
to understand and estimate this impact and to develop and support national position
and policy. One of the main tasks for modern science and society is the development
and implementation of measures for improving the relationship between researchers,
policy and decision-makers and public participants. One way that this can be done
is by dealing with these issues at postgraduate level.
The Masters degree program “Climate and Water Resources Management” at the
Faculty of Geology and Geography of the Sofia University aims to train professionals
in climatology and hydrology. The aim of the course is that they will be able to work
in interdisciplinary and international teams. The course program was established in
2001 and is based on today’s demands. It is characterized by the following:
• modules that provide basic knowledge, as well as specific topics concerning
different aspects of climate and water resources management;
• a curriculum which complies with needed skills, including not only factual knowl-
edge, but also computer skills, methodical skills, presentation skills, teamwork;
• a study program that is linked to practical work by a series of exercises based on
seminars and by contact with experts in environmental management;
• an interdisciplinary course, in order that students are able to get to know different
points of views and ways of thinking in order to gain interdisciplinary skills.


 The main subject topics of the Masters degree program “Climate and Water
Resources Management” are:
• methods for resource assessment,
• climate and the influence of water resources on different human activities,
• principles of climate and water resources use,
• models for climate and water resources management,
• the influence of anthropogenic activity and
• legislative aspects.
The knowledge and experience obtained through the Masters degree program
allows students to obtain professional experience in the following areas:
• environmental protection (and especially air and water quality control),
• water economy,
• water and climate amelioration,
• energy resources (renewable resources),
• tourism and
• agriculture.
The program is designed to meet the new challenges set by the EU by integrating
inputs from the environmental and human sciences into the study of climatology
and hydrology. This allows students to find ways to solve present and future envi-
ronmental problems in an interdisciplinary framework, to gain knowledge in envi-
ronmental sciences and their practical application, to learn how to use methods in
system analysis, modelling, and data management. The program enables students
to define and solve problems related to global warming or water resources in the
business world as well as in public organizations and the broader society. The need
from teaching in integrated water resources management is discussed by Zlatunova
and Penkov (2000).

Program Structure
The Masters degree program “Climate and Water Resources Management“ is three
semesters long and includes obligatory and optional courses. The last semester is
dedicated to production of the Masters thesis. For the Masters degree students need of
90 credits including 15 credits for successfully defended Masters thesis. The credits
are determined according ECTS and Regulation N 21 from September, 30, 2004 for
implementation of system for transfer of credits in higher education (State Gazette
No 89/2004). The course description is given in Table 1.
The curriculum of the Masters program “Climate and Water Resources Manage-
ment” is consistent with studies based on the bachelor’s program in geography,
geography and biology, history, geography and ecology. The students in this program
are students who are interested in finding solutions to environmental problems and
conflicts, especially by taking socio-economic circumstances of the working area
into consideration. The students receive knowledge and experience in such areas as
environmental planning, environmental policy, environmental management systems,
corporate social responsibility, logical framework analysis, energy analysis and plan-
ning etc. The program also provides the students with an understanding of the social

and political implications of planning and management within the environmental
field. This includes an understanding of the relationships between companies and
stakeholders and an introduction to various types of environmental regulations. The
students that graduate with a Masters in “Climate and Water Resources Manage-
ment” are also able to communicate in the languages of governments, businesses
and NGO’s.
Table 1. Courses in the Masters degree program “Climate and Water Resources Management“.
Obligatory ECTS Optional ECTS
Modelling and forecasting in cli- Applied climatology. The course
matology and hydrology. Study of aims to provide knowledge and
climate and river runoff as an ob- skills for preparation of research
ject of modelling and forecasting. 6 projects. 6
The basic fundamental principles
of statistical models of climate and
water balance are considered
Methods of climatic investigation. Applied hydrology. The methods of
Statistical methods and analysis for analysis and control of water quality
characterizing climate elements and 6 are considered 6
phenomena and climate change are
presented.
Methods for investigating river Synoptic analysis and synoptic
runoff. Study the theory and meth- climatology. Study the processes in
odology of studying river runoff at 6 the system earth – atmosphere and 6
locations with natural and anthropo- weather forecasting.
genic impact.
Hydro-climatic resources in Bul- Climate change. The module gives
garia. The spatial distribution and information about climate change
6 4.5
state of water and climate resources – causes, impact, adaptation and
in Bulgaria are investigated mitigation.
Legal framework for regulation of Recreation and medical climatol-
the use of air and water. The mod- ogy. Investigating climate impacts
3 4.5
ule considers the legislation of water on recreation and human health.
and climate resources utilization.
Water resources management. The Renewable energy resources. Study
main methods, forms and schemes of the spatial distribution of renew-
for water resources management able resources and their practical
4.5 4.5
are presented. The approach for importance
integrated water resources manage-
ment is considered.
Air and water monitoring. The mod- Geography of climate and climatic
ule deals with the observation and resources. The main climate types
control of water and air pollution 4.5 are presented. The principles and 4.5
and about building and optimizing methods for climatic classification
monitoring network. are considered.


 Resources and monitoring of the
ocean. The objects of the module
are to investigate biological, chemi-
4.5
cal, mineral and energy resources of
the ocean and their utilization and
protection.
Urban hydrology. The module ex-
amines the hydrological cycles in 3
urban territory.
Black Sea. Genesis, geography char-
acteristics and ecological problems 3
of the Black Sea are studied.
Ecology assessments and expertise.
The module aims to give knowledge
about methods of ecological assess- 3
ment and the analysis of anthropo-
genic impact on the environment.
Risk phenomena in the atmosphere
and the hydrosphere. The main defi-
nitions and methods for analysis and
risk assessment are presented. The 4.5
relationship between hydro-cli-
matic and socio-economic factors
is examined.

References
1. ANGUELOVA R., PEEVE V., ABADZHIEVA M., BONEVA N., NIKOLOVA N.,
ASSENOV R., HRISTOV H. R. 2003. Climate Change Baseline Report. Project
“Bulgarian National Capacity Self-assessment for Global Environmental Management”,
pp. 148.
2. Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October
2000 establishing a framework for Community action in the field of water policy. Offi-
cial Journal L327, 22/12/2000 P. 0001 – 0073.
[Link]
EN:HTML, accessed June 15 2005
3. PETKOVA E., GRAMATIKOVA I., SOKOLOVSKA M., ASSENOV R. 2004. Capacity
Building Strategy and Plan for Bulgaria’s Implementation of the Obligation under the UN
Framework Convention on Climate Change, the UN Convention on Biological Diversity
and the UN Convention to Combat Desertification. pp. 73. (in Bulgarian).
4. GWP. 2000. Global Water Partnership. TAC. 2000. Integrated Water Resources Manage-
ment. Paper № 4, pp. 64.
5. STATE GAZETTE No 89 / 2004. Regulation N 21 from September, 30, 2004 for imple-
mentation of system for transfer of credits in higher education.
6. UNITED NATIONS 1992. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC).
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accessed June 15 2005.
325
8. UNITED NATIONS 1997. Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Conven-
tion on Climate Change, [Link]
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9. ZLATUNOVA D., PENKOV I. 2000. Teaching in Integrated Water Resources Manage-
ment. Geography and Tourism. Reports from Scientific Conference. Kiten 2000.
pp. 210−214 (in Bulgarian).

326
 Conference Changing Horizons in Geography Education
Toruń, Poland 2nd – 5th September 2005
was organized under the honorary auspices of

Mr. Waldemar Achramowicz,

Mr. Michał Zaleski, President of Toruń
Marshal of the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Voivodeship

Conference Changing Horizons in Geography Education

Toruń, Poland 2nd – 5th September 2005
was co-organized by

Didactical Laboratory, Faculty of Biology and Earth Sciences

Nicolaus Copernicus University, Toruń, Poland

Liverpool Hope University Polish Geographical Society, Toruń Branch

Herodot Network Eurogeo

National Centre for Further Training of Geography Teachers in Toruń


 Conference Changing Horizons in Geography Education
Toruń, Poland 2nd – 5th September 2005
was supported by

European Commission
[Link]

ESRI
[Link]

Routledge
[Link]

Hotel Polonia
[Link]