Road Map for 21st Century Geographic Education: Instructional Materials and Professional Development

Never before in human history has it been more important for a person to be geographically literate. But the unsettling reality is that many teachers and most students are not yet geographically literate. Currently, American students are not even provided opportunities to learn enough geography to u...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Geography teacher (Erie, Pa.) Pa.), 2013-01, Vol.10 (1), p.6-14
Main Authors: Schell, Emily M., Mohan, Audrey, The Instructional Materials and Professional Development Committee
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Academic Standards
Change Strategies
Curriculum Development
Educational Change
Educational Needs
Educational Strategies
Educational Technology
Geography
Geography Instruction
Instructional Design
Instructional Development
Instructional Materials
Partnerships in Education
Professional Development
Skill Analysis
Skill Development
United States
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Summary:Never before in human history has it been more important for a person to be geographically literate. But the unsettling reality is that many teachers and most students are not yet geographically literate. Currently, American students are not even provided opportunities to learn enough geography to understand the very basic aspects of the world in which they live. Without explicit intervention and a dedicated focus on geographic literacy by educators, curriculum developers, and policymakers, U.S. children will be unable to thrive in the global marketplace, unlikely to connect with and care for their natural environment, and unsure about how to relate to people from other parts of the world. One thing is abundantly clear; if American children hope to participate in democracy and play a strong leadership role in the world, they must possess geographic knowledge, understandings, and skills. The Instructional Materials and Professional Development Committee of the Road Map project gathered to identify the needs for geography education in this twenty-first century. These needs span every grade level in the nation's formal and informal education systems in public and private education. These needs extend beyond the stand-alone geography course and exist in science, technology, mathematics, social studies, arts, and English language arts courses as well. These needs can and should be addressed through carefully designed and properly implemented instructional materials and professional development. This article provides ten important recommendations for educators, developers, policymakers, and funders to seriously consider in supporting student learning, teacher learning, and large-scale collaboration and change in the field of geography education through instructional materials and professional development. Each recommendation is presented in the full report with a core argument and supporting research, vignettes of each recommendation in practice, examples of alignment with Common Core State Standards, additional information about recommended strategies or principles, and recommended readings.
ISSN:1933-8341
1752-6884
DOI:10.1080/19338341.2012.758597