Research in Geographic Education
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10877/16154
The journal, Research in Geographic Education, publishes significant research-based manuscripts and other important contributions in geographic education. As a field of research, geographic education covers a wide range of topics, including spatial cognition, perception, applications of learning theory, applications of instructional methodology, and assessment of student achievement, to name just a few. Therefore, the editors of the Journal evaluate a wide range of manuscripts reporting scholarly research and practice completed by faculty members, classroom teachers, independent scholars, and senior level graduate students. The Journal represents all segments of the research community in geographic education, including senior, mid-career, and new researchers and teachers and graduate student researchers, who are engaged in active research about learning and teaching. In order to achieve those goals, we encourage and welcome submissions of papers. We review papers within the editorial staff initially, followed by a peer review by topical specialists in geography education. The editorial staff will work with you to publish a manuscript that contributes significantly to geographic education.
Journal website: https://rge.grosvenor.txst.edu/
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Item [Book Review] The Child's World: Triggers for Learning(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 1999) Smith, Janet S.No abstract prepared.Item Research in Geographic Education, Volume 1, Issue 1, 1999(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 1999) Boehm, Richard G.; Stea, DavidThe Research in Geographic Education journal publishes significant research-based manuscripts and other important contributions in geographic education.Item A Schema Theoretical Approach to Understanding Map Readings(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 1999) Maier, JoanThis two-year study employed a modified grounded theory research methodology. Two questions guided this study: 1.) Could schema theory explain map reading? 2.) Could schemata and processing strategies for map reading be identified and characterized? The subjects voluntarily interpreted a familiar and then an unfamiliar map followed by probing questions that query the subject to think “out loud” in order to clarify their voluntary responses. Individual subjects 'protocols were compiled for constant comparative analysis. These procedures resulted in (1) evidence that supports the application of schema theory to explain map reading; and the development of schemata and processing strategies categories.Item Children's Comprehension of Spatial Location in Different Spaces(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 1999) Bell, ScottResearch in geography education must be inspired by the elements and standards outlined in Geography for Life, National Geography Standards. The first essential element, “The world in spatial terms” outlines the analysis and internal and external representation of geographic and spatial information as a primary goal of geographic educators. Before this is possible it is important to understand how geographic and spatial knowledge is acquired in the variety of spaces in which children learn and in which geographic information is presented. This experiment examines the geographic understanding of space by 3rd grade students in two distinctly different geographic spaces, as expressed through their recall of spatial location. A desktop space is used to simulate the space at which the majority of school learning occurs while an outdoor environment (laid out on the school playground) is used to simulate the more extensive space of everyday geographic interactions. Results of this study will improve our understanding of how size and scale affect geographic and spatial knowledge acquisition and will inform geographic educators who are interested in developing curriculum involving different types of spaces.Item Assessing and Improving Geographic Belief: A Cognitive Approach(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 1999) Brown, Norman R.; Friedman, AlindaOver the past several years, we have conducted numerous experiments designed to assess what people know about world geography and to determine how new facts affect prior knowledge. Typically, participants first estimate the latitudes or longitudes of cities in different parts of the world. Next, they are given information about the actual location of a small number of these cities and provide a second set of estimates. These location estimates are converted to representations, called location profiles, which convey information about estimation accuracy, the subjective division of continents and countries into regions, biased beliefs about the location of these regions, and beliefs about the relations between regions both within and between continents. In addition, differences between the first and second estimates indicate how representations of global geography are updated when people learn new location information about individual cities. This article provides an introduction to this research, and summarises its main findings.Item [Book Review] The Hand: How its Use Shapes the Brain, Language, and Human Culture(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 1999) Castner, HenryNo abstract prepared.Item Mapping Success: Reversing The Matthew Effect(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 1999) Gregg, Sr. MadeleineThe effects of two models of teaching on map reading and interpreting of seventh graders were compared. Data were obtained from pre- and post-tests and from audio-taped transcriptions of student interviews with 4 high- and 4 low-knowledge students. The test scores were analyzed to determine if the different models of teaching were associated with differences in what the children learned. Analysis of the interview data provided more fine-grained understanding of exactly what was learned and how students were able to reason with their new knowledge. The results showed: 1) All students learned, no matter how they were taught; 2) Map-makers learned more than map-readers; 3) The map-making lessons especially benefited the low-knowledge students’ learning about symbols on maps. 4) Both groups of students learned more about symbols and latitude and longitude than about scale. 5) The findings from the interview data matched the results from the test data.Item Geographic Education, Universal Mapping, and Public Participation: The Search for Umbrella Theory(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 1999) Stea, David; Blaut, James M.While much has been written in recent years about the ability of pre-school children to comprehend geographic-scale spatial representations, issues of theory and application still remain unresolved. Some of these revolve about the relationship of developmental theory in psychology to geographic education. Two other issues relate to whether progress from one developmental stage to another is fundamentally “irreversible,” and to the interpretation of scale errors made by very young children in attempting to read aerial photographs, a surrogate task for map reading. A final question addressed in this article concerns how the legacy of such early spatial learning, and of geographic education, may be applied to participatory planning among groups of adults.Item Research in Geographic Education, Volume 1, Issue 2, 1999(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 1999) Boehm, Richard G.; Stea, DavidThe Research in Geographic Education journal publishes significant research-based manuscripts and other important contributions in geographic education.Item A Functional Taxonomy for Mapping in Geographic Education(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 1999) Castner, HenryA taxonomy of map use functions, and the map types associated with each, is proposed as a tool in developing more logical sequences of classroom activities that introduce students to maps, their various uses, and to the processes of geographic thinking. Awareness of the great variety of map types and functions is needed so that students can improve their skills in creating and using the appropriate map for inventory, navigation, measurement or analysis tasks. Tradition- ally we categorize maps on the basis of content, scale, or user group. But this fails to illuminate the different ways we design maps so as to address a variety of spatial problems. This paper discusses criteria that can be used to create such a taxonomy and applies them to a prototype taxonomy. It identifies four genera of map use tasks or questions and more than fifty species of specific models, drawings, and map types. A number of implications for geographic education are noted.Item Cross-Cultural Research in Geographic Education: Some Challenges and Realities(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 1999) Gerber, RodGeographic educators around the world are becoming increasingly interested in research work on similar topics that are being conducted in similar and contrasting settings around the world, e.g. in topics such as learning mapping skills, students’ understanding of the world and environmental values. Of concern is the extent to which these comparisons are reasonable, considering the different contexts in which they occur. It is, therefore, important for geographic educators to appreciate the nature, challenges and benefits of cross-cultural research in geographic education. Key challenges such as language, methodology, stakeholders' values, the situation/context, cross-cultural versus cross-national research and extent of generalization of results need to be considered. In addition, the benefits of cross-cultural research in geographic education, including internationalization of outcomes, generalizability, collaboration amongst researchers, and improved curricular development are worth noting.Item The Eurocentric Nature of Mental Maps of the World(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 1999) Saarinen, TomSketch maps of the world, a form of mental map, indicate that our images of the world tend to be Eurocentric. These sketch maps are generally centered in Europe (Saarinen 1988), and the size of Europe is greatly exaggerated (Saarinen et al. 1996). Furthermore, Europe is known in greater detail than any other continent. These conclusions are based on the Parochial Views of the World project, a worldwide study of mental maps of the world. The project was supported by the International Geographical Union and funded by the National Geographic Society.Item Research in Geographic Education, Volume 2, Issue 1, 2000(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 2000) Boehm, Richard G.; Stoltman, Joseph P.The Research in Geographic Education journal publishes significant research-based manuscripts and other important contributions in geographic education.Item GIS and the Acquisition of Spatial Information: Differences among Adults and Young Adolescents(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 2000) Bunch, RickThis research investigates how humans integrate map information in a Geographic Information System (GIS). The research focus is concerned with the differences among adults and young adolescents for tasks that involve the integration of spatial information across space, hierarchies, and geographic scales. These issues were investigated using a computerized cognitive experiment designed to simulate the GIS environment. The analyses indicated that the type of spatial integration task and subject age significantly affected outcome. The results suggest that the type of task and the ability of the users should be an important consideration in GIS design and teaching strategies.Item [Book Review] The Color of School Reform(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 2000) Shelley, Fred M.No abstract prepared.Item [Book Review] Using Internet Primary Sources to Teach Critical Thinking Skills in Geography(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 2000) Solem, Michael N.No abstract prepared.Item Experiences of Geography In Higher Education: The Case of Geography Teachers in England(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 2000) Kent, AshleyThis article starts by exploring the history of the ‘gap ’between school and university geography. Then, through a survey of twenty geography teachers on a master’s course at the Institute of Education, University of London, the nature of the divide is explored. Teachers were asked about the nature of their undergraduate geography courses, its relevance to their teaching in school, and which books had the greatest impact on them. The implications of the survey results are then considered.Item The Role of Geographic Education in Shaping the Muslim Image of the World(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 2000) Ibrahim, Mohamed Babiker; Saarinen, TomThe role of geographic education in shaping the Muslim map image of the world is examined in this paper. University students from four Arab Muslim countries, Morocco, Sudan, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia were asked to sketch a map of the world on a blank sheet of paper as part of a worldwide study of sketch map images of the world. The strong focus of the Muslim students on the Islamic nations of Asia and Africa, and their more limited knowledge of other world areas, contrasted sharply with the more Eurocentric image of the total world sample. An initial disadvantage faced by the Arab students was the rarity of map use in their societies. Other aspects of their geographic education which affect the quality of their sketch maps of the world are pointed out and suggestions for improvement are offered to the Arabs and the rest of the world.Item The European Dimension in Swiss Geography Education(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 2000) Reinfried, SibylleA critically important issue in Swiss society and politics is Switzerland’s relationship to a dynamic and unifying Europe. However, this study finds that Swiss upper secondary students in the German-speaking part of the country do not feel much attached to Europe as a geographical and political entity. Europe is not subject matter in formal upper secondary geography education and is absent from the geography curricula and geography textbooks for this level. This paper concludes that Swiss students’ attachment to Europe can be enhanced by shifting to motivating subject content and direct communication and cooperation with people in Europe.Item Research in Geographic Education, Volume 2, Issue 2, 2000(The Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education, 2000) Stoltman, Joseph P.The Research in Geographic Education journal publishes significant research-based manuscripts and other important contributions in geographic education.