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Overseas experiences provide educators with exceptional opportunities to incorporate field study, firsthand experiences, and tangible artifacts into the classroom. Despite this potential, teachers must consider curricular standards that direct how such international endeavors can be integrated. Furthermore, geography curriculum development is more relevant when teachers link tangible local processes and events with those occurring in distant world regions. As such, this article demonstrates how a structured international field experience for K-12 educators incorporated geography curricular standards, and population geography as a common theme, to develop widely transferable curricular materials that advance students' understanding of Chile and Latin American area studies. (Contains 2 tables, 1 figure and 3 notes.)

The geographical analyses and descriptions of Appalachia "not only reflect reality, but they help to constitute this reality." This work first analyzes the status of the North American (United States and Canada) regional courses in the 210 geography degree-granting institutions listed in the Association of American Geographers "Guide to Geography Programs in North America". Next, the four leading geography textbooks on North America are compared with respect to topics used to analyze and describe (represent) Appalachia. Finally, suggestions are made with respect to additional topics and areas of concentration which will hopefully aid in a more accurate representation and regional geography of modern Appalachia. The better understanding of Appalachia gives better insight not only to the land and people of this region, but to North America as a whole.

Traces the settlement and demographic patterns of Hispanic Americans in the United States from the mid-nineteenth century to the present. Although originally concentrated in the southwest, Hispanics began migrating northward into some northeastern areas after World War II. Includes maps and tables detailing these demographics. (MJP)

Contends that understanding the relationship between the lives of women and the places in which they live is an important objective of geography education. Presents a lesson in which middle school students identify various Pacific Rim cultural areas, analyze demographic indicators of lifestyle and status, and discuss the relationship between place and women's everyday lives. (DB)

The historical development of Canada's very diverse geographic regions is discussed. Although Canadian regions and provinces have always been in a position of economic servitude to foreign or central Canadian markets, they still maintain strong regional loyalties. (RM)

Concentrating on events in Canada during the last ten years, this article discusses the Quebec separatist movement and other strong regionalisms in Canada. Important processes involved with conflict and compromise within the Canadian state are examined. (RM)

The Windsor-Quebec City axis is Canada's most important economic entity. The axis comprises four distinct physiographic units, with considerable climatic variation across the area. Containing two distinct linguistic groups (English and French), the axis has a rich agricultural system and is the manufacturing heartland of Canada. (RM)

Instructors at all levels can draw on a wide range of materials to teach a course on the geography of Canada. Resources cited include books, journal articles, professional literature, data and maps, films, filmstrips, and slide sets. (RM)

In the last 40 years the Canadian North has changed socially and culturally as a result of economic pressures and federal government policy decisions. Environmental and cultural conditions of the Canadian North are discussed, and the past, present, and future roles of the North in Canada are examined. (RM)

Rural and small-town Ontario, Canada is introduced through illustrations and discussions of seven typical elements that helped shape the province: cemetery, house, barn, hall, fence, roadscape, and main street. Having students make and discuss sketches is an excellent way to help them learn about the human geography of an area. (RM)

Historical, psychological, geographical, and economic aspects of the relationship between Canada and the United States are discussed. Suggestions are presented to help American geographers planning to attend the upcoming National Council for Geographic Education conference in Toronto, Canada, enhance their understanding of Canada. (RM)

Canada did not develop strong ties with the Third World until well after World War II. Three factors that have channeled and limited Canada's relationships with developing nations--location, history, and internal political relationships--are discussed. Also examined are patterns of Canadian foreign aid and investment and peace-seeking efforts. (RM)

Explains how a world civilization course at Butler University (Indiana) was significantly enhanced after a geographic perspective was used to introduce students to various cultures. Describes the units on China and pre-revolutionary Russia. Outcomes included a better understanding and appreciation for geography by both students and teachers. (GG)

Reviews and evaluates a selection of influential geography textbooks on East Asia and China. The 11 textbooks are ranked in 20 categories for the purpose of facilitating textbook selection and helping instructors evaluate the texts they are currently using. Specific strengths and weaknesses of each text are identified. (Author/DB)

For the purpose of increasing knowledge among geographers and other interested people about Micronesia, the article discusses Micronesian history, location, political importance, and culture. (DB)

Suggests and annotates educational materials for use by instructors of college-level courses on regional geography of Europe. (Author/DB)

Discusses systematics, ecology, and distribution of New Zealand's moas (flightless birds). Presents two theories of extinction: environmental catastrophe and human impact. Concludes that some moa species survived the Pleistocene epoch and primitive man completed the extinction process. (CK)

Today two opportunities are open to geography educators. First they must respond to the new opportunity to return geography to a place in the preparation of business students. Second, geography educators must take advantage of the current interest in international understanding and global education. New courses and textbooks are needed. (RM)

This commentary response reflects on the thoughts offered by Solem, Mohan, Rawling, and Lambert regarding Larsen and Harrington's article titled “Developing a Learning Progression for Place” (2018). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This commentary is a response to Larsen and Harrington's article titled "Developing a Learning Progression for Place" (2018). Within the author focuses learning progressions, subject structure, and the challenge of place complexity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept and characteristics of place within geography education are surveyed in the context of learning progressions. Beginning with place's history and relevance in geographic thought, this review moves on to discuss connections between space and place. From a geographic education perspective, place-based instruction and place characteristics are threaded with ideas of landscape and human encounter with or perception of place. Grade level standards can be problematic when dealing with a complex subject, such as place. Borrowing from educators in the sciences, this review reflects on the challenge of building one or more learning progressions for K-12 education on place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this short article is to offer a critical perspective on Larsen and Harrington's ambitious and stimulating review article. It does so by drawing a distinction between teaching and learning and discussing how progression metaphors for describing the latter can distort the moral purpose of the former. My response to the provocation offered by the review article is to resist the temptation to urge yet more research effort on developing a learning progression for place and instead focus on what is required to teach about place effectively. This would need to be driven by clear teaching goals rather than some technical learning progression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This commentary is a response to Larsen and Harrington's article titled “Developing a Learning Progression for Place” (2018). The commentary includes a discussion of the benefits to other content areas that research on student learning of place can provide. The commentary also describes the coherence that learning progressions can bring to research on student learning of complex, interdisciplinary domains of study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This commentary is a response to Larsen and Harrington's article titled “Developing a Learning Progression for Place” (2018). Within the author focuses on the development of learning progressions in geography and future research directions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The introductory level course Geography of the U.S. and Canada requires students to grasp large amounts of complex material, oftentimes using a lecture-based pedagogical approach. This article outlines two ways that popular music can be successfully used in the geography classroom. First, songs are used to review key concepts and characteristics of each subregion as a way to reinforce course material. Second, students critically analyze place representations in a selected song as a way to synthesize course themes. Excerpts from student work demonstrate that music does assist in helping students connect to and understand geographical concepts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article characterizes and measures errors in the 2010 National Research Council (NRC) assessment of research-doctorate programs in geography. This article provides a conceptual model for data-based sources of uncertainty and reports on a quantitative assessment of NRC research data uncertainty for a particular geography doctoral program. Findings indicate that important variables, including faculty totals and allocations and publication counts, are substantially undercounted, with important and negative impacts on program research activity measures. Further, these research measures are highly sensitive to small changes in counts and are particularly problematic for interdisciplinary fields such as geography. We caution against using the 2010 NRC data or metrics for any assessment-oriented study of research productivity. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This study investigates the location and varying spatiality of questions in geography textbooks. The results show that study questions posed in page margins address the three components of spatial thinking-concepts of space, using tools of representation, and processes of reasoning-more than questions in other locations within the text. Three practices are particularly recommended to help students develop spatial thinking skills through answering textbook questions: (1) utilize page-margin questions; (2) select questions around spatial representations; and (3) focus on higher-level cognitive processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teaching world cultures in the middle-level geography classroom presents challenges both because of the complexity of culture and because of the characteristics of students of this age. One effective way to teach about a culture is through the use of cultural artifacts. This article discusses how to collect and use cultural artifacts in the classroom. Students apply the skills of geographic inquiry to cultural artifacts to make observations and inferences about culture, then test their hypotheses with further research. The article examines the relationship between artifacts and culture and the validity of student inferences and understandings constructed through such artifact-based inquiry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Films are often used in schools to illustrate geography, but doing so may favor mainly passive learning. An experiment with twenty-eight pupils aged thirteen years (a whole class) had the aim of using cinema to promote active geographical learning. First, it was ascertained what the dominant geographical stereotypes were among the pupils and the films that conveyed these stereotypes. Then a traditional lesson using textbooks was given but this proved inefficient at removing stereotypes. More creative work was needed. Since film planning forces students to actively apply their geographical knowledge to solve technical problems (locations, screenplay, sets, etc.), making a movie was planned. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Consistent with developments in American education pedagogy, geography educators have made great strides exploring a wide range of high- and low-tech methods for teaching and learning geographic concepts. This article draws on a qualitative analysis of essays in which college students discuss tenets of the National Geography Standards in the context of Jules Verne's Around the World in Eighty Days. Most of the students in this study reported that not only did their knowledge of the world increase after completing the course assignment but that their interest in the discipline increased as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Greenways are prominent features of many urban landscapes and synthesize several geographic topics: human-environment interactions, urban ecosystems, and the promotion of sustainability within riverine corridors. Greenways are easily accessible and provide an opportunity for students at various grade levels to study interactions across physical and human systems. Students can gain an appreciation of the natural and cultural resources located in a local river environment while building skills linked to the National Geography Standards. Greenway-related activities can be designed so that students practice the acquisition, interpretation, and integration of geographic information obtained from a variety of sources and methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes a series of data-based Green Map learning exercises positioned within a problem-based framework and examines the appropriateness of projects like these as a form of geography education. Problem-based learning (PBL) is an educational technique that engages students in learning through activities that require creative problem solving and applied knowledge rather than lecture and recitation. The experiences speak to the specifics of Green Map use in the classroom but also demonstrate other learning experiences. The projects described in this article have been undertaken in New Jersey, where robust state-wide geospatial databases and strong open records laws allow data exploration and critical review of the data to become central activities in the learning exercises. However, they have occurred outside the traditional venues of geographic education, providing additional insight to ways that students learn from and about geography. The case studies described in the article are divided based on their general context: K-12 and higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article situates geospatial technologies as a constructivist tool in the K-12 classroom and examines student experiences with real-time authentic geospatial data provided through a hybrid adventure learning environment. Qualitative data from seven student focus groups demonstrate the effectiveness of using real-time authentic data, peer collaboration, and geospatial technologies in learning geography. We conclude with recommendations about geospatial technology curricula, geospatial lesson design, providing preservice teachers with geographic technological pedagogical content knowledge, and encouraging further research to investigate the impact, affordances, and pedagogical implications of geospatial technologies and data in the K-12 classroom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The implementation of Geographic Information Science (GIScience) applications and discussion of GIScience-related themes are useful for teaching fundamental geographic and technological concepts. As one of the newest geographic information tools available on the World Wide Web, Google Earth has considerable potential to enhance methods for teaching geography and helping students develop other capabilities. Google Earth's utility as a teaching tool in precollegiate environments is illustrated through development of a South Carolina-based lesson plan focused for seventh grade students that increases students' geographic awareness while also building critical thinking, analysis, and inquiry skills in support of various educational standards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During academic year 1999-2000, the Geography Department at Michigan State University (MSU) launched a program of online geography courses. Since then, four undergraduate online geography courses have been collectively developed and delivered to over 4,500 domestic and international students in association with MSU's Virtual University Design and Technology (vuDAT). The creation of each virtual course has taught valuable lessons concerning course development and administration; interactions with students have shed insight on course structure, content, and instruction. This article addresses development, management, and pedagogic concerns pertinent to the operation of online geography courses and offers suggestions to others who wish to develop online courses. Preliminary evidence on the effectiveness of these courses is also presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]