Astonishing Awareness
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Transcript of Astonishing Awareness
Astonishing Awareness
How can we combine new school “case study heavy” geography with old school
“country memorization” geography?
Albert Einstein
Any fool can know. The point is to understand.
The Problems• Pupils are not
confident with world maps.
• ‘Googleisation’ has presented new obstacles.
• Time/department pressures restrict teachers.
• Memorising rivers/countries does not increase geographical knowledge.
• Negative stereotypes!
I know where Justin Bieber
lives, and where his dad
is from.
My auntie moved…she went to a in France… on the coast…
They already know quite a lot. We just need to provide the platform to inspire and expand their existing
knowledge.
The Solutions• Greater use of
maps.• Engage with
‘googleisation’.• Allow more in
depth conversation.• Set memorisation
challenges. My auntie moved…
she now lives in Toulon.
Justin Bieber lives in the world’s second largest
country…Russia is bigger. People argue about the land
which China owns.
The Solutions• Greater use of
maps.• Engage with
‘googleisation’.• Allow more in
depth conversation.• Set memorisation
challenges. My auntie moved…
she now lives in Toulon.
Justin Bieber lives in the world’s second largest
country…Russia is bigger. People argue about the land
which China owns.
African CountriesTop row:
Most African Tigers Love Elephants.
Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya,
Egypt
East Coast:Every Decent Snake Kills Twenty Meaty Students
Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi,
South Africa.
Earth Readers
We, as teachers, are guiding young people to learn how to read ‘earth writing’.
By teaching them to look at the world through a geographical lens we can help them relate the new
information with which they are presented to their existing knowledge; or if necessary to correct their misconceptions.
‘Geography n. 1 the study of the physicalfeatures of the earth and of human activity asit relates to these. 2 the relative arrangementof places and physical features. Origin: C15from Fr. géographie or L. geographia, fromGk ge ¯ographia, from g¯ e “earth” + -graphia“writing”’ (OED, 2006).