Home Education


Book Description

Home Education consists of six lectures by Charlotte Mason about the raising and educating of young children (up to the age of nine), for parents and teachers. She encourages us to spend a lot of time outdoors, immersed in nature, handling natural objects, and collecting experiences on which to base the rest of their education. She discusses the use of training in good habits such as attention, thinking, imagining, remembering, performing tasks with perfect execution, obedience, and truthfulness, to replace undesirable tendencies in children (and the adults that they grow into). She details how lessons in various school subjects can be done using her approach. She concludes with remarks about the Will, the Conscience, and the Divine Life in the Child. Charlotte Mason was a late nineteenth-century British educator whose ideas were far ahead of her time. She believed that children are born persons worthy of respect, rather than blank slates, and that it was better to feed their growing minds with living literature and vital ideas and knowledge, rather than dry facts and knowledge filtered and pre-digested by the teacher. Her method of education, still used by some private schools and many homeschooling families, is gentle and flexible, especially with younger children, and includes first-hand exposure to great and noble ideas through books in each school subject, conveying wonder and arousing curiosity, and through reflection upon great art, music, and poetry; nature observation as the primary means of early science teaching; use of manipulatives and real-life application to understand mathematical concepts and learning to reason, rather than rote memorization and working endless sums; and an emphasis on character and on cultivating and maintaining good personal habits. Schooling is teacher-directed, not child-led, but school time should be short enough to allow students free time to play and to pursue their own worthy interests such as handicrafts. Traditional Charlotte Mason schooling is firmly based on Christianity, although the method is also used successfully by secular families and families of other religions.




Teaching Geography, Third Edition


Book Description

"Keywords: assessments, CCSS, CD-ROM, Common Core standards, Common Core State Standards, children, classrooms, content areas, curriculum, education, elementary, geography, instruction, learning, methods, middle, pedagogy, schools, science, secondary, social studies, spatial-thinking skills, standards, students, teachers, teaching This widely adopted teacher resource and course text explains basic geographic principles and demonstrates how to bring them to life in engaging, challenging instruction for grades K/n-/12. Accessibly written, the book is packed with instructional materials, teaching tips, and more than 100 maps and other graphics. Together with the companion CD-ROM, it presents effective ways to promote students' spatial-thinking skills while teaching them about the land, climate, economy, and cultures of places around the world. The Companion CD-ROM The CD-ROM features more than 225 reproducible student activities; a Model Curriculum; PowerPoint slides of the book's figures and discussion guides that focus on important concepts in each chapter; specially designed K-2 resources; teaching notes with links to Common Core State Standards and Geography Standards; and more. New to This Edition *Chapter on geography in the curriculum. *Chapter appendix on the neuroscience of spatial reasoning. *CD-ROM features additional graphics, many new activities, and a Model Curriculum. *Discusses ways to align instruction with the Common Core State Standards. "--




Elementary Geography


Book Description

This little book is confined to very simple “reading lessons upon the Form and Motions of the Earth, the Points of the Compass, the Meaning of a Map: Definitions.” The shape and motions of the earth are fundamental ideas—however difficult to grasp. Geography should be learned chiefly from maps, and the child should begin the study by learning “the meaning of map,” and how to use it. These subjects are well fitted to form an attractive introduction to the study of Geography: some of them should awaken the delightful interest which attaches in a child’s mind to that which is wonderful—incomprehensible. The Map lessons should lead to mechanical efforts, equally delightful. It is only when presented to the child for the first time in the form of stale knowledge and foregone conclusions that the facts taught in these lessons appear dry and repulsive to him. An effort is made in the following pages to treat the subject with the sort of sympathetic interest and freshness which attracts children to a new study. A short summary of the chief points in each reading lesson is given in the form of questions and answers. Easy verses, illustrative of the various subjects, are introduced, in order that the children may connect pleasant poetic fancies with the phenomena upon which “Geography” so much depends. It is hoped that these reading lessons may afford intelligent teaching, even in the hands of a young teacher. The first ideas of Geography—the lessons on “Place”—which should make the child observant of local geography, of the features of his own neighbourhood, its heights and hollows and level lands, its streams and ponds—should be conveyed viva voce. At this stage, a class-book cannot take the place of an intelligent teacher. Children should go through the book twice, and should, after the second reading, be able to answer any of the questions from memory. Charlotte M. Mason




Learning to Teach Geography in the Secondary School


Book Description

Learning to Teach Geography in the Secondary School has become the widely recommended textbook for student and new teachers of geography. It helps them acquire a deeper understanding of the role, purpose and potential of geography within the secondary curriculum, and provides the practical skills needed to design, teach and evaluate stimulating and creative lessons. This fully revised and updated second edition takes account of new legislation and important developments in geography education, including literacy, numeracy, citizenship, and GIS. Brand new chapters in this edition provide essential guidance on fieldwork, and using ICT in the context of geography teaching and learning. Chapters on teaching strategies, learning styles and assessment place the learner at the centre stage, and direct advice and activities encourage successful practice. Designed for use as a core textbook Learning to Teach Geography in the Secondary School is essential reading for all student teachers of geography who aspire to become effective, reflective teachers. Praise for the first edition of Learning to Teach Geography in the Secondary School: 'This is a practical and visionary book, as well as being superbly optimistic. It has as much to offer the experienced teacher as the novice and could be used to reinvigorate geography departments everywhere. Practical activities and ideas are set within a carefully worked out, authoritative, conceptual framework.' - The Times Educational Supplement 'This is a modern, powerful, relevant and comprehensive work that is likely to become a standard reference for many beginning teachers on geography initial teacher training courses in England and Wales.' - Educational Review




Learning Progressions in Geography Education


Book Description

This book informs an international audience of teachers, scholars and policymakers about the development of learning progressions for primary and secondary geography education in various countries and regions of the world. The book represents an important contribution to learning progressions research and practice. The different chapters explore how curriculum standards and frameworks in different countries portray progress and sophistication in the learning of geography. The book compares educational systems and how teachers and curriculum developers use the concept of “learning progression” to guide educational practices. As an approach to educational research, learning progressions offer considerable potential for understanding how children develop understanding of geographic concepts and practices across grade bands and in relation to national geography standards. The book analyzes the general conditions of learning progressions within the context of a globalized world. Important themes are addressed such as: knowledge acquisition in formal education; measuring learning progressions in informal settings; learning progressions for one curriculum standard or several standards; conditions to assess progression in the learning of facts, concepts, and skills; and multiple pathways for understanding or learning geography. The contributing authors are experienced scientists in the field from all around the world giving specific insights into the practices of their countries. The book appeals to K-12 teachers, school administrators, policymakers, researchers in geography education, professors and lecturers at universities around the world.




Learning Primary Geography


Book Description

Learning Primary Geography: Ideas and inspiration from classrooms celebrates children’s learning in primary geography. It is a book for all student and practising teachers who would like children to learn about their world in an enjoyable and stimulating way. Every page presents inspiring examples of children’s learning, and explains how and why creative approaches such as enquiry learning, learning outside the classroom, and using imaginative resources work so well in primary geography. Using illustrated case studies from a range of schools and classrooms, each chapter showcases the fantastic work all children can do in primary geography. The book explores a wide variety of geographical learning, with chapters focusing on key aspects of the subject, including: primary geography through the school grounds topical geography through issues and events learning about places in primary geography children’s agency and action through primary geography Throughout the chapters, the role of primary geography in helping children develop all types of literacies, including spatial, critical and digital literacies, is explored. Written by a highly experienced teacher and lecturer in education, Learning Primary Geography is underpinned and illustrated by examples from a wide range of primary classrooms. It will be a source of support, guidance and inspiration for all those teaching geography in the primary school.




Geography Education for Global Understanding


Book Description

This book presents the core concepts of geographical education as a means of understanding global issues from a spatial perspective. It treats education, supported by high standards, approaches, methodologies, and resources, as essential in exploring the interactions of the world’s human and environmental systems at local, regional, and global scales embedded in the nature of the discipline of geography. It covers topics such as climate change, sustainable development goals, geopolitics in an uncertain world, global crisis, and population flows, which are of great interest to geography researchers and social sciences educators who want to explore the complexity of contemporary societies. Highly respected scholars in geography education answer questions on key topics and explain how global understanding is considered in K-12 education in significant countries around the globe. The book discusses factors such as the Internet, social media, virtual globes and other technological developments that provide insights into and visualization – in real time – of the intensity of relationships between different countries and regions of the earth. It also examines how this does not always lead to empathy with other political, cultural, social and religious values: terrorism threats and armed conflicts are also essential features of the global world. This book opens the dialogue for global understanding as a great opportunity for teachers, educators, scholars and policy makers to better equip students and future citizens to deal with global issues.




Teaching Secondary Geography


Book Description

Geography is not only the study of the surface of the planet and the exploration of spatial and human - environment relationships, but also a way of thinking about the world. Guided by the Australian Curriculum and the Professional Standards for Teaching School Geography (GEOGstandards), Teaching Secondary Geography provides a comprehensive introduction to both the theory and practice of teaching Geography. This text covers fundamental geographical knowledge and skills, such as working with data, graphicacy, fieldwork and spatial technology, and provides practical guidance on teaching them in the classroom. Each chapter features short-answer and 'Pause and Think' questions to enhance understanding of key concepts, and 'Bringing It Together' review questions to consolidate learning. Classroom scenarios and a range of information boxes are provided throughout to connect students to additional material. Written by an author team with extensive teaching experience, Teaching Secondary Geography is an exemplary resource for pre-service teachers.




Geography Education in the Digital World


Book Description

Geography Education in the Digital World draws on theory and practice to provide a critical exploration of the role and practice of geography education within the digital world. It considers how living within a digital world influences teacher identity and professionalism and is changing young people’s lives. The book moves beyond the applied perspective of educational technology to engage with wider social and ethical issues of technology implementation and use of digital data within geography education. Situated at the intersection between research and practice, chapters draw on a wide range of theory to consider the role, adoption and potential challenges of a range of digital technologies in furthering geographical education for future generations. Bringing together academics from the fields of geography, geography education and teacher education, the book engages with four key themes within the digital world: Professional practice and personal identities. Geographical sources and connections. Geospatial technologies. Geographical fieldwork. This is a crucial read for geographers, geography educators and geography teacher educators, as well as those engaging with existing and new technologies to support geographical learning in the dynamic context of the digital world. It will also be of interest to any students, academics and policymakers wanting to better understand the impact of digital media on education.




Powerful Geography


Book Description

In recent years the emphasis has shifted away from a focus on pedagogy (the how of teaching) and towards curriculum (the what of teaching). Ofsted's revised inspection framework reflects this shift, and their plans to -deep dive- into subject areas - meaning that teachers and department heads now need a much greater understanding of curricular structures - leave many educators having to think about their subject in new ways. Luckily for geography teachers, however, bestselling author Mark Enser provides plenty of insightful, subject-specific guidance in this all-encompassing book. Mark explores both the purpose of the geography curriculum and its various applications in practice. He details how teachers can take their students' learning beyond the acquisition of knowledge to transform how they see the world. He also tackles the changing nature of school geography, shares a variety of case studies, and offers his take on how best to facilitate geographical enquiry and fieldwork. The first part of the book considers the issue of purpose by looking at the role of the school in society and then shows the place that geography occupies within it. It also considers the history of the subject so as to help geography teachers better understand where they stand today, and concludes by discussing how the concepts of powerful knowledge and GeoCapabilities can help them find their way again. The second part is a practical guide which illustrates how to put this theory of curriculum purpose into practice. It explores the steps which must be taken to create a powerful geography curriculum by deciding on content and places to be studied, putting the components into a sequence and then using all this to do geography. It will also discuss the extent to which teachers need to consider the future and respond to the concerns of the wider world when planning the curriculum. Suitable for department heads and classroom teachers of geography in secondary schools and subject leads in primary schools. Powerful Geography was Highly Commended in the Geographical Association Awards 2022.