Why Geography is important
Susy Puszka and Leonie Brown, co-presidents of the GTAV, put the case for Geography's inclusion in the 'core' curriculum.
The concept of schools struggling under the burden of an overcrowded curriculum is not new. Increasingly, schools are being called upon to educate students in areas which, while undeniably worthy, would once have been considered the responsibility of parents and the broader community. The consequent growth in the breadth of curriculum offered by schools has coincided with a focus on providing a rigorous core curriculum. School administrators and curriculum developers are unsurprisingly frustrated by the need to fit in more and more, whilst simultaneously maintaining academic standards. There are, after all, only so many hours in one school day. The proposed charter put forward by the Australian Primary Principals’ Association, recently reported on in this newspaper (2/8/2007), is obviously a response to this quandary. According to the association’s president, Leonie Trimper, the charter is a bid to “unclutter” the curriculum in primary schools, paring the “guaranteed” subjects down to four core subjects: English, Mathematics, Science and (Australian) History. Other “unessential … add-ons” can be chosen at the discretion of individual schools, and allocated less class time. The burning question is: why has Geography, a traditional mainstay of the curriculum, been left off the list of core subjects?
In the recent debate over the need for a national curriculum, Geography was also conspicuously overlooked by both major political parties. So is Geography vital to every student’s education throughout their compulsory school years? The answer is a resounding yes!
Most people would agree it is important for students to be ‘spatially literate’. We have all laughed at the jokes aimed at US citizens who seem to be somewhat geographically-challenged. If we are going to be high-functioning global citizens, knowing where other places of significance are is a good start. Some knowledge of their culture, physical attributes, regional alliances and political persuasion would be even better. The study of other cultures and places coaxes students to look beyond their own world and develop a less parochial perspective, which is surely an important quality in our increasingly globalised world.
Geography can also provide students with more knowledge of their own environment. Much has been said of the importance for students learning Australian History. A natural corollary must surely be that it is also important for all Australians be familiar with our nation’s major natural features and its human characteristics. Both are important in building a national identity.
But Geography can be so much more than the simple learning of facts that will impress friends at the local quiz night. Geography seeks a deep understanding of the world and all its natural and human complexities. Students not only learn where places are, what they are like and the people who inhabit them, and but also why this is so.
Through studying Geography students are able to analyse the spatial and temporal distribution of phenomena, the processes that create these phenomena, and the interaction between human and natural components of the world around them. So using the example of climate change, students could investigate how climates have changed over time, the factors which have caused the observed fluctuations, the predicted impacts for various parts of the world, and the relative importance of natural and anthropogenic factors affecting the current climate.
Many of the most pressing issues currently facing our society are geographic in nature. A cursory flick through any newspaper on any given day would attest to this: climate change, water security, the Murray-Darling Basin, forest management, our ageing population, planning matters, geopolitical conflict and development issues are all topics which students can examine in depth within the Geography classroom. If we want a well-informed and civic-minded population, we can do no better than encourage the study of Geography.
Perhaps most importantly, the study of Geography can provide a means of considering what can be done to resolve issues. Students can sometimes feel quite powerless by the magnitude of some of these issues, but by examining what can be done to respond to phenomena they can develop some optimism in their future.
From a pedagogical perspective, to omit Geography from the curriculum is denying students a golden opportunity to engage their higher order thinking skills, such as analysis, synthesis, evaluation and problem solving. Geography is an all encompassing discipline which forms a bridge between the human and physical sciences. Students are provided with a context in which they must adopt a holistic approach to topics. It is also the perfect framework in which to consider the concept of sustainable development.
While the draft charter of the Australian Primary School Principals’ Association is of great concern to all Geography teachers – and anyone who is genuinely concerned about what students learn at school – we should perhaps take comfort in the fact the Federal government is currently undertaking a study into the teaching of Geography across Australia. It will be interesting to see how events unfold in the public discourse on the teaching of Geography when the study is released. But we must reject any notion that the teaching of Geography is an “unessential add-on”.
Susy Puszka, a teacher at MacRobertson Girls High School, and Leonie Brown, a teacher at Bacchus Marsh Grammar, are co-presidents of the Geography Teachers Association of Victoria.
This article was published in The Age on 3 September 2007 under the heading 'The case for geography' as part of an article titled 'Why we must fear core values'. |
