Name of Your Country

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GOT GEOGRAPHY?
North Carolina Social Studies Conference February
12, 2009
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ESSENTIAL QUESTION
How can we use technology tools and 21st century
skills to teach the five themes of geography?
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DO YOUR STUDENTS KNOW?

• According to a Roper poll by National Geographic
• Polled Americans between the ages of 18 and 24
  could not find Louisiana on a U.S. map.
• Only 14 believed speaking another language is a
  necessary skill.
• Six out of 10 could not find Iraq on a map of
  the Middle East.
• Three quarters incorrectly named English as the
  most widely spoken native language.
• -http//www.nationalgeographic.com/rope
  r2006/findings.html
• Geographic illiteracy impacts our economic
  well-being, our relationships with other nations
  and the environment, and isolates us from the
  world.
• -John Fahey National Geographic President

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WHAT IS GEOGRAPHY EDUCATION?
According to the North Carolina Standard Course
of Study, geography gives students a spatial
perspective. The goal of geography is to produce
an informed person who sees meaning in the
arrangement of things in space and applies a
spatial perspective to life situations.
Technological advances connect students at all
levels to the world beyond their personal
locations. The study of people, places, and
human-environment interactions assists learners
as they create their spatial views and geographic
perspectives of the world. Analysis of tensions
between national interests and global priorities
contributes to the development of possible
solutions to persistent and emerging global
issues in fields such as health care, economic
development, environmental quality, universal
human rights, and others.  
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WHY TEACH GEOGRAPHY?

• Helps students understand the physical and
  cultural characteristics of the world.
• Provides the skills that help us better
  understand ourselves and our relationship to
  others.
• Contributes to international understanding and
  our interdependence with other peoples of the
  world.

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GEOGRAPHY and TESTING

• Read various texts including maps and charts
• Interpret information from diagrams, charts, and
• maps
• Make predictions
• Draw conclusions
• Formulate questions
• (NCDPI ELA/ EOG Report 2004)

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NAEP RESULTS National Assessment of Educational
Progress

• Average geography scores for fourth and eighth
  graders were
• higher in 2001.
• Score increases occurred among lower performing
  students.
• Only 21 of fourth graders performed at or above
  Proficient.

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DPI GEOGRAPHY SURVEY
HB 2431 Studies Act of 2008, sec. 23.1 The
Studies Act of 2008 (House Bill 2431, Section
23.1) requires the Department of Public
Instruction to study the effectiveness of
geography education in middle and high schools
and to consider potential changes to geography
education. The Department of Public Instruction
shall report the results of this study, including
any recommended changes, to the Joint Legislative
Education Oversight Committee on or before
January 15, 2009.  
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Survey results Which of the following
indicators are students expected to demonstrate
during geography instruction?
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What instructional tools/resources are used to
teach geography in your classroom?
Some of the other responses of instructional
tools were United Streaming
Videos Trade/picture books Time Life for
Kids Newspapers Active Boards Daily
Geography
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RESPONSES FROM TEACHERS IN N.C. ON GEOGRAPHY
EDUCATION

• Geography education is often a students first
  window on the world. It enables students to
  understand our world, its processes and patterns,
  and it develops spatial thinking and awareness.
• Geography education provides students with a
  broad understanding of how the world is connected
  historically and politically.
• Geography education is lacking in quality.
  Students are coming to high school without prior
  knowledge.
• The use of technology should be a major focus
  for geography.

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MOST CHALLENGING TOPICS IN TEACHING GEOGRAPHY

• Landforms
• Latitude and longitude
• Map and globe skills
• Staying up-to-date with technological advances,
  resources and materials
• Helping students make connections to the real
  world
• Environmental and cultural factors that impact
  geography

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GEOGRAPHY OF ICE CREAM
Connection to the National Geography
Standards Standard 3 How to analyze the
spatial organization of people, places and
environments on Earths surface. North
Carolina Standard Course of Study Grade 3
Competency Goal 4 The learner will explain
geographic concepts and the relationship between
people and geography in real life situations.
Grade 4 Competency Goal 1 The learner will
apply the five themes of geography to North
Carolina and its people. Grade 5 Competency
Goal 1 The learner will apply key geographic
concepts to the United states and other countries
of North America.
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FIVE THEMES OF GEOGRAPHY

• LOCATION
• Position of a place on the earths surface
• Relative location
• Absolute location
• PLACE
• Physical characteristics mountains, rivers,
  deserts, climate
• Human characteristics ethnic groups,
  languages, customs
• HUMAN-ENVIRONMENT INTERACTION
• Humans adapt to the environment
• Humans modify the environment
• Humans depend on the environment

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• MOVEMENT
• Where, why, and how people, products and ideas
  move from one place to another
• Where resources are located, who needs them and
  how they are transported
• REGIONS
• Areas grouped together based on commonalities
• Physical regions grouped by landforms,
  climate, soil and vegetation
• Cultural regions grouped by languages,
  religions, and economics

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GEOGRAPHY OF ICE CREAMUSING GOOGLE MAPS to
TEACH the FIVE THEMES OF GEOGRAPHY

• Lesson- Essential Question In what ways can you
  use (Google maps and Google Earth) to determine
  the relative location of businesses within a
  community and their impact on human movement?
• Ask your students to think about where ice cream
  shops are located in their community and why they
  are located where they are.
• Guide students to estimate how many ice cream
  shops are in
• their community.
• Go to google maps to pinpoint the locations and
  addresses
• of these shops.
• http//maps.google.com
  

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Suggestions to consider

• Who lives near the ice cream shop(s)? Why are
  located where they are? What are the advantages
  and disadvantages to living near an ice cream
  shop? What is the shortest route you could take
  from your home? Can you get there quicker by
  car, bicycle or walking? Are any of the ice
  cream shops close together? If so, is there
  competition among these shops?
• Discuss other factors that influence the choice
  of ice cream shops, including quality and price.
  How do they affect the patterns youve
  determined? (Supply Demand)
• If you were going to open an ice cream shop in
  your community, where might you put it? In your
  state? In your country? Why?
• Investigate the number of locations of gas
  stations, florists, restaurants, grocery stores
  and parks. Compare findings to the number of ice
  cream shops located in your community.

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GOOGLE EARTH
http//earth.google.com/tour.html
Lesson extension Investigate how your community
has changed throughout time.
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CONTACT INFORMATION
Jolene Ethridge, Consultant (919)
807-3862 jethridge_at_dpi.state.nc.us Lisa
Llewellyn, Consultant [phone] lllewellyn_at_dp
i.state.nc.us Tracey Greggs, Section Chief (919)
807-3836 tgreggs_at_dpi.state.nc.us