A. David Hill

Geography on the Web: Changing the Learning Paradigm?

Abstract Computer technology has a rich history in geography education. The Internet represents the latest in technological advancements that continue to have important effects on geography curriculum and instruction. Many geographers are involved with Internet-based instruction, which some educators believe has potential to facilitate changes in how we teach and even what we teach. This article describes how the Internet is being used by some geographers for instructional purposes and discusses opportunities for improving teaching and learning with the Internet.

Geography Instructional Materials for Standards-Based Education.

Abstract In order to establish standards-based education in K-12 geography in the United States, we must 1) develop strong instructional materials, 2) train teachers to use those materials, and 3) ensure adoption of the materials by providing curricular guidance, especially linking materials and teacher training to the reform movement for standards-based education. Three geography instructional materials-development projects support the new geography standards and offer alternatives to the current patterns of classroom use of traditional textbooks and idiosyncratic fugitive activities. GIGI, ARGUS, and GEOLinks represent steps in the evolution of geography materials development in the United States.

Geography and education: North America

The subfield of geographic education stands at the intersection of geography and education. This report discusses recent developments in geographic education in North America. Geographic educators specialize in the communication of geographic knowledge and skills and of subjective perspectives such as attitudes and values. As such, all geographers (and many nongeographers) are geographic educators, yet few North American geographers categorize themselves as geographic educators and even fewer count geographic education as one of their specialties. The Association of American Geographers (AAG) has 40 specialty groups, and the speciality group on geography in higher education has 206 members, which is less than 5% of the total AAG membership of 4462 (Association of American Geographers, 1989a; 1989b). The National Council for Geographic Education (NCGE) has about 1400 members, about half of whom

Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon: A Classroom Project.

Abstract Environmental issues are increasingly important both in politics and in academia. This classroom project deals with tropical deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon and addresses both environmental consequences and economic, social, and political causes. Designed for the lower undergraduate level, the project covers a period of three weeks and includes lectures, individual research by students on the actors involved in Amazonian deforestation, and a simulation in which students role-play a Brazilian “Regional Planning Commission,” which formulates recommendations for the development of southeastern Amazonia.