Elizabeth R. Hinde

The Integration of Literacy and Geography: The Arizona GeoLiteracy Program's Effect on Reading Comprehension

Abstract To provide the first interstate quasi-experimental assessment on the power of content integration in building reading skills, the authors studied the effects on reading comprehension of GeoLiteracy—a K-8 package of 85 lessons that teaches geography in the context of practicing reading and writing skills. Ninety-six third through eighth grade teachers in Arizona and Michigan divided up into intervention and comparison groups. Intervention teachers taught GeoLiteracy lessons during their language arts or social studies times, and their comparison teacher counterparts taught the curriculum as usual—without GeoLiteracy. Statistical analyses of reading comprehension assessments of the 2,539 students involved reveal statistically significant improvement in reading comprehension scores for students in Grades 5 through 8 who were taught using the GeoLiteracy curriculum. Qualitative data regarding intervention teacher practice are also described.

Elementary Teachers’ Application of Jean Piaget’s Theories of Cognitive Development during Social Studies Curriculum Debates in Arizona

In this article we explore educators’ use of Jean Piaget’s theories concerning cognitive development to refute proposed social studies standards in Arizona. We describe the work of Piaget as well as the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s developmentally appropriate practices as they apply to primary‐grade children’s capabilities of learning history. Recent research on children’s ability to learn history, as well as research concerning the competing curricular frameworks of expanding communities and core knowledge, is described. During a public review of the proposed standards, educators and concerned citizens of Arizona were given opportunities to air their comments and concerns to the Arizona Department of Education. Our data consisted of written comments on the standards submitted by 50 public reviewers and copies of draft standards containing all proposed and accepted changes from the beginning of the public review period (March 1–25, 2005) until the Arizona Department of Education presented the standards to the state board of education for approval. During analysis of these comments, we found that teachers frequently referred to Piagetian theory and developmentally appropriate practices to refute the new standards. We concluded that children can learn history from either curricular framework as long as teachers employ practices that are developmentally appropriate. Unfortunately, as we explain, teachers’ arguments, based on their understandings of Piaget, to refute content‐laden curriculum in grades K–3 stifled substantive discussions that are at the heart of social studies education.

Learning geography promotes learning math: Results and implications of Arizona's GeoMath grade K-8 program

Abstract The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation has resulted in declining classroom time dedicated to geography instruction, especially in grades K-8. To combat this problem, a National Geographic Society Grosvenor grant provided resources allowing 28 teacher-authors to generate a package of more than 80 lessons that combine the teaching of geography and mathematics skills tested on Arizonas state mandated testing. When taught in 113 piloting classrooms that mirror Arizonas student demographics, GeoMath lessons generated statistically significant increases in performance in math skills and improved understanding of geography standards. In addition, a fourth of the K-8 piloting teachers surveyed felt that teaching GeoMath lessons increased in their level of comfort in teaching mathematics. Given the success of this GeoMath strategy, and a prior GeoLiteracy program, we advocate here a national agenda of articulating geography curriculum to high-stakes tested subjects of reading and math.

Linking geography to reading and English language learners’ achievement in US elementary and middle school classrooms

The GeoLiteracy for English language learners (ELLs) program is a curriculum that enhances reading and writing skills while teaching geography content for US students in kindergarten through eighth grades. The program includes 85 lesson plans that address all US national geography standards, a quarter of which address environmental issues. The program also includes methodology and materials aimed at meeting the academic needs of the growing population of ELLs in the United States. This article describes a study conducted in three US states that examined the effects of GeoLiteracy for English Language Learners on reading comprehension of third to eighth grade students. The findings reveal that reading comprehension achievement of students, especially ELLs, who used GeoLiteracy improved or maintained. Thus, offering geography education to ELLs not only promotes the discipline but also improves reading comprehension. This study uncovered a number of bureaucratic, political and philosophical issues related to the education of ELLs in the state of Arizona, which could mirror issues in other US states.

Exploring Teachers’ Use of Resources to Integrate Geography and History

Abstract This article describes the findings of a study involving a professional development program that prepared middle school teachers to integrate content on the earliest eras of world history and world geography. In particular, this study focused on participants’ (n = 37) use of geographic resources to integrate geography and history and to encourage spatial thinking. Teachers were enthusiastic about all of the resources and used them to integrate geography and history content. Thus, this study found that teachers will adopt relevant and accessible materials if they are trained to use them. The Atlas of World History was the most widely adopted resource; the mapping software StrataLogica was more effective at promoting spatial thinking, but the teachers found it to be less accessible and therefore did not use it as often.