1. Geography for Life: General Overview & Standard 1
Learning Progressions
February 6-8, 2014

2. Geography for Life (1 of 3)
The national geography standards were first published in 1994 by GENIP
While the Standards were accepted by educators & academic geographers, their implementation was uneven and they failed to become institutionalized (Bednarz 2003, )

3. Geography for Life (2 of 3)
A revised edition was published in 2012
Emphasis on geospatial technologies & the diversity of the discipline
More guidance for teachers
A consensus of the geographic community about what students should know and be able to do by the time they graduate from high school

4. Geography for Life (3 of 3)
Three components of geographic literacy
Geographic perspectives
Geographic knowledge
Geographic skills
The standards stress the importance of all three in developing geographic literacy

5. Geographic perspectives
Geography is often described as a perspective
Two perspectives
Spatial: Where? Why there?
Ecological: How life forms interact with the physical environment

6. Geographic knowledge 18 standards grouped within 6 essential elements
The world in spatial terms
Places & regions
Physical systems
Human systems
Environment & society
The uses of geography

7. Geographic skills 5 skills Asking geographic questions
Acquiring geographic information
Organizing geographic information
Analyzing geographic information
Answering geographic questions
Through the development of these skills, students acquire the necessary tools to think geographically

8. Geography for Life: Grade Levels
The (revised) standards provide guidance about what students should know & be able to at the elementary, middle, and secondary grades
Up to & including 4th grade
Up to & including 8th grade
Up to & including 12th grade
As students progress through school, their geographic knowledge & skills should become more sophisticated

9. Essential Element 1: The World in Spatial Terms Standard 1
How to use maps & other geographic representations, geospatial technologies, & spatial thinking to understand & communicate information
See Sarah’s handout

10. Sarah says: Focus on the overall content of the standard
What a map is
How to make a map
How to use a map
Don’t obsess over the exemplars / hypothetical activities
The content knowledge builds from Grades 4 to 8 to 12
The skills also build from 4 to 8 to 12 (more or less)
We posited these “learning progressions” and now they need to be researched at a range of scales