Volume 24 Number 1

Didactic Journey at School: A Collaborative Experience of Mediation in Geographical Thinking Formation

Lana de Souza Cavalcanti, Suzana Ribeiro Lima Oliveira & Kamila Santos de Paula Rabelo

This article is part of the results of collaborative action research that, based on the Cultural-Historical Theory, aimed to analyze possibilities of contributing to the construction process of the students’ geographic knowledge focusing on citizen spatial practices. It is part of the reflection on the importance of the interaction between universities and schools: the need to build theoretical and methodological elements that enable the formation of geographic thinking and the understanding that geographic knowledge is relevant to the fundamental education of all citizens. Thus, this work contributes to understanding individual and collective reality (social and natural) in different scales and contexts. We identified that when utilizing practical actions of collaborative intervention formalized during the elaboration and implementation of “Didactic Pathways for Mediation in Geography Teaching,” self-training and inter-training of involved teachers (university and Basic Education) could be enabled. Such reflections also provide opportunities for the construction of learning and the formation of geographic thinking by students.

Extending an Inquiry Model to Enhance Geographic Education in Chile

Alex Oberle & Fabián Araya Palacios

The Geo-Inquiry Process developed by National Geographic engages students in
geographic inquiry that starts with students formulating a question based on a
problem in their local community and leads to taking informed action through
advocating for a tangible solution. Originally designed for a primarily North
American audience, this research describes how this geographic inquiry process
can be adapted to a Chilean educational context and then ideally more broadly
across Latin America. This article provides a background on Geo-Inquiry, an
overview of the adaptation process in Chile, and includes example sustainability
and environment focused projects from the Chilean pilot school cohort.

Geographical Education as Powerful Knowledge in the Brazilian Curriculum

Carolina Machado Rocha Busch Pereira, Sonia Maria Vanzella Castellar & Ana
Claudia Ferreira Lima

The purpose of this article is to highlight how geography and its epistemological status were organized in the Basic Education curriculum in Brazil, in order to rescue the basic postulates of geographic science. This process was guided by the need to guarantee access to geographic knowledge and its fundamental representations in basic education. The central thesis of this article is to present the force that the epistemological field of geographic science has for education, as well as to reveal the importance that the theoretical-methodological foundations have to understand the different dynamics of societies in a world with constant transformations and contextualize the curriculum as a State policy to address equity and equal access to geographic knowledge. This is a theoretical research inquiry with critical reflection. We present the results of the conception of Geography in the Brazilian curriculum and how we seek to recover the Epistemological Statute as a way to value it in the curriculum, and at the same time, enable students to be able to read the world from their place of experience, understand the dynamics and the different uses of the territories.

Searching for Biogeography in the Classroom: A Proposed Curriculum to Address the State of Geography Education

Carlos A. Morales-Ramirez

Biogeography is a discipline in charge of studying patterns and spatial distribution of Earth’s flora and fauna. In geography, researchers have agreed that the discipline still needs a stronger representation. Considering the minimal focus on physical geography in many educational systems, the inclusion of biogeography in curriculum as a unique subdiscipline is lacking. Prior research on schools in Puerto Rico demonstrate this lack as biogeography is not taught in high school geography classes. The lack of geography standards in the island also adds to the discipline’s invisibility. This study explored the status of biogeography in education, specifically at the K–12 level, in Puerto Rico. Evaluating educational standards and course offerings at various schools revealed that biogeography was missing. This study provides recommendations on incorporating biogeography in education through various topics/lessons in island biogeography and suggests a curriculum that can easily be adapted to various standards to meet specific
educational aims and goals.