Teacher's Guide to Modern Geography (FIPSE)

The AAG recently received a three-year, $515,927 grant to support the development of a "Teacher's Guide to Modern Geography." The grant, awarded by U.S. Department of Education's Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), will cover 55% of the project cost of developing, evaluating, and publishing the various products that will compose the teacher's guide, with the remaining 45% funded by nongovernmental sources.

The primary aim of the teacher's guide is to improve the preparation of teachers in the pre-service state of the teacher professional continuum (including student teaching), when very few teachers actually major in geography. The teacher's guide will also help all teachers meet the provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002, which requires teachers of core academic subjects (including geography) to be "highly qualified."

The teacher's guide will consist of an interlocking set of teacher-training materials in print and digital formats: (1) A multimedia CD with animated instructional units that deal with the analytical skills in the National Geography Standards, such as measuring direction, distance, slope, and density; analyzing map patterns and making rigorous map comparisons; formulating and testing hypotheses; identifying exceptions to patterns predicted by hypotheses; and buffering, overlaying, windowing, and other methods of spatial analysis. (2) A printed manual that outlines fundamental principles of analytical geography and provides guides for teaching those principles. (3) A set of copier-ready student activities and transparency masters to help teachers make immediate use of the content and skills described in the manual and CD. (4) Assessment instruments that help teachers evaluate mastery of the content and skills, with a special skills to issues within a local community and state. (5) Curriculum planners that can be disseminated through the Geographic Alliances. The planners will help teachers relate the generalizations and examples in the CD, manual, activities, and assessments to the specific content and skill standards in their home states. (6) An interactive Web site for rapid dissemination and updates of outlines, intermediate drafts, and alternative data set. This site will offer tools for teachers to share their experiences with using particular kinds of analytical thereby helping one another implement innovative practices.

With the guidance of principal investigators (PIs) Phil Gersmehl (Hunter College) and Michael Solem (AAG) the teacher's guide will be developed through a rigorous schedule of testing and revision involving hundreds of teachers across the nation. Joseph Stoltman (Western Michigan University) serves as the external evaluator for the project and will work with the PIs to assess the utility of the resources for improving the preparation and abilities of geography teachers. Testing of materials will be done in school districts from coast to coast-volunteers for the first year include several districts in Washington, DC, under the direction of faculty at Howard University; in several boroughs of New York City, in collaboration with the New York Center for Geographic Learning at Hunter College; in the Rio Grande Valley of south Texas, with members of the Texas Geographic Alliance and several individuals from Texas A&M; and in Arizona and Oregon, in collaboration with people from Arizona State University, the University of Oregon, and the Geographic Alliances in both states.


NEWS

FIPSE WORKSHOP FOR TEACHERS AND METHODS FACULTY AT NCGE ANNUAL MEETING IN BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA (OCTOBER 15-16, 2005)

The workshop is scheduled for Saturday, October 15, from12:00 to 6:00 p.m. and Sunday, October 16, from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. It will be led by Phil Gersmehl (University of Minnesota and Hunter College Center for Geography Education), Michael Solem (AAG), Jongwon Lee (AAG), and Joseph Stoltman (Western Michigan University).

Participants will receive sample print and CD materials and learn how to use the Teacher’s Guide to Modern Geography to meet national and state geography standards as well as cross-curricular needs. They will also be invited to apply for stipends to evaluate project materials, contribute content, or serve as reviewers. All workshop participants will receive a detailed agenda about a month before the workshop. The USDOE grant will cover all workshop costs, including materials, rooms (double occupancy) in the conference hotel on Saturday night, lunch and dinner on Saturday and breakfast and lunch on Sunday. Applications will be accepted until August 1, or until all spaces are filled.

WORKSHOP APPLICATION

INVITATION TO REVIEW A TEACHER'S GUIDE TO MODERN GEOGRAPHY

The AAG invites teachers, postsecondary faculty members, and professional development leaders to provide us with detailed, constructive reviews of the project’s materials. We also seek ideas for student activities, lesson plans, or instructional materials that support the professional needs of teachers as well as university faculty who teach pre-service instructional methods courses for teachers. Reviewers will receive paper or CD copies of TGMG materials with a questionnaire and written evaluation form. Upon completion and acceptance of their review, individuals will receive an honorarium of $350.

To apply, please send a letter of interest and a short c.v. by September 1, 2005 to:

Dr. Jongwon Lee
Association of American Geographers
1710 Sixteenth Street NW
Washington, D.C. 20009
E-mail: jlee@aag.org
Tel: 202-234-1450
Fax: 202-234-2744