International Differences in Thinking Geographically, and Why ‘the Local’ Matters

Abstract

This chapter explore how geography teachers in four countries understand the discipline of geography and how differences in understanding may affect the representation of the subject in the school curriculum. Drawing upon an international project, using the data collected from teachers in England, this chapter focuses on the implications of these findings, by emphasising how a teacher’s understanding of geography can influence how they view and teach the geography curriculum. This research draws upon Stengel’s (Journal of Curriculum Studies, 29(5), 585–602, (1997) observations that the relationship between academic and school geography has both an epistemological and ethical dimension, and on Bernstein’s (Class, codes and control. Vol. 3. Towards a theory of educational transmissions (2nd ed.). Routledge and Kegan Paul, London, (1977) notion of recontextualisation to understand how the geography curriculum is made and defined locally. The findings reveal the significance of legacy issues within national and local contexts and how these can influence geography teachers, even if they feel a lack of agency as curriculum makers. The implications of this work are significant, as different interpretations of what constitutes geographical knowledge can be seen as barriers to developing internationally agreed understandings. This school-orientated influences can affect how young people are taught to value geography and how they are inducted into thinking geographically.