»Geography

Arizona Geographic Alliance is centered at Arizona State University, with the collaboration of the University of Arizona and Northern Arizona University. There are about 150 teachers statewide who are focused on providing quality geographic/global education for students. Members are active learners and travelers. AZGA is closely associated with the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Arizona. The Alliance sponsors the annual Geography Bee and has developed an extensive collection of geography lesson plans and file of maps that can be downloaded. The web site features the state geography standards and has links to other geography resources.

The Association of American Geography has sponsors The Online Center for Global Geography Education which, in turn, has produced ten teaching/learning modules that involve critical reading, data collection, assessment, interpretation, map reading, field interviewing, role playing, and writing for particular audiences. These active learning modules focus on such topics as Living in the Biosphere: Production, Pattern, Population, and Diversity; The Geography of Greenhouse Gas Emissions; Population Growth, Energy Use, and Pollution, and Human Health in the Balance. The modules are appropriate for advanced high school students.

Atlapedia Online contains key information on every country of the world. Each country profile provides facts and data on geography, climate, people, religion, language, history and economy. It contains full color physical maps, political maps, as well as key facts and statistics on countries of the world.

Canadian Council for Geographic Education serves as the education program of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society from whom it receives its funding. The mandate of CCGE is to increase the emphasis on geography in Canada’s elementary, secondary, and college systems and to improve geography teaching methods and classroom materials by sponsoring institutes and workshops and by developing educational resources. The website has extensive lesson plan and map resources, and links to other geographic organizations.

The goal of Connecticut Geographic Alliance is to improve geographic education in Connecticut by: (1) promoting mastery of geography as a core subject area; (2) providing content and leadership training for teachers; (3) offering in-service programs that use geography to address broad interdisciplinary, environmental, urban and multicultural issues; (4) making the National and State Geography Standards an integral part of the Social Studies; and (5) providing family programs at K-5 and middle school levels. This is accomplished through a variety of in-service training activities, curriculum leadership and assistance, and assistance in identifying and obtaining curriculum resources.

Country Watch provides country-specific geopolitical intelligence on each of 192 countries of the world. Features include such things as a forecast of macroeconomic trends in each country, news from each country, an online collection of over 2,000 maps, and a special feature called COUNTRYWATCH@SCHOOL. This includes curriculum-based resources such as activities, lesson plans, and country-quizzes tailored to students in grades 8-12.

The Degree Confluence Project is an organized sampling of the world in which photos and stories are taken at integer latitude/longitude intersections around the world, allowing the viewer to take a virtual world tour. The project encompasses 160 countries with nearly 13,000 pictures in the collection. There are three maps: (1) the Composite World map that brings all of the main images for each confluence together in a mosaic, (2) the Worldwide MapGuide map, which is an interactive map of confluences that allows for zooming and panning to pictures and story pages, and (3) the Worldwide Confluence Navigator, which allows viewing the current state of any part of the globe.

Geo Education provides people and services to help geographic, environmental, and global education research, program evaluation, community development and other needs. It also has a variety of resources for games and exercises using the many globes it produces for sale. It also has links to other organizations and programs that provide resources to K-12 teachers. Its premier product is the Astronaut’s Globe that is a composite of images taken by orbiting American astronauts. The Globe is 16 inches in diameter and is accompanied by a Crewmember’s Guide that comes with it.

Geographia provides downloadable information on location, geography, climate, history and people, and interesting sites in a number of countries in Africa, Asia, Caribbean, Europe and Latin America. The site is useful for students who are gathering data on individual countries. Its main objective is to provide services for those interested in traveling.

The Geographic Education National Implementation Project (GENIP) is a consortium of geographic associations committed to improving the status and quality of geography education in the U.S. It serves as a clearinghouse that coordinates the geography education initiatives of its member associations. While its major concern is policy, it does support and disseminate results of significant geographic curriculum initiatives at the K-12 level of schooling, all keyed to National Geography Standards.

The Geography Educators’ Network of Indiana exists to promote the value and significance of geography in Indiana; and the importance of geography in the curricula of Indiana’s K-12 schools, colleges and universities. It does this by providing workshops and summer institutes for teachers, by organizing conferences and meetings with high-interest programs for educators, by recognizing excellence in teaching by giving grants and awards and by maintaining a file of maps, lesson plans and other classroom materials for use by GENI members.

Through Google Earth you can take a virtual journey to any location in the world and explore imagery and terrain. Find cities, places, famous landmarks and see places in the news.

Global Maps has links to all kinds of maps. Some can be downloaded, others are for sale, often at discount prices. Other things, such as geographic clip art, also are offered free.

The National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA), in collaboration with the Geography Education National Implementation Project (GENIP), produced Mission Geography with the goal of having three publications that link the skills and content of Geography for Life: National Geography Standards with NASA’s mission and results. The three publications are Mission Geography K-4, Mission Geography 5-8, and Mission Geography 9-12. The CDs contain curriculum support material focused on the development of grade level-appropriate geography skills, including remote sensing and map/image interpretation.

The National Council for Geographic Education (NCGE) works to enhance the status and quality of geography teaching and learning. It develops, publishes, and promotes the use of curriculum, resources, and learning materials. It also promotes the recognition and professional development of teachers of geography, and promotes communication within the field.

Since 1986, the National Geographic Society Educational Foundation has helped to build a national network of K-12 teachers, college professors, school administrators and others dedicated to improving geography education. These Geography Alliances work at promoting geography education at the local, state and national levels. Teachers interested in improving the teaching of geography in their own classrooms should check at the sites given below and consider becoming a member of the Alliance.

The National Geographic Society is one of the world’s largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations. Its mission is to increase and diffuse geographic knowledge while promoting the conservation of the world’s cultural, historical and natural resources. It provides a variety of materials that can be used by K-12 teachers of geography and related subjects. Xpeditions is the National Geographic Society’s homepage for lesson plans and student activities. It has thousands of classroom resources, including maps and images, teaching ideas, games, and homework help. The National Geographic Map Machine is an online atlas which generates a variety of maps of any country desired. The National Geographic Store features Thematic Multimedia Teaching Kits, among other things.

The Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection, part of the University of Texas Library, has a large collection of electronic maps that can be accessed online. Many are of current interest such as maps of Iraq, Pakistan, Israel and Palestine and the Sudan.

The World Thematic Maps site has a variety of maps, many of which illustrate socio-political themes and geographic conditions around the world such as world religions, world languages, population density, natural forest cover of the world.