Progression in geography

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Progression in geography

• Elizabeth Rynne St Helens School, Middlesex
• Paul Weeden University of Birmingham
• p.weeden_at_bham.ac.uk

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Prescribed content KS1, KS2, KS3, GCSE, AS, A2,
IB etc
Vision
What is taught
coherence

• Increasing
• Depth
• Breadth
• complexity

Knowledge Understanding Skills
Topical issues Choice
Teaching strategies

• Increasing ability to
• Interpret
• Analyse
• Problem solve
• Draw conclusions
• Evaluate

How it is delivered
progression
variety
Pupil learning
What is learned
Assessment
Increasing Independence

• Increasing ability
• to be self critical
• to analyse own learning needs

Formative / Summative Teacher / Peer / Self
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Curriculum

• Content
• Knowledge, factual material, case studies
• Concepts, principles and ideas
• Skills (map reading)
• Approaches (enquiry)
• Understanding the
• language and grammar of geography

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Curriculum planning or development?

• Curriculum planning
• Teachers constrained
• Organising and sorting material
• Content and teaching / learning provided
• Curriculum development
• Teachers have more control
• Taking forward
• Changes at KS3 KS4 KS5
• Emphasis on development

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Ownership of curriculum

• Teachers can
• Select content sequence of TL
• Respond to local needs
• Use local contacts and fieldwork opportunities
• Make the curriculum topical and relevant
• School based curriculum development

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More work?

• Selecting Content
• Same topics
• meanders
• Tired, dated and superseded
• Sabre toothed curriculum
• River stages (Youth, Mature, Old Age Upper,
  Middle, Lower)
• Glacial flow (Geography, 2007)
• New topics
• Global Challenges climate change, globalisation
• Vibrant curriculum
• Ecopolis, energy debates, shopping (retail
  therapy)

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The student view

• I didnt realise that geography was such a
  variety of stuff its a lot better now! Ill
  definitely do it for A-level
• Year 10 pupil after working with a group of
• University of Birmingham Undergraduates Pilot
  GCSE

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Students learning geography?

• Do they see
• The potential and excitement of geography as a
  changing discipline?
• The impact on their future lives?
• Teachers have to consider
• What sort of geography?
• What is the school context like?
• What is geographys place in the whole school
  curriculum?

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Types of progression

• Generic
• Numeracy and literacy
• Problem solving
• Thinking
• IT skills
• Subject specific better geographers

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Developing understanding
Ideas Mental constructs Generalisations Model /
theory
Student (teacher) Experiences
Mental processes Language, recall, reflective
thinking Personal meanings, Public meanings
(adapted from Bennetts, 2005)
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Progression, Continuity, Sequence

• KS1 establishing foundations
• KS2 moving out to new challenges
• KS3 building confidence, capability and
  inspiration
• KS4 promoting participation, citizenship and
  new possibilities
• Post 16 ensuring possibilities for specialism
  and scholarship

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Progression

• Act of improving or moving forward
• Progression in a subject
• Subject structure
• Planned curriculum experience
• Pupils performance

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(No Transcript)
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Planning based on curriculum experience

• Teaching and learning experiences plan for
  increasing
• precision and sophistication in language and
  grammar of geography,
• breadth and complexity of understanding at a
  range of scales
• use of generalised knowledge, abstract ideas and
  linkage
• maturity of understanding of issues, values and
  attitudes
• independence in using the enquiry process and
  geographical skills (use of reasoning,
  explanations, linkages and judgements)

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Weather

• KS1 - personal experiences
• KS2 - seasonal change
• KS3 - types of rainfall high and low pressure
• KS4 depressions processes
• KS5 atmospheric patterns and processes

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Progression in outcomes

• Subject specific (Aims of geography)
• Phase specific (Geography subject criteria KS3 /
  GCSE / A-level)
• Course / curriculum specific (AO / levels)
• Topic specific (topic criteria - outcomes)
• Task specific (task learning outcomes)
• Pupil specific (individual target)

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Progression in outcomes Enquiry

• Common Processes across key stages
• Observation / perceiving
• Describing / defining
• Analysing / evaluating
• Making judgements
• Drawing conclusions
• What are the features of progression?

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Dimensions of progression

• Progression in student responses
• Restricted
• Uni-structural
• Multi-structural
• Relational
• Extended abstract
• (Solo Hierarchy)
• Better descriptions / explanations / judgements
  (SLN website)

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What kind of curriculum planner / developer are
you?

• Cautious
• Balanced
• Progressive
• Adventurous

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Prescribed content KS1, KS2, KS3, GCSE, AS, A2,
IB etc
Vision
What is taught
coherence

• Increasing
• Depth
• Breadth
• complexity

Knowledge Understanding Skills
Topical issues Choice
Teaching strategies

• Increasing ability to
• Interpret
• Analyse
• Problem solve
• Draw conclusions
• Evaluate

How it is delivered
progression
variety
Pupil learning
What is learned
Assessment
Increasing Independence

• Increasing ability
• to be self critical
• to analyse own learning needs

Formative / Summative Teacher / Peer / Self