National Council for Geographic Education

Let's use the wayback machine to go to the time when the NCGE President sent a letter on American Association of Geographers letterhead to the President of the American Geographical Society. True inter-organizational respect and support! Thanks for the partnership then and now.

BTW, $100 in 1917 = ~$3,000 in 2026

Source: UW-Milwaukee Special Collections https://collections.lib.uwm.edu/digital/custom/mirador?manifest=https://collections.lib.uwm.edu//iiif/info/agsny/32716/manifest.json

An article to appear in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Geography is now available online!

Geography and Interdisciplinary Research: A Case Study from Singapore

by Tricia Seow, National Institute of Education, Singapore

Geography is widely recognized as a synthesizing discipline that bridges multiple disciplinary areas. This paper examines how and why geography contributes to interdisciplinary collaborations in education research, particularly amidst current trends toward constructivism and inquiry-based learning. Using two case studies from the Singapore context, it illustrates how geographical thinking through concepts and geography’s methodologies strengthened research contributions and partnerships with science and literacy education researchers. The paper also highlights enabling conditions for successful interdisciplinary endeavors like shared epistemic and conceptual frameworks.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00221341.2026.2675543

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Geography and Interdisciplinary Research: A Case Study from Singapore Geography is widely recognized as a synthesizing discipline that bridges multiple disciplinary areas. This paper examines how and why geography contributes to interdisciplinary collaborations in ed...

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OPEN ACCESS: An article from an upcoming issue of the Journal of Geography is now available online.

Why Does Geography Matter? The Politics of the Geography Curriculum

by John Morgan

We often are told that ‘Geography matters’. This paper - which comes from the British school of Geography Education, argues for a ‘political theory of the curriculum’ and explores how this might be understood in three national traditions – the UK, New Zealand, and the United States. These cases indicate that the representation of national space in geography teaching is always open to contestation, and that geography teachers are involved in acts of cultural critique. The concluding part of the paper identifies some common features and speculates on the implications for teacher development in geography.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00221341.2026.2672300

University of Auckland - Waipapa Taumata Rau

Why Does Geography Matter? The Politics of the Geography Curriculum We often are told that ‘Geography matters’. This paper - which comes from the British school of Geography Education, argues for a political theory of the curriculum ‘political theory of the curricu...

OPEN ACCESS: An article from an upcoming issue of The Journal of Geography is now available online.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00221341.2026.2667321

Students’ Strategies of Familiarisation with a General-Reference Map of an Unknown Area

By David Trokšiar, Lenka Krajňáková & Martin Hanus
Charles University

This study investigates the strategies used by 20 upper-secondary students to familiarize themselves with an unknown general-reference map. A one-minute familiarization phase during an eye-tracking experiment, followed by a questionnaire, examined how students processed key map elements. Students focused mainly on textual labels, particularly settlement names, while devoting less attention to structural features such as terrain or rivers. They also verified familiar legend symbols, indicating deliberate and controlled attention. Although their behavior showed intentionality, students tended to overlook structural relations within the map, suggesting a need for instructional guidance and more intuitive map design beneficial to both educators and cartographers.

Students’ Strategies of Familiarisation with a General-Reference Map of an Unknown Area This study investigates the strategies used by 20 upper-secondary students to familiarize themselves with an unknown general-reference map. A one-minute familiarization phase during an eye-tracking...

An article from an upcoming issue of The Journal of Geography is now available online. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00221341.2026.2667278

A Study on a Geography Project-Based Learning Model Aimed at Cultivating Spatial Thinking

By Huimin Wei & Yuan Zhao

Abstract -
Drawing upon constructivism and embodied cognition theories, this study develops a geography project-based learning model designed to foster students’ spatial thinking. Centered on project implementation, the model embeds embodied interventions throughout the process. The core elements of spatial thinking—spatial perception, representation, and reasoning—are systematically integrated into the learning process. A 16-week teaching experiment involving 104 junior high school students was conducted. Quantitative analysis revealed that the model significantly improved students’ spatial thinking ability, with the overall score increasing by 145.88%. Qualitative analysis further indicated a cognitive progression from terminology memorization to reasoning construction, and from procedural imitation to logical expression.

A Study on a Geography Project-Based Learning Model Aimed at Cultivating Spatial Thinking Drawing upon constructivism and embodied cognition theories, this study develops a geography project-based learning model designed to foster students’ spatial thinking. Centered on project implemen...

Higher education is changing, but the dedicated work of knowledgeable, skillful. and caring educators remains core to the value of the learning experiences available in geography courses and degree programs at colleges and universites across the country.

NCGE's Hɪɢʜᴇʀ Eᴅᴜᴄᴀᴛɪᴏɴ Dɪsᴛɪɴɢᴜɪsʜᴇᴅ Tᴇᴀᴄʜɪɴɢ Aᴡᴀʀᴅ Nominations and two letters of recommendation are due in by July 20!

We depend on our members to nominate colleagues, mentors, and teacher-scholars who they have observed to be doing exemplary work to benefit their students. Make a nomination today and let us join you in celebrating a distinguished educator.

Awards Program – National Council for Geographic Education NCGE recognizes educators and advocates who have made outstanding contributions to geography education. Submit nominations online.

NCGE President Celeste Tanner Reynolds offered her own thoughts, informed by her own professional experience as a teacher and education leader, in response to a recent Education Week opinion blog by Rick Hess of the American Enterprise Institute.

"While the [...] post rightly defends the importance of memorizing geographic facts, geography education goes further. It teaches students how space is created, controlled, and experienced."

"Without geographic thinking, students may know isolated facts but fail to grasp the forces shaping their communities and the wider world."

https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/opinion-to-understand-the-world-they-live-in-kids-need-to-learn-geography/2026/05

American Association of Geographers National Council for the Social Studies American Geographical Society National Geographic Education

To Understand the World They Live in, Kids Need to Learn Geography (Opinion) The president of the National Council for Geographic Education advocates for geographic knowledge.

Strongly agree! Thanks for speaking up, Allison Cecil.

Yes, Students Still Need to Learn Geography (Opinion) Knowing where places are is just the starting point, writes a teacher.

Geographers play a crucial role in biodiversity research by analyzing how species, habitats, and environmental factors interact across space. Through spatial modeling and local fieldwork, they pinpoint threatened habitats, map species distribution, and evaluate how human activities drive biodiversity loss and conservation.