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7 Strengthening Geography's Foundations
Pages 138-160

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From page 138...
... Despite three decades of growth in the number of professional geographers, the geography community remains small relative to most other natural and social science disciplines. Few colleges 1 The remaining two objectives of the assessment-to increase appreciation of geography in the scientific community and to communicate with the international scientific community about the future directions of the discipline in the United States will be achieved by dissemination of this report.
From page 139...
... is likely to translate into a growing demand for college graduates with geographic training. Realizing geography's potential requires more than addressing the problems presented by the discipline's small size and limited diversity, however.
From page 140...
... the local-global continuum, 4. comparative studies using longitudinal data, 5.
From page 141...
... Access to advanced visualization algorithms and media will be essential as well, as will research to develop more effective visualization methods. Broadening the Concept of Global Change Global change research has become a major interdisciplinary focus for science, comparable in breadth, organization, and required resources to such large comprehensive international scientific undertakings as the human genome project.
From page 142...
... Such changes include the global accumulation of pollutants in the biosphere acid deposition, heavy metals in soils, chemicals in groundwater- as well as global biotic changes, specifically deforestation in tropical and mountain lands, desertification in dry lands, and species extinction, particularly in the tropics. Global social, political, and economic changes also need to be considered: the expected doubling of world population in as little as 50 years, the massive restructuring of the world economy, the changing role of the modern state, the flow of migrants across international boundaries, and the unpredictable and sometimes violent response of people to such changes.
From page 143...
... prime interest rate may trigger changes in international money markets, which in turn are filtered through various national economies into local economic decision making. The sheer complexity of these relationships strongly suggests that interactions across scale are not linear but involve thresholds and abrupt jumps between different conditions and outcomes and that outcomes vary considerably by locale and region.
From page 144...
... This figure illustrates the scale dependence of several data collection methods, ranging from direct observation through fieldwork to merged images obtained from multi ple sensor systems on satellites. On each of the plots above, the horizontal axis represents the temporal scale and the vertical axis represents the spatial scale of observation.
From page 145...
... With a few notable exceptions, geography does not have an established tradition of team research, partly because much geographic research is carried out at more restricted spatial and temporal scales and partly because of a general lack of research support for sustained, teambased work. Adjustments in the research culture and research support systems will be required in order to effectively tackle such work.
From page 146...
... In relation to the latter, geographers need to identify mismatches between the ways in which people understand the world and the ways in which aspects of the world are modeled and presented through geographic technology. More generally, formal models of common-sense geographic concepts are needed as a basis for the design of more intuitive user interfaces to geographic technologies.
From page 147...
... Consideration also must be given to ways of expanding the geographic competency of the general population many of whom have little idea of what geography is, much less an understanding of its key concepts and tools-and of ensuring that the geographic content and skills being taught are sound. Increasing the competency of the general population will require an expansion of opportunities for geographic learning in elementary and secondary schools, in community and technical colleges, and in four-year colleges and universities and among people who are outside the mainstream educational structure.
From page 148...
... It has become increasingly apparent in recent years that geography education at these levels is usually woefully inadequate, where it exists at all. An effective response will require that substantially more geographic information and reasoning be taught in and out of the classroom (Geography Education Standards Project, 1994~.
From page 149...
... The goal of these efforts should be to produce a group of community college and technical school graduates who are in a position to think geographically in their daily lives and to employ geographic technologies in specific vocational endeavors. Geographic Competency Among College and University Students Both as citizens and as participants in the labor force, university and college graduates are confronting issues and problems that require geographic knowledge and perspectives-ranging from local impacts of global economic change to the effects of changing national demographics on the U.S.
From page 150...
... When these issues are considered alongside major social trends that are shaping the postsecondary educational environmentdecreasing faculty-student ratios, the growing diversity of student populations, and the trend toward early specialization the need for new approaches to training geographers at the college level becomes apparent. The following section focuses on ways to increase the quality of geography training by improving interactions within the discipline and increasing outreach to other disciplines.
From page 151...
... As a consequence, the discipline's strengths in the integration of natural and social sciences in place, space, and time have been lessened, and the discipline's distinctive contributions to liberal education and geographic competency have been concomitantly reduced. Specialization at the undergraduate level in geography needs to be balanced with opportunities for exposure to different geographic subspecialties in ways that simultaneously reinforce the best qualities of liberal education, prepare students for advanced training, and give all students exposure to geographic research and exploration.
From page 154...
... , the implementation of precollege geography standards (Geography Education Standards Project, 1994) , and more effective teacher training provided by alliances such as the National Geographic Society Alliance.
From page 155...
... Computer and telecommunications technologies provide powerful interactive learning tools to address this need. Such tools can help teachers develop the background knowledge necessary for effective instruction and can give students a chance to learn and experiment at their own pace and in creative ways.
From page 156...
... The same multimedia classroom tools can be used to instruct students in the use of interactive learning modules that build on classroom presentations. Regional Knowledge and Expertise What are the major social ramifications of economic restructuring in Eastern Europe?
From page 157...
... 8 or in 8 The SSRC organizes workshops and symposia and funds joint research projects of scholars working on regional problems.
From page 158...
... suggests that students doing foreign-area dissertation research switch to other topics after graduation or focus on topical problems at the expense of larger regional developments. Whatever the causes, one of the important learning challenges facing geography is to expand the number of geographers who can contribute to broad-based scholarly and policy initiatives focused on regional issues.
From page 159...
... Many academic geographers were attracted to the discipline by its real-world focus, its concern with what one geographer has called "the world you can kick." Incorporating field studies into geography courses is likely to attract students who are interested in connecting the world of the mind with the concrete world in which they live. Moreover, opening up field experiences to students can enhance their understanding of the complexity of the world and heighten their appreciation for the geographic consequences of decisions and actions.
From page 160...
... For example, the geographic information system listserve (GIS-L' is reported to have a national and international readership exceeding 20,000-almost three times the size of the Association of American Geographers. As the use of digital libraries and such digital information exchange tools as the World Wide Web becomes more common, the importance of technological literacy in the profession becomes obvious.


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