Teaching Geography: About This Workshop
About the Contributors
Teaching Geography Commentators and Content Advisors
James B. Binko - Program Host, Pedagogical
Content Advisor
Dr. James Binko is professor emeritus of education at Towson University
and a consultant in teacher training for the Geography Education
Program. He is the author of Teaching Geography: A Model for
Action and co-author of Inductive Reasoning in the Secondary
School, as well as author of numerous monographs. He has been
involved in curriculum development programs for the National Geographic
Society, helping to create the national network of Geography Education Alliances,
as well as planning and conducting staff development and in-service
components of summer geography institutes. He is a member of the
National Council for Geography Education, the Association for
Supervision and Curriculum Development, and the American Educational
Research Association.
Gil Latz - Regional Geography Commentator,
Regional Geography Content Advisor
Gil Latz is professor of East Asian geography and international
studies at Portland State University in Oregon, specializing in
economic and political geography. Since his appointment to Portland
State University in 1984, his research has focused on regional
development policy (agriculture and urban) in Japan, East Asia,
and North America. This work continues with a specific focus on
sustainable management of forested areas in Europe and the U.S.
Dr. Latz's secondary interests focus on two areas: international
trade and educational video development. The latter has included
extensive work as an educational consultant in developing the
Annenberg Media telecourses The Pacific Century (1992) and
The Power of Place: World Regional Geography (1996), as
well as working with Cambridge Studios on their National Science
Foundation-funded multimedia project, Interactive World Issues
(ongoing). Latz authored both the study guide and the faculty
guide for the Power of Place: World Regional Geography
telecourse. He was the statewide coordinator of the Oregon Alliance
for Geography Education.
Susan Hardwick - Human Geography Commentator,
Human Geography Content Advisor
Susan Hardwick is a professor at the University of Oregon, specializing
in ethnic geography and geographic education. She is the 2002 president
of the National Council for Geographic Education (GENIP) and is
a member of the Steering Committees for both GENIP and the Association
of American Geographers' ARGWorld Project. Hardwick currently
directs a U.S. Department of Education-funded three-year project
that is developing, assessing, and disseminating an international
distance-learning master's degree in geography education. She
is a co-author of the best-selling textbook in the geographic
education realm, Geography for Educators: Standards, Themes
and Concepts. The book was written specifically for use in
in-service workshops and teacher-training institutes and has been
used by the National Geographic Society at its summer teacher-training
institute as well as by Geographic Alliances all across the country.
She was a secondary teacher for many years prior to entering university-level
teaching and publishing and remains strongly committed to improving
the preparation and professionalization of social studies and
geography teachers.
Other Content Advisors
Sarah Witham
Bednarz
With many years' experience teaching at the secondary level, Sarah
Witham Bednarz is a distinguished professor of geography at Texas
A&M University. She is one of the primary authors of Geography
for Life: National Geography Standards (1994). She headed
up a joint project to create the Mission Geography teaching materials
with NASA. She is the staff Executive Director of GENIP and is
an advisor to Cambridge Studios on their NSF-funded interactive
multimedia project, Interactive World Issues.
Osa Brand
Dr. Osa Brand is the Director of Education at the Association
of American Geographers (AAG). She has been involved with the development
of AAG's ARGUS and ARGWorld materials and is a voting member of
GENIP.
Barbara
Moses
Barbara Moses is the principal of Philadelphia Mennonite High
School and gained many years' experience teaching secondary-education
geography prior to her appointment as principal. One of her teachers,
Marlene Brubaker, is featured in this series.
Ruth Shirey
Professor Ruth Shirey teaches at Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
She is the past executive director of the National Council for
Geographic Education and, as such, votes on the GENIP steering
committee. Her knowledge of the issues facing geography teachers
on the national and local level is extensive.
Fred Walk
Fred Walk brings 30 years' experience teaching geography and economics
at Normal Community High School in Normal, Illinois. He has conducted
numerous geography workshops, reviewed textbooks, and consulted
on curriculum development. He conducted a National Diffusion Network
workshop, "Teaching Geography: A Model for Action," for the National
Geographic Society at numerous sites across the country. He was
invited to serve as a site visitor for the Secondary School Recognition
Program administered by the U.S. Department of Education. Mr. Walk
is past president of the Illinois Geography Society and is a teacher
consultant for the NASA/GENIP Institute to present lesson plans
using Mission Geography curriculum at Texas A&M University.
He is featured in two classroom segments in Teaching Geography:
one on Russia's shrinking Aral Sea and the other on measures of the
quality of life in Southeast Asia.
Featured Educators
Andy Aiken, 9th- to 12th-Grade AP Human Geography
Teacher, Boulder High School, Boulder, Colorado
Andy Aiken teaches AP Enriched Economics at Boulder High School
and is active in the Colorado Geographic Alliance, having assisted
in the creation of their state geography standards. He recently
received a grant from the Foundation for Boulder Valley Schools
to teach other area high school educators to incorporate world
geography and history computer software into their curriculums.
In our program on Europe, Mr. Aiken leads a classroom discussion on
supranationalism in the European Union and North America.
Marlene Brubaker, 10th-Grade Environmental
Science / Biology Teacher, Philadelphia Mennonite High School, Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania
Marlene Brubaker has been teaching at Philadelphia Mennonite High
School for the past four years. As part of her efforts to work
for the betterment of her students and give them opportunities for
their success, Ms. Brubaker's Environmental Science course provides
a number of field trips in partnership with the Peopling Philadelphia
Cooperative throughout the students' freshman year. These trips provide
students with a wealth of experience and help put all incoming
students on a common playing field, regardless of their socio-economic
background.
Craig Cogswell, 11th- and 12th-Grade Geography
Teacher, Westminster High School, Westminster, Colorado
Craig Cogswell renewed his interest in geography after attending
the Colorado Geographic Alliance Summer Geography Institute (ASGI)
in 1990. Since then, he has been teaching geography at Westminster
High School. He received the Dave Hill Award for the advancement
of geographic education in Colorado in 1999 and was named Colorado
Teacher of the Year 2000. He has master's degrees in secondary
education and educational technology from the University of Colorado,
Boulder, and has taught at ASGI and as a guest lecturer at the
University of Northern Colorado. Mr. Cogswell's lesson for this program
encourages critical thinking about urban organization in Amsterdam.
Mary Pat Evans, 7th- and 8th-Grade Science
and Field Studies Teacher, Londonderry School, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Mary Pat Evans, who earned her B.S. in chemistry and biology at
Cabrini College, has taught various levels of chemistry and biology
in her career. For five years, she has been using Graphic Information
Technologies, a set of technology tools whose use she helped support
as chair of the Pennsylvania K-12 GIS Alliance. She has made presentations
on her work at the ESRI User Conference, the National Imaging
Technology in Education Conference, and the Pennsylvania State
GIS Conference. In her lesson, Ms. Evans's students partake in
a field trip in order to gain hands-on GIS experience.
Rick Gindele, 12th-Grade AP Human Geography
Teacher, Smoky Hill High School, Aurora, Colorado
Rick Gindele received his geography education at the University
of Connecticut and his M.A. at the University of Colorado. In his
experience as a geography educator since 1993, he has taught World
Regional Geography, IB Human Geography, AP Human Geography, and
IB Physical Geography. His accomplishments include experience
as a high school staff member for the Colorado Alliance Summer
Geography Institute, co-director of the Colorado Geographic Alliance
AP Human Geography Institute in 2000 and 2001, and a Distinguished
Teaching Achievement Award from the National Council for Geographic
Education in 2000. Drawing on his background as a cartographer
and urban planner, Mr. Gindele helps his students personalize their
understanding of geography by using GIS technology to investigate
the Denver metro area.
Sharon Goralewksi, 7th-Grade Geography:
Eastern Hemisphere Teacher, Oxford Middle School, Oxford, Michigan
Sharon Goralewski has taught for 22 years with Oxford Schools.
She has experience teaching a variety of classes but most enjoys
geography and seventh graders because, as she says, "They
will always laugh at my jokes." She received her undergraduate
and masters degrees from Wayne State University in Detroit and
has an advanced degree from Oakland University. Among other professional
associations, she is a member of the Michigan Geographic Alliance.
For this workshop, she contributed a lesson on Israel which you
can find in our Featured Lesson Plans for Workshop 4.
Ungennette Brantley Harris, 9th-Grade Introduction
to Geography Teacher, West Point High School, West Point, Mississippi
Ungennette Brantley Harris has been teaching for the past 28 years
in the West Point School District, having received her B.S. from
Jackson State University and a Masters of Education from Mississippi
State University. She was selected Teacher of the Year in 1989
and 1999 and received the Bronze Award from Junior Achievement
for Outstanding Service in Enterprise Education. She is a member
of the Mississippi Geographic Alliance, the Mississippi Council
of Social Studies, and both the Mississippi and National Associations
of Educators. A teacher consultant for the National Geographic
Society Education Program, she is featured in our program leading
a lesson on the spatial organization of refugee camps.
Randy Hoover, 7th-Grade World Geography
Teacher, Dover-Sherborn Middle School, Massachusetts
Randy Hoover teaches seventh-grade world geography and is social
studies curriculum leader at Dover-Sherborn Middle School, a public
school in suburban Boston. A former member of the Massachusetts
Council for Social Studies Board of Directors, Mr. Hoover is a
National Geographic Society teacher consultant and has presented
workshops at the National Council for Geographic Educators' conference
and the Northeast Regional Conference for Social Studies. He is
the recipient of three summer fellowships from the National Endowment
for the Humanities and is featured here teaching about human migration
issues in Mexico.
Connie Hudgeons, 12th-Grade AP Government/Enriched
Economics Teacher, Cibola High School, Albuquerque, New Mexico
Connie Hudgeons has been teaching since 1978 and at Cibola High
School since 1987. There, she teaches courses in geography, history,
economics, and government. She has served on the Character Counts
Committee, the North Central Steering Team, the Staff Development
Committee, the Site Restructuring Committee, the Curriculum Committee,
and as special education coordinator. Additionally, she has been
a teacher consultant for the New Mexico Geographic Alliance since
1993. In connection with the Dagestan case study, Ms. Hudgeons's students
negotiate the division of land among competing culture groups.
Shirley Hutchins, 8th-Grade U.S. History and
7th-Grade European Studies Teacher, West Point High School,
West Point, Mississippi
Shirley Hutchins has 14 years of teaching experience and a B.S.
in social science education from Jackson State University. She
is a member of the Mississippi Geography Alliance, the Mississippi
Association of Educators, the Mississippi Social Studies Council,
and she is a teacher consultant for the National Geographic Society.
In our program, she leads a lesson on AIDS diffusion in sub-Saharan
Africa.
Carole Mayrose, 10th- to 12th-Grade Environmental
Science Teacher, Northview High School, Brazil, Indiana
Carole Mayrose teaches all levels of high school Earth science.
As part of her teaching mission, she endeavors to provide students
of all abilities with the tools and skills that will help them
complete school and succeed in life. She is featured teaching
a class about the relationship between the locations of earthquakes
and volcanoes and the effects of living near such natural hazards.
Phil Rodriguez, 10th- to 12th-Grade World Geography
Teacher, Holmes High School, San Antonio, Texas
A native Texan, Phil Rodriguez has over 20 years' teaching experience,
having received his bachelor's degree in secondary education with
specializations in Earth science and geography. He is active in
the Texas Alliance for Geographic Education, a teacher consultant
for the National Geographic Society, and a participant in the
Educational Technology Leadership Institute. In the 1997-98 school
year, he was selected Campus Teacher of the Year at Holmes High
School. He employs the Internet and maps to help students better
understand the geography of their own metropolitan area. Mr. Rodriguez
believes in the value of primary source materials and uses his
own background in population geography in collecting the data
his students analyze in his classes. They use this data as they
analyze census figures in order to predict San Antonio's future
growth.
Cynthia Ryan, 7th- and 8th-Grade World
Geography Teacher, Barrington Middle School, Barrington, Rhode
Island
For the past six years, Cynthia Ryan has been teaching seventh-
and eighth-grade world geography at Barrington Middle School in
Rhode Island. Prior to that she spent nine years with the public
elementary schools in Yonkers, New York. In 2000, she completed
a workshop with ESRI, and she is now working to incorporate GIS into her
classroom. This summer she will attend a development workshop
for the Mission Geography curriculum developed by GENIP and NASA
at Texas A&M University. She is a member of the Rhode Island
Geography Education Alliance and, in our program, is featured
leading her class in mapmaking and investigating resource issues
in the Nile River Valley.
Herschel Sarnoff, 10th-Grade U.S. History Teacher,
Jordan High School, Los Angeles, California
Herschel Sarnoff has been teaching for the past 30 years at Los
Angeles's inner-city Jordan High School. With academic training
at California State College at Long Beach, UCLA, and California
State University at Los Angeles, he has had an extensive career
in geography education. A leader in technology-based education,
he has participated in numerous GIS and social studies conferences
and has operated HMS Historical Games, an educational simulation
publishing company, for the past 20 years. The ESRI Web site lists
many of his lessons, and his class mapped the Digital Divide for
the 2001 Teaching for Change L.A. Conference at UCLA. First
introduced to GIS in 1998, Mr. Sarnoff has educated himself on its
use and created the GIS course at Jordan as a means to engage
students and provide them with skills they can use in future careers.
The fruits of his students' labors are featured in an interactive
activity in Workshop 3.
Maureen Spaight, 9th-Grade Civics and Government
Teacher, East Providence High School, East Providence, Rhode Island
Maureen Spaight has taught a variety of subjects but believes
that geography is the integrating force. Prior to teaching at
East Providence High School, she taught government at an area
middle school. In 1998, she was named Rhode Island Teacher of
the Year. In 2001, she received a Fulbright award to
conduct research in Africa. For Teaching Geography, Ms Spaight
leads a multimedia role-playing lesson on South Africa.
Fred Walk, 11th- and 12th-Grade Geography Teacher,
Normal Community High School, Normal, Illinois
Fred Walk brings 30 years' experience teaching geography and economics
at Normal Community High School in Normal, Illinois. He has conducted
numerous geography workshops, reviewed textbooks, and consulted
on curriculum development. He conducted a National Diffusion Network
workshop, "Teaching Geography: A Model for Action," for the National
Geographic Society at numerous sites across the country. He was
invited to serve as a site visitor for the Secondary School Recognition
Program administered by the U.S. Department of Education. Mr. Walk
is past president of the Illinois Geography Society and is a teacher
consultant for the NASA/GENIP Institute to present lesson plans
using Mission Geography curriculum at Texas A&M University.
He is featured in two classroom segments in Teaching Geography:
one on Russia's shrinking Aral Sea and the other on measures of the
quality of life in Southeast Asia.
Judy Ware, 7th-Grade World History Teacher,
Crossroads School, St. Louis, Missouri
Judy Ware serves as program director for the Missouri Geographic
Alliance. Among her experiences, she presented on AP Human Geography
at the 2001 National Council for Social Studies Conference. She
is featured leading her students in an investigation of the historical
development of Russian city location.
Artis West, 9th-Grade Social Studies Teacher,
North Cobb High School, Kennesaw, Georgia
Artis West received his B.A. in geography from San Diego State University.
From there, he went on to pursue graduate study in history, political
science, Arabic language and culture, and geography. Applying
this diverse educational background, he has been teaching social
studies to high school students for just over a decade. He has
served as coordinator for Geography Awareness Week, coach for
the Geography Bowl Team, and teacher consultant for the Georgia
Geographic Alliance. Additionally, he participated in the Fulbright
Teacher Exchange Program in Estonia in 1999. For this workshop,
he contributed a lesson on health ratings in sub-Saharan Africa.