My reading of the message was that the burning issue, which must be
attended to, is the fact of the reduction of geography in school
teaching. Therefore the important thing to do was to counter this
trend.
I am horrified to think that any geography academics could seriously be
suggesting that less should be taught at school.
I assume the argument would be that school geography has been
colonised by the RGS/ grography-as-exploring mentality, and a
tabula rasa is easier to deal with than overcoming the positivist
prejudices supposedly .
Apart from the practical effect this would have on the profile of
geography for the prospective undergraduate, other subjects in which
the critical methodology is now widespread within teaching
universities, must have the same problem of overcoming universalist
attitudes instilled at school. The answer is not to marginalise in
another arena whatever exists under the title "geography."
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Paul Benneworth E-mail [log in to unmask]
Junior Research Associate Office (0191) 222 8510
CURDS Home (0191) 213 0815
Newcastle University
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 7RU
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The Competitiveness Project on the Web 'www.ncl.ac.uk/~ncurds/rrcp/'
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