Interview with Margaret Roberts The Geography curriculum and its theoretical foundations

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5418/ra2024.v20i41.18336

Keywords:

Interview, Margaret Roberts, Anglophone Geography, Democracy, Geography Learning

Abstract

Professors Elena Lengthorn (University of Worcester) and José Gilberto de Souza (Unesp Rio Claro), bring reflections on the dimensions of the curriculum, wrapped in a dialogue with Professor Magaret Roberts, who has a history of debate and reflection in the UK and has collaborated in its construction of geography curricula in several countries. Margaret Roberts, this extraordinary geography teacher educator, known for her kindness, creativity, generosity and insight, is also a former President of the Geographical Association (GA) and received an MBE in the 2021 New Year Honours. A very commendable recognition of her services to education. She has moulded a generation of geography teachers in the UK and beyond, and her publication Learning through enquiry (2003) has had a profound impact, enriching geography classrooms around the world.’ This is a debate that delves into the foundations of the curriculum and, in particular, brings together an extremely serious complaint, also felt in the UK, namely the demand for government control and interference over teaching content and practices. A trajectory of state structures that produce the curtailment of debates that are so dear to us, such as colonialism, the precariousness of work, the issue of gender and the LGBTQIA+ community, the lack of democratisation in debates, the imposition of curricula, the simplification of content, among other aspects, such as privatisation and the appropriation of public education funds, marks of the neoliberal logic that has been imposed on societies.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biographies

Elena Elizabeth Lengthorn, University of Worcester

Elena Lengthorn is the PGCE Geography subject Lead. She has taught both geography and science education across the primary and secondary centres on undergraduate and postgraduate courses. She leads the Education for Sustainable Futures Special Interest Group (ESF SIG) and contributes sustainability sessions to courses across the School of Education.

Jose Gilberto de Souza, Universidade Estadual Paulista Júlio de Mesquita Filho (UNESP)

Graduação (Licenciatura e Bacharelado - 1990/1991) e Mestrado em Geografia (1994) pela Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia - Universidade Estadual Paulista - FCT - UNESP - Câmpus de Presidente Prudente, onde foi professor dos cursos de Graduação (1992-1994) e de Pós-Graduação em Geografia (2001-2012). Doutorado em Geografia Humana (1999) pela Faculdade de Filosofia Letras e Ciências Humanas - Universidade de São Paulo (FFLCH-USP). Livre Docência (2008) pela Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias FCAV-UNESP Câmpus de Jaboticabal, onde foi Professor do Departamento de Economia Rural no período de 1995 a 2009 e do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Zootecnia (2002-2010). Pós-Doutorado na Universidad de Salamanca (2010-2011).

References

Albuquerque, A.M.A. et al. Manifesto - crítica às reformas neoliberais na educação: prólogo do ensino de geografia. Marília-SP: Lutas Anticapital, 2021. V. 1. 169 p.

Barthes A. Quels outils curriculaires pour des « éducations à » vers une citoyenneté politique ? Educations, Vol 17-1, Open sciences, International sciences and technical edition, ISTE, p. 25-40 https://www.openscience.fr/Numero-1-327. Londres, 2017.

Barthes, A., Blanc-Maximin, S., Dorier-April, E.. Quelles balises curriculaires en éducation à la prospective territoriale durable ? Valeurs d’émancipation et finalités d’implications politiques des jeunes dans les études de cas en géographie. Éducation et socialisation, n°51. Montpellier, 2019.

Barthes A. Quels curricula d’éducation au politique dans les questions environnementales et de développement ? Numéro 63, Éducation & Socialisation. Montpellier, 2022.

Connolly W-E. Discipline, politics and ambiguity. Political theory. Vol 11. n°3. 325-341. 1983.

Immordino-Yang, M. H. and Damasio, A. We feel, therefore we learn: The relevance of affective and social neuroscience to education. Mind, Brain, and Education, 1(1), 3–10.2007. https://doi.org/10.1111/ j.1751-228x.2007.00004.x

Oliveira, A. U. de. A mundialização da agricultura brasileira. São Paulo: Iandé Editorial, 2016.

Roberts, M. Geography Through Enquiry : Approaches to teaching and learning in the secondary school (2nd Edition). The Geographical Association, 2023.

Roberts, M. Learning Through Enquiry: Making Sense of the Key Stage 3 Classroom. The Geographical Association, 2003.

Rosanvallon P. La contre-démocratie. La politique à l’âge de la défiance, Paris, Seuil, 2006.

Souza, J. G. Ruy Moreira: ontonegatividade e positividade ontológica. In: FRANÇA FILHO, A. L; ANTUNES, C. F.; FERNANDES, F. M.. (Org.). O que é Geografia de Ruy Moreira: diálogos com a obra e seu autor. 1ed.Rio de Janeiro: Consequência Editora, 2023, v. 1, p. 273-296.

Souza J. G. Pensamento Espacial e a Geografia Pragmática: réquiem para o passado, Revista da ANPEGE, Vol. 18, n. 36, 2022.

Souza, J.G.; Juliasz, P.C.S. Geografia: ensino e formação de professores. Marília: Lutas Anticapital, 2020.

Suarez D.C., Kircher C. and Santi T. A Clear and Present Pedagogy: Teaching About Planetary Crisis (When You're in a Planetary Crisis). Antipode. A Radical Journal of Geography, Vol 56, issue 1, 276 – 295, 2024.

UNESCO. REIMAGINING OUR FUTURES TOGETHER, A new social contract for education. REPORT . The International Commission on the Futures of Education. UN. 2021. DOI :https://doi.org/10.54675/ASRB4722

Wall-Kimmerer R. Braiding sweetgrass : indigenous wisdom, scientific knowledge and the teachings of plants. Milkweed Editions, 2013.

Zinyemba, C., Archer, E. and Rother, H.A. Climate Change, Pesticides and Health: Considering the Risks and Opportunities of Adaptation for Zimbabwean Smallholder Cotton Growers. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021 Jan; 18(1): 121. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18010121

Published

2024-07-10

How to Cite

Lengthorn, E. E., & Souza, J. G. de. (2024). Interview with Margaret Roberts The Geography curriculum and its theoretical foundations. Revista Da ANPEGE, 20(41), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.5418/ra2024.v20i41.18336