As we move towards 2000 and the implementation of the new Stage 6 syllabus in geography, the attention of geography teachers in NSW is being turned towards the issue of resources for teaching the new syllabus. The nature of the syllabus enables changes in the real world to be part of the geography teaching and learning activities. Indeed, all of the skills outcomes, H8–H13, indicate that for students to be able to develop skills to communicate and investigate geographically, a link between up-to-date text and skills is necessary. The most current texts available on a daily basis are the newspapers and other forms of media.

Newspapers often include the original research of journalists, and can consequently be a primary source of information. They usually report the findings of inquiries. Newspapers include the articles that are relevant to a range of issues and can form the basis of case studies in the Stage 6 geography syllabus.

The advantages of using newspapers for our students include:

• the development of skills to relate happenings in the global environment today with geography. Geography is a relevant subject and the use of newspapers would certainly reinforce this.
• Students, by using newspapers, take a greater interest in news and current events, and learn to be active citizens of society.
• Students develop the foresight to take a critical view of events and the way these events are portrayed in the press.
• A number of outcomes can be achieved, particularly:
  • H8 plans geographical inquiries to analyse and synthesise information from a variety of sources
  • H9 evaluates geographical information and sources for usefulness, validity and
    reliability
  • H12 explains geographical patterns, processes and future trends through appropriate case studies and illustrative examples.

The daily newspaper can be used in a number of ways.

• Feature articles often appear and are an excellent supplement for a textbook. For example, a case study investigating one issue from one of the biophysical components from the Preliminary course, or a case study of an ecosystem at risk, from the HSC course, could be developed using daily newspapers.
• Alternatively a geographical issues noticeboard could be developed and issues displayed throughout the year to demonstrate aspects of the “learn about” statements. There are, however, a number of concerns with the use of newspapers that teachers and students should be aware of.
• News in the papers is often what the journalist or editor decides is news. Other events or issues are happening that are important and topical, but are not termed sensational, and therefore not regularly reported on. For example: soil erosion is not very dramatic, rarely controversial, no-one dies (not directly anyway), but as a disaster it would be one
  of the most significant.
• News might be sensationalised, and the result can be inaccurate reporting. Similarly, journalists and editors often have preconceptions about the people and places they are writing about or reporting on, and hence their accuracy and objectivity are questionable.
• Newspaper articles may be difficult for some of our students to understand and obtain benefit from, especially in terms of language for NESB students. Related activities, including tasks in interpretation and vocabulary exercises, are in these cases very
  valuable.

Nevertheless, newspapers provide excellent opportunities to “study the spatial and ecological dimensions of biophysical and human phenomena in a changing world”, which is the aim of the course.

Literacy strategies

With the changes to the HSC external examination specifications, particularly in Section III, which has three extended responses, it may be helpful for our students to develop the following strategies to assist them in writing extended responses that are especially succinct.

Strategy 1: Structured overview

Structured overviews are visual representations of how concepts within a focus area are related. Key words are identified and grouped in clusters. Lines or arrows show the relationship of these clusters to one another. Structured overviews allow students to see the overall picture and begin to make connections with existing knowledge by linking together ideas and seeing relationships. Structured overviews can be developed by the teacher or student or by working collaboratively.

In planning units of work, structured overviews can be useful in identifying:

• central concepts, vocabulary, language skills and the manner in which these are related
• subsidiary and additional information or concepts and their relationship to the above
• links with previous focus areas/future focus areas, for example: the Biophysical Environment (Preliminary course) and Ecosystems at Risk (HSC course)
• concepts, vocabulary and skills which need to be learned or taught
• an overall, logical and cohesive approach to a focus area.

When used to introduce a new focus area in Stage 6 geography, structured overviews may indicate to the teacher students’ existing knowledge and understanding of issues and concepts central to the focus area and provide a framework for ensuing learning/teaching activities. Similarly, structured overviews can be used as a method of summarising, revising or charting progress through a focus area or at the conclusion of the topic.

Example of a structured overview

Strategy 2: Mind maps

Mind maps can be similar to structured overviews. A mind map is a creative pattern of connected ideas. Students may use a mind map as the basis of an extended response, constructing paragraphs based on the information summarised on each branch of the mind map. Students work out several sentences of information from their picture or word summary.

Mind maps enable students to practise verbally or pictorially before beginning to write their extended response. They allow students to approach an extended response in “bite-sized chunks”, which is less daunting. They provide a useful study tool and improve the skill of recall.

John Gore
CEO, HSIE