Slides from an Update Me: Creative Approaches to Inspirational Geography delivered at the Royal Geographical Society in London and Nottingham in 2014 by David Rogers. Whilst you have to be there for the delivery, and some features of the talk have been taken out, the main messages are below: Get over Gove and get on with it. A strong department vision and commitment to the basics of quality literacy and numeracy are needed to drive inspirational geography. Inspirational geography is built upon simple yet effective ideas that drive sustainable change. Guerrilla Geography goes to the heart of what geography is. More important than fieldwork is the subject’s unique position to all young people to understand their school and local context and actually change it. Geographers study people and places so that we may understand the world better, and then change it for the better. Sometimes, some one needs to be prepared to go toe-to-toe with the Head. Inspirational Geography is not about putting Restless Earth around options time or running overseas trips for a minority of students. Inspirational geography is inclusive, challenging and depends on expert teachers with expert subject knowledge. Sometimes, you need to go to the coffee house or pub for a two hour department meeting.

1. Inspirational Geography
David Rogers
@davidErogers
drogersmm@me.com
davidrogers.org.uk

2. 1. Vision
2. Literacy and Numeracy
3. Floating Topicality
4. Guerrilla Geography
5. Life without Levels
6. Geocaching
7. Tools behind it

4. Photo Credit used through Creative Commons
‘…there was a clear tendency amongst best teachers to see
the power of the humdrum, the everyday.’
Practice Perfect, Lemov, D; Woolway E; Yezzi, K p5-6

5. SnapshotSnapshot
Narrative

6. Teachers are experts

7. Inclusive

8. It’s about learning
Simple, effective ideas

9. Vision

10. Change is inevitable - except from a vending
machine. ~Robert C. Gallagher
He tells us what we can’t teach……..

11. ‘He told me very calmly that he had
broken his leg. He looked pathetic, and
my immediate thought came without any
emotion, You’re f****d, matey. You’re
dead… no two ways about it! I think he
knew it too. I could see it in his face. It
was all totally rational. I knew where we
were, I took in everything around me
instantly, and knew he was dead.’
Simon Yates in Joe Simpson’s Touching the Void.

14. A document is never going to be creative.
Teachers are.

15. Teachers’ Standard 4

16. 4. Plan and teach well structured lessons
promote a love of learning
and children’s intellectual curiosity

17. A high-quality geography education should inspire in pupils a
curiosity and fascination about the world and its people that will
remain with them for the rest of their lives. Teaching should equip
pupils with knowledge about diverse places, people, resources and
natural and human environments, together with a deep understanding
of the Earth’s key physical and human processes. As pupils progress,
their growing knowledge about the world should help them to deepen
their understanding of the interaction between physical and human
processes, and of the formation and use of landscapes and
environments. Geographical knowledge, understanding and skills
provide the framework and approaches that explain how the Earth’s
features at different scales are shaped, interconnected and change
over time.
Purpose of study

18. A high-quality geography education should inspire in pupils a
curiosity and fascination about the world and its people that will
remain with them for the rest of their lives. Teaching should equip
pupils with knowledge about diverse places, people, resources and
natural and human environments, together with a deep understanding
of the Earth’s key physical and human processes. As pupils progress,
their growing knowledge about the world should help them to deepen
their understanding of the interaction between physical and human
processes, and of the formation and use of landscapes and
environments. Geographical knowledge, understanding and skills
provide the framework and approaches that explain how the Earth’s
features at different scales are shaped, interconnected and change
over time.
Purpose of study

20. Year 7
2013
Year 11
2018
Year 2
2008
Born
2002
Financial crisis
Gordon Brown PM
Banks part-nationalised
My uni graduation
5 Years5 Years

24. A lack of vision is the
problem in geography
departments.
Not government or SLT.

25. Year 7 below Level 4: 20%
SEN: 20%
School Action Plus and Statements
twice national average.
20% MEG
16% EAL
30% Pupil Premium

26. Geography at Key Stage 3 : 1 hour per week
Average number of classes per teacher: 17

27. Value added:
School : 996
Geography : 1012
KS4 entries:
2008 – 21
2013 - 120

28. Literacy and
numeracy

33. Location
Sights
(most
important
first)
Physical
features
Human
features
Sounds /
smells
Feeling
Thanks to: Noel Jenkins

34. Make this…. …from this

37. What can eyes measure accurately? Partner voice: 10
ideas that would count in your GCSE controlled
assessment.

38. Eyes were invented before equipment /
technology.

41. Photo Source http://www.flickr.com/photos/sunfox/9884985/
Do now – How can using washing machines make a country more developed?
Using a washing machine means
Therefore, GDP
per capita
increases and the
country becomes
more developed
and has a higher
standard of living
(wealth)

44. 1 2 3 4 5 6
1
Link to
sustainability
Mixed land
use
Integrated
public
transport
4/5ths of
population of
England, Wales &
Scotland live in
urban areas
Housing
Minister
Refer to data
2
Refer to data Link to
sustainability
National
government
14’000
proposed new
jobs
Young adults
traditionally
migrate out of rural
areas to urban
Builders
3
Services
(including
health, shops,
facilities)
Refer to data Link to
sustainability
Residents
(NIMBIES)
Tram-to-town Transport costs
account for half all
money spent by
rural households
4
Large areas of
urban space
used for leisure
& agriculture
Footpaths and
cycle paths
Local
government
Link to
sustainability
Refer to data 15’000homes
built (4’5000
starter homes)
5
Opposition
Shadow
Housing
Minister
Working from
home and self
employment is
above average in
rural areas
Reported
crime levels
are lower in
rural areas
Refer to data Link to
sustainability
Prince of
Wales
6
Better
internet
access in rural
counties
Flying Club
relocated
Refer to data Architects Urban Home
Owners
Link to
sustainability

45. Geography in the news: What questions do you have about this image?
Can you guess what’s going on?
What?
When?
Who?
Where?
Why?
Where on earth is Rocinha and what is it like to live there?
Wednesday, 09 July 2014

46. Learning objectives
• Interpret geographical information in order to describe Rocinha
in detail, using geographical words and data.
• Make a conclusion based on information.
• Write about different points of view.
• Make links to other geographical topics.

47. Describing Rocinha
Location
Sights
(most
important
first)
Physical
features
Human
features
Sounds /
smells
Feeling

48. Where is Rocinha?
N
England’s Training
Base
1 mile
Write a description on the
sheet:
• Continent
• Country
• Cardinal
• City

49. What is Rocinha Like?
Scary 1 5 10 Safe
Protected 1 5 10 Unprotected
Flat 1 5 10 Steep
Rural 1 5 10 Urban
Rich 1 5 10 Poor
Full 1 5 10 Empty
Attractive 1 5 10 Ugly
Interesting 1 5 10 Boring
Add any other words to the circle:

50. What is Rocinha like?
• Make a conclusion based on information.
• Write about different points of view.
• Make links to other geographical topics.

51. favela Rocinha
environment urban
population LEDC
steep North, South,
infrastructure communications
sprawling crime
pride
in addition to likewise
on the other hand unlike
whereas contrasting to
however despite
because so as to
therefore
Rocinha is located in…
The favela is most famous for….
Its main sights are……
The area is surrounded by the following physical features…
When in the favela, a person would be surrounded by…
The landscape of Rocinha is very…..
There are mixed feelings about Rocinha……
Officially, the favela has a population of 70,000, but in
reality…
Evidence to support me includes…
The decision of the Army to take over the area is…
Some may disagree / agree because…
Stuff
Things
It
People
Better
Q: What is Rocinha like and what is it like to live there?
ocabulary onnectives
peners anned

52. What’s the story?

53. Listen
• List the hazards.
• Imagine, what would you be thinking, feeling, doing if you lived
in New Jersey?

54. Imagine this is your
house. Describe how
you would be feeling.
Imagine this was your
house. Describe how you
would be feeling..

55. Rank these 7 images in order,
MOST EXTREME to LEAST EXTREME.
Annotate (Label) each photo to justify
your decision.
A B
E
D
GF
C

56. Location: Sights:
Physicalfeatures:
Human features:Sounds / Smells:
Feelings:

57. Guerrilla Geography

58. gapingvoid.com

59. What is the point of Guerrilla Geography?
Covert action
Creative
Thought provoking

61. Little Notices

64. Geography / EAL Mashup

67. CLAP

71. Young people who do not have access to
the internet at home or in schools — and
who lack the support that comes from
parents or teachers equipped with strong
digital skills — will not develop the
necessary social, learning and technical
skill sets for success in a wired global
economy.
The State of the World’s Children 2011, UNICEF
Thanks to John Connell

72. http://www.flickr.com/photos/audrix/2043561356/
1. Creation of an acceptable use policy in social
time linked to Rights, Respects and
Responsibilities framework.

73. http://www.flickr.com/photos/smemon/4592915995/
Article 16
1. No child shall be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference
with his or her privacy, family, or correspondence, nor to
unlawful attacks on his or her honour and reputation.
2. The child has the right to the protection of the law against such
interference or attacks.

74. 3. Best interests of the child
12. Respect for the views of the child
13. Freedom of expression
17. Access to information; mass media
28. Right to education
29. Goals of education:
‘develop each child’s personality,
talents and abilities to the fullest.’

83. Levels are gone

84. Can potential
be
measured?

85. Thanks to Patcham High’s Art
department and @PrioryGeography

86. Do now: Thunk: Discuss using partner voice.
How do you know an island exists when you haven’t been there?

88. Bing

89. Bing Maps OS Layer

90. Photosynth

92. newtools.org

95. Living Schemes of Work

96. Student curriculum hackers

99. Communities
http://staffrm.io/

102. Is your curriculum full of
JONK?

103. “Your are not here merely to make a living. You are here to enable the world to live more
amply, with greater vision, and with a finer spirit of hope and achievement. You are here
to enrich the world, and you impoverish yourself if you forget this errand.”
Woodrow Wilson.

107. Opportunities

109. ‘What gets you out of bed in the morning and in
to school?’
@davidErogers