The Aussie curriculum

This afternoon, I have been studying the drafts for the new Australian curriculum for Geography. The reasons for this are two fold, firstly, I feel that it is imperative that I have a sound knowledge of the structure of the curriculum before I attempt to teach it and secondarily, I am genuinely intrigued by the differences in the curriculum of different countries and areas of the world.

The thing that struck me about the aussie side of things after reading this was the nature of skills based 'learning' versus the 'knowledge' aspect that underpinned the curriculum and how it almost came across as slightly contradictory. On the one hand, it seems to be promoting some of the key geographical vocabulary that David Lambert alluded to and on the other seemingly wanting to distance itself from this and align with a far more independent enquiry perspective.

Now before people say, well, they are interchangeable and that's the way it should be, I think I agree with this view, they are. What I found odd was the reference paid to a Uk curriculum that is different in many aspects and in tone. Does a Uk curriculum draft make reference to it's Australian brethern and seek to compare and contrast ideas on how Geography should be taught and what should be included in the curriculum?Personally, I feel this would be a fascinating avenue to explore within Geography teaching. I am a great believer in the idea that Geography is about learning of the world around you and what better way than to ask 'experts' or collegaues from other parts of the globe to offer advice. I may be very naive in this point, I am only a 2nd year teacher and clearly have much to learn about what is realisticaly achievable within educational circles, epsecially in those upper echelons of Geography teaching, but wouldn't it be lovely to really embrace the idea of global learning and learn from those people who live in the areas we talk so much about in lessons?

I felt that I really agreed with David Lambert's points within the livinggeography blog regarding the requirement for students to have at least a working knowledge of the world's oceans and places, something that I have tried my best to include all in all my teaching over the past two years. However, my old Geography teacher always said that it was pointless to know the location of somewhere if you knew nothing about it. This is the other side of the coin as it were, how can we push the need for locational knowledge and for the specifics within these sectors? It is the eternal battle as they say. The Australian curriculum outlines the need for case studies not to be confined to class wide work but indepedent and individually led. Although I have yet to try these ideas out in practice, I must say i was a little disappointed by this, I like the camaraderie of a shared experience and case study, that the entire class can debate and discuss, unlike the sometimes disparate and wildly varied outcomes from individualised case study work. Surely a class wide case study can be equally independent when conducted in the right manner and in the right conditions?

All in all, this is an area I could do a shed load more reading in and hopefully will do, more likely now as my visa has been delayed and I will have to do a little supply work before I get to Oz.

It is very rare I feel compelled to write at such length about an issue, but it is one I feel that as my move to Oz comes closer, will be really important to my own CPD and hopefully I can impart some of the knowledge of my own area to the wilds of Greater Brisbane!