Geography as a school subject is facing a crisis of identity. Student interest in geography has decreased and the lack of solutions for improving geography’s image opened a research gap. The aim of the paper is to summarize the knowledge and understanding from the pupils’ perspective and prepare the ground for conducting similar research in Czechia. Getting the pupils’ perspective is crucial for shaping the subject in a more favorable direction and in defending geography’s place in the education system. Subsequently it creates concrete arguments for defending and stabilizing. The author searched for studies using the WoS and Scopus databases. Three criteria were set: studies only in English, the maximum time limit as February 2020, and the age of researched students as 11–19 years. Twenty-seven relevant studies, mainly conducted in English speaking countries, were found. The review focuses especially on applied methods and results of studies. Results showed that quantitative methods prevailed over qualitative. Factors such as the personality of the teacher, teaching methods, and geography topics seemed the most important in the process of developing a positive image of geography.

Geographical themes and topics are some of the factors that influence the way geography is perceived by students. Geographical content can be key to geography’s appeal as a discipline and to improving its image to students and society. The aim of this systematic review is to identify geographical themes and topics that are attractive to students as well as the research methods that determined them. The studies were searched for through the Web of Science and Scopus using keywords. After setting the inclusion criteria (years, language, age of students), 12 relevant studies were identified. The results indicated that the topics of physical geography prevailed; natural hazards were mentioned the most because they directly affect humans’ lives. The students also enjoyed human geography topics. The themes and topics that were unpopular required abstract thinking or were not directly related to students’ everyday lives. This review emphasizes the students’ voices in geography education and provides insights regarding curriculum innovations in geography education.