The students’ image of geography: A systematic review

Abstract

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.

Attractive geographical themes and topics from the perspective of students (2000−2021): A systematic review

“…Older students already have a more complex view of geography and are therefore predominantly interested in current issues, other countries and cultures (i.e., human geography, with topics such as the global economy or war). However, it is important to note that the interest in a geographical topic itself can be strongly influenced by the teacher's personality, teaching methods (Tomal 2010) and the cultural environment in which the student is located (Korvasová 2021). Research that compares the views of multiple groups of respondents (e.g., students and teachers) provides very valuable findings (Kocová, Marada 2022).…”

“…This left me with 5 articles, which is very few. It was necessary to proceed to snowball sampling, as I already knew of a certain selection of articles that I used in my previous research on students' image of geography (Korvasová 2021). I knew that seven other studies dealt at least partly with the attractiveness of the topics; however, the search code did not discover them.…”

“…The third factor is cultural difference, as each student prefers a different focus in geography depending on where they live and what culture they are in. The fourth factor is geographical content, which also contributes to how geography is viewed (Korvasová 2021). All of the aforementioned factors are important and contribute to the presentation and acceptance of geography as a school discipline.…”