Geography

Every Thursday afternoon you will come together with your fellow Geography trainees, along with your Subject Lead. This unique element of our course provides the opportunity for you to learn more about your subject and the pedagogy surrounding it as well as share good practice with your colleagues. Subject Pathway sessions are incredibly varied and include workshops, seminars, guest speakers and trips.

The intent of the Geography Subject Pathway course is to support and guide you to become a Geography teacher who can:

• Offer high quality teaching and learning experiences which will equip pupils for life in the modern world.
• Develop key knowledge and dispositions which are essential in establishing a sustainable career in Geography teaching, namely; strong subject knowledge, subject specific pedagogy, building positive and professional relationships, engaging with educational research and developing a repertoire of teaching and learning techniques.
• Consider the subject of Geography holistically

The intent of the Geography Subject Pathway programme is underpinned by, and infused throughout with, the five key themes of the GITEP Initial Teacher Education Partnership; partnership and community, subject knowledge and expertise, evidence informed and reflective practice, pupil progress and outcomes and well-being and support.

Geography Subject Pathway sessions take place at Archway School.

Geography fieldwork is one of the most important aspects of good geography education, to promote learning experiences outside of the classroom. The opportunity to go outside to study the geographical processes taught in class is one of the most exciting and rewarding aspects of Geography teaching. As part of the GITEP course, the Geography trainees have visited Nettlecombe Field Studies Council Centre in Exmoor for the chance to top up their own fieldwork skills and build their confidence in taking pupils into the field.

The weekend, led by Nick Lapthorn, Head of Centre at Nettlecombe and the Junior Vice President of the Geographical Association, offers the chance for the trainees to really reflect on their own experiences of fieldwork as well as asking a wide range of questions about building the best experiences for their pupils. Additionally, the fieldwork experience has been offered to Geography teachers from other schools in the GITEP partnership, to enable trainees to share ideas and compare theory to practice with teachers from Chosen Hill and Maidenhill School.

‘A very informative and fun few days which helped build confidence before leading field trips. The centre was excellent. It gave a very good overview of how to plan and carry out fieldwork.’ Paul Acton, Geography GITEP trainee, Sir Thomas Rich’s School

The wide range of fieldwork experiences included: river studies; exploring risk assessment; assessing fieldwork at GCSE/A-Level; measuring coastal processes; visual techniques to use in the field; the use of technology; discovering the value of secondary data and developing an independent enquiry based on land use in Minehead.

‘A really useful and enjoyable weekend. It covered, in-depth, a range of important fieldwork exercises and essential fieldwork teaching criteria.’ Freddie Burrage, Geography GITEP trainee, Thomas Keble School