Prospects for Powerful Geography in Japanese Schools: Practical Development Research on Japanese National Curriculum’s Compulsory Subject “Geography”

This study aimed to examine the educational policy background that led to the initial establishment of geography as a compulsory subject in Japanese high schools. The teaching and learning content and methods (curriculum and pedagogy) of this subject are explained based on the records of the schools where the research was conducted. Interview surveys were conducted with six university students who had learned geography at school to evaluate their learning. Subsequently, we analyzed the data and summarized the results. This study attempts to clarify the power of geography learning in high schools from the learner’s point of view and to identify opportunities for implementing the Powerful Geography approach to support teaching and learning under the National Curriculum.