The Educational Foundations of Training to Become a Secondary-Level Geography Teacher

This chapter contributes to the call to reconstruct teacher education courses based on deliberative and purposeful knowledge traditions. It begins by noting that professional knowledge in initial teacher training is framed by key purposeful questions around what to teach, why, when and how to teach. As such, it draws on an eclectic range of theory from disciplinary traditions in educational philosophy, sociology, psychology, and the history of education. Applying theory to geography education and drawing on a rich subject-specific literature from Anglo-American and European pedagogy, a model of the curriculum and learning experiences for preparing student teachers of geography is provided. The model begins with educational aims, linked to curriculum, then teaching and learning opportunities, as well as assessment of learning, to develop teachers capable of planning to connect each stage. Drawing on his experiences of social studies teacher training in the United States and post-graduate training in the United Kingdom, the author provides short exemplars of university teaching and school experiences that enable student teachers to link theory with practice, as they create meaningful learning experiences for pupils and develop their professional knowledge and agency as beginning teachers.