Thesis (MTech (Education))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2015. / The question arose whether the teaching of primary school Geography teachers could be a factor for the declining Grade 12 pass rate in Geography. It is within this context that the researcher decided to investigate the quality of Geography teaching and learning in three rural primary schools in Grades 4 – 6. The theories of Shulman’s (1987) Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) and Koehler and Mishra’s (2009) Technological, Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK) framed this research. Although the Intermediate Phase curriculum provides a general education experience, the teacher needs to adopt teaching strategies that will deliver geographical knowledge, skills and values, which will enable all learners to function effectively and responsibly in space-place and time. A qualitative research design was employed for this study using interviews and observations. Six teachers were purposively selected for this study. These schools are in high poverty rural communities and the medium of instruction is Afrikaans. The data was both inductively and deductively analyzed. The findings indicate that the most used pedagogy by these six teachers was the Lecture Method in combination with the Question and Answer Method. It was found that teachers do not have adequate content knowledge about the different pedagogies. This research was an exploratory investigation into the pedagogies used in Geography and offer three recommendations: recommendations for teaching Geography in rural multi-grade classrooms, recommendations for WCED and further research.

M.Ed. / The underlying reason for this study was to establish the role that media and communication may play in the solution of the problem of visual illiteracy. The object of this study was basically to indicate that with the use of proper communication and appropriate media, visual illiteracy may be eliminated. Chapter One sets out the aims of the study,- clarifies some of the relevant terminology, states the problems within Geography at secondary level and indicates the frame of reference for this study. Chapter Two concentrates on the didactic perspective with specific reference to the didactic triangle. Factors which influence the didactic situation, were discussed. Chapter Three mainly concerns media with its diversity of attributes. The common functions of media; media and symbol systems; the development of cognitive skills; the content of cognitive skills; the interaction between symbol systems and cognitive processes, different kinds of media and deterrents to media usage are discussed. Chapter Four comprises a discussion of the didactic situation, and its principles; the aim of education; theories of conveying content; the classroom as didactic space; communication within the didactic situation; the focus and context principle; functionalizing; the dimensions of comprehension; the improvement of skills and symbols of cartography. Different kinds of media for teaching Geography at secondary level are also suggested. It furthermore reflects the conclusion of the study; states recommendations and suggests possible fields of study. The conclusions reached in this study are the following: 1. A prerequisite for attaining pre-knowledge is mastering the cognitive skills which depend on isomorphic symbols, elements, codes, concepts and constructs of media; 2. Salomon refers to the schemata of the pupil. The author would like to state that this is meant in the singular form. Closer to reality, one would find that within one universal schemata, several sub-schematas would have to exist. 3. All the aforesaid cannot be possible without the pupil reaching visual literacy, which starts at birth. Any further development depends on factors such as the socioeconomic setting in which the pupil was raised; the level of cognitive stimuli the pupil received and various others. 4. Media and communication plays a pivotal role in the development of visual literacy. The following recommendations may be made: 1. It is recommended that TV viewing by the pupil in the secondary phase should be limited because of the fact that the pupil does not get adequate practise in developing his semantic skills while watching the icons on TV and negating the digital symbols. 2. Educators should plan their lessons in such a way that the pupil is able to move from known facts to the unknown, also known as the inductive to deductive method. By doing so, it would be much easier for the pupil to internalize the facts and knowledge conveyed to him. 3. Educators should furthermore lead the pupil in perceptual discrimination in such a way that this process becomes an automatism.

As the title indicates, this is a study of the historical emergence of geography as a subject in Cape schools, and covers the period 1772-1951. The account is not merely descriptive and factual, for wherever possible an attempt is made to assess the nature and scope of the geography which was taught at different periods in relation to modern, authoritative ideas concerning the pedagogic application of the subject in the school. The work as a whole is predominantly concerned with the historical development of geography in the secondary school. However, in the initial four chapters the slight and insubstantial nature of the available data precludes the possibility of differentiating between geoeraphy of primary standard and that of secondary standard, and in these early chapters all references to the subject are consequently generalized. In Chapter 5, which deals with the period during which Langham Dale was Superintendent-Genera l of Education, geography of secondary standard becomes distinguishable from that of primary standard for the first time, and from this point onwards the two are differentiated to the fullest extent possible, and the former is chiefly emphasized. The entire study is presented against a broad background of relevant, educational developments of a general nature.

The mind and character of an individual can be fostered by the subjects which have proved themselves to be of value in improving the education of man, not only from scientific, but also from moral and aesthetic stand points. The question is whether or not geography as a subject fulfils this requirement. For this it must have a distinctiveness of aim and a limitation of content. Civilization today is passing through great crises. Wars, rumours of wars, cold wars, economic crises, exhaustion of natural resources etc. are reported daily in the newspapers. Education of a certain type is needed - an education which will develop in man a deep concern for the freedom and good life of his fellows, and some understarding of the major problems of the world and possible solutions. Man is no longer a unit of a small self-contained community, but has his responsibilities as a citizen, firstly of his own country and secondly of a world community. Upon his solutions to the problems of the world depend to some degree the progress and development of his town, country, of the world generally. Education therefore ought to train the child to take his place in the world, not only as a man, but as a citizen. Children must be taught to think and reason for themselves. Geography as a subject lends itself magnificently to the general education of men and the development of good citizens. Geography can help to teach pupils to understand and experience the adult world. South Africans are fortunate in that geography is a compulsory subject up to standard seven. In high school beyond this level it is not offered by all schools.

Values education in geography can be seen as a way of educating pupils to think critically and independently on matters to which they can readily relate. It also involves the relating of facts and concepts of a subject area to the pupils ' own lives. There is, therefore, a need to introduce values education in geography at our schools. The DET geography syllabuses offer many topics of social and environmental concern. Valuing processes, based on values analysis and values clarification, can be used to teach these topics. Through values education, geography pupils can become more purposeful, more enthusiastic and positive in their learning. This study investigates the effectiveness of valuing strategies in the teaching of geography. A broad overview of the literature on valuing in general and valuing in geographical education in particular, was analysed. Three teaching units were then devised and tried out in KwaZulu schools. The responses of pupils to these units were then investigated through questionnaires. Teachers were also interviewed to find the extent to which valuing approaches were being used. The principal findings of the study are, firstly, that the pupils responded well to the valuing units. Secondly, that teachers were not using valuing strategies in schools and, lastly, that the units in the research could be effective in teaching values geography. From the findings of this research, it is evident that values geography has an important place in the South African school curriculum

The synoptic chart encodes climatological and meteorological information in a highly abstract manner. The pupil's level of cognitive development, the nature of the syllabus and the teaching strategies employed by the geography teacher influence the pupil's conceptualisation of information. The synoptic chart is a valuable tool for consolidating the content of the S.A climatology syllabus. Recent research has established that climatology-meteorology, and especially synoptic chart reading and interpretation, is difficult for the concrete thinker. These pupils find difficulty in visualising the weather processes and systems. Provided that they are simple and clear, models are useful teaching devices that integrate and generalise information in a manner that is easily retrievable. The intention of the author is to provide weather type models and other supporting strategies and aids as a means to improve the senior secondary pupil's assimilation of southern African climatological-meteorological information. This model-based approach is tested in the classroom using an action research framework to judge its efficacy. Conclusions are drawn and recommendations are made.

M.Ed. (Curriculum Studies) / "The gap between school and work has widened because schools have taken too little account of the realities of the working world. Indeed, despite massive expansion in the upper secondary school system, little has been done in this direction in changing the basic curriculum content, ..• the deficiencies found can be traced back to this root cause. [With a] lack [of] practical orientation and guidance, expectations and aspirations become untenable and attitudes towards employment wrong. Yet, occupational choice, as well as aspirations for a certain type of job are, to some extent at least, conditioned by those aspirations nurtured both in the school and in the social environment, both of which, it would seem, are divorced from reality. Inevitably, disappointment and disillusion are the outcome of this. Often the type of information given to young people about the world is either unrealistic [or] superficial, both. It is then hardly surprising that those initially motivated towards choosing an occupation suited to their needs and skills soon find their expectations thwarted. Convinced that, having given of their best, society apparently does not need them, they withdraw into themselves" (Sellin, 1978 : 54/55).

No description available.

The aim of Project GeoSim is to develop simulation based introductory geography education software. To maximize the educational benefit of the software, Project GeoSim has developed three user assistance and training methods: Online Help, Printed Manual, and Online Interactive Tutorial. Using a population dynamics simulation called IntlPop as the test-bed, an experiment was conducted comparing the three training methods against each other and against no training at all to find the method from which users complete laboratory exercises most quickly and with the greatest accuracy. Twenty-four participants were randomly assigned to one of four treatments: the three user assistance methods and a control that received no training. Following training, the participants answered nine questions using IntlPop. The control received no training and therefore spent the least time with training material. Of the other training methods, analysis detected no significant difference regarding the time spent with training material. Participants that received training from the online interactive tutorial completed tasks more quickly than those that received no training. However, no significant difference in speed of performance was detected between the online help and printed manual and either the control or online interactive tutorial. Additionally, analysis indicated no significant difference in accuracy of responses among the four treatments. Nor were there any significant differences with respect to subjective satisfaction / Master of Science

The purpose of this study is to endeavor to formulate a sound method of teaching geography so that it may contribute to intelligent problem solving in our democratic way of life.