#worldgeochat Archive
#worldgeochat is a weekly chat focused on teaching geography and global studies. Chats vary between geography specific topics as well as general teaching and education topics. ALL are welcome in worldgeochat!
Tuesday May 10, 2016
Hey 'rs! Pete here from !
Last week of classes before finals, but I'm setting grading papers aside to refresh with
i'm grading papers too!!!
Welcome to tonight. I'm Jennifer from and I'll be moderating tonight along with &
Merri from SoCal looking forward to tonight's chat!
Looking forward for another great here in Austin. Physical and Political Geography starting now.
Hi Penny from Virginia.... gonna do double duty with tweeting and grading
Jessica from Illinois! Excited for
Hi everyone! Sarah from Mass here
great to have you with us!
Chris from IL - ready for a great tonight!
Double-duty with two chats right now!
HS Social Studies teacher from SW Mo. here. Trying both, but will probably end up having to choose one.
Take a minute and introduce yourself and tell us what grade level and course you teach.
I teach 9th graders AP Human Geo
Hi Misty here, Instructional Coach for 6-8 checking in from Georgia tonight
Looks like we have a nice core of regulars for tonight! I'm eager to get started with this topic!
Welcome in ! Glad you're in
Merri mixed grades AP Human Geo, APUSH 11th, US 11th & Exploring Health Careers 9th
great to have your voice tonight!
7th Grade World Geography!
hey Misty!!!! Great to see you!
Next year will be my first year teaching World Geography
Megan from The Bahamas- grading and watching
Some reminders --
1. Use Q1, A1 format
2. Use
3. Respect each other
4. Follow other worldgeochatters to grow your PLN
are you ready for Friday?????
I teach 6th/7th world geo. I'm in the home stretch; classes end on the 2nd! Trying to get my Ss to stay engaged!
yay!! you picked a great subject!!!!
a relative term... Kids just went to bed. Ugh
Same! Trying to end the year strong!
You'll be wanting to join every week then!
I currently teach AP Microeconomics and AP US GOPO. Looking forward to teaching World Geography
9th grade World Geo and AP Human Geography
Congrats! Are you excited?!
awesome!! It's the best subject in the world! (Because it IS the world!)
Welcome back Megan! It's been ages!
same!! i tried new things this year to help up the MC scores to FRQ stats..... we'll see!!!
reminders https://t.co/Tf8MHXGDfN
Some reminders --
1. Use Q1, A1 format
2. Use
3. Respect each other
4. Follow other worldgeochatters to grow your PLN
Hi I'm Kevin Zahner and I teach APUSH and Modern World History
No kidding! I usually have a class on Tuesday night but it's cancelled this week! Thanks for having me.
Q1 coming up in 1 minute.
love my freshers, but they still have work to do!!!
Before we get started - a plug for 's - such a fun challenge!
https://t.co/uCCC5t7biH
Hi I'm Kevin Zahner and I teach APUSH and Modern World History
Hi , this is Bill Chapman, a retired secondary social studies teacher, checking in from Berkeley, CA.
Almost forgot about ! I teach worldgeo to college freshmen in Menomonie WI.
Welcome in Bill! Always happy to have your voice in
Howdy! Will be skimming until this storm blows over . Erika 😄
Excited to have you join the fam! We're a fun bunch :)
Sorry, late. Joanne from Missouri. Grading finals for seniors in my online class.
A1: Right now, it looks like a combo of maps and memorizing capitals/countries. Need fresh ideas!! https://t.co/6bqH9kLzMy
If you have ever been in a , you know how important it is to https://t.co/z34ZPiS0X1
Hi , this is Bill Chapman, a retired secondary social studies teacher, checking in from Berkeley, CA.
A1 This is one area of geo that gets covered in US & APUSH For AP HG the focus has been on disputed areas ie South China Sea
Same for me. My 5th graders are just getting introduced to everything.
We've been dodging storms all night too!
Would love to make it more inquiry-based or PBL!
A1 For 7th world, more about conquerors & the conquered. 11th, contested borders, impact of events on political relationships.
A1 At 7th grade, Political Geo 101 is getting Ss to realize that AFRICA IS NOT A COUNTRY!!!
A1
-Often oversimplified
-Transition to complicated, abstract ideas/concepts
-enthusiasm unbridled
-6th graders are weird
A1- APHG looks at complex pol ideas, so I'm really interested in how elem Ss begin to learn about political concepts and org.
A1 I think Ss need to understand that political relationships are like human one - difficult, messy, and built on trust.
A1 geopolitical concepts like interdependence and organized space (political divisions, spatial patterns. borders, etc)
They STILL think that in high school -- we all need to work on this one.
A1 If I were still teaching hist, political geo would look a lot like the moving timeline in free app https://t.co/R5dPXHySI3
Hi, sorry late to the convo! Briley, Bermuda
A1 Starts with what is a state? How do different states organize themselves? What role do people have within their system?
A1 cont. Ly and this year- Why does ISIS declare itself a state?
Love this -- may "steal" this to intro pol geo to 9th graders
A1 cont. Why are borders so contentious?
For me, the only REAL political issue they delve into is Israel/Palestine. We pick an easy one to start with. ;)
I had a college student re-write a sentence 3 times for mixing countries & continents in a list.
A1: I teach contemporary conflicts to grade 8. We look at Sudanese, Syrian, Afghan and a home conflict of dev of airport
A1: For my 10th and 11th graders political geo is about empathizing i.e. How do new democracies conceptualize?
Steal away! That's what we're here for!
hey!!!! good luck on Friday!!!
I don't know if they makes me feel better or WAY worse!
A1 Something I'm trying to get Ss to understand is that borders don't always reflect the people living w/i them. Ex. Africa
A1: Looking at diff Political Systems and their regional variances in World Geo.
A1 many of the areas I focus on reflect control of natural resources Bolivia, Peru & Chile
Welcome in! Glad to have Bermuda in
Join the conversation over at
A1: conflict, colonialism, power, genocide, gerrymandering, resource conflicts vs conflict resources, current issues
I tell my Ss that if the get that is 'complicated', then they get the gist of the class
We're about to look at border issues in India and Israel in our next Modern World Hist unit
Great question! But when humans draw arbitrary lines on a map...
A1, we also do places that don't exist. Simon Reeve docs on Taiwan and Abkhazia are great for autonomous region/separatism
starting with good questions! GOLD STAR
I'm thinking of doing this w/ 6th graders! I did last year w/ 7th and they got the gist of it!
I am bookmarking this!! Thank you!
Best recommendation I can give is to give them a map of the UN Plan from 1947 & look at it from POV
I don't think you can teach pol geo today without talking about resources.
is moving too fast tonight!! Crazy Twitter feed!!
A2 Political features only exist on the physical earth. They are inextricably entwined.
Really? You'll be shocked to know that doesn't make it to American media!
yes! And borders move. Why? How does that affect people & identity?
A2: Often, physical features dictate political boundaries. Love it when students see the connection.
A2, this is why we teach famine in Horn of Africa. We look at rain seasons & agricultural practices https://t.co/dJZsvClhQH
we need to use more POV and primary sources in geo education
A2 usually involves access 1 example I use is the Congo access to the Atlantic & Russian expansion re: warm water ports
A2
Think about every process on earth that humans connect to... Oh wait, that's everything. How do we fit into everything?
A2 Physical features can aid in drawing borders, but also divide peoples living on either side. Water=root of many pol issues!
How arbitrary are the borders? Many are drawn from history (Colonial/War), physical geo, natural resources? ect.
That is something my 7th graders can do- they realized today that Chile's East border is the top of the Andes
In getting ready for Friday's AP geography test, my class did the "walls and barriers" FRQ on contentious borders
great line of conversation when talking about post colonial Africa
If you want GREAT resource recommendations, follow
True - but some colonial powers took liberties with the pen. & claiming land to the sea was bound to have problems
. And when studying US, latitude lines = some state borders. *lightbulb* for my 7th grdrs.
A2: Some differing politics share the same contested space while others are more separated by natural barriers
That's where I see it most. Putting cultures together that might have done better apart
A2 you must discuss landscape and how it drove political boundaries
A2 also economic connections re: physical / political deal w maritime issues as well as Artic & Antarctica
Yes - ran out of text - its easy to see why Palestinians rejected & Israelis accepted
Of course, then there is the middle east in the aftermath of WWI.
Job I interviewed for discussed how their SS workinggroup is figuring that out, modeling after DBQ
A2 Tigris, Euphrates water system, Turkish GAP project is great for showing conflict over physical resource
A2: Tibet/China, Israel/Palestine connect to water resources. Multiple narratives.
Yes! I like it call it, "Why the West Was Square"
And too many times those conflicts erupt in genocide.
this a huge Soc St shift in my district. Check out the
Love that - I only used a map, what other docs helped?
Yep. Rwanda had such an imbalance of Hutu/Tutsi that it was bound to explode at some point
A2: Love talking the shapes of states and how humans and the physical environment shape boundaries. Access and denial
the Balfour Dec. News paper articles from the time. Your media Specialist should be able to help
Thank you for the resource! Will definitely look into this
Ah yes. I do love a nice short piece of text like the Balfour Dec.
let's not forget most of the Sahel. Islam to the north, Christianity to the south...
my students love saying "state morphology"
Ken Jennings book has a great passage about shapes
Great example Pete! Though Nigeria & Kenya are challenging that line.
A2: I think we could also include the winners and losers of climate change in here too, Ala Arctic opening, food production
Agree w the addition of religion as a factor in political / physical geography connection
A2: My fave is the Northern Limit Line or as I call it "No Limit Line"
A3 The Great Wall of China, the Nile surrounded by desert.
just talked about this in World Geo today. Ss amazed that a pol, phys and cultural boundary in the same place.
A3
I use google earth to highlight mountains/rivers/deserts + how the land shapes where people choose to live
If Americans Knew website. I was introduced when I took an Arab/Israeli Conflict class in Qatar.
A3: U.S. expansionism and the Philippines as stepping stone to Asian markets, spheres of influence, open door policy
Meant to be A3: Northern Limit Line, India/China, U.S./Mexico, Algeria/Morocco, North/South Carolina, Texas/Oklahoma
A3 We talk about the Tumen River & how it separates N. Koreans from the free paradise that is... China???
Never did I think Meryl & geography could seemlessly go together! Love it
A3 - Sudan/S Sudan
South China Sea
Arctic Ocean
to start
Though that site might also lead to a good lesson on bias!
A3 Events in the South China Sea = fascinating & creates many discussions re: what is an island / maritime borders etc..
Joining late, where are we? :)
Any students on Twitter tonight, here's a great review for unit for Friday's exam. Follow thread
I forgot that map! I used to use it to ask Ss if each culture having their own state would work
Examples of physicla features impacting political geography!
A3: California water issues and separatist movements. Cadillac Desert kind of stuff.
Absolutely! It's very eye-opening
A3 The Lewis and Clark expedition laid the groundwork for the expansion of the US across the continent.
A3 for US can discuss changes in borders, conflicts re: Maine, Oregon addition of Alaska, Mexican Am War and more!
Here's a whole reading list for you!
A3 Rio Grande River: El Chamizal-shifting boundaries of river change territory btwn. U. S. and Mexico. https://t.co/0Y9iipUWBY
TY for mentioning CA & water can also bring in Owen's Valley, St. Francis Dam & San Fernando Valley
So true. When I drove out to Colorado last yr & went over the Missouri, I thought about how amazing that was
We can also show Ss clips/episodes of How the States Got their Shapes!
Add that book to the list - the book isn't as engaging as the show, but still quite good!
A4 It seems to me that Trump's proposed wall sealing off the border with Mexico shows it to be relevant still.
and Salton Sea and Sacramento Delta and San Joaquin Water Project and and and...
Q3 Currently teaching about the Congo/coltan and discussing the relationship between Uganda/Rwanda is crucial
A4 countries have always fought over resources and will continue to do so
A4
Since the world is becoming more+more interdependent than ever I would have to say that physical geo dictates political
A4 W/climate change, it is just as important, maybe more so w/7 billion population. We have already mentioned water conflicts.
A4 It depends - physical features used to protect nations from others, not as much anymore.
A4 Cont. But nations are more desperate for resources today. So that plays a role too.
Q4 More important given the rapid effects of climate change! Map of the Solomon Islands just changed!
https://t.co/OHs1C9JD9h
yep..... and i think fresh water most of all
A4 Sadly it is still the same just new players added to the mix ongoing desire for natural resources / new markets / power
Although the Atlantic and Pacific still do a fairly good job of protecting the US from invasion.
A3, 2 Japan occupied Korea.Stepping stone to Manchuria, China...
Read When My Name Was Keoko (Ss loved) during this unit.
Has the topic of China building islands come up? Where/who will put those on the map(s)?
and tonight's entire conversation in one sentence :-)
A4: understanding both vital to sustainability, but perhaps physical less easy to change (we hope, kinda)
A4: Plays a big part esp as a buffer like in China a minorities
A4 Or Coal in Germany's case. Classic example of why the ECSC was set up https://t.co/6wosPUdNmA
yep..... and i think fresh water most of all
A4 I'm going to go with physical geo as a constant in political geo. Availability, use, and control of physical resources.
excellent q for both political and physical geo -- and who makes that decision?
I used to run a debate on the island dispute of the Spratly Islands.
Great question! We can ask the same for the UAE with how rapidly they're building as well.
that's on my Korean shelf. May have to move it up in the que.
It's an interesting comparison, islands disappearing while others create islands.
A4 guiding question:
What determines who has access and rights to use the world's resources?
The decision mapping "new" islands brought up naming / renaming of countries political impacts of names
I wasn't sure how it would go--1st time use with Ss. Amazing results. Ss led discussions topic of their choosing.
that's my next lesson in World Geo incl loss of reefs, UNCLOS, naval routes, etc
That, is a great question.
European Union Common Fisheries Policy. Political deacons made on physical env https://t.co/3v6t5zu4ax
A4 guiding question:
What determines who has access and rights to use the world's resources?
it's one of my seven guiding questions that I posted last week.
A5: Tough q to answer! I think that many big picture political questions can be traced to Middle East currently.
so often the answer is.....complicated
I was thinking about how different Louisiana would be without "engineering"
A5 All involving nuclear states, and those exacerbated by climate change.
A5
If we are looking for 1 that impacts our Ss, Mexico would be my call. Help Ss understand why their is so much migration
Must go back & find that tweet again. :)
Yes! was where I first saw this! Glad I'm not a gov't official that has to make these decisions.
A5 Awesome Q. I have to go with...which students? Where are their interests/heritage? Everything hinges on this:)
A5 so many to teach and are of importance. Arab Spring, North Korea, all good but don't forget local. Make it relevant to ss
A5 China's expansion beyond it's borders re: natural resources / new markets & the whole discussion on climate change
Hard to imagine it from mainstream news, but the migration in the past couple of years is mostly back to Mexico.
Great point! It really does depend on your Ss.
A5 on this topic I would ask students what is important to them + go from there. Every year is different. Follow their passion
Q5 Israel/Palestine, Russia/Crimea, ISIS and the migrant crisis in Europe, Sudan and the DRC
A5 Tough. Middle East, Russia, China, India.
A5 the worldwide refugee crisis with emphasis on Syria but going beyond
Yes - also shocking that Obama has deported more ppl than any other president. Media has a way of working.
Local is so important...Uber and Lyft left Austin today due to a vote about a city's rights to regulate.
My previous school, primarily Latino. Current school, East and Southeast Asia. Brings me new perspective!
I heard that on NPR this morning.
A5: Syria is 1 that answers all tonight's Qs. Drought baby drought.
Yes Local so important always bring it back home / relevance!
Puerto Rico would also be interesting to study. It once again brings up debate of statehood or independence
Yep. you had a great caroon about Syria, right?
In terms of U.S. foreign policy, nuclear states are VERY significant. That topic dictates our policy.
we need to remember out interests or what we've always taught are not their interests
Do they ask why this news is not widely reported? Great discussion topic.
Not until it's pointed out directly to them.
fair point. I'm thinking more along the lines of asking them what they know+facilitate learning towards regions
Got to leave a little early tonight, . The CA Senate debate begins at the top of the hour. Thanks all for a great chat tonight.
But what if what they know is not what they need to know?
Control over resources --> the intersection of politics, economics, and physical geography
Al Jazeera great for news
I don't. I use it as a jumping off point. Help them develop Qs and facilitate the class towards a particular topic
A5: do we consider Kyoto through COP21 an international or multi-state conflict?
And we wonder why Trump gets so much attention!
Only 2 's left!
Next week: Ending the Year Strong
5/24 - Reflections & Goals for Next Year
Who decides what they need to know? What mattered to you at their age?
Love Choices Teaching with the News.
that's where we come in to shape/facilitate+help dig deeper and ask more Qs
2 claps for for leading an amazing tonight!
Loved so many voices!
Yes! I saw that you recently did a workshop, as did I (2).
Love !
Am leaving early. Super tired after playing Bermuda's national netball team
TY for allowing this ELA girl to lurk and learn with you tonight. Have a great week everyone!!
