THE GEOGRAPHY DEPARTMENT

1. THE GEOGRAPHY ROOM

A Geography room is a specialized room or lab for teaching geography. It bridges the gap
between the sciences and humanities. It uses tools just like any other science subject. Geography
teaching needs tools such as a globe, maps Atlas, Meteorological equipment etc. In geography,
learners should not sit passively at their desks but they should be engaged in practical activities
like map drawing, drawing of diagrams etc.

Geography is a science and any course in science can be considered complete if it has the
practical aspect. And the practical work in geography can only be done in a geography room.

Parts of a geography room (Areas in a geography room)

Class seated area

The working space (teaching space and learner`s working space)

Storage space

When designing a geography room, these parts should be considered;

1. Class seated area

The seated area should have an adequately sitting space for the class. It should be large enough
to accommodate students with their seats and books

Tables should be large enough to accommodate student`s sheets, books atlas etc. Ordinary class
rooms tend to be small with small tables shared by students.

Furniture should be designed in such a way that it can be used by individual students during and
after the lesson and by groups in group study by putting tables together without much
commotion and not destroying the furniture.

Flexibility of furniture is very important especially in for Ariel photos, weather maps and charts
when they are used in groups.

The type of chairs depend on choice, money, type of tables and space available.
The arrangement of tables depends on the shape of the room, number of pupils and size of the
room.

The tables should be flat with standard height, the chairs should have stools so that work can be
done on maps by pupils while standing or seated.

With high tables, stools can be put underneath and space can be created.

Tables can also be provided with drawers for students to keep their books and other working
materials.

2. Working Space

The working space is divided into the Teacher`s working space and learner`s working space

a. Teacher`s working space

The front of the room should have the main teaching space but teaching can be done from
anywhere in the room. It should have an elevated platform for the teacher to enable him see the
students easily even at the back corner. It should also be elevated to allow learners to see clearly
while the teacher is doing the demonstrations.

The teacher`s demonstration desk should be in front on the elevated platform

Adequate space of about 3 meters should be left between the front row of the tables and the wall
behind the teacher to enable all students to have a clear view of the chalk/white board, wall
maps, projection, screens or demonstrations

The teacher needs adequate chalk board space to conserve some diagrams/ illustrations and maps
for subsequent uses especially those which are difficult to design, thus saving time and energy.

A chalk board may cover the whole of the front wall and it may be in different forms e.g;

I Roller board: This gives the largest area for the smallest space taken up

Ii Folding board: This can give as many faces as possible at the same time.
Counter poise/sliding board: This can also give four faces which are arranged like a sliding
window

Parts of the walls should be fixed with soft boards on which pins can be used

b. Class Working Space (Learners working space)

Space for drawing and reading of maps, photos and charts

Space for tracing and making of models. This can be provided at the back of the room. Students
encouraged to make models by using their hands.

A tracing table can be put/ placed on top of the map storage cabinet to save space but it should be
away from the sink and a model making sector to avoid damaging the glass and the wood over
the of time.

A work bench for both the students and of the teacher and it should be near the sink

There is need for a dark room.

The teacher`s office which should have a sink chalk board, a filling cabinet, reading room and
library

3. Storage space

Geography needs an adequate storage facilitates because it uses a lot of instruments e.g globe,
maps, specimens, collected from the fields eg plants and keeping meteorological equipment

Importance/Reasons for a Geography room

 It controls the damage of geography equipment

 It is a reference area for the students
 It makes the subject practical and interesting
 It forces the teacher/ department to put in the equipment
 It is spacious / larger than the ordinary classrooms hence making it easier for learners to
use/ accommodate to practical activities, movements and construction of maps/ diagrams.
 It controls time consuming ie during transferring of equipment to classes.
 Saves time of drawing illustrations.
  It provides/ creates a good atmosphere for learning ie it’s a laboratory like any other
science lab.
 It stimulates the imagination of students and motivates learners.
 The chalk board diagrams which are difficult to draw/ design can be preserved for use in
the next lesson.
 Geography material such as models, maps, charts can be displayed permanently.
 A geography room has arrangements for putting off lights and it is created for whenever
the teacher wants to demonstration

Challenges faced by a geography teacher teaching without a geography room

 Absence of an elevated platform

 Failure to store geographical equipment obtained from the field work.
 Mixing up of geographical materials ie maps, atlases used and un used
 Damage and loss of some of materials due to constant movements e.g meteorological
equipment.
 It is time and energy consuming since it involves continuous drawing of maps and other
illustrations
 It makes the learning of geography more theoretical
 Wall maps and other geographical information cannot be permanently fixed
 Failure to use materials that need darkness
 Inaquate space for practical work since the ordinary classrooms are small and yet the
drawing and displaying of topographic maps requires large tables.

Reasons for the lack of a geography room

 Limited funds
 Most schools are profit oriented thus investing in a geography room that does not attract
learners and parents is seen as a wastage of resources
 Lack of enough space make a geography room look like an ordinary class
 Lack of special equipment to put in the geography room
 Crowded time tables that don’t allow for practical lessons since they take a lot of time
 Large class
 Political instabilities
  Inadequate qualified teachers to use the resources in the geography room. Etc.

A RESOURCE CENTER

This is a center where various instructional equipment of the school are stored. It also gives
information about the resources available in the different parts of the school. There are some
equipment which are used by almost all subjects such as projectors, tapes recorders,
photocopiers, TV etc. Though there those for some specific subjects. If the resources are shared
they are available in the resource center, they can easily be accessed by different departments
hence reducing duplication of resources.

There are some resources which are used by a large number of teachers. A resources must have
a good retrieval system for easy identification of resources. This makes indexing of all resources
necessary.

The index shows and says a lot about the material eg the author, producer, tittle, location within
the center and other department under which it can be found and also other areas or departments
in which the resource can be found.

It is different from a library because it contains many kinds of information of materials like
pictures audio-visual soft, models, specimens of different text books etc.

The layout of a resource center depends mainly on the learning materials available in the school.
Other that are found in resource center are shelves for textbooks, tables, counter to issue and
receive books, catalogue cabinet, filling cabinet, section for production resources etc.

Recourses should be kept according to the subjects and be given numbers and assigned fixed
places where they can be returned after use.

GEOGRAPHY DEPARTMENT AND ITS INSEPTION IN SCHOOLS

 Indicators of Geography in a school

 Existence of a weather station
 Posters and geographical Maps drawn on the buildings
  Geography laboratory
 Geography clubs
 Geography materials eg text books, maps, globes etc
 Head of geography department, teachers and students
 Minutes for departmental meetings
 Regular fields trips from videos of their trips

HEAD OF DEPARTMENT (ROLES OF A HEAD OF DEPT)

 To coordinate all geography teachers

 To ensure that the required geographical materials are in place
 To organize and heed departmental meetings
 Allocation of classes to geography teachers
 Supervises and monitors the teaching and performance of teachers and students in the
department
 Organizes seminars for both teachers and students
 Organizes field works and other geography study tours
 Helps in the recruitment of geography teachers

QUALITIES OF A GOOD GEOGRAPHY TEACHER

 Good grasp of subject matter and not a gambler

 He must have a reading culture to be well equipped with the current information and
competent
 Should have knowledge of child psychology at different levels
 Good grasps of different teaching methods and their applicability
 Power of observation and imagination which must be passed on the his or her learners
 Knowledge of using instructional materials eg projectors, sketches
 Scientific methods of thinking ie must verify facts before accepting them
 Ability to draw diagrams and sketch maps whenever they are required
 Quality of leadership and sense of direction during the teaching –learning process or
study tours
 Should have interest in collection of items of geography importance, these can be used as
a source of data for teaching aids, these are pinned or stored in the geography room.
  The teacher should be smart disciplined and cultured
 The teacher should have the capacity to inculcate interest in learners about the subject.
 The teacher should be above political, religion, tribal, racial and nationality boundaries
 Should have international understanding of the world`s events and pass them on to the
students.

FIELD WORK
It refers to the act of gathering new data and information with a view of processing, analyzing it
to reach certain conclusions. It provides an opportunity for direct observation of phenomena for
the specific places at a certain time.

Prof. S.W Wooldrig defined field work as the art of seeing and using the accessible local ground
as a lab for teaching geography.

Objectives of Field Work.

 To enable students or researchers to relate documented information to real life

information.
 To help students gather information for themselves, they are able to make independent
judgment to real life information about human and physical features.
 To enable students to discover new knowledge /information.
 To enable students gain skills of working as a team.
 To provide students with an opportunity of developing interest in the subject and see how
space is arranged, how static or dynamic it is. In so doing students are able to identify the
relationships between the geographical phenomena.
 It helps to beak classroom boredom.
 It helps students to develop skills e.g observation, interviewing, sketching, measurement,
interpretation of data, etc.

TYPES OF FIELD WORK

1. Excursion field work

2. Class tour field work
3. Feasibility study/ pilot study
 1. EXCURSION FIELD WORK

This is an old approach to conducting geographical field work. It is a special journey arranged
within the framework of pleasure or leisure. In most cases people in an excursion will conduct a
field trip without specific objectives. In the end they will be able to identify distinct themes,
topics of their field trip experiences. Excursions are short-lived.

2. CLASS TOUR FIELD WORK

This involves moving from the school to given places and returning to school. It involves
teachers and students setting out to achieve specific objectives which are clearly outlined before
the tour. It is usually based on one theme/ topic. Eg visiting an industry, a farm, a fish landing
site etc.

3. FEASIBILITY STUDY/ PILOT STUDY

This is a distinct type of field work. It seeks to establish the likelihood of a project being
successful and beneficial to the entire community. It is therefore carried out by a team of experts
trained in different fields.

STAGES INVOLVED IN A FIELD WORK EXERCISE

1. Preparatory stage (Pre-field/ preliminary/ preparation stage)

This involves the preliminary activities/ or activities done before going to the field to collect the
data. The activities include the following:

 Making a pilot study in order to record the existing features estimate the time required to
study them, noting where stop overs need to be made for observations, sketching and
explanations. It is useful for making bookings to areas of interest, and accommodation in
case the field work is for more than one day.
 Getting in touch with the school administration and establish whether there is transport or
other resources that are required. The administration also provides the introductory letter
during both the pilot and field study.
 Identifying the topic/ theme of study.
 Making mental preparation of the students, helping them to understand what they are
going to study and why they are studying that topic.
  Setting the objectives of the study, ie what you want them to find out when at different
places
 Outlining the methods of data collection and the data collection tools so that they get
them prior to going to the field.
 Divide the class into study groups so that each group deals with a specific aspect while in
the field and each group should be assigned its duties.
 Get in touch with other teachers to avoid inconveniences.

2. Excursion Stage

This is also called field stage, this is the stage where data collection takes place, and the activities
are mainly carried out by students. The teachers are just in the background guiding learners. The
teacher must re-introduce the topic at every stopping point to keep students on truck.

 Students should be able to acquire observation skills

 They should be able to acquire listening skills, listening attentively helps them to pose
relevant questions
 They should also be able to record what they have observed
 The teacher should help students to identify places where they should do some sketching
and drawing on phenomena eg drawing the sketch map of the study area, the panoramic
view of the area etc.

3. Follow-up stage
 Back in the classroom, students should dominate explaining what they have recorded.
 The teacher guides them on what to do with the data collected.
 If field work was on individual basis, each student is expected to write a report.
 The data collected should be put in full note form.
 The teacher should help students to realize the importance of the collected data.
 The teacher has to prepare for the lesson stating the objectives clearly, he/she should
make corrections in the reports made by students so as to help them make a final
comprehensive/ detailed report.

PROBLEMS INVOLVED/ FACED DURING FIELD WORK.

  Indiscipline among students
 Weather vagaries
 Limited time
 Limited resources
 Poor time management
 Accidents
 Language barrier
 Absenteeism of some students
 Failure by some respondents to cooperate ie of some respondents may deliberately refuse
to provide the required information.
 Poor healthy conditions among students
 Inaccessibility of some areas.

THE WORKING SCHEDULE

I is an outline of the program to be followed while in the field. This is more than a working time
table because it spells out all that is to be done during the field work at different points. The
methods of data collection are included in a working schedule so as to avoid getting confused
during data collection.

Importance of a working schedule

 It provides an estimate of the duration of the field wok (how much time is needed)
 It provides insights into what the field work will entail
 It gives a basis for evaluating the field work exercise during and after the field work
exercise
 It assists a researcher to conduct and complete the field work within stipulated time.
 It provides a systematic research framework that guides the researcher to remain within
the scope of the topic.
 It minimizes wastage of resources both in terms of money and time.

Problems that interfere with a working schedule.

 Personal problems such as poor health.

 Financial problems that may bring the project to a standstill.
  Environmental constraints such as rugged terrain
 Poor time management
 Language barrier by the respondents
 Indiscipline among students
 Too much beauracracy which may lead to releasing money late, acquiring transport
means late etc.

Solutions to the field work or working schedule problems.

 Use of translators in case of language barrier.
 Take extra cautions to reduce on the possibility of making inaccurate observations
 Potential respondents where possible should be briefed in advance so as to reduce on
absenteeism and hostility.
 Counter check all doubted responses by either re-phrasing the questions or by asking
 Supplementary questions.
 Borrowing the missing resources/ equipment where possible or getting financial
assistance from friends, NGO`s etc
 Research assistants need proper training and handling to make them have the research at
heart or with interest.

TYPES OF DATA COLLECTION METHODS

They are broadly two categories of methods and these include;
a. Primary methods
b. Secondary methods
The primary methods are used to collect primary data ie first hand data whereas secondary
methods are used to collect second hand data ie data which is already recorded.
Primary methods involve methods like interviews, observation, questionnaire, Experimental
method.
INTERVIEW METHOD
This is where the researcher asks the respondent face to face questions as he/she answers
directly.
Before using this method the researcher needs to first have an interview schedule. These are
written down questions in line with the study objectives that a researcher asks the respondent
while in the field. This helps to save time and also to have a proper flow/ systematic follow of
the questions and answers.
The researcher should identify the respondents before going to the field e g if carrying out field
work on an industry, the researcher needs to categorize the workers of the industry so that each
category of workers can provide information based on their experience and expertise
The interviewer should avoid influencing the respondents (interviewee). This helps to avoid
getting biased answers.
The researcher should try to get appropriate answers from the interviewee because not every
answer is necessary/ relevant.
Re-phrase the questions where you feel the respondent has not given the information that you
want.

Merits of Interview method.

 It provides first-hand information on spot.
 This method is not discriminative because both literate and illiterate can use it.
 If you rely on documented data, you are likely to get outdate data, eg documented data
still talks about few industries in Uganda
 It is less costly in terms of resources.
 It allows verification of answers by asking the same question to many respondents.
 It guarantees high response rate.
 It creates a good relationship between the interviewer and interviewee.
 Different views can be got on the same question by different respondents.
 The researcher is able to seek clarification in case unclear responses are given by asking
supplementary questions.
Demerits of the Interview method.
 It is time consuming
 It is expensive when covering a big area, ie moving from one place to another, you need
to employ research assistants to help you conduct the interviews and these need to be
paid.
  You can easily get exaggerated or wrong information especially when the respondents
want to impress you or when they don’t understand the importance of the information
you are gathering.
 The success of this method is entirely dependent on the cooperation of the respondents.
 Language barrier
 Harsh and hostile respondents.
QUESTIONNAIRE METHOD.
This is a method of collecting data which involves designing questions before going to the field.
Questions should be simple and clear so that they can easily be interpreted by the respondents.
Questions should be arranged in chronologically staring form simple to complex. You may start
with questions about one’s everyday life such as sex, age, number of children/ people in a
household etc.
Sensitive questions should be asked at the end.
Personal questions should be avoided where possible eg one`s income, number of cattle on has,
you should find better tactics of asking about such information eg instead of asking someone
how old are, you can ask which age bracket do you belong to, the same applies to the number of
children.
Questions can be open or closed ended. Open ended questions, the respondent is not given
answers/ options from which he/she can pick, and it is rather open and allows the respondents to
express themselves / give their opinion.
Closed ended questions on the other hand, the respondent is given options from which he/she
chooses by ticking the appropriate/ correct answer. Analysis of close ended question is very easy
compared to open ended questions.
It is better that the researcher issues a pilot questionnaire to see how people respond before
giving the final questionnaire.

Merits of Questionnaire method.

 It can be posted therefore it can be filled by many people hence getting many views.
 The information given can easily be analyzed by comparing the different views given.
 Questionnaires are useful in extraction of information on a broad field work topic.
  Posted questionnaires reduce on the field work expenses especially if the respondents are
widely scattered.
 Respondents are free to express themselves especially on open ended questions.
 Respondents have time first think about their answers before giving them because they
are not required to respond immediately.
 It can be used to collect data on sensitive information because the respondent can answer
in the absence of the researcher.
 Questionnaires give first-hand information.

Demerits of Questionnaire method

 The response rate is very low especially with posted questionnaires
 Analysis is very hard because there are a variety of answers to the same question.
 It may not work where people cannot read and write. This may require an interpreter.
 Designing a questionnaire is very difficult and time consuming.
 Questionnaires are very expensive because administering them requires research
assistants.
 It does not give opportunity to collect additional information especially with posted
questionnaires.

OBSERVATION METHOD.
This involves visualization or seeing of phenomena that are of interest to the researcher e.g land
use, traffic flow, market study etc.
In this method you observe and record while in the field. The researcher should observe and
record features/ object that are related to the topic or purpose of study. Some relationships are
not easy to spot out because they are hidden. While in the field, you need to locate a place where
to stop, stand and observe and where to record the data from.
Field information may be recorded in form of summary notes, charts, diagrams, photograph, tape
recording etc.
You need to carry out a reconnaissance/ pilot study or a pre-survey so that you get to know what
you need still exists or not. During the pilot study, you need to locate points where to stop, stand
while observing. Do the recording while still in the field e.g do the sketching, recording etc.
Merits of Observation method.
 The researcher gets first-hand information
 The researcher actively participates in data collection.
 It gives you visual impression which can stick in the mind of the researcher.
 IT is relatively cheaper than the questionnaire if a smaller area is covered or sampled.
Demerits of a Questionnaire method.
 Changes in weather can make observation difficult.
 It is restricted to a small area because observing a large area is very costly.
 It is tiresome and time consuming because it involves a lot of movements, a researcher
may have to travel extensively while observing different feature.
 The information gathered is limited to what the researcher is exposed to yet what is
available to the researcher may not necessarily constitute a representative sample.
 Some information cannot be observed for example historical background.
 It is limited to only those who can see ie not shortsighted and long sighted.

EXPERIMENTAL METHOD
 This involves collecting the sample from the field, it is then taken to the laboratory,
experiments are carried out and results recorded.
Merits.
 The researcher is actively involved in the study collects the same and does the
experiments
 It gives first-hand information because you do experiments on samples you have
collected hour self and make relationships can be made between variables e.g soils and
crops.
Demerits
 It is expensive since it requires running tests in the laboratory.
 It is time consuming because results are not immediate.

Reading area
Sampling methods, the different methods of sampling, their strength and weakness.