This paper presents strategies for actively involving students in studying cultural geography through a research project on youth cultures. It provides a basic framework to investigate selected "subcultures" focusing on the origin and diffusion of each culture, its material and non-material aspects and the attributes and meanings of spaces used by…

The geographical analyses and descriptions of Appalachia "not only reflect reality, but they help to constitute this reality." This work first analyzes the status of the North American (United States and Canada) regional courses in the 210 geography degree-granting institutions listed in the Association of American Geographers…

Given some limitations of satellite imagery for the study of land cover change, we draw attention here to a robust and often overlooked data source for use in student research: USGS topographic maps. Topographic maps offer an inexpensive, rapid, and accessible means for students to analyze land cover change over large areas. We demonstrate our…

This article highlights the importance of considering the flow of newcomers into church life and the inadequacy of relying solely upon changes in numbers of attenders in assessing the effectiveness of churches. Drawing upon data collected in four countries, Australia, England, New Zealand and the United States of America, this article looks at the…

Up until a short time ago the Y chromosome played the role of the juvenile delinquent within human chromosomes. It was considered to be rich in junk, short on genes, and rapidly degenerating. Now the Y chromosome is growing up by providing a means for investigating human migration. Through the use of genetic markers on the Y chromosomes, students…

Most researchers and the Census Bureau expect the U.S. population to hit the 300 million mark sometime in October. This will make the United States the world's third most populous nation--behind China and India. In this article, the author found several websites dealing with the specific 300 million target, population growth in general, and…

This paper identifies some personal priorities in teaching economic geography. The author places the economy relationally regarding social, cultural and political dimensions of life; she clarifies different modes of geographic inquiry-geographies; and she taps the breadth of economic geography by including a wide range of substantive topics. She…

This article makes an argument for an economic geographical pedagogy that is post-disciplinary, emphasizing non-hierarchical, student-based knowledge, disciplinary interconnectedness, epistemological plurality, and material embodiedness and embeddedness. Key to this conception of economic geographical pedagogy are recent writings of Timothy…

Scholars have provided numerous critical analyses of the structural causes of poverty. Unfortunately, many teachers are still led to believe, via best selling books and mainstream discourse, that behaviors, neighborhoods, and families determine educational outcomes. This "culture of poverty" theory must be disproved; educators need to be…

Descriptions of global education tend to be either fragmented or nebulous. Consequently, the educator is left with little tangible basis for developing instructional programs. As a corrective measure, this paper advocates using fundamental ideas from the disciplines of geography and environmental sociology that collectively contribute to the…

The degree to which perception and behavior are incorporated in geography instruction and the attitudes of geographers towards perception and behavior in contemporary research are examined. In 1981, a survey was mailed to 332 undergraduate and graduate departments of geography in the United States. The 174 respondents provided data as follows,…

Two exercises are presented to show that changes in the size of urban populations invove the demographic processes of migration and natural change. Discussion of these exercises and the result provides a useful introduction to various aspects of urban growth and to the role and nature of models in studying urban processes. (JR)

Population projections are "what if" computational exercises. Given selected assumptions about future trends in fertility, mortality, and migration, population trends can be projected. Government and business planners need this information, and they also require enough time to put facilities in place to meet future needs. Everyone benefits from a…

Television is one of the most pervasive forms of communication and one of the most influential and visible forms of popular culture. Some researchers believe that the mass communication capability of television has increased cultural homogeneity in all but a very few places. This paper contends that the American, National, and Columbia…

The purpose of this unit is to increase student comprehension of the economic forces at work in regions, states, nations, and the world. Although the unit is intended for North Carolina teachers, it is appropriate for all economic programs. The unit encourages students to examine how geography, available resources, capital investment, and economic…