The adoption of Thinking Through Geography strategies and their impact on teaching geographical reasoning in Dutch secondary schools

Abstract

The development of geographical reasoning is essential in geographical education. Strategies developed by the English Thinking Through Geography group (TTG) offer a promising approach to promote geographical reasoning. In the last decade, the TTG approach has become a regular element in geographical education in several countries. Research suggests that teachers acquainted with TTG do not always take full advantage of the possibilities of these strategies. The adoption of the TTG approach is explored ten years after its introduction in the Netherlands. Findings are presented of a survey conducted among Dutch geography teachers (N = 307) about the significance they assign to geographical reasoning and their use of TTG assignments. The results suggest that teachers use TTG selectively and adapt TTG assignments to fit them into existing practices and beliefs about students and teaching geography.

Keywords:

• geographical education
• geographical reasoning
• Thinking Through Geography
• teaching strategies
• professional development