Support for geographical learning

Postgraduates who teach geography

The programme for our Postgraduates Who Teach workshops includes:

• an exploration of signature pedagogies in GEES

• strategies for engaging, working with and offering feedback to a range of learners

• tips for handling common teaching challenges

• ideas for supporting lab work and fieldwork, and

• discussion and reflection on the role and contribution of graduate teaching assistants in all these areas.

Two workshops were held in 2017 (resources below). There are no workshops currently planned.

Postgraduates who Teach (Royal Geographical Society (with IBG), London) - October 2017

This workshop was led by by Dr Simon Tate (Newcastle University) and Dr Lynda Yorke (Bangor University):

• Programme (October 2017)

• Session One/Two - How do we teach, and how do students learn?

  • Sessions 1 and 2 - slides

  • Handout 1 - VARK

  • Handout 2 - Honey & Mumford

• Session Three - Working with students: communication, assessment and feedback

  • Session 3 - slides

  • Handout 3 - Teaching

  • Handout 4 - Sample marksheets

  • Handout 5 - NUS

  • Handout 6 GEES assessment guidance

• Session Four - Field, lab and practical based teaching

  • Session 4 - slides

  • Handout 7 - field and lab scenarios

  • Handout 8 - field and lab scenarios - ideas

Postgraduates Who Teach (University of Glasgow) - May 2017

• Signature pedagogies and the contribution of graduate teaching assistants - Cheryl McGeachan

• Working with students: communication, assessment and feedback - Emma Laurie

• Teaching in the lab - Hannah Mathers, James Fitton and Cheryl McGeachan

• Teaching in the field - Gordon Curry

Careers and progression - Hannah Mathers and Melike Peterson

GEES new lecturers' toolkit

The Society delivered a workshop in November 2016 on teaching in geography, earth and environmental sciences for early-career academics, in partnership with The Institution of Environmental Sciences, The Geological Society, and the British Society for Geomorphology. The next workshop is planned for November 2018 - please contact RHED@rgs.org to register your interest.

Workshop sessions

• Scene-setter: teaching in GEES (Professor Joanna Bullard)

• Session 1: Large-group teaching / teaching across GEES subjects (Dr Rob Francis)

• Session 2: Curriculum co-design and student/research-led teaching (Dr Gordon Curry)

  • Reference list for curriculum co-design

• Session 4: Fieldwork teaching / teaching fieldwork (Dr Gordon Curry)

  • Reference list for fieldwork teaching

• Session 5: Teaching with data / teaching data skills (Dr Adam Dennett)

  • Presentation as PPT (for embedded media) - 464Mb

  • Geographical treasure hunt activity

• Session 6: Learning and technology (via VLEs) (Dr Mark Steer)

• Session 7: Assessment, giving and getting feedback (Professor Joanna Bullard)

• Careers, pathways and priorities (Dr Sarah Dyer)

(Sessions 3 and 8, Explore your teaching, had no presentations or resources)

Other resources

• Geography and employability (Dr Stephanie Wyse)

• "We learned" - summary of what participants learned over two days