Support for primary geography teachers

Through Teacher Tap, the Society recently conducted a survey of approximately 2,000 primary geography teachers to understand what support they have received for teaching geography during their careers. 

The results show that only a minority of the respondents (26%) had received CPD support for geography beyond their initial teacher training course. In terms of specific training on the ‘building blocks’ of primary geography even less support was available, with very few teachers attending CPD on areas such as the location and features of places (5%), human geography topics such as countries, settlement or trade (5%), physical geography topics such as volcanoes, rivers or weather (6%), and teaching fieldwork (8%).

The Society has a range of support available for primary geography teachers to help them teach the subject at KS1 and KS2. Our upcoming primary geography CPD events include using map skills and online mapping, a joint session with Ordnance Survey on using Digimap for Schools, and how to deliver meaningful and curriculum relevant geography fieldwork experiences at KS1 and KS2. We also have a range of free resources and schemes of work suitable for primary students across the geography curriculum from mapping, rivers and fieldwork to volcanoes, mountains and global trade.

In addition, the Society is working with the Endurance22 expedition to produce free resources for KS1 and KS2 geography and history lessons, which will draw on the Society’s collection of polar maps, photographs, documents, and artefacts. These resources will allow pupils to explore changes in polar exploration from the early 20th century to today and the different motivations for why people visit Antarctica, as well as this continent’s unique frozen environment.

See our range of our primary geography resources