Geographers...

Here we go again...

The Venn Diagrams of Teaching – Know your subject, by @JamesTheo pic.twitter.com/DgsAFfmRNs

— Teach Secondary (@TeachSecondary) August 14, 2018

But it's OK, I fixed it for you....

#TMGeogIcons18 - Post #7 - Confluence: a group of geographers

Apologies for the delay - trying to play catch up with a number of events, and doing that today as the hot weather continues...

One of the ideas that I shared at my keynote presentation at TMGeogIcons is something that I've shared a few times before, but I have now developed the idea a little further, and it seemed to go down well with those who attended.

People often ask what the collective name for a group of geographers might be.

I've asked quite a few people, but have come up with the idea that a suitable word is a:

confluence

The idea here is that we geographers are stronger when we meet and flow together for a while, perhaps working on a project, or in a department. When we meet, we are collectively stronger, and we may flow together for a short time or for longer. We all bring something to the relationship.

Coincidentally - I also talked about the idea of serendipity in curriculum planning, and Eleanor Rawling's idea that it is a companion to rational thinking. The merging of waters, and the nature of flow connects with this idea.
A few more extensions of the analogy would be:

- sometimes we find ourselves at a low ebb, and need the help of others to regain our strength
- we vary in our energy through the year - there is a regime to our working year
- sometimes things seem like they are going very well, but we come up against some sort of barrier, but we find a way around it
- the thalweg is the line of fastest flow, and sometimes we get into a groove, and go with the flow

Sometimes we experience laminar flow: everything goes smoothly. When someone else joins our department, it can sometimes create turbulence for a while, but eventually we flow together and benefit from the presence of each other in collaborating and delegating...

Can you think of other analogies, or alternative phrases for a group of geography teachers?

I am #OneOfOneThousandGeographers - are you ?

If you're a geographer, and are reading this, and also use Twitter, you need to send a tweet with the hashtag here: #OneOfOneThousandGeographers.
This will then be picked up by Dan from the Geography Collective, and we'll add you to the list... We're well over 100 now, and next stop, 1000 !

What (not) to wear...

There is a particular obsession that the media have with the clothing of choice of geography teachers.
In particular we seem to have become 'associated' with bad fashion sense...
Here are a few quotes from a simple Google search:

"In England, only geography teachers wear sandals."

"There are dozens of good reasons not to wear corduroy trousers, most of them to do with the kind of people who seem to like them best. Geography teachers wear them. Librarians like them. Engineering lecturers seek them out. They belong with Thermos flasks and bobble hats. Cords, says received wisdom, are just not stylish"

"Geography teachers wear tweed jackets with leather elbow pads."


Of course, members of the Geographical Association have much better taste....
We had a discussion the other day, and it seems that PARAMO seems to be the outerwear of choice amongst a number of GA staff. I certainly wear my Paramo smock for fieldwork and have always stayed bone dry.

As with many firms, Paramo are attempting to reduce the impact of their manufacturing on the environment. They are also rather fine clothes.
Let us know what particular clothing you prefer...