RGS-IBG response to the Curriculum and Assessment review

A cross-posting from my new(ish) RGS-IBG blog on the Curriculum and Assessment review's Call for Evidence.

Following the release of the Geographical Association's response to the Call for Evidence yesterday, today saw the release of the Royal Geographical Society's response, which I had a small part in producing alongside Catherine South and the rest of the Education team - particularly Claire and Simon, Joe Smith, the RGS Education Committee (myself, David, Emma and Emily) and members and Fellows who responded to our consultation.

In our response we signal the value of a geographical education for all young people, the strengths of the current provision, and areas in need of attention for the geography curriculum. 

We also offer our support for the next stage of the review – the subject deep-dives – and have volunteered to convene an expert working group, with the Geographical Association, to make specific evidence-based recommendations. 

The call for evidence was necessarily a long document and our response goes into detail on all relevant points. However, our key points can be summarised as: 

•  The current statutory entitlement to education in geography is a strength of the UK educational system and it must be retained. 
•  Geography is a subject that develops young people’s curiosity and helps them to apply that curiosity and learning in real-world contexts. 
•  While we support calls to embed the teaching of climate change across the curriculum, Climate change education must remain anchored in geography. 
•  Geography does (and should) teach young people about the UK and the wider world and the interconnections and dependencies between them. 
• Place-based understanding is important. 
• Geography is a subject that delivers both STEM and SHAPE ways of thinking, skills and insights.
•  The requirement for young people to do fieldwork, and to have structured learning in and out of the classroom and experience the outdoors, is essential and should feature at all stages of the National Curriculum and at GCSE and A Level (and in other relevant post-16 pathways). 
•  Geography develops skills of enquiry and analysis, including those in the use and analysis of geospatial (location) data. These must remain integrated into the curriculum and specifications with more support for teachers.

The full text can also be accessed from this link.

We wait to see what happens next in 2025.