Nauczanie geografii kraju ojczystego w Polsce po wejściu do Unii Europejskiej

Poland became a member state of the European Union on 1 May 2004, twelve years after entering into negotiations related to the Europe Agreement. From the Brussels' perspective, the 2004 enlargement is both the success of the 15 'old' member states and the 10 'new' member states. The evidence of the positive balance of the enlargement process can be found in the indicators provided in the economic reports of the time. In accordance with the opinions expressed by the majority of Poles, joining the EU has been advantageous for the country. This does not mean, however, that all the economic expectations of the nation have been fulfilled. The feeling that the national identity is under threat has not ceased. It seems crucial therefore to undertake activities in order to increase the level of teaching of those school subjects which influence profoundly the knowledge on the homeland as well as shape the civic attitudes. Undoubtedly, geography belongs to those subjects. The long-lasting discussion over teaching geography of Poland has brought the following canon of the student's knowledge of their own country: - students should know the selected issues of both physical and socio-economic geography of their home country; - students should know the basic features of the relief of the selected geographical regions of their home country; - students should gain basie knowledge on their home region - their 'small homeland'; - students should study the vast materiał on the potential and actual role of their home country both in the European Union and in the world.

W artykule zwrócono uwagę na niedostateczną precyzję zapisów Podstawy programowej kształcenia ogólnego... dotyczących nauczania geografii Polski, i wynikające z tego problemy dla praktyki szkolnej. W dalszej części, przedstawiono szereg możliwości integracji elementów wiedzy historycznej i geograficznej w kształtowaniu postaw patriotycznych podczas lekcji geografii. W konkluzji wskazano cztery kierunki działań w celu podniesienia poziomu nauczania geografii Polski.