Changing trends in the teaching of geography - from “geology to (not quite yet) theology”?

Post 1989, major changes have been made in the teaching of Geography at school. Until then, Geography was expected to provide pupils with "reliable" and "stable" information. For this reason, great emphasis was placed on the astronomical underpinnings of geography, characteristic features of the geographical environment (particularly geological structure and relief) as well as the role of natural conditions in agriculture. In the curriculum, economic issues received a conventional treatment, especially those related to countries of the Communist bloc, while population, social and political issues were only marginally discussed, partly to avoid indoctrination of youth. Contemporary curricula look at the world in a much more dynamic way and put more emphasis on social issues. Examples here include references to electoral geography, conflicts relating to the development of the Amazon Rainforest or various forms of NGO's aid to the poorest countries. All this means that programmes must be updated on a continuous basis. We are not only supposed to impart knowledge, but also to show pupils how to perceive problems in the world at large, how to observe and form their own opinions. The scope of geographic studies used to be spitefully summed up as being "from geology to theology''. Today, Geography at school is definitely evolving "from geology'' to a more or less satisfactory humanisation of teaching.