Student Perceptions of Geography, Earth & Environmental Sciences

Student Perceptions of Geography, Earth & Environmental Sciences (GEES) Final Report for Schools - Helen King

Geography, earth and environmental sciences are very much in the media at present. There are a wide variety of natural history television programmes and the news regularly contains references to natural disasters, climate change and so on. However, this coverage does not seem to translate to a high demand for higher education courses in the disciplines, at least not in the same way that dramas such as Silent Witness have created a demand for forensic science courses (for example). So what are the perceptions of the disciplines? Developing an understanding of school students’ attitudes to and perceptions of the GEES disciplines will help to inform HE departments’ recruitment and retention strategies as well as providing an opportunity to better promote the disciplines in schools, colleges and to the public.

The Higher Education Academy Subject Centre for Geography, Earth & Environmental Sciences (GEES) aims to support and enhance learning and teaching in these three disciplines in UK HE. Over the last academic year (2006-2007), the GEES Subject Centre has conducted a small-scale research study in order to develop a better understanding of school students’ perceptions of the three disciplines. The study included a literature review and a questionnaire-based survey of selected schools in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

A team of 22 colleagues from the GEES community around the UK were involved in the planning of the project and the design of the questionnaire. Schools were recruited through team members’ personal contacts and a total of 946 students from 20 schools completed the questionnaire.

The study was intended to act mainly as a pilot in order to identify key areas for further, more in-depth research. The resourcing of the project was such that, although common questionnaire and teacher-guidelines were sent to all participating schools, it was not possible for a team member to attend each questionnaire-completion session. It cannot be guaranteed, therefore, that the conditions were the same in each school. However, the commonality of responses across the schools suggests that data are valid, reliable and generalisable.

This report provides a discussion of the key findings from the survey in the context of recruitment into the GEES disciplines at HE and the wider literature on student perceptions and subject choice. Some suggestions for applications of this data and recommendations for further research are also offered.

Related Projects

Download a snapshot view of undergraduates perceptions of geography (with a particular focus on climate change) by Paul Wright, Southampton Solent University - Word file (38kB)
Download a student report of a pilot study on the general public’s perceptions of the GEES disciplines by A. Hill, S. Deverill, N. Kirby, University of Plymouth - Word file (442kB)
Download an analysis of Geology A level students’ perceptions of their subject by Daniel Stone (student), University of Plymouth - Word file (338kB)

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