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Early Years & Primary Phase Committee
The Early Years and Primary Phase Committee seeks to support and promote primary school geography.
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| The work of the EY&PPC 2006 - 2007 |
The EY&PPC continues to work proactively on behalf of primary geography. Committee members are involved in a variety of activities, conferences, CPD, consultations, and steering groups, both as members of the committee and as a result of different members' 'day jobs'. We are passionate about primary geography and the skills, knowledge, understanding, excitement and fun it can offer, but we are also realists and understand the pressures of time on primary teachers.
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Every year, the national GA Conference is a major part of our work with many members of the committee offering workshops. This year, committee members involved in presenting workshops, seminars, lectures and local events included Anthony Barlow, Rachel Bowles, Simon Catling, Helen Martin, Nikki Whitburn, Jane Whittle and Tessa Willy. Awards were made to Helen Martin (two), Anthony Barlow and Rachel Bowles.
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The committee also organises a Primary Geography Conference. The next conference will be a joint conference with the Primary Committee of the Historical Association in autumn 2008. The action packed programme will offer thought provoking sessions and practical ideas and activities for primary teachers.
An important conference in the calendar of the EY&PPC is the Charney Manor Conference organised annually in the spring term by Simon Catling. Simon is heavily involved in research in primary geographical education and this conference brings together primary geographers and like-minded people for an inspirational and motivational weekend.
Another member of the committee, Rachel Bowles, is the coordinator of The Register of Research in Primary Geography, which is a central database of action and investigative research. The Research publications cover all aspects of teaching and learning in the classroom and outdoors. The work covers the outcomes of different strategies used for geography and cross-curricular work (with e.g. literacy, numeracy, citizenship, sustainability, creativity, and environmental education).
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Many members of the committee, led by Helen Martin, have been involved at different levels in consultations, focus groups and steering groups working towards the geography strategy. This has culminated in the Action Plan for Geography. Several members of the committee attended of the launch of the Action Plan in March 2006.
Tessa Willy, along with other members of the committee, has links with RGS-IBG and the development of the resources and exhibitions held there, including activities suitable for primary children. Many other members have strong international links. We were particularly proud when Janie Whittle announced that her school had achieved the International Schools Award status, connected with work on India. Elaine Jackson recently hosted a group of ten people from Chembakoli and also has strong links with Uganda, South Africa, France and Spain as part of a TDA PMFL project. Margaret Mackintosh has generated strong links between Devon Teachers and the Gambia.
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Fieldwork and outdoor education is yet another passion of the EY&PPC. Simon Catling, Helen Martin and Tessa Willy attended the launch of Real World Outdoor Manifesto. Helen also attended a recent HMI OfSTED meeting at Juniper Hall looking at exemplars of good practice in fieldwork. It is intended to develop close links with the new GA Outdoor Classroom Working Party. The whole committee contributed towards a Review document for the Rose Primary Review co-ordinated by John Kenyon.
Niki Whitburn and Peter Bloomfield are heavily involved in ESD projects. Members of the committee involved in ITT are monitoring the place of primary geography in teacher training. Rachel Bowles, Phil Maudsley and others are involved in producing resources for Geography and ICT, amongst them a virtual reality program for RM. Tina Horler is involved with Citizenship matters and Claire Bell with the Primary Umbrella Group. Margaret Mackintosh has produced the QCA Assessment guidance for Geography.
Many members of the committee have been involved in Valuing Places - corresponding member, Liz Lewis, was heavily involved with the North East group.
The Primary Geography Quality Mark has been actively promoted by EY&PPC. Anthony Barlow's school, in Bolton, won a Silver Award and Helen Martin's school in Horsham, a Gold Award. Several members of the committee now act as moderators for the assessment.
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Members of the EY&PPC also beaver away producing numerous publications and articles, both for the GA and other publishers. Many members of EY&PPC (e.g. John Kenyon: Assessment) contributed to the Primary Geography Handbook (editor: Stephen Scoffham Ex Officio member of EY&PPC), SuperSchemes series and articles for Primary Geographer. Of course, EY&PPC is Barnaby Bear's home, with Elaine Jackson, author of the Big Books and Liz Lewis, author of the Little Books being members of the committee. Margaret Mackintosh, recently retired editor of Primary Geographer, is also a member of EY&PPC. Louise Chantler has recently worked on the FACE/Windward Islands' Banana resource. Helen Martin and Rachel Bowles are working on the Curriculum Partnership Primary Project Box due out autumn/winter 2007/08.
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A number of committee members also write for other publishers and organisations. Tina Horler has recently completed a series of books for Heinemann, as have Elaine Jackson, Liz Lewis and Margaret Mackintosh for Scholastic. Simon Catling carries the world for primary geography overseas through international conferences in Brisbane, Hong Kong, and further and was instrumental in organising the IGU-CGE UK Conference at the IoE London in April 2007.
Simon is now Associate Dean at Oxford Brooks and Tessa Willy and Emily Richardson have become Senior Lecturers in Geography Education at Roehampton University. We welcomed a new teacher member, Tricies Kavanagh at the AGM in June and there are three more possible new teacher members known to us.
The committee has a breadth of enthusiastic experience which they are happy to share with the primary community – just ask by contacting us and let's help you have fun teaching geography.
Rachel Bowles
Chair EY&PPC
(Updated 27.09.07)
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