Geographical reading of the "Global Warming Ready" advertisement

Geo-media tools and resources were introduced as a new set of skills in the reformed Finnish national core curricula for basic and upper secondary school education in 2016. In this article, geo-media skills are understood as geographical media literacy skills. To illuminate these skills, an advertisement by Diesel (2007) entitled "Global Warming Ready" was shown to Finnish and international experts on geography education (n = 6), Finnish geography teachers (n = 19), and Finnish high school students (n = 7), and asked what sorts of geographical phenomena they recognized in the advertisement. The results showed that the experts were not enthusiastic about using the advertisement in school geography teaching, the teachers saw it as a mean of motivating the students to discuss global warming, and the students interpreted the geographical content of the advertisement in a holistic and profound manner.Geo-media tools and resources were introduced as a new set of skills in the reformed Finnish national core curricula for basic and upper secondary school education in 2016. In this article, geo-media skills are understood as geographical media literacy skills. To illuminate these skills, an advertisement by Diesel (2007) entitled "Global Warming Ready" was shown to Finnish and international experts on geography education (n = 6), Finnish geography teachers (n = 19), and Finnish high school students (n = 7), and asked what sorts of geographical phenomena they recognized in the advertisement. The results showed that the experts were not enthusiastic about using the advertisement in school geography teaching, the teachers saw it as a mean of motivating the students to discuss global warming, and the students interpreted the geographical content of the advertisement in a holistic and profound manner.Peer reviewe

Learning to look beyond the frame: how is the "blind field" of a photo filled?

This article discusses the processes of the interpretation of photos from a semiotic perspective. The main data-set covers drawings by Finnish high school students. These drawings depict the “blind field” — that is, the empty space surrounding the photo’s frames — of a photo taken in New York City. Every photo is framed in some way as it reveals only a part of the landscape it attempts to depict. Theoretically, it is argued that one’s life experience, education, and social relationships among other things affect how the viewer fills in the blind field. Therefore, the blind field is said to be the source of meanings in relation to a photo. Ontologically, photos are not understood as objective re-presentations of the world, but as subjective worldviews as photos are always taken by somebody and looked at by someone. This interaction between the photographer and the viewer is approached by asking: to what extent do the blind field and the students’ drawings in the blind field explain the meanings of the photo? This is a relevant question when taking into consideration the fact that a student’s way of interpreting photos in, for instance, geography textbooks might differ from that of the geography teacher. Therefore, the main argument of this study is that photos should not be taken for granted. Moreover, the elements that are not made visible in the photo also form an important part of the interpretation of photos.Peer reviewe

Kuvien käyttöä vai tulkintaa : Valokuvan semioottisten funktioiden puntarointia koulumaantieteessä

Non peer reviewe

Meaningful encounters with the built environment as the basis for urban environmental education

As the majority of people in the world now live in cities, it makes sense to question the state of urban environmental education and how it could be developed going forward. In this article, we suggest a way forward based on the essays written by Finnish university students. The students reflected on their relationship with an environment that is meaningful to them. In the essays selected for this case study (n = 25), the built environment of Helsinki—the capital of Finland—and its characteristics are in focus. In this qualitative research, inductive content analysis was used for processing the essays. Many students described the connections between urban nature and built environments, but the results also show that the built environment is especially significant because of its social and cultural aspects. Students described the importance of social bonding and how meeting different sorts of people supports their acceptance of diverse perspectives. Personal experiences and meanings attached to the city, as well as their lack, were mentioned; that is, without these personal bonds, meaningful relations to urban environments cannot be developed. Architecture, aesthetics, and soundscapes were also mentioned. In addition, it was expressed that feeling safe in the built environment is important. In urban environmental education, it is therefore important to pay attention to the social and cultural aspects, too, and not just to the ecological dimension. It is crucial that children and young people have access to the city in order to construct their personal relationships with the built environment.Peer reviewe

Meaningful Encounters with the Built Environment as the Basis for Urban Environmental Education

As the majority of people in the world now live in cities, it makes sense to question the state of urban environmental education and how it could be developed going forward. In this article, we suggest a way forward based on the essays written by Finnish university students. The students reflected on their relationship with an environment that is meaningful to them. In the essays selected for this case study (n = 25), the built environment of Helsinki—the capital of Finland—and its characteristics are in focus. In this qualitative research, inductive content analysis was used for processing the essays. Many students described the connections between urban nature and built environments, but the results also show that the built environment is especially significant because of its social and cultural aspects. Students described the importance of social bonding and how meeting different sorts of people supports their acceptance of diverse perspectives. Personal experiences and meanings attached to the city, as well as their lack, were mentioned; that is, without these personal bonds, meaningful relations to urban environments cannot be developed. Architecture, aesthetics, and soundscapes were also mentioned. In addition, it was expressed that feeling safe in the built environment is important. In urban environmental education, it is therefore important to pay attention to the social and cultural aspects, too, and not just to the ecological dimension. It is crucial that children and young people have access to the city in order to construct their personal relationships with the built environment

Semiotiikka kuvien maantieteellisen tulkinnan mahdollisuutena

Non peer reviewe

Visuaaliset kuvastot maantieteelliseen ajatteluun virittäjinä

Non peer reviewe

Meaningful Encounters with the Built Environment as the Basis for Urban Environmental Education

As the majority of people in the world now live in cities, it makes sense to question the state of urban environmental education and how it could be developed going forward. In this article, we suggest a way forward based on the essays written by Finnish university students. The students reflected on their relationship with an environment that is meaningful to them. In the essays selected for this case study (n = 25), the built environment of Helsinki—the capital of Finland—and its characteristics are in focus. In this qualitative research, inductive content analysis was used for processing the essays. Many students described the connections between urban nature and built environments, but the results also show that the built environment is especially significant because of its social and cultural aspects. Students described the importance of social bonding and how meeting different sorts of people supports their acceptance of diverse perspectives. Personal experiences and meanings attached to the city, as well as their lack, were mentioned; that is, without these personal bonds, meaningful relations to urban environments cannot be developed. Architecture, aesthetics, and soundscapes were also mentioned. In addition, it was expressed that feeling safe in the built environment is important. In urban environmental education, it is therefore important to pay attention to the social and cultural aspects, too, and not just to the ecological dimension. It is crucial that children and young people have access to the city in order to construct their personal relationships with the built environment

Nuorten piirustukset maantieteellisten mielikuvien ilmentäjinä

Non peer reviewe