The state of geography in basic education schools in Muscat, Oman

Abstract

There have been remarkable changes in the Omani educational system since the implementation of the Basic Education Reform in 1998. The current study was an attempt to offer insights into the state of geography in the current reform. Particularly, the study examined teachers’ preferred reasons for teaching geography, teachers’ views on important topics that should be emphasized in geography curriculum, teachers’ views on their instructional methods and materials used in geography teaching and teachers’ views on challenges facing geography teaching. Data were gathered from 144 social studies teachers in Muscat Governorate using a survey. Findings indicated that teachers were interested in a variety of topics, including weather and climate, geomorphology, environmental issues and natural disasters. The most often used instructional methods were discussion, the use of current events, cooperative learning, individual projects, brainstorming and inquiry. Teachers reported using a variety of instructional materials, including textbooks, atlases, maps and globs, the Internet and geographic models. Unfortunately, there were a variety of challenges facing teachers, including the lack of participation in curriculum development. Findings of the study provided important implications for geographic education in Oman.

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