Changing Horizons in Geography Education - HERODOT Network ...

• Pathways signal important tasks to be accomplished, e.g. regional education callsattention to the need of developing the sense of affiliation with one’s residenceplace. Health education makes us realise that the „stay-healthy” trend should bepropagated. If pathways are removed from the curriculum, the awareness of thosefeatures may disappear.• Thanks to the pathways, schools can organise many useful actions and events,such as cleaning up of the immediate surroundings, tidying objects or places ofhistorical importance, or creating a school garden.• Pathways are not ascribed any arbitrary organisational form, nor specified time forthe contents to be completed, thus they allow teachers to employ new, attractivesolutions.• Pathways are the opportunity for initiating theme classes, longer than one lessonunit. They are either additional, extra-curricular activities, or they are a combinationof classes belonging to different subjects. They give pupils an occasion toshow their extra-school knowledge and their talents, for which there is no placeduring a typical lesson.• Many of the tasks require effort on the part of pupils. It develops their variousskills and instils them into autonomous thinking and acting.• Separate classes devoted to the realisation of a given pathway are characterised bya more relaxed atmosphere, the teacher-pupils relationship becomes less formal,and there is a chance for them to get to know one another better, and for the bondsbetween them to tighten.• Pathway implementation makes teachers active, stimulates their ingenuity and creativity.Success in class is the source of professional satisfaction, motivating them tofurther quests. School success may be transferred into other spheres of life.• Pathways give a teacher a chance to perform new functions, e.g. that of a projectmanager. This increases his/her self-esteem as well as his/her prestige amongcolleagues. They are also a means for the teacher’s self-improvement, and constantenhancement of their competence.• Teachers co-operation may be an occasion for getting to know one another better,and forming of friendly-professional bonds.• Pathway realisation often requires the participation of people not belonging to theschool community, thus encouraging contacts between the school and the parentsas well as the local community.The above evaluation shows that the advantages of interdisciplinary pathwaysare undeniable. They are particularly evident in the spheres of skills/competencesand attitudes. It is especially true with the models in which pathways are realisedwith the participation of several teachers and, at least partially, during separate,extra-curricular classes. Such organisation will assure a multi-aspect approach tothe contents, and at the same time bring educational benefits. It will serve boththe teacher’s and the pupil’s development. The biggest minus of interdisciplinarypathways are organisational problems. It is a new form of classes, and schoolsstill lack experience in their realisation. Working out the right solutions requiressome effort and is often achieved in the process of trial and error. Predominance of77