Cross-national comparisons of inquiry learning in secondary geography curricula

Internationally, there is a clear turn towards inquiry as a core approach to learning secondary school geography. This research critically compares how inquiry learning is expressed and justified in six jurisdictions (Australia, China, England, Hong Kong, Singapore, USA). Through content analysis of national curriculum documents, we found that most of the jurisdictions have placed inquiry prominently in their curriculum. Despite national variations, inquiry is justified as a desirable pedagogy to develop conceptual understanding, build disciplinary knowledge and enable students to assess knowledge claims. An inquiry-rich curriculum in school geography promises to recalibrate the balance between how existing knowledge of geography is valued and taught and how the skills of geographical inquiry can be integrated to expand students' experiences of building knowledge. This research addresses a research gap on powerful pedagogies like inquiry in the intended curriculum. We argue that pedagogy needs to be examined in tandem with knowledge in curriculum analyses because enabling students to access knowledge and developing their capacities to inquire are intricately linked. We further argue that ideas about knowledge and pedagogy in curriculum are context-dependent, necessitating an understanding of jurisdictional influences on curriculum.