Where is Iraq?

I agree with Astral, Geography must be an acquired trait similar to complex mathematical skills, the ability to play with language, and the level of intuition required in the fields of psychology and diplomacy. Not everyone has them, and not everyone cares to either.
 
Lupos said:
I agree with Astral, Geography must be an acquired trait similar to complex mathematical skills, the ability to play with language, and the level of intuition required in the fields of psychology and diplomacy. Not everyone has them, and not everyone cares to either.
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I disagree that geography is that complicated. Most of it is memorization. If you aren't taught it, and you don't study it, you aren't going to learn it. Just about anyone with the proper instruction and interest can learn geography.

I think crux is that most people just don't care or have an interest. Maps are usually labeled anyway, so they figure "Why do I need to memorize this stuff?"
 
bulldogg said:
Its not confined to any group, the high school kids I tutor are Japanese, Korean, Taiwanese, Thai, Indonesian and 90% can't find China on the map and THEY ARE IN IT. I am appalled and astounded.
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From my personal xp I blaim the new way of teaching kids. Nowadays education has to be "problem solving" They learn how to look up info, how to work with computers etc. So they have to do an assignment and they have every liberty how to do it. Only the popular methods are used and others just fade away.
Learning topography is a specific way of learning. You just sit down and hammer it into your skull. Kids don't really like that and the policy-makers thought this was an old fashion way of learning and discarted it. All of a sudden kids/people haven't become stupid, they just never learned skills like "where is Iraq".
 
PJ24 said:
I disagree that geography is that complicated. Most of it is memorization. If you aren't taught it, and you don't study it, you aren't going to learn it. Just about anyone with the proper instruction and interest can learn geography.

I think crux is that most people just don't care or have an interest. Maps are usually labeled anyway, so they figure "Why do I need to memorize this stuff?"
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Sorry for the 2nd right after the other, but I missed this one. I agree that Topography is plain study. You just have to learn where is what! But the science of Geography is so much more complicated and of much bigger scope.... But I just happen to be one of those well informed geography-lovers!
 
Ted said:
Sorry for the 2nd right after the other, but I missed this one. I agree that Topography is plain study. You just have to learn where is what! But the science of Geography is so much more complicated and of much bigger scope.... But I just happen to be one of those well informed geography-lovers!
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Maybe it is just because I have always had an interest in it, but I really do not find it to be all that complicated, not on the scale it is being compared to. I'm not saying it can't get complicated, but all it takes is proper instruction and/or little effort and anyone can get in to it.

Just can't agree that it's all that difficult if you're interested in learning.
 
If you are really interested in learning nothing is really difficult, within certain limits. On a whole geography is an instructional subject which can be used to learn skills like math, how to do research, a bit of physics, nowadays some computer science. Most of it is general and easy to learn when you put your mind to it. I used topography as a start. Kids had to learn so they new where things were when we discussed them.; again it is instrumental. The hard geography came in Uni. But it never reached the abstract level of say quantum physics.... thank God for that!
 
I would agree with those who stated that the reason of the geographical ignorance of many people lies in their inability to see any benefit in this knowledge. The teaching technics are secondary.

I can give you an example. My Russian friends love to make fun of the perceived "American ignorance". They think that they were taught well in the Soviet schools. OK, I have visited my classmate, a chess champion and the author of some MS Windows-related books. So, he is not dumb. And, mind you, we had the same geography teacher! My friend lives in NY for almost 15 years and next morning he is going to drive us to the Port - we are going on cruise! So, he asked me - where are you going? Answer: "Boston, Portland, then - Canada and back"
His next question was - "Are you going to Alaska, too?"
The guy has a very good education, good brains, he lives right on the coast of the Atlantic, he sees the map of North America EVERY DAY when he watches the weather report on TV and he thinks that Alaska goes from the Pacific to the Atlantic ALL THE WAY!!!!

In the same time, he is a big fan of soccer and of Italy. So, almost every year he goes to Italy to watch some matches during his vacation. And (due to this!) he knows the Italian geography much better than the American one...
 
You should tell your friend there is a tiny little country called Canada between Alaska and the Atlantic :lol:
Plus, it'd be so fun to take him on a cruise in Italy from Naples to Tehran :)
 
Research has proven that people think in mental maps. The unkown ends up in silly places all over the world! This will continu and everybody has this habit.

p.s. Luckily I am not doing so bad on the link CK gave.... only trouble is the spelling in a different language cause some troubles. But still a decent score :)
 
Hahahahaha damn this link, I have been doing it all day. It's kind quiet because of memorial day, so I've had plenty of training.. :) State capitals in the US was also kinda hard! I aced Europe on geographers level hahahaha!!
 
I know, it's addicting. I got Europe, Asia, Mid East, South America, US Capitals, and Canadian Provinces down. I'm working on Africa right now. The hardest ones have to be the Caribbean and Oceania with all those tiny little islands.
 
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