Creating a Forward Looking Geography Curriculum
This piece continues my exploration of what makes a curriculum genuinely ambitious, purposeful and hopeful. As schools rethink their geography provision in light of new expectations and a rapidly changing world, the question of how we look forward rather than back feels more urgent than ever.
It is difficult to stay optimistic when the world feels as though it is creaking at the edges. Conflict, crisis and political turbulence dominate the news. Town centres show the signs of economic strain. The climate emergency is more visible every year and solutions can feel agonisingly out of reach. For many young people, the future appears unsettled and unpredictable.
I often think back to growing up in the 1990s, when progress felt like a natural direction of travel. There was a sense that things would steadily improve. It is hard not to look at the present day and feel some disappointment that this future never fully arrived.
Yet classrooms, and geography classrooms in particular, are places where a different mood is possible. Geography allows pupils to see the world clearly without losing sight of what it might become. It helps them build a grounded optimism that is not naivety but informed possibility. A forward looking geography curriculum can give young people something that is in short supply right now: a sense that the future is worth shaping.
Why geography must look ahead
The world our pupils will grow into is already being reshaped by rapid environmental, social and technological change. Climate pressures, shifting population patterns, new energy systems, land use tensions and technological disruption all form part of their daily reality.
A curriculum that restricts itself to description or nostalgia cannot prepare pupils for this world. They need knowledge that illuminates change and processes that create it. They need to understand how patterns emerge, how places evolve and how decisions made at one scale influence lives at another.
They also need the intellectual tools to work with complexity. This includes secure knowledge of key concepts, the ability to interpret evidence and the confidence to analyse situations that are unfamiliar. Geography is uniquely placed to build these habits of mind.
The role of hope
If pupils are to engage seriously with the future, they must believe that the future is open to influence. This does not mean ignoring the challenges that surround us. It means helping pupils recognise that decline is not inevitable and that progress can and does occur.
As David Alcock explores in his blog, curriculum that supports this kind of hope helps pupils:
• Evaluate progress
Pupils see evidence of positive change, whether in environmental restoration, improved living conditions or urban regeneration.
• Believe in humanity
They learn how communities respond thoughtfully to risk, how societies have overcome crises and how cooperation produces results.
• Envision a sustainable future
They understand that sustainability requires system-wide thinking. They see how technological and infrastructural choices can open new possibilities.
Hope is not soft or sentimental. It is a necessary condition for agency.
From knowledge to imagined futures
A forward looking curriculum does more than build knowledge. It shows pupils how that knowledge can be used. Geography becomes a discipline through which they interpret the present, make sense of uncertainty and imagine what might come next.
Simple prompts help keep learning oriented towards the future:
• Geographers study this because…
• We can use this knowledge to…
• In the future we might need to…
• In the future we might be able to…
These questions make the future a natural extension of the curriculum rather than an occasional add-on.
For example, while studying coastal processes pupils can consider how communities may respond to long-term shoreline change. When learning about urbanisation they can examine what makes cities more resilient and more liveable. When exploring development they can study how progress has been achieved over time and what might shape further improvement.
This kind of futures thinking is not guesswork. It is disciplined reasoning based on evidence and conceptual understanding.
Fieldwork as preparation for thinking ahead
Fieldwork builds the procedural knowledge that helps pupils understand how geographical knowledge is constructed. They gather data, analyse patterns and evaluate limitations.
When used well, fieldwork also builds capability for futures thinking. Pupils begin to ask questions about how patterns might shift. They consider which variables matter and how environments could change under new pressures.
Whether exploring local microclimates, flood risk or land use, fieldwork becomes a bridge between present understanding and imagined futures.
Principles for designing a forward looking curriculum
A geography curriculum that looks confidently to the future is guided by a few clear principles.
1. Begin with ambitious enquiry
Big questions encourage pupils to think beyond the immediate and connect knowledge across scales.
2. Identify the foundational knowledge
Pupils cannot imagine futures they do not understand. Secure disciplinary knowledge is essential.
3. Sequence learning towards meaningful endpoints
A sense of progression helps pupils see how ideas deepen and evolve over time.
4. Build procedural knowledge
Fieldwork, data analysis and model building give pupils tools to test future scenarios.
5. Thread futures thinking throughout
The future should appear naturally in schemes of work, not as a single isolated topic.
6. Weave hope into the narrative
Examples of successful adaptation, regeneration and progress show pupils that positive change is possible.
Why this matters
Young people deserve more than warnings about the state of the world. They deserve an education that equips them with knowledge, judgement and imagination. Geography can offer this. It helps pupils understand the planet as it is, but also see how it could be shaped differently.
When the wider world feels unsettled, a forward looking geography curriculum gives pupils a sense of direction. It shows them that the future is not fixed. It is something we create, intentionally or otherwise. Geography gives them the tools to do so wisely.