ABSTRACT
For most geographers fieldwork is a key component of their enthusiasm for the subject and one of the strongest elements of their own personal biography. Read most reflections on school geography, too, and the role of fieldwork emerges as a central theme in curriculum planning. The first national geography curriculum in England and Wales, for example, indicated that ‘fieldwork should not be an optional extra, [for] pupils are entitled to…regular, purposeful and integrated fieldwork’ (DES 1990:85). The revised geography National Curriculum that came into effect in 1995 requires that all pupils ‘undertake fieldwork’ (DFE 1995:2), making it a statutory obligation on all schools in the state sector.
