Where powerful knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge intersect: the case of knowledge and beliefs for teaching school geography through inquiry

Despite global interest in inquiry as a teaching and learning approach for school geography, little is known about teachers' knowledge and beliefs for teaching geography through inquiry. This paper reports on findings from a survey of 44 Victorian secondary teachers' knowledge, beliefs and practice of teaching geography through inquiry. Our findings reveal that geography teachers believe in the power of geographical knowledge to influence young people's attitudes, values, emotions and ethical action and the power of incorporating geography inquiry to deliver these ambitious educational goals. This paper concludes that knowledge for teaching geography through inquiry is a dynamic collection of rich and situated knowledge constructed in and with practice, and teachers' beliefs are deeply intertwined. These conclusions augment Shulman's concept of pedagogical content knowledge by incorporating concepts of powerful knowledge and curriculum-making, signalling a way forward on knowledge for teaching powerful subject knowledge through inquiry. We argue that geography inquiry is key to experiencing and developing powerful knowledge in geography. Disciplinary inquiry supports, even gives flesh to, Young's vision of a Future 3 curriculum.