Citizenship and reading of the geographical space in pre-service early childhood teacher training

Abstract

Schools can encourage a critical and transformative reading of geographical space to activate children’s citizenship in democratic societies. This action research shows the training process followed with students of the Degree in Early Childhood Education. The study is based on the question: how can we increase the quality of the geographical thinking in future new teachers to strengthen children’s right to citizen participation? The results show the possibilities of carrying out a process of progressive reflection on teaching practice and geographical thinking in three contexts: the university classroom, the school classroom during the Practicum phase and the fieldwork carried out in an urban public space. The reflective exercise in initial teacher training on the experienced geographical space may contribute to the achievement of greater social justice for children.