Attractive geographical themes and topics from the perspective of students (2000−2021): A systematic review

Abstract

Geographical themes and topics are some of the factors that influence the way geography is perceived by students. Geographical content can be key to geography’s appeal as a discipline and to improving its image to students and society. The aim of this systematic review is to identify geographical themes and topics that are attractive to students as well as the research methods that determined them. The studies were searched for through the Web of Science and Scopus using keywords. After setting the inclusion criteria (years, language, age of students), 12 relevant studies were identified. The results indicated that the topics of physical geography prevailed; natural hazards were mentioned the most because they directly affect humans’ lives. The students also enjoyed human geography topics. The themes and topics that were unpopular required abstract thinking or were not directly related to students’ everyday lives. This review emphasizes the students’ voices in geography education and provides insights regarding curriculum innovations in geography education.