The cover of the May-June issue of the Journal of Geography, published by the National Council for Geographic Education, features a photo taken on the ֹ Salem Campus during a class project led by Dr. Sarah Smiley, associate professor of geography. The photo helps highlight Smiley’s article in the publication, written about her experiences with a class she taught during the 2015 fall semester based on The Amazing Race.
Titled “Teaching Cultural Geography with The Amazing Race,” Smiley’s article explains how she used the reality television show in the honors colloquium in Western identity course to teach issues of culture, identity and difference.
During the semester, Smiley first introduced her students to basic cultural geography concepts through reading and discussions, stressing that culture includes objects, ideas, practices, beliefs and institutions. The students then began viewing Amazing Race episodes.
“I paired each episode of The Amazing Race with a conceptual reading designed to get students thinking about, and applying, ideas of culture, identity and difference,” she wrote. “The goal was to challenge the students by having them read thought-provoking pieces. Each week, students wrote a short response to each of these readings to