Geographic Literacy Award
2011 Recipient - Al Friesen
Al Friesen
Cutting-edge geography class
Geography teacher Al Friesen recalls a “teachable moment”
in 1994, when he found a student skipping his class to
play SimCity, a video game that simulates city building. Friesen,
of Brandon, Man., took the opportunity to compare SimCity
to software used in urban planning, pointing out to his student
that he was “skipping geography class but really doing geography!”
It was an eye-opener for both the student — who later
explored the connection in a project — and Friesen, who
began to see the potential of technology as a teaching tool.
That summer, at a Canadian Council for Geographic
Education (CCGE) teacher
institute, Friesen discovered
geographic information systems,
which he later introduced
to Brandon’s three high schools.
Over 30 years of teaching,
Friesen focused on linking textbook
learning with observation
in the real world, starting
a Geo-Fair at his school,
discussing urban planning
challenges through field study
and building this experience
into Manitoba’s geography
curriculum. For his progressive
methods in the classroom,
Friesen has been awarded the
2011 Geographic Literacy
Award from the CCGE.
The award includes $5,000
from the National Geographic
Education Foundation, half of which is to be granted to an
organization of the winner’s choice. Friesen, who is now retired,
is donating the money to the CCGE, which, he says, had a profound
influence on his teaching career, giving him “lots of tools,
ideas and motivation to promote geographic literacy.”
— Ruth VanDyken
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