Fieldwork in Geography and Long-term Memory Structures

This study was based on the model of memory proposed by Gagne and White (1978). Three treatments were compared in their effects on eighth and ninth graders’ learning and retention of geographical facts and skills. In addition to a basic program, the first treatment had an active excursion, the second had a passive excursion, and the third had no excursion. The excursion treatments were slightly better than the control on initial learning. In retention, the active excursion treatment showed marked superiority over the others, which supports the Gagné and White model and Wittrock’s (1974) generative model of learning, and which has implications for the management of excursions.