Educators stuck in the age of lightning-speed technological growth may sometimes find themselves “the students” when it comes to keeping up with the latest advancements and applications. “The World” by National Geographic, an iPad-compatible app created in August 2011, is the ideal tool to help teachers leave behind the 1970’s style approaches of teaching geography–with chalkboards and heavy maps–and move into 21st century education. Now any teacher can give Mary Poppins a run for her money with classroom maps, atlases, globes, and world flags all available in the palm of his or her hand.  Not only great for teachers, “The World” is an enjoyable reference tool for anyone interested in expanding their knowledge of cartography and cultural geography and taking traditional print (maps) into the digital environment.

As one user said [on the iTunes review page], “The pictures are brilliant, the facts presented for each country are perfectly laid out, and the functionality of this app is very intuitive. Hats off to NG for an app well done.”

The app allows users to manipulate the world with their fingertips. In terms of exploring physical geography, the “globe” function can spin, rotate, zoom, overlay country or regional atlas data, and identify locations. For more cultural geography uses, the app includes demographics, flags, and National Geographic photographs from every country.

Additionally, the app includes a description of each country highlighting major historical events and offering insight into the current condition of the country.  The demographics include basic facts such as population size, capital city, land area, and government structure, all of which are bullet-pointed for quick, convenient access.

Like what you hear? Bring “The World” to your classroom with our suggested starter activity:

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