Teaching human geography fieldwork during COVID-19: Challenges and new possibilities

Abstract

Fieldwork has long been a cornerstone of geographical research, and field courses have likewise served as an essential means of engaging with the key issues that define the discipline, both in physical and human geography. In human geography field courses, students learn to use qualitative methods such as interviews and participant observation among people. In this intervention paper I discuss what practical challenges the COVID-19 pandemic posed to the organisation of a field course in human geography in the University of Oulu in Finland, during spring 2020. The key questions and challenges back then were how the main idea of leaving the university classrooms and going among the people to learn geography was even possible at the same time when governments around the globe strongly advised people to stay home and avoid human connections. Regardless of the challenges, the field course was organised. In the course, students managed to come up with creative solutions to achieve the course's learning goals and learn to use qualitative methods in practice. The course required the redefinition for the concept of ‘field’, which at the same time challenged geography’s disciplinary history.