Mapping the landscape of school geography textbook studies: a systematic literature review of research trends and future directions

Geography textbooks are not passive repositories of knowledge but powerful pedagogical artefacts that shape how students understand space, culture, environment, and global interdependence. This study applies a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) of 53 peer-reviewed journal articles published between 2004 and 2024 to systematically map dominant research themes, methodological approaches, and research gaps in school geography textbook studies. The synthesis identifies recurring attention to curriculum alignment, cultural representation, geographical skills, and the role of visuals, alongside a strong methodological reliance on content analysis. At the same time, the review highlights persistent structural, conceptual, and methodological gaps: an overrepresentation of European contexts, a narrow focus on national identity and climate change, and limited use of user-centered, classroom-based, and longitudinal research designs. A key contribution of this review lies in distinguishing between quality gaps in textbook design and research gaps in scholarship. By doing so, it underscores the need for a more inclusive, contextualized, and methodologically plural research agenda. By consolidating two decades of international scholarship, this review offers both a state-of-the-art synthesis and a roadmap for reimagining geography textbooks as strategic tools for cultivating spatial reasoning, critical thinking, and global citizenship in the twenty-first century.