The concepts of 'youth, maturity and old age' are used to describe stages of landscape development within the Cycle of Erosion of W.M. Davis. These concepts are still widely taught at second level in Ireland, especially in relation to fluvial (river) landforms. However, it has been widely accepted since the 1950s that the model is outdated, as the underlying assumptions are flawed and its analogy with the stages of human life are inappropriate for what is now known to be a dynamic system controlled by a number of factors that include climate, tectonic activity and geology. This paper outlines the Davisian Cycle of Erosion and discusses the developments in knowledge and understanding that have been made since the model was first proposed, explaining why the model is oversimplified and outdated. The main misconceptions that students who have been taught this theory tend to hold are considered and suggestions are made as to how the material taught in schools might be updated.