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Geography

KEY STAGE 3 OVERVIEW

In Geography, we look to expose our learners to environments, cultures & ideas dissimilar to their own. We also seek to make learning relevant to our students’ lives. We want our learners to end up with enhanced reading and writing skills and those of problem-solving and synoptic thinking. The latter is needed in view of the many transformations our world will face in the coming years. Having a means to interpret events like climate change, Brexit and job market automation contributes to our learners’ economic and social well-being.

Sequence

Geography is taught in a way that maintains subject disciplinary barriers between physical and human geography whilst also appreciating within the units, the links between such topics. As such, we begin Years 7 & 8 with a physical, then human topic, whilst each year ends with a unit which seeks to apply that knowledge to topical work with engaging content of a synoptic nature. Year 9 works through a cold environments unit, and decision-making exercises taken from previous GCSE pre-releases, culminating in a unit case study of the Middle East.

Year 9 Learning Journey & Sequencing Rationale

Year 9 draws upon more challenging work as it uses some GCSE content (albeit not to be repeated due to optionality). It does draw upon prior learning through the two previous years. First, the study of cold environments uses the systems model to consolidate the theory of biotic abiotic interactions. Study then moves onto decision-making exercises - drawn from GCSE content - that use an interdisciplinary human physical approach. In particular, the work on Peru and a deforestation-infrastructural dilemma needs weighing up of a cost benefit analysis between development and environmental concerns to help form extended writing that employs geographical arguments.

Finally, we look at an overall case study of the Middle East which encompasses all the key elements studied throughout the KS3 course: Physical and human geography and the interplay between the two; the different pace of development for Middle Eastern countries and the reasons behind this; the political situation influenced by heritage, religion & resources; and how the region anticipates and attempts to mitigate fundamental changes e.g. Climate change and the lessening dependence on oil. The students are then asked to complete a project on an element of this study that most interests them.

Year 9 Programme of Study

Term

Topic

Year 9 Term 1

Cold Environments

Year 9 Term 2

Decision-making exercises: Peru

Year 9 Term 3

The Middle East

 

 

Links to YEAR 9 Geography Booklets

Year 9 Unit 1a Cold Environments 

Year 9 Unit 1b Cold Environments

Year 9 Unit 2 Decision-making exercises: Peru

Year 9 Unit 3a The Middle East

Year 9 Unit 3b The Middle East

 

Unit overview - autumn term 

Topic 1: Cold Environments

Skills

  • Map skills (locational details including scale)
  • Basic numerical manipulation
  • Long form extended writing
  • Case study knowledge; place-based detail

Knowledge

  • The characteristics of cold environments
  • Life in cold environments
  • Development constraints in cold environments
  • Opportunities in cold environments
  • Greenland case study
  • Managing cold environments

Rationale

The work fills gaps in learners' knowledge to the extent that learners tend to have engaged in the study of rainforests in primary school with sometimes knowledge of deserts built on to it. Cold environments have key differences to these two as soil exists as permafrost and human settlement is significantly more difficult here.

This work prepares learners for GCSE study where the requirements of the AQA syllabus specifies the need for study of particularly important and distinct biomes. We opt to study Deserts then, but a greater appreciation of the interrelations implied by a systems approach is cultivated by this study as we view for example, how, climate creates adaptive flora and fauna that evolved to survive the challenges of this ecosystem.

The scheme of work is interesting for learners as much press coverage of climate change focuses on the relative exposure of places like Antarctica and Greenland to effects like habitat loss, and glacial melting. By offering some more place specific study (e.g. of the livelihoods and scarce development opportunities in these locations) learners engagement can be further piqued. The example of Greenland is chosen for content coverage; there is a large void of knowledge surrounding this place yet it shows up developmental challenges and so too environmental determinism, to the extent that there are lots of constraints on settlement and progress.

Unit overview - spring term 

Topic 2: Synoptic Work: Peru

Skills

Students must engage with a range of quantitative and relevant qualitative skills, within the unit. In particular there is a need to understand simple mathematical operation and the scope for applying them to data sets. Likewise extended writing skills and specifically the genre of arguing for / against is important as this is learners first exposure to justified decision making as characterises a section of the GCSE they will go on to study.

Knowledge

  • The nature of rainforests and their global distribution
  • The structure of rainforests
  • Rainforests’ value to different groups of people
  • Varying rates of deforestation across the world
  • The causes and effects of deforestation
  • Illegal agriculture in the Amazon
  • Peru’s development context
  • The proposal for a road in Peru
  • Different perspectives on Peru’s scheme

Rationale

This unit, based on past experience, is a very engaging one ahead of GCSE options choices. Having covered large themes in Geography (most obviously relevant in this context, that of Ecosystems in Year 8 & Development in Year 7) students are given opportunities to show synoptic applications of Geography through the use of a past GCSE issue evaluation paper.

The knowledge requirements listed above are specific to the Peru case study but much of this is lower order work apt for rote learning. The highest tariff questions which evaluate Peru’s development dilemmas derive much of their challenge from the ability to apply cross-unit work. For example, the implications of Peru’s road building has environmental and economic implications learners are asked to consider.

Finally, the variety of stimuli presented in the accompanying resource booklet offers an opportunity to use different forms of geographical description, including mathematical techniques.

 

Unit overview - summer term 

Topic 3: Synoptic Work: Urbanisation

Skills

Students must engage with a range of quantitative and relevant qualitative skills, within the unit. In particular, there is a need to understand simple mathematical operations and the scope for applying them to data sets. Likewise, extended writing skills and specifically the genre of arguing for/against is important as this is learners' first exposure to justified decision-making as characterises a section of the GCSE they will go on to study. In this case, this argumentation is over the desirability of improving slums or their whole scale destruction and regeneration.

Knowledge

  • Urbanisation rates across the world
  • Correlations between development measures and urbanisation rates
  • Inequality within LIC/NEE cities
  • Positives of Urbanisaton
  • Slums in the global south
  • Slums in Lagos
  • Slums in Mumbai

Rationale

This unit, based on past experience, is a very engaging one ahead of GCSE options choices. Having covered large themes in Geography (most obviously relevant in this context, that of development in Year 7 and Cities in the 21st Century in Year 8) students are given opportunities to show synoptic applications of Geography through the use of a past GCSE issue evaluation paper.

The knowledge requirements listed above are specific to given locations. The highest tariff questions are those which seek to evaluate urbanisation with reference to costs and benefits and weighting judgements.

Finally, the variety of stimuli presented in the accompanying resource booklet offers an opportunity to use different forms of geographical description, including mathematical techniques.

Knowledge Organiser

A knowledge organiser is an important document that lists the important facts that learners should know by the end of a unit of work. It is important that learners can recall these facts easily, so that when they are answering challenging questions in their assessments and GCSE and A-Level exams, they are not wasting precious time in exams focusing on remembering simple facts, but making complex arguments and calculations.

We encourage all pupils to use them by doing the following:

  • Quiz themselves at home, using the read, write, cover, check method.
  • Practise spelling key vocabulary
  • Further researching people, events and processes most relevant to the unit.