Geography Department Schemes of Work

Key Stage 3

From Years 7 to 9 we study topics that are designed to give students a good understanding of a diverse range of topics from map work skills in Year 7 to tectonic processes in Year 9. Students have use too of an excellent atlas and this is made reference to in lessons in all 3 year groups. Our aim is to make students aware of issues that are threatening our planet such as global warming as well as teaching them the skills to prepare them for GCSE Geography.

GCSE

We currently follow the AQA Geography prescription; this includes coursework that is worth 25% of the final mark. There are 2 written papers:

Paper One  40% of final mark

Section A Geographical Skills

Section B 

  • Tectonic Activity
  • Rocks and Landscapes
  • Glacial Landscapes
  • Coastal Landscapes

Paper Two  35% of final mark

  • Either Population or Settlement
  • Agriculture
  • Managing Resources
Exam Board AS units taken A2 units taken
OCR L6 U6

Units:

AS

Unit F761 Managing Physical Environments 25%

  • River environments
  • Coastal environments
  • Cold environments
  • Hot arid and semi arid environments

Unit F762 Managing Change in Human Environments 25%

  • Managing urban change
  • Managing rural change
  • The energy issue
  • The growth of tourism

Units:

A2

Unit F763 Global Issues 30%

  • Environmental Issues:
    • Earth hazards [Option A1]
    • Ecosystems and environments under threat [Option A2]
    • Climatic hazards [Option A3]
  • Economic Issues
    • Population and resources [Option B1]
    • Globalisation [Option B2]
    • Development and inequalities [Option B3]

Unit F764 Geographical Skills 20%

  • Geographical Skills
    • Identifying a suitable geographical question or hypothesis for investigation
    • Collecting and recording appropriated data
    • Presenting the data collected in appropriate forms
    • Analysing and interpreting the data

Will there be any coursework? No

Any particular requirements for doing this subject:

Skills obtained at GCSE would be extremely useful, but if a student had not done GCSE their case for studying Geography in the Sixth Form would be given careful consideration.

An AS Level in Geography is the first half of the course and the standard of work is the equivalent to that being done by students currently in the Lower Sixth. It is the stepping stone to the full A Level qualification. At the end of the Lower Sixth you will decide whether to take the full A Level qualification.

Several topics covered in the course are developments of work done at GCSE but there is much that is new. To take this subject in the Sixth form you should have a lively and enquiring mind, a genuine and passionate interest in environmental issues together with a willingness to explore new ideas and an ability to communicate your ideas effectively.