Geography

Learning Journey & Sequencing Rationale

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 into 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.

Programme of Study

Time	Topic
Yr 7, Term 1	Worldwide Disasters
Yr 7, Term 2	Global Development
Yr 7, Term 3	Geography of the UK

Time	Topic
Yr 8, Term 1	Cities in 21^st Century
Yr 8, Term 2	Global Ecosystems
Yr 8, Term 3	Geography of the World

Time	Topic
Yr 9, Term 1	Cold Environments
Yr 9, Term 2	DME - Peru
Yr 9, Term 3	DME Urbanisation

Time	Topic
Yr 10, Term 1	GCSE CNH
Yr 10, Term 2	GCSE CEW
Yr 10, Term 3	GCSE UKPL

Rationale for Sequencing

Year 7

Year 7 begins with the study of worldwide disasters. This teaches key concepts in the context of hazards: cause, effect & responses which apply over various Geographical topic matter. Fundamental processes which conceive of the world as a system (the atmosphere in the study of weather hazards & the lithosphere in the study of tectonic hazards) are also helpful to later units such as those which work on the biosphere (ecosystems in year 8 in particular). Year 7 then continues with work on global development. As much of the study of the world centres on Geographical territories, mainly nation states, looking to progress economically, the terminology employed ‘development measures’ forces learners to avoid vague terms to describe improvements countries experience. Since much of the world experiences barriers in their ongoing efforts to develop, it stands to reason that learning specific barriers and problem solving to consider how they can overcome those through (mainly government-led) strategies, is useful in later GCSE work (in the study of the Newly Emerging Economy, Nigeria). Some UK topic matter looks to bring together more firmly, some of the mapping skills and socio-economic analyses which are key to geographical study. The North South divide, expressed through mapping exercises helps us to consolidate locational skills and how to draw out various Geographical distributions (in wealth & other indices) and connections between them. The study of Brexit helps develop the ability to weight up cost benefit analysis of political and economic decisions which feature in developmental dilemmas the UK faces (as part of our GCSE study, in yr 10).

Year 8

Year 8 begins with work on Cities in the 21st Century. Though this is a distinctly human unit it also tracks the historical tendency for countries to progress in fairly similar ways (expressed through the Demographic Transition Model). Knowledge accrued here aides the later study of developmental dilemmas faced by Rio De Janeiro in our Urban Issues GCSE unit. Following this, we move towards study of large ecosystems. An explicit systems approach which looks to biotic -abiotic interactions especially in the form of flora and fauna adaptations, is useful for GCSE study of Deserts where climatic input limits human developmental opportunities as well. We finish the year with ambitious work on the geography of the world. Here we look to topical items like the spread of disease and the Geography of conflict both of which are at a

Year 9

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.

KS3 LEARNER JOURNEY

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 evolved to survive the challenges of this ecosystem. The SoW 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 yr 8 & Development in yr 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 yr 7 & Cities in the 21st Century in yr 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 judgments. 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.