Name: ______Class: ______Date: ______

Comparing Population Growth of Different Countries

You are going to compare the population growth and projected population changes for several regions of the world based on continent and level of development.

The census data you will need for this assignment is found here:

http://www.census.gov/ipc/www/idb/summaries.html

Before you proceed to do any work, admire the US and World Population clock for a while. How many of us is out there?

Part I: Population Growth Data for Regions of the World

Instructions for accessing regional census data:

1.  Click on the international database (top left).

2.  In Select Report, choose Midyear Population and Density

3.  In Select Regions, choose Legacy Regions (Do not select any individual countries.

4.  Select the following years: 1970, 1980, 1990, 2000, 2010 and 2020.

***You can select more than one year at a time by holding down the “Ctrl” button while clicking on each year.

5.  Under Aggregated options, select the second choice Show aggregated Region data… For “World”, you will need to choose UN Regions

6.  Record numbers in the millions. For example, 184,036,893 would be 184 million.

7.  When you are finished, click the back button and repeat for the next region.

Complete the table below for each region.

Region / 1970 / 1980 / 1990 / 2000 / 2010 / 2020 / Population Density in 2010
Sub-Saharan Africa / 295 million
Northern Africa
Near East
Asia (excluding Near East)
Latin America
and the Caribbean
Western Europe
Eastern Europe
North America
Oceania
World

Part II: Defining Geographic Regions

The world was divided by the census data website into ten different regions: Sub-Saharan Africa, Northern Africa, Near East, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Oceania, and North America. Using the map below, color-code each of these regions. Be sure to include every country within that region to make your map as accurate as possible.

The easiest way to find what countries are in each region is to do a Google Image Search. For example, try searching for “Sub Saharan Africa map”.

Key: [ ] Sub-Saharan Africa [ ] Near East [ ] North America [ ] Western Europe [ ] Asia

[ ] Northern Africa [ ] Latin America [ ] Eastern Europe [ ] Oceania

Part III: Comparing Growth Rates of Each Region

Using the grid below, create a line graph that shows how the population of each region changed from 1970 up through 2010. Put the year along the x-axis, and the population along the y-axis. Each region will have its own line. Make sure each line is labeled by region.

Part IV: Comparing Population Density for Each Region

Using the grid below, make a bar graph comparing the population density for each region in 2010. Put the region along the x-axis, and the density along the y-axis.

Part V: Conclusion and Analysis

1.  Which region as of 2010 has the greatest population?

2.  Which region has experienced the greatest population growth from 1970-2010?

3.  Which region has the greatest population density?

4.  Explain the difference between a developed and a developing country.

5.  Would you describe the regions you listed for questions #1-3 as developed or developing?

6.  One of the great paradoxes in studying human population and demographics is that consistently, countries that are considered the poorest often have the highest population and the fastest population growth. Come up with a hypothesis, based on what you already know, as to why this might be the case. Why would people in developing countries choose to have more children than those in developed countries?