This document gives an outline of the topics covered in all year groups in Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4. It is a guide for students, parents and staff to aid familiarisation and provide an overview of the curriculum, assessments, accreditation and suggested background reading, websites etc for the year. Adjustments may occur due to timing issues. /
L Morgan /
CURRICULUM TOPIC MAP 2012 – 2013 : SUBJECT ~ Geography
TOPIC/YEAR GROUP / YEAR 7 / YEAR 8 / YEAR 9AUTUMN 1ST HALF TERM / Development / Coastal Environments
Brief topic outline. / Unit of work looking at how development varies around the World, how we measure development and how we can reduce the development gap between MEDC’s & LEDC’s. / Unit of work investigating coastal processes, the landforms they create and how we can manage or control these processes for the benefit of people.
Assessments. / 1) Decision Making Exercise on how to spend aid for rural LEDC Kenyan community.
2) Letter to Prime Minister persuading government to promote use of fair trade. / Project investigating coastal processes and management and how they differ between differing coastal locations.
Suggested reading/ websites etc.
AUTUMN 2ND HALF TERM / Tropical Rainforests / Restless Earth
Brief topic outline. / Unit of working looking at one of the World’s major biomes. We focus upon the characteristics of TRF’s, where they are located and the impacts these have on people and vice versa. / Unit of work investigating tectonic processes, the consequent events caused by these processes and the impacts of these on people and how we can manage or reduce the severity of these.
Assessments/accreditation/Exams. / Write up of visit to Roath Park Conservatory & TRF’s / Newspaper article reporting on the causes, effects and responses to a tectonic event.
Suggested reading/ websites etc.
SPRING 1ST HALF TERM / Extreme Weather / Tourism
Brief topic outline. / Unit of work investigating extreme weather events and how different areas of the World experience different types of events. We also look at the reasons why the impacts of these vary considerably from place to place. / Unit of work looking at what tourism is and how tourism has changed and why and the potential benefits and drawbacks tourism can have on different locations.
Assessments/accreditation/Exams. / Create a leaflet educating people on how to prepare for and reduce the impacts of flooding. / Decision making exercise on whether tourism is a sustainable development option for an LEDC.
Suggested reading/ websites etc.
SPRING 2ND HALF TERM / Kenya / Our Global Future
Brief topic outline. / Unit of work looking at Kenya’s main features, their way of life and comparing this to the UK. Finally we consider what could be done to help Kenya improve their development. / Unit of work investigating the key issues facing the World today with the main focus on global warming. We then consider the issues a warming climate brings and outline the possible solutions to reduce these impacts including the use of alternative energies.
Assessments/accreditation/Exams. / Decision making exercise on ecotourism in Kenya – group presentation followed by report write up. / DME on which site would be the best to build an alternative form of energy such as wind farms.
Suggested reading/ websites etc.
SUMMER 1ST HALF TERM / Wales / Globalisation
Brief topic outline. / Unit of work studying Wales physical and human features and the relationships that connect these two. / Unit of work investigating how and why the World is becoming increasingly interconnected and the positive and negative outcomes this has for different regions of the World and us.
Assessments/accreditation/Exams. / Mental map of Wales geographical features and the relationship between physical and human features. / Enquiry into ‘Why is Omar stitching footballs’? ~ a young boy in Pakistan.
Suggested reading/ websites etc.
SUMMER 2ND HALF TERM / Population & Migration / The EU
Brief topic outline. / Unit of work investigating how the Worlds numbers are changing and the resulting effects of this for different regions of the planet. Further to this we will look at how and why people move and the impacts of this for those involved. / Unit of work investigating what is the EU, who are members and what purpose the EU serves with regards to trade and other policies.
Assessments/accreditation/Exams. / GCSE style test on topics covered in unit.
(Being rewritten) / An investigation into the European Union (Being rewritten)
Suggested reading/ websites etc.
CURRICULUM TOPIC MAP 2012 – 2013 : SUBJECT ~ Geography / Year 10 / Year 11
Climate Change (Core ~ 6.7% of course) / Interdependence (Core ~ 6.7% of course)
Brief topic outline. / Key Questions:
1) What is the greenhouse effect & how peoples’ actions have affected this process?
2) How conclusive is the evidence for climate change?
3) What would the possible effects of climate change be in MEDC’s & LEDC’s?
4) How can technology be used and peoples’ lifestyles changed to reduce the impacts of climate change? / Key Questions:
1) How have changes in business and technology allowed increased interdependence between MEDC’s & LEDC’s?
2)What are the benefits of globalisation & why do some see it as a threat?
3) What have been the social and economic impacts of the enlargement of the EU?
4) How have industrialised countries such as India and China benefited from globalisation?
5) How have patterns of trade hindered economic progress in the least developed LEDC’s?
Assessments/accreditation/Exams. / GCSE past paper question as end of unit test on work covered in unit.
(All higher tier) / GCSE past paper question as end of unit test on work covered in unit. (Differentiated H/F tier)
Suggested reading/ websites etc.
AUTUMN 2ND HALF TERM / Development (Core ~ 6.7% of course) / Tourism (Option ~ 11.7% of course)
Brief topic outline. / Key Questions:
1) How is economic and social development measured and what are the global patterns?
2) What are the regional patterns of economic and/or social development in one LEDC?
3) What are the Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s) and how are governments and non-government organisations addressing them?
4) What progress is being made by South Asian countries towards achieving the MDG’s?
5) What progress is being made by Sub-Saharan countries towards the MDG’s? / Key Questions:
1)What are the factors both physical & human that affect the nature of tourism?
2) In what ways is tourism changing?
3) What are the impacts of tourism on:
- People & the economy?
- The environment?
4) How may tourism be developed in a sustainable way?
Assessments/accreditation/Exams. / GCSE past paper question as end of unit test on work covered in unit.
(All higher tier) / GCSE past paper question as end of unit test on work covered in unit. (Differentiated H/F tier)
Suggested reading/ websites etc.
SPRING 1ST HALF TERM / Living in an active zone (Core ~ 6.7% of course) / Tourism (Controlled Assessment ~ 15% of course)
Brief topic outline. / Key Questions:
1) What are plate margins and how does plate movement generate a variety of landforms?
2) What are the primary and secondary hazards associated with volcanoes and earthquake zones?
3) Why do people continue to live in hazard zones?
4) How are volcanoes monitored and what does this tell us about their state?
5) How might the effects of volcanic eruptions and earthquakes be reduced in MEDC’s & LEDC’s? / A problem solving/decision making research exercise worth 15% of their final grade. This task is based on tourism in an LEDC and will be based on the classroom taught topic of tourism and individual research on the impacts of tourism in the designated LEDC country and any other examples used to support the pupils argument.
Assessments/accreditation/Exams. / GCSE past paper question as end of unit test on work covered in unit. (Differentiated H/F tier) / Research on tourism (5 hrs) before write up of decision on tourism for LEDC country (8hrs). Internally assessed by staff before being externally moderated by the WJEX exam board (15% of final GCSE grade)
Suggested reading/ websites etc.
SPRING 2ND HALF TERM / Changing Populations(Core ~ 6.7% of course) / Our Changing Coastline (Option ~ 11.7% of course)
Brief topic outline. / Key Questions:
1) Where do people live in the World and why do they live there?
2) What are the push/pull factors that produce rural – urban migration in LEDC’s and urban-rural migration in MEDC’s?
3) What are the factors that influence birth and death rates?
4) How do differences in birth and death rates affect population numbers and structures in South Asia, sub-Saharan Africa & Western Europe?
5) How may these changes differ in the future? / Key Questions:
1) What processes are associated with the sea?
2) What landforms result from these processes?
3) How do these landforms and processes affect the lives of the people living along the coast?
4) What are the advantages and disadvantages of hard and soft engineering strategies used to manage our coasts?
5) Why are sea levels changing and how will these changes affect people?
6) What is the most sustainable way to manage our coastline in the face of rising sea levels?
Assessments/accreditation/Exams. / GCSE past paper question as end of unit test on work covered in unit. (Differentiated H/F tier) / GCSE past paper question as end of unit test on work covered in unit. (Differentiated H/F tier)
Suggested reading/ websites etc.
SUMMER 1ST HALF TERM / Water (Core ~ 6.7% of course) / Retail & Urban Change (Option ~ 11.7% of course)
Brief topic outline. / Key Questions:
1) What processes are associated with rivers?
2) What landforms result from these processes?
3) How do these landforms and processes affect the lives of those of people living along rivers?
4) How successful are different management approaches to the problem of flooding?
5) Should we change our approach to river and floodplain management in the future? / Key Questions:
1)How are European city centres changing?
2) What are the effects of city centre changes on their day time and night time geographies?
3) Where does retailing occur in the city?
4) How is retailing changing and what effects does this have upon people and the environment?
5)What are the impacts of increasing consumer choice on people in developing countries, and on the global environment?
Assessments/accreditation/Exams. / GCSE past paper question as end of unit test on work covered in unit. (Differentiated H/F tier) / GCSE past paper question as end of unit test on work covered in unit. (Differentiated H/F tier)
Suggested reading/ websites etc.
SUMMER 2ND HALF TERM / Water (Controlled Assessment ~ 10% of course) / Exams
Brief topic outline. / A fieldwork enquiry on river processes worth 10% of final grade. Pupils are required to follow a sequenced investigation whereby they research (5 hrs) rivers and their processes before investigating a hypothesis and presenting a written report using the data they have collected as evidence to prove or disprove the given hypothesis (5 hrs). / Two exams:
Paper 1 Core geography ~ 1:45mins
Six short compulsory questions worth 15 marks each (6.7%)
Paper 2 Options geography ~ 1:15 mins
Three in depth questions worth 20 marks each (11.7%)
Assessments/accreditation/Exams. / Research on rivers (5 hrs) before response to hypothesis on rivers (5hrs). Internally assessed by staff before being externally moderated by the WJEX exam board (10% of final GCSE grade)
Suggested reading/ websites etc.
CURRICULUM TOPIC MAP 2012 – 2013 : SUBJECT ~ Geography