Higher – Geography
We’ve refreshed our geography courses in line with the latest A-level requirements, maximising the strengths of our existing studies and using new locations and technology where appropriate.
Studies are focussed on the ‘route to enquiry’ with students being encouraged to find out about the topic and location, making predictions before going out into the field and collecting data to prove or disprove these. Students will use geographical information systems as a key part of their follow-up work, displaying their own results and using secondary data to help analyse patterns. We then carry out follow-up sessions to find out if their predictions were correct, consider the study’s limitations and think about how they may have affected results.
| Fluvial Landforms and Landscapes | Ecosystems and Succession | Urban Settlement Structure | Coastal Environments | Urban Regeneration | |||
| Colomendy |  |
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| Isle of Wight |  |
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| Overstrand | |
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Fluvial Landforms and LandscapesMiddle & lower sections of river systems are focused upon as students examine the effects of flowing water in terms of erosion, transportation and deposition. Landforms and their features are identified and recorded through the use of field sketches and digital photography. Urban Settlement StructurePrimary data is collected in the form of specific land use maps allowing patterns of special zoning in the Central Business District to be identified. Pedestrian and traffic counts, surveys of environmental quality and questionnaires of service provision or amenity usage are completed, allowing a more comprehensive overview of the settlement to be reached and recorded through written reports and annotated photographs. Urban RegenerationRegenerated areas within a city are visited and analysed with students collecting data on land use, pedestrian and traffic counts, traffic management schemes, industrial activities & residential environments. Field sketches and photographs are used to help establish the reasons for, and implications of, change that has taken place at each study location. |
Ecosystems and SuccessionSand dunes offer a unique environment where students can see a visual representation of succession from pioneer species to climax community. Quadrats and transects are completed allowing students to analyse the change in vegetation type and individual species as distance from the sea increases. These results can be transferred onto a kite diagram for further analysis. Coastal EnvironmentsLandscapes vary spatially across the UK but also change with time. Coastal zones are dynamic areas, their shape and form constantly being remodelled by the natural processes of weathering and erosion combined with human influences, underpinned by shoreline management strategies. Students study a stretch of coastline to identify the changing natural features along it. |
