Geography | Nendrum College Comber

Geography

Geography at Nendrum College

Time allocation per week at KS3: 1hour 45mins

Geography develops pupils as individuals and as contributors to society, the economy and environment. Geography also helps us to view the world in which we live, both locally and globally. By studying issues which have relevance to pupils they can see the importance of geographical knowledge to their lives now and in the future.

Pupils are challenged to think about the type of world they would like to share in years to come and how best to achieve it. They will also have opportunities to explore how the skills developed through Geography might help them in the future.

Key Stage 3

Topics include –

Year 8:        Mapwork
                   Volcanoes and Earthquakes
                   Rocks
                   Weather
                   Settlement

Year 9:        China
                  Extreme Climates
                   Economic Activity
                 Future Energy Needs
                  Development
                  Rivers and Flooding


Year 10:       O.S. Mapwork

                   Settlement and Shopping
                   Population
                   Fashion and Sport
                   Ecosystems

Fieldwork plays an integral part of the syllabus. Year 8 carry out a traffic survey in Comber and Year 10 investigate shopping patterns in the local area.

For those pupils who decide not to continue with further study of Geography, their experiences during Key Stage 3 should have provided them with the geographical knowledge, understanding and skills necessary to help them engage meaningfully with real and relevant issues in their world.

Key Stage 4

The Department follows the CCEA Revised GCSE syllabus. It is divided into three units.

Areas covered at KS4:

Unit 1: Understanding Our Natural World (studied in Year 11)

Theme A: River Environments

Theme B: Coastal Environments

Theme C: Our Changing Weather and Climate

Theme D: The Restless Earth

Unit 2: Living in Our World (studied in Year 12)

Theme A: Population and Migration

Theme B: Changing Urban Areas

Theme C: Contrasts in World Development

Theme D: Managing Our Environment

Unit 3: Fieldwork

This unit involves pupils collecting data through fieldwork in Year 11, analysing this in the classroom and then ultimately completing a written examination based on their findings at the end of Year 12. The fieldwork is based on changes to the River Shimna as it flows downstream.

Assessment

There are three external assessments-

Unit 1 worth 40% of the total mark (completed at the end of Year 11)

Unit 2 worth 40% of the total mark (completed at the end of Year 12)

Unit 3 worth 20% of the total mark (completed at the end of Year 12)