Faculty of Humanities

Geography

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Guide to A Level Geography (Edexcel)

Minimum recommended entry requirements:
Grade B in GCSE Geography

The Geography course is based on an enquiry approach to the people-environment situation. It contains both physical and human aspects of geography and how they impinge on the environment. Therefore it focuses on major global issues that are current, such as conservation versus exploitation of the earth’s resources.

Understanding of the issues is achieved by using a range of teaching strategies. There will be some teacher directed work, but increasingly the students will be encouraged to take control of their own learning through independent research, presenting their findings in oral and written presentations. There is time for informed discussions using up-to-date information from daily newspapers, television news and documentaries, the Internet, and the more traditional sources such as library books.

Advanced Subsidiary (AS)

The Advanced Subsidiary units cover both physical and human topics. Each is of equal value to the final grade.

Unit 1 Changing Landforms and their Management

Coastal and river environments are studied. An understanding is built up of the processes that are at work within rivers and oceans and the challenge that they present to humans to manage them effectively.

Unit 2 Managing Change in Human Environments

This unit looks at the processes operating in rural and urban areas. The growth and development of cities will be studied along with the need to keep the countryside for agricultural purposes and recreational use. Examples will be taken from both ELDC and EMDC countries.

These two units are assessed by short structured questions based on a wide variety of data stimulus and with some opportunity for extended writing.

Unit 3 Environmental Investigation

This is the coursework element which is based on fieldwork data collected during a series of day visits to local sites. The group will collect data on topics linked to the work completed in units 1 and 2 and from this produce an independent report on an aspect that they found of the greatest interest to them. It will be 2,500 words in length. The cost for this residential trip will be about £150.00.

Advanced Level (A2)

During the A2 year a further 2 new units will be studied together with a synoptic unit that links all the other units together. There is now the opportunity to write longer and more detailed essays and to carry our more of their own research.

Unit 4 Global Challenge

This unit is divided up into the natural environment and the human environment and looks at a wide range of issues. The physical themes involve atmospheric processes and their resulting weather patterns, the characteristics of the world’s vegetation patterns and the challenges that they face. The human themes investigate the challenge posed by population growth and migration, along with globalisation of economic activities.

This unit is assessed in the form of structured data response essay style questions.

Unit 5 Researching Global Futures

Here there is an opportunity to develop their own lines of approach to the topics. Physical options are hazardous environments or pollution issues while human topics include development, feeding the world or sport and leisure.

The unit is assessed by a research based essay of 1500 words that is the second piece of coursework and an essay written under examination conditions. Titles for this latter essay will be released prior to the start of the course, so the student can focus their work.

Unit 6 Synoptic Unit

This unit links all the elements of knowledge, understanding and skills from the previous units’ work into an issues based enquiry. This will focus on the analysis of an issued located in a particular place or environment. It is assessed through a decision making exercise with a series of linked questions. The area of study will be released to the students prior to the examination.

Geography combines well with both arts and sciences and forms a link between the two areas. A survey of the present ‘A’ Level geographers shows that they are studying English, German, Biology, Mathematics and Business Studies amongst their other subjects. There are obvious links between Biology and Geography that leads to degree courses or job opportunities in the field of environmental studies. The logical nature of investigation lends itself to a wide range of subjects including law and accountancy.

Geography is all about the world around us and is therefore highly topical. Personal experience of holidays abroad or travels in England can be developed into case studies which will have greater impact than just the text book example.

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