The exam season has now started and Year 11 are currently on exam leave. We wish them every success in their exams, but especially for their two exams in geography: on Monday 4th June (Papers 1 & 2) and Monday 11th June (Papers 3 & 4).

The following web sites will prove useful for revision:

GCSE Bitesize - Geography

S-Cool - Geography Revision

Revision Centre - Geography

The department enjoyed another very successful field visit to Swanage in October. Unfortunately, due to illness Miss Gauld was unable to attend. Nevertheless, the group acquitted themselves very well and benefitted from a fun yet highly intensive five days of taught fieldwork and coursework. The itinerary for this visit is now well established and the usual range studies were completed at Lulworth Cove, Durdle Door, Corfe Castle, Studland, Godlingston Heath and Swanage Bay. Unfortunately, this was the last year staying at Swanage Youth Hostel. Next year the accommodation will be at the Townsend Field Study Centre just outside the town centre. The Townsend Centre is slightly better equipped in terms of ICT facilities and is better able to meet the demands of the modern geography student.

Photographs featuring the Class of 2006

Scheme of Work

Main Themes:

The coastal system: inputs and outputs. Wave energy and tidal range: low and high energy environments. Landscape features of erosion: cliffs, headlands (concordance and discordance), caves, arches and stacks. Recognition of coastal landforms from OS maps. Processes of transport (longshore drift). Landscape features of deposition: beaches, spits, bars, barrier beaches, tombolas, saltmarshes, sand-dunes.

Attempts to control coastal erosion and consequences.

Core text and exercises:

A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 40-51.

Case Study: Isle of Purbeck/ Barton on Sea.

Students study the features of coastal erosion and deposition during the Dorset residential fieldcourse. Coastal management should be studied in the context of Holderness in class and then the concepts applied to Swanage Bay or Barton on Sea (on return to Northampton).

A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 48-51 and video tapes 36/2 and 53/6 provide the best account of the Holderness case study. A short video is available which focuses on the formation of Old Harry (Purbeck). Students should identify coastal features using aerial photographs (software available).

Investigation: Fieldwork will be completed during the residential visit to Swanage examining aspects of the coastal erosion cycle between Lulworth Cove and Durdle Door. A longshore drift investigation is also undertaken at Swanage Bay.

Rivers as part of the hydrological cycle. Recognition of runoff, throughflow, interception, evapotranspiration etc. and how they are influenced by soil, geology and vegetation. The concept of the drainage basin and the long profile. Principal erosional processes and division of load. Landforms of erosion and deposition (gorges, interlocking spurs, meanders, ox-bow lakes, braiding, floodplains, levees and deltas) and relationship of erosion/transport/deposition to energy changes along the long profile. Draw valley cross-sections from OS maps to show profile at upper, middle and lower course.

Rainfall: streamflow relationships. The flood hydrograph. Influence of geology, relief, and drainage density on hydrograph form. Causes of river floods and methods of flood control and prevention.

Core text and exercises:

A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 25-39

Case Study 1: The River Rhine, Netherlands.

Causes and consequences of the River Rhine floods of 1995. Students should understand how the river is managed and how this has exacerbated the flood risk on the river.

Video tape 64/2 provides a detailed account of earlier flooding on the Rhine (1985) covering all the aspects outlined above. Exercise from New Introduction to Geography pp. 32-35.

Case Study 2: The River Ganges, Bangladesh.

The causes and consequences of flooding in Bangladesh. The generation of the Indian Monsoon, convergence of rivers, snowmelt in the Himalayas, deforestation, physical environment, tsunamis etc.  As flooding is a regular occurrence in Bangladesh, students may be allowed to use Internet resources to compile information on the most recent flood disaster (e.g. August 2004).

New Introduction to Geography pp. 36-39.. Video tape 10/4 examines some of the health effects of flooding in Bangladesh.

Investigation: Comparison of downstream changes along the course of the River Piddle in Dorset. Alternatively, students may research the causes and consequences of the floods on the River Nene during April 1998 by using the Internet to research for news articles, weather data etc. The investigation can be extended by considering flood control measures put in place since 1998.

Energy

Main Themes:

Renewable and non-renewable energy resources. The changing importance of fossil fuels, nuclear power and alternative energy sources. Reasons for the decline of coal mining. The nuclear debate. Costs and benefits of alternative energy sources.  The effects on communities of the decline in coal mining.

Video tape 56/5 examines the problems of decommissioning nuclear plants. Tape 78/4 looks at the changing nature of coal mining in South Wales.

Core text and exercises:

A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 160-167.

Case Study: Holmewood, Derbyshire

The effects of coal mine closures on local communities. A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 164-165.

Raw Materials

Main Themes:

The environmental costs of extracting raw materials. The issue is approached by considering the costs and benefits of limestone quarrying in the Peak District National Park.

Core text and exercises:

A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 180-181.

Video tape 15/7 - open-cast coal mining.

Tropical Rainforests

Main Themes:

The distribution and structure of the rainforest ecosystem. Wildlife, climate and vegetation in different layers of the forest. Reasons for deforestation and consequences (loss of biodiversity, flooding, soil erosion etc.). The need for stewardship and sustainable development.

Core text and exercises:

A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 182-191.

Case Study: La Grande Carajas, Brazil.

Destruction of the rainforest for mining, hydro-electric power generation, settlement and communications.

Video tape 60/6 examines the loss of rainforest through commercial farming and may be shown together with 62/1 which focuses on La Grande Carajas. A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 184-185.

Conservation Strategies

Main Themes:

Recognise the various organisations and designations relating to conservation in the UK: National Parks, National Trust, Countryside Agency etc. Recognise that conflict occurs in National Parks (tourist overuse, military use, water supply, extractive industries).

Core text and exercises:

A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 192-195.

Case Study: Peak District National Park.

Background to foundation. Physical characteristics (White and Dark Peak). Honeypot sites. Areas of conflict: footpath erosion and conservation strategies at Dovedale; reservoirs (Ladybower & Derwent - costs and benefits), limestone quarrying (Castleton).

Numerous textbooks have resources relating to the Peak District which are suitable. Use should also be made of magazine articles, e.g. Geographical Magazine September 2001 issue. Video tape 88/3 has some good excerpts on conservation in the UK and can be used selectively. It is preferable to use the Peak District as the case study rather than Dartmoor (see New Introduction to Geography) as the pupils will have gained fieldwork experience.

Main Themes:

Recognise that the exploitation of natural resources can have consequences over much wider areas. The causes of global warming and acid rain and their consequences. Attempts at reducing emissions of sulphur dioxide. The effects of pollution incidents at the local scale.

Acid Rain:

Sources of sulphur dioxide emissions in the United Kingdom. Consequences of acid rain deposition on natural environments in Scotland. Recognition of the international dimension to acid rain, including a study of pollution effects in Scandinavia. Methods of reducing the effects of acid rain on lakes (Loch Fleet).

Core text and exercises:

A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 202-205.

Video tape 3/6 focuses on acid rain,  tape 26/4 has a useful focus on atmospheric pollution in Norway.

Global Warming:

Causes, physical processes and potential consequences of the greenhouse effect. Consequences should focus on the UK as well as other countries, e.g. small island states, sub-Saharan Africa. Strategies to address global warming. Sustainable development. The concept of global interdependence. Local Agenda 21.

Core text and exercises:

A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 206-209.

Video tapes 43/4, 26/5 provide good accounts of global warming.

Local Environment:

Causes of water pollution and the effects of sewage and nitrates (eutrophication). Study the Spanish sludge spill of 1998 or another small-scale example, e.g. Shetland or Pembrokeshire oil spillage with a focus on short and long-term consequences.

Core text and exercises:

A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 196-201.

Main Themes:

Understand the concept 'quality of life' and how it might be measured, i.e. 'quality of life' indicators: wealth, water supply, malnutrition, education etc. Contrast the quality of life of MEDCs and LEDCs. Understand the idea of economic development and its relationship to employment structures. Contrast the employment structures of different countries and understand how these change through times as countries industrialise. The development of NICs.

Core text and exercises:

A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 128-139.

Case Study 1: Burkina Faso.

Recognise that Burkina Faso is a country with marked socio-economic contrast to the UK.  Problems caused by drought in rural parts of Burkina Faso and the use of appropriate technology to improve quality of life.

A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 132-133. Video tape 52/3.

Case Study 2: South Korea 

Become familiar with the main stages of South Korea's industrial development. Understand the role of government and chaebols. Consequences of industrial growth for both South Korea and for other world economies (globalisation).

A New Introduction to Geography: pp. 138-139.

The remainder of the summer term is devoted to revision.

·         Students will complete one personal study based on fieldwork undertaken in Swanage in year 11.

·         The coursework should be no more than 3000 words in length.

·         It is expected that students use appropriate information technology to process and present their data and to write up the final report. Where information technology is used to automatically record data in the field (i.e. through data-logging), it should be suitably processed before any credit is given.

·         Students may submit audio-visual material as part of the report, but where they do so they must also include written prose in order that the quality of written communication can be assessed.

·         The coursework must focus on an aspect of the specification which the students have studied. In practice, the teaching scheme is designed to cover all the units where fieldwork is feasible prior to the residential visit to Swanage so that they are not disadvantaged by lack of knowledge.

·         Students are prepared for the coursework by undertaking several small-scale investigations during the course of year 10. These investigations are designed to develop skills in planning and organising enquiries as well as processing and analysing data. These investigations should be marked in general accordance with the scheme of marking for coursework detailed in the specification.  Each investigation should be no more than 1000 words in length.

·         Students should be encouraged to use the following format to structure both investigations and coursework: aims and objectives, methods of data collection, representation of data, analysis, interpretations and conclusions.

·         The new textbook, New Introduction to Geography, also provides help for students on how to approach coursework exercises in various topics. They should be encouraged to read these thoroughly before planning coursework.

Swanage Fieldcourse

The coursework that contributes to the students' final assessment is the result of four days intensive fieldwork undertaken in Swanage during the Autumn term of Year 11. The course comprises 3 days taught fieldwork for those topics in the specification where local fieldwork in Northampton is not practical, namely rivers, coasts and environmental issues. Each day comprises note-taking sessions and data collection exercises in the field.

The base for the fieldwork is Swanage Youth Hostel which has a small field studies centre attached. This location provides quick access to a number of classic fieldwork locations which will be visited and will also provide an excellent base from which students can work on their own investigations on the final day.

A general outline of the taught course is indicated below:

Day 1: Study of pebble distributions at Lulworth Cove and the importance of varying rock resistance along discordant and concordant coastlines. Students will be shown how to conduct a beach transect including drawing cross-profiles using levelling techniques, use quadrat sampling to measure grain size variation both up the beach and along the beach. Students will be encouraged to formulate their own hypotheses and test these later in the classroom. A walk along a section of the South West coastal path towards Durdle Door in the afternoon will introduce students to some aspects of tourism management and landforms associated with discordant and concordant coastlines as well as the concept of the coastal erosion cycle.

Day 2: Accounting for changes downstream in a river. Students will study how different aspects of a small stream vary downstream towards the mouth. Three sites will be studied on the river Piddle. Students will work in groups measuring stream flow, width, depth and wetted perimeter. They will also measure bedload. The evening session will be spent processing the data collected during the day and testing a number of hyptheses, Abler students will be able to study changes in channel efficiency downstream by calculating the hydraulic radius (cross-sectional area/wetted perimeter) and by performing a Spearman Rank test on the results. Time in the afternoon will be spent studying aspects of coastal management in Swanage Bay.

Day 3: Management of tourism at Studland Heath Nature Reserve. Studland Heath is a complex environment of sand dunes and dry and wet heathland. Owing to its proximity to Poole, Bournemouth and Swanage it attracts many thousands of visitors per year, necessitating the implementation of several strategies to minimise the impact from tourism. Students will undertake a survey of vegetation along a band transect across the dune system noting changes in soil characteristics, exposure and type of vegetation. The impact of visitors will also be assessed and the management strategies evaluated. The afternoon will be spent on the dry heath near Agglestone (024827) looking at footpath erosion and undertaking an environmental impact assessment (EIA) of human land use (forestry, oil extraction, urbanisation, farming etc.) The evening session will include a discussion of the day's results and preparation for Day 4.

Day 4: Individual Studies: The fourth day will allow students to formulate their own hypotheses or to extend the taught investigations undertaken earlier in the week. All students will be working in the Swanage area during the day as this affords the greatest range of possibilities. They will have access to the field studies centre and staff throughout the day. Some preparation for the day will have been done the evening before and this will have

involved the writing up of proposals, preparation of data recording sheets and questionnaires. A briefing session in the morning will focus on giving students instructions for the day and offering guidance on additional data collection techniques.

Range of Personal Studies possible:

Although students will have a free-rein in terms of the types of investigations they do, the limitation of work to Swanage will mean that studies will probably be along the following lines:

·         The degree of dependence of Swanage on tourism as an economic activity.

·         Management of tourism along the South West Coastal Path.

·         The importance of Swanage as a local service centre.

·         Coastal processes in Swanage Bay: investigations of longshore drift, beach protection, cliff retreat etc. and their impact on the human environment.

·         A study of downstream changes in a local stream, e.g. correlations of discharge, width, depth and velocity.

·         Patterns of agricultural and/or residential land-uses in and around Swanage and historical changes.

·         The geological influence on land-use: a comparison of land uses on Gault Clay, Limestone and Chalk.

·         Industrial change in the Swanage area: the decline of quarrying at Tilly Whim and the growth of tourism in Victorian times.

The mark scheme for the coursework can be downloaded from the OCR web site as a PDF file. This file also comprises the full specification. Click here.