Geography at RPA

Geography develops students' understanding of key, relevant and engaging issues which currently affect the lives of our students and people around the world.

Students develop an understanding of the key physical and human processes which operate around the world, consider the impacts of these processes and creative ways to overcome the challenges they create. What is happening in Antarctica? How will climate change impact my life? Why should I reduce my plastic consumption? Why are some countries more developed than others? It is by asking challenging questions of what is happening in the world around them that students can get to grips with the challenges facing our planet.

In addition, geography develops a wide range of skills, including map reading, mathematical and fieldwork skills, as well as those of problem solving, evaluating and debating key current issues. Our students really are the key to the world’s problems.

What we do when

Students in Year 7, 8 and 9 have one 80-minute lesson of geography per week. Each unit at Key Stage 3 is centred around an enquiry question. They study the following units:

Year 7

• Unit 1: What skills do I need as a geographer?

• Unit 2: Should we preserve Antarctica?

• Unit 3: Why is plastic a problem?

• Unit 4: How does a river change as it moves downstream?

• Unit 5: How is the UK changing?

Year 8

• Unit 1: Is our understanding of the world wrong?

• Unit 2: Is our weather becoming more extreme?

• Unit 3: Is 7 billion too many?

• Unit 4: Can we protect the rainforest?

Year 9

• Unit 1: Why are some countries more developed than others?

• Unit 2: Why are some natural hazards more dangerous than others?

• Unit 3: Should we stop using global brands?

• Unit 4: Will Africa remain the most underdeveloped continent?

Key Stage 4

Exam board: AQA

Geography at GCSE is a balance of physical and human geography units and investigates the link between them. Students will study a range of case studies, both in the UK and beyond, studying and comparing countries at different levels of development. They will also understand their role in society by exploring different viewpoints, values and attitudes.

Paper 1: Living with the physical environment

Assessed with a written exam of 1 hour 30 minutes, 88 marks, 35% of GCSE grade

• Section A: Natural hazards (33 marks) 

• Section B: Ecosystems (25 marks) 

• Section C: Physical landscapes in the UK (30 marks)

Paper 2: Challenges in the human environment

Assessed with a written exam of 1 hour 30 minutes, 88 marks, 35% of GCSE grade

• Section A: Urban issues and challenges (33 marks) 

• Section B: The changing economic world (30 marks)

• Section C: The challenge of resource management (25 marks)

Paper 3: Issue evaluation

Assessed with a written exam of 1 hour 15 minutes, 76 marks, 30% of GCSE grade

• Section A: Issue evaluation (39 marks):

  • Students are issued with a pre-release booklet 12 weeks before their exam on an issue which incorporates content from across the topics studied in papers 1 and 2. Time will be spent reviewing the booklet and preparing students prior to the exam.

• Section B: Fieldwork (37 marks)

  • This paper is a mixture of unfamiliar fieldwork and their own fieldwork. 

  • They will complete two pieces of fieldwork as part of the course to include a physical piece (river studies in Richmond Park) and human piece (regeneration of the Olympic Park). The exam will ask students to explain, evaluate and justify the methods and results of the fieldwork they have completed.

All three papers will contain a combination of question types including multiple choice, short answer, open response and extended response.

Key Stage 5

Exam board: AQA

Geography at A Level explores a balance of physical and human units which reflect a range of issues in the world today; these allow students to explore the processes operating in different places, their impacts and ways in which these can be managed.

The students study six units over two years:

1. Physical Geography (40% of final A Level grade, written exam of 2½ hours)

• Water and carbon cycles

• Coastal systems and landscapes

•  Hazards 

2. Human Geography (40% of final A Level grade, written exam of 2½ hours)

• Global systems and governance

• Changing places

• Contemporary urban environments

3. Non-Examined Assessment (Independent Investigation, 20% of final A Level grade)

This is a Geography Fieldwork Investigation carried out in year 12 / 13 which consists of an independent investigation (coursework) of 3,000-4,000 words which focuses on an element of the course content using data collected in the field.  Students must also complete 4 days of fieldwork across the 2 years, of which this counts towards this requirement.

Who to contact

Laura Bicknell - lbicknell@richmondparkacademy.org