Unit 2: Population and Migration Patterns and Processes

You might already know that China and India have the two largest populations in the world. But have you ever considered the specific characteristics of those populations and their local and global impacts? For example, how old or young are those populations? How many men live in each country, and how many women?

In Unit 2, you will explore many topics related to the study of population, or the number of people living in a given area. These topics include population distribution, population characteristics (such as average age or sex), the factors that determine a population's growth and decline, and government policies that attempt to either reduce or increase population. You will also read about the social, cultural, political, and economic factors that influence birth rates, mortality (death) rates, and migration rates. Think of the last news story on refugees that you read. How will those people moving from one place affect the places they moved from and to?

In keeping with the theme of gender that weaves through AP Human Geography, you will also learn how improved access to education, employment, health care, and contraception has reduced fertility rates in most parts of the world. And you will come to understand how women's changing social, economic, and political roles have influenced patterns of mortality and migration.