Higher Geography

COURSE DESCRIPTION

What is Geography – Geography is a study of people and place. It is a far reaching subject that deals with the landscape and environment around us and how humans interact with it. There is a variety of topical and relevant issues within the subject which offers variety of for learners to engage with.

Why study Geography – Within Geography there is a wide skills set that will aid pupils   throughout   their   school   career,   higher   education   and   fulltime employment. Pupils will gain a variety of skills including O.S. mapping skills, extracting information from graphs, charts and maps, using ICT and multimedia along with presenting their findings and ideas.

Course Structure & Units

Physical Environments

This unit covers 4 topics – Atmosphere (Global heat budget, atmospheric and oceanic circulation), Hydrosphere (hydrological cycle and hydrographs), Lithosphere (Glaciated and coastal landscapes) and Biosphere (soil properties and formation).

Human Geography

The three topics covered are Population (population structures and migration), Rural (conflicts and management in rural areas) and Urban Geography (urban changes in the developed and developing world and their impact)

Global Issues

This unit will include two topics which consists of Development and Health (indicators, differences  in  development  of  countries,  study  of  malaria  and primary health care strategies) and Global Climate Change (causes, effects and strategies to reduce climate change)

Assessment

Pupils also have to complete a written assignment that contributes to 27% of their final overall mark. A prelim examination will also be undertaken in the Spring term. Pupils will also have to sit the external SQA exam.

WHAT WILL MY HOME COMMITMENT BE FOR THIS COURSE?

Regular homework will be set by the class teacher.  Students can expect to be doing at least 2 hours of study per week which will include a selection of:  End of Topic formal homework , Consolidation of notes from previous week /Completion of exercises as home practice.    Assignment and Exam preparation

Is GEOGRAPHY for me? 

You will enjoy this subject if: 

· You enjoy the natural world and are keen to protect it.

· You are interested in people and places around the world.

· You want to understand how our world was formed and why it is constantly changing.

· You think about climate change and global warming.

· You want to find out about the developing world and its problems.