Geography

The Geography Department 

The geography department tries to help students make sense of the world they live in, of what they hear and see, and of what they read about in the world in their everyday lives. To this end, the team of geography teachers work together to ensure that pupils undertake lively, relevant and wide-ranging learning experiences both in and out of the classroom.

Working on their own, in pairs or in groups students use a wide range of resources and developing skills to tackle what are often real world problems and issues. Through a mix of local, national and global studies students are encouraged to have an informed and lively interest in contemporary issues and the geographical context in which they occur.

The department works closely with both the History and RE departments to share ideas, approaches and good practice.

The aims of the department are;

• To develop in students a knowledge and understanding of where they live, of other people and places and how they interrelate.

• To acquaint students with a sense of place and to help them understand spatial patterns at local, national and global scales.

• To develop within students an understanding of the relationships between people and the environment and the consequences of their actions.

• For students to appreciate the diversity of human society throughout the world.

• To provide a vehicle to help pupils develop both geographic and transferable key skills.

The course provides for a balance and variety in each year as students progress through the Key Stage. Work centres on pupils’ home area, the United Kingdom, the European Union and parts of the wider world in contrasting states of development. Some units of work are theme-focused whilst others are more place-specific. All are designed to allow students to develop their enquiry skills.

For those choosing to follow it, GCSE Geography allows students to address geographical themes and issues at local, regional, national and global scales. These are studied in the context of the specified areas of the UK, the European Union and the Wider World. Students undertake a practical field study and assessment of the course is by examination and coursework.

In this subject, we consider the world outside the classroom as our ‘laboratory’ and seek opportunities for pupils in both key stages to work out of school in order to gain first-hand experience of ‘real-life’ geography.

For those choosing to follow BTEC Travel and Tourism, the course has three elements; 

Unit 1: The UK Travel and Tourism Industry – This unit assesses the main types and why people travel. It then looks at the relationships of UK travel and tourism organisations. Followed by a closer examination of the development of the industry. The unit closes with a consideration of the issues and external influences on the UK travel and tourism industry.

Unit 2: Exploring Customer Service in Travel and Tourism – This unit assesses your understanding of different approaches to customer service in different travel and tourism organisations.

Unit 3: UK Travel and Tourism Destinations. – This unit assesses your knowledge of the location of significant UK travel and tourism destinations and how to plan holiday packages.

The course provides the opportunity to apply knowledge of travel and tourism industries in a vocationally relevant way.

At Key Stage 3 students undertake study units to develop their skills of Geographical Enquiry and their knowledge and understanding of significant places, geographical patterns and processes and environmental change.