Geography is at the interface of the humanities and the sciences; it is a social science that examines how people live, are distributed and interact with their environment.


Geography is offered at all ages in the College. In the first term of the Foundation Year (Year 9) pupils are introduced to the basic concepts of Geography and spend time investigating the world around them. After Christmas, all pupils study the Natural Hazards section of the AQA GCSE. Many pupils then choose to carry on studying Geography into the Remove (Year 10), covering topics such as Development, Glaciers and Urban Change. In the Sixth Form, pupils can study the subject at both A level and within the International Baccalaureate Programme.

A level

The department teaches the AQA A level specification. This explores the nature and impact of cultural, social, economic, political and physical processes from the global to the regional scale. The course looks at the natural environment and the management challenges it poses, and at how human society individuals, institutions and governments make and shape the world.

Possible topics to be covered will be chosen from the list below:

Physical Geography
Water and carbon cycles
Hot desert environments and their margins
Coastal systems and landscapes
Hazards
Ecosystems under stress
Cold environment

Human Geography 

Global systems and global governance
Changing places
Contemporary urban environments
Population and the environment
Resource security

International Baccalaureate

The IB course involves the study of the essential systematic and technical aspects of the subject, creating a platform for considering the major environmental, political, cultural and socio-economic issues facing the developed and developing worlds. The course is designed to accommodate pupils who have studied Geography before and also those who have little previous knowledge of the subject.

At Sixth Form level all Geography pupils attend a residential fieldtrip to prepare them for their coursework.

Head of Geography - Rupert Needham