Impossible to map the world – we select and make graphics so that we can understand it - Roger Tomlinson

The Geography Faculty believes its crucial purpose is to understand and interpret the world around them.

Lessons in Geography promote knowledge and understanding alongside the development of respectful, tolerant and an inquisitive approach to learning. We aim to achieve this by devising learning experiences which allow all students to make progress. We hope young people will leave DACA valuing differences and appreciate how the mistakes of the past can be learnt from; we hope they will have a deeper appreciation of how our environment interacts with us. We hope to encourage open minds, promote critical thinking and empathy with others in order to better understand our place in the world.

Geography is the study of Earth’s landscapes, peoples, places and environments. It is about the world in which we live and its study will make you question how and why the world is changing, globally and locally but also, how human actions can complicate and exacerbate natural changes and events. Geography will encourage you to think about the vast number of physical and human connections that exist within our world and about the pressures that the world’s natural environments face. From Year 7 you will have the exciting opportunity to understand the natural processes that affect millions of people every year like volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and tsunamis, how climate change is affecting populations and how population change is itself affecting different countries.

Geography Learning Journey

Geography Team

The Geography faculty comprises a committed and hardworking team with a range of experiences and skills.

Intent

We aim to engender a love of learning, self-belief and aspiration through several intentions that are unpacked further. Those intentions are removing barriers to learning; developing knowledge and skills for learning in a range of subjects; developing personal attributes and to enrich students’ experiences and broaden their horizons.

Through our curriculum provision we intend to develop:

• To provide an environment where all students are challenges and supported to achieve their very best.
• To develop a love of learning, which will exist beyond school.
• To support the development of literacy skills by providing opportunities for developing reading, writing, speaking and listening skills.
• To develop the skills to research topics and choose the best sources of information to develop their understanding
• To ensure tolerance of others and respect for ideas and opinions. This will allow students to engage in debate with others, while valuing different views.
• To develop thinking skills and approaches to problem solving.
• To promote, and encourage the development of skills in, independent learning.
• To provide support, advice and guidance to support students in further study or employment.
• Teaches the knowledge, cultural capital and skills for future learning, employment and later life

Implementation

Across your study you will explore Physical, Human and Environmental Geography. You will gain an understanding of why countries are at different levels of development and the impact that this has on the populations and environments of those countries. You will understand the physical and human factors that cause and contribute to natural disasters and the importance of natural resources, ecosystems and economic links around the world. Lessons will provide a wide range of opportunities for group work, role play, independent research and will encourage you to challenge yourself to suggest solutions to problems faced around the world.

Geography is both creative and problem solving and your Geography classroom will be brimming with opportunities to explore the world through images, film clips, stories of personal experiences and of course, maps!

You will engage with questions such as ‘Does aid help or hinder the development of lower income countries?’ Why do people live in dangerous places? How can we be more environmentally friendly? Why are global businesses important? How can the quality of life of the poorest people in the world be improved? You will have the chance to ask questions about what is changing in the UK and about your local environment, to study it more closely by collecting data and analysing it to find out what it tells you.

Impact

We will assess if we are having the positive impact we aim for through regular monitoring (for example book scrutinies and learning walks) to ensure we are leading to positive progress for all. The curriculum will be evident across all lessons and students will be able articulate their learning confidently. This will also be reflected in student voice surveys, with students indicating that they are engaged and enjoying their Geography lessons.

The use of data will drive our consideration of whether we are having impact. The department provides live and verbal feedback to students during lessons, so that immediate misconceptions can be addressed. Lessons will inherently contain a series of do now activities, recall questions and exit tickets in order to maximise assessment opportunities and identifying gaps where they appear. At KS4, students will receive teacher feedback in the form of a Strength and Target based on the theory work they complete.

We will continually review and reflect on how the curriculum is designed to ensure that students remember what they have been taught.  This regular review cycle ensures that we have a curriculum pathway that promotes success for all learners and ensures that the Geography curriculum is appropriate and fully differentiated for all students.