Geography IGCSE (CIE Syllabus 0460)

The Geography IGCSE course will cover Human, Physical, Environmental aspects about world issues. The course identifies problems that exist in the world such as: What are the problems of global warming? Will the world be able to cope with population growth? How can we create a more sustainable society? Will China be the most important economy? Why does Japan use Nuclear Power? Why has flooding been so destructive in Thailand?

It also tries to look for solutions to all these problems. The geography course will teach students how to think critically and analyse issues with a balanced view. It will equip you for what is going on in the world and about how you can help the planet for the future. There will be a residential fieldtrip in Year 10 or 11 as part of the course.

Successful Geography candidates develop lifelong skills, including:

An understanding of the processes which affect physical and human environments ; An understanding of location on a local, regional and global scale; The ability to use and understand geographical data and information; An understanding of how communities around the world are affected and constrained by different environments.

Theme 1 Population and Settlement

The world’s current population exceeds 7.5 billion people. Is this cause for alarm? Geography students study the following issues to help them see the bigger picture.

Causes and consequences of over-population and under-population; Impacts of social, economic and other factors (including government policies, 
HIV/AIDS) on birth and death rates; Internal movements such as rural-urban migration, as well as international migrations, both voluntary and involuntary and their positive and negative impacts; The effects of urbanization on the people and natural environment. The characteristics of squatter settlements

Theme 2: The Natural Environment

The world is an amazing place. Students look at how the following landforms are created and learn about the sensitive ecosystems that they are and the importance of looking after them: .

Volcanoes and Earthquakes; Rivers and flooding; Coasts and tropical storms; Weather and Climate; Tropical rainforests and deforestation.

Theme 3: Economic Development

Why are some countries richer than other countries? What can be done about it? Can we develop without harming the environment? Here are some of the issues Geography students look at:

Using different indicators to find out the worst and best places to live in the world; Globalization – has our globalized world helped people out of poverty?; Food Production: There is enough food and water on our planet why are there some people that go without?; Industry and Tourism; Energy and Water; Environmental risks of economic development.

Assessment

Assessment will be made by three examinations.

Paper 1 – Geographical Themes (45%); Paper 2 – Geographical Skills;(27.5%) Paper 4 – Alternative to coursework (27.5%)