Geography
Exam Board: OCR
Head of Department: Mr M E Hodges
Am I suited to this course?
Entry requirements: A pass grade (A*- C) in GCSE Geography.
You should have a genuine curiosity about the physical and human landscape and be willing to develop expertise in a number of areas – fieldwork and report writing, graphical/ statistical skills, independent research, and the use of IT
What will we study?
Physical Geography.
AS: Physical Core studies include; 'Coastal environments' and 'Cold environments'. The option studies at A2 include 'Earth Hazards' and 'Ecosystems and environments under threat'. The choice of which ones will be studied has yet to be confirmed for this new course.
Human Geography.
The AS Human Core Studies includes 'Managing Urban change' and 'The Energy issue'. The option studies at A2 include 'Population and Resources' and 'Globalisation'. The choice of which ones will be studied has yet to be confirmed for this new course.
Geographical Skills.
This unit is aimed at developing geographical research skills. It will involve fieldwork and the production of fieldwork reports.
What work will I do?
The AS & A2 courses will require you to undertake background reading and note taking to support topics covered in lessons. You will also be expected to take part in our programme of fieldwork. In the recent past our fieldwork programme has included day courses based on Dartmoor, Slapton Sands and Plymouth. In addition, for a number of years the department has run a short residential course to the Dorset coast for which a charge has been levied to cover the cost of accommodation and contribution to the cost of transport. While we hope to maintain as full a programme of fieldwork as we can the exact content of the programme for this new course of study has yet to be finalised.
How will my 'A' level grade be assessed?
At the end of the AS year there will be two written papers both of one and a half hours duration. Both papers are a mixture of short structured questions and more extended writing. This is a synoptic unit.
At the end of the second year there are two further written papers. 'Global issues' last for two and a half hours and includes data response and essay-type questions. 'Geographical Skills' is a one and a half hour paper and includes data response and extended writing answers. This is a synoptic unit.