Using This Issue for Edexcel AS and A2 Geography

Volume 29, Number 3, February 2016

Exam links

Using this issue for Edexcel AS and A2 geography

The table below shows the structure of the Edexcel A-level geography course.

AS / Unit 1
Global challenges (2 compulsory topics) / 6GE01 / World at risk
Going global
Unit 2
Investigating geography (1 physical and 1 human option) / 6GE02 / Either Extreme weather or Crowded coasts
Either Rebranding places or Unequal spaces
A2 / Unit 3
Contested planet
(6 compulsory topics) / 6GE03 / Energy security
Water conflicts
Biodiversity under threat
Superpower geographies
Bridging the development gap
The technological fix?
Unit 4
Researching geography
(one of 6 options) / GE04 / Tectonic activity and hazards
Cold environments
Life on the margins
Pollution and human health at risk
The world of cultural diversity
Consuming the rural landscape

This table shows the relevance of each of the articles and columns in this issue of Geography Review to the Edexcel specification

Article / Page numbers / AS / A2
Tsunamis: is Britain at risk? / 2–5 / Unit 4 Tectonic hazards
Question and answer Superpower geographies / 6–10 / Unit 3 Superpower geographies
Down under Cities under strain / 11–13 / Unit 1 World cities
Measuring poverty: a case study from Asia / 14–16 / Unit 3 Bridging the development gap
Prospects What to expect at university / 17–19 / Context article useful for all students
Centrepiece Peat slides / 20–21 / Unit 3 Biodiversity under threat
Chichester harbour: case study of a coastal system / 22–26 / Unit 2 Crowded coasts
Building on the basics Globalisation / 27–29 / Unit 1 Going global
Water stewardship: is the big business approach sustainable? / 30–32 / Unit 3 Water conflicts
Development updateWater shortages in Sao Paulo / 33–35 / Unit 3 Water conflicts
The Great Barrier Reef: an ecosystem under pressure / 36–38 / Unit 3 Biodiversity under threat
Geographical skills Using GIS with census data / 39–41 / Unit 2 all options
The big picture Plastic–bag footballs in Tanzania / 42 / Context article useful for all students

Tsunamis: is Britain at risk?

This article is most relevant to the A2 Unit 4 option Tectonic hazards.

Tsunamis are not a big threat to the UK, but as this article outlines they have occurred in the past and are present in our geological record. The article outlines why the risk may be increasing. A useful approach in lessons might to be consider whether the risk is worth planning for, and whether all risks should be acted on. Other recent ‘unexpected’ events with high impacts could be considered in the same context e.g. the Icelandic volcanic eruption in 2010 and the nuclear power and contamination consequences of the 2011 Japanese tsunami.

Question and answer Superpower geographies

This Q&A relates directly to A2 Unit 3 Superpower geographies.

This topic is popular in Section A of the Unit 3 exam and frequently yields excellent answers that reflect very well on both teacher and students. Ideally, set this question as a homework activity then use peer marking in class, using the information and examples in the article to support this. Try to make students aware of a few common weaknesses in ‘Superpower’ answers, namely:

some historical geopolitical context is always useful – it’s not all about what has happened since 2000
answers should not focus solely on China, or the USA for that matter
power comes in a variety of forms, so move beyond the purely economic or military

Down under Cities under strain

This article is most useful for AS Unit 1, World cities(Part of the Going global element of Unit 1)

AS Unit 1 focuses on megacities, and of course none of Australia’s cities fall into this category. Nevertheless, the article is a useful summary of the pressures facing still-growing cities in the developed world (many UK cities are experiencing similar transport and housing pressures) and the challenges of accommodating economic and population growth without causing ruinous impacts on the environment.

Measuring poverty: a case study from Asia

Use this article within the measuring development part of A2 Unit 3 Bridging the development gap.

This topic is part of Bridging the development gap. When it crops up in examinations, it is often a touch disappointing, with candidates focusing on ‘single’ measures of development such as nominal GDP per capita and showing less engagement with indices such as HDI or adjusted measures such as PPP GDP per capita. This article is useful in that it covers a wide range of different measures as well as different definitions of poverty. All of this is an important precursor to a deeper understanding of development and particularly which groups remain the most under-developed and hardest to reach by poverty reduction strategies.

Prospects What to expect at university

This article is useful for all students

You can use this article with students, and not just geography candidates, between AS and A2 when they are thinking of applying and considering their options. It gives an useful insight into what to expect. Itmight help make university visits more engaging as students will have a better idea of what they are going to be shown.

Centrepiece Peat slides

This Centrepiece is best used within the context of A2 Unit 3 Biodiversity under threat.
It has some links to AS Unit 2 Extreme weather.

Peat slides don’t feature on our specification but many related areas do – such as wind farms as renewable energy, use of moorland for tourism (Unit 4) and extreme rainfall events (Unit 2) so this should be an interesting Centrepiece for many students to look at.

Chichester Harbour: case study of a coastal system

This article can be used as a case study for AS Unit 2 Crowded coasts.

The focus of this article is the physical geography of Chichester Harbour. It is useful as the physical systems element of this AS option is sometimes overlooked. Some understanding of the coast as a dynamic physical system is needed and the article takes a systems approach to understanding the harbour area (inputs, stores, outputs). As the article makes clear, understanding how physical geography operates is a crucial precursor for successful management – be that of coastal ecosystems, erosion or sea-level rise.

Building on the basics Globalisation

This article is useful background for AS Unit 1 Going global.

Most of our students have studied globalisation at GCSE and even KS4, but the terminology of globalisation is often a weakness. This article is especially useful in reviewing and reinforcing this terminology. In addition it outlines some of the key drivers of globalisation which are a frequent source of examination questions. This article is especially useful in terms of revision.

Water stewardship: is the big business approach sustainable?

Use this article to support A2 Unit 3 Water conflicts.

‘Players’ are a key synoptic theme that recurs within all six topics which make up A2 Unit 3. This article deals with the corporate and business players that use very large volumes of water and in some cases are attempting to reduce their water footprint. The article considers their motives for doing this, and thus addresses an important aspect of the ‘players’ synoptic theme — that of values and attitudes. Having considered businesses as players, it is worth thinking about the role of water-supply companies as these are often overlooked when considering how water supply is provided and how demand is managed. You could look at the Southern Nevada Water Agency ( examine its role.

Development update Water shortages in São Paulo

This article can be used to support A2 Unit 3 Water conflicts. It also has links to A2 Unit 3 Bridging the development gap.

This article can be approached in a number of ways. Brazil is of course a BRIC. BRICs demand very large amounts of resources – and Brazil is unusually well-endowed with these. It is also vulnerable to drought and, as the article shows, water shortages can have serious economic and political consequences. Megacities such as São Paulo are especially hard to supply with water and Brazil’s cities still contain large numbers of people on low-incomes for whom water can be a high cost. As with the previous article, there is a useful focus on ‘players’ so the two articles could be used as a ‘pair’ to reinforce this area of the specification with up-to-date content.

The Great Barrier Reef: an ecosystem under pressure

Use this article to support A2 Unit 3 Biodiversity under threat.

As ecological icons go, they don’t come much larger than the Great Barrier Reef. This UNESCO World Heritage site has recently received some uncomfortable press and is subject to a number of local threats (which should be manageable) and global ones (which are potentially much harder to manage, i.e. global climate change). Many centres focus on coral reefs in Unit 3 and this article provides a useful case study of how the balance between economic development and conservation is difficult to achieve.

Geographical skills Using GIS with census data

This skills focus is useful for all the AS Unit 2 options.

The census is a vital data set for almost any AS fieldwork and research topic. Even when the topic is a physical geography one such as river flooding of coastal erosion, the census can provide information on population and services affected by physical threats. When studying rebranding or inequality, the census provides critical information on demography, deprivation and economic aspects of population. Combining census and IMD data with GIS provides a powerful analytical tool for understanding patterns and processes.

The big picture Plastic-bag footballs in Tanzania

This Big picture can be used by all students.

The image shown here is fascinating, and raises all sorts of questions including

Who made the first one?
Does it make better footballers?