Course Code:
Edexcel Geography A Level – 9GE0
Typical Entry Requirements:
6 in GCSE Geography
Career Possibilities:
Many careers value the skills gained from a Geography A Level, whether that be Town Planning, Estate Management, Meteorology, Environmental Management or GIS. Subjects which go particularly well
with Geography are Biology, Sociology, English or Maths. Geography is in the unusual position of being both an Arts and Scientific area of study, which enables purely science based students to continue to develop their literacy skills, while also allowing arts based students to maintain statistical an
The Programme:
The A Level consists of four elements – a physical paper, a human paper, a synoptic investigation paper and a non-examined assessment which is a coursework component of between 3000-4000 words. The physical paper consists of Tectonic Processes and Hazards, the Water Cycle and Water Insecurity, the Carbon Cycle and Energy Security and Coastal Landscapes and Change. On the human paper students study Globalisation, Shaping Places, Superpowers and Global Development and Connections.
Some of the material on both the physical and human elements is relatively unfamiliar to students, so there is an opportunity to really stretch and develop students’ understanding of the world in which they live, in new and exciting ways, whilst also building on existing knowledge. Students are also required to be involved in 4 days of fieldwork to help them decide on a suitable coursework topic.
There is a range of teaching styles from seminars, presentations and lectures and students are expected to have an awareness of contemporary issues in the news. The A Level course is linear with 3 terminal exams; one for the physical topics, one for the human topics and a synoptic investigation paper which are all 2 hours 15mins. Within each paper there will be a mixture of shorter questions (between 1 and 8 marks) moving up to longer 12 and 20 mark extended prose questions. In addition, students must complete a piece of fieldwork consisting of minimum of four days’ work in the field. This geographical investigation will be marked in school and should be between 3000-4000 words.
Why Study This Subject?:
Studying geography allows students to have a much deeper and fuller understanding of the changing world in which they live. We teach students to question cause
and effect, why issues happen and the implication on people and places. This can be as diverse as who owns Antarctica and how that wilderness can be managed to the role of water supply in the Israeli/
Palestinian conflict.
Geography is a highly respected academic A Level and many students who have a science background and who study geography have commented upon how valuable the written element of the course has been as they have progressed to degree level study. We aim to give our geography students the tools and curiosity to enquire and discover more about the places and
spaces of this increasingly globalised world in which they live.