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
6GE01
Global challenges (2
compulsory topics)
Unit 2
Going global
6GE02
Investigating geography
(1 physical and 1 human
option)
A2
Unit 3
World at risk
Either Extreme weather or Crowded coasts
Either Rebranding places or Unequal spaces
6GE03
Energy security
Contested planet
Water conflicts
(6 compulsory topics)
Biodiversity under threat
Superpower geographies
Bridging the development gap
The technological fix?
Unit 4
GE04
Tectonic activity and hazards
Researching geography
Cold environments
(one of 6 options)
Life on the margins
Pollution and human health at risk
The world of cultural diversity
Consuming the rural landscape
Philip Allan Publishers © 2016
www.hoddereducation.co.uk/geographyreview
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
Measuring poverty: a case
study from Asia
14–16
Prospects What to expect
at university
17–19
Centrepiece Peat slides
20–21
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 update Water
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
Unit 1 World cities
Unit 3 Bridging the
development gap
Context article useful for all
students
Unit 3 Biodiversity under
threat
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
Philip Allan Publishers © 2016
www.hoddereducation.co.uk/geographyreview
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.
Philip Allan Publishers © 2016
www.hoddereducation.co.uk/geographyreview
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 (https://www.snwa.com/)
and 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.
Philip Allan Publishers © 2016
www.hoddereducation.co.uk/geographyreview
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?
This resource is part of GEOGRAPHY REVIEW, a magazine written for A-level students by
subject experts. To subscribe to the full magazine go
to: http://www.hoddereducation.co.uk/geographyreview
Philip Allan Publishers © 2016
www.hoddereducation.co.uk/geographyreview