SMSC in Geography

The fact that Geography is the study of real people in real places means that it constantly links and develops students spiritually. For example, when looking at natural disasters such as Earthquakes, volcanoes or Tsunamis, a fascination of the world around them is developed, whilst the study of population, Brazil and China to name a few gives students an appreciation of the world around them. The study of population and globalisation also allows students to reflect on their own beliefs and others, and the impacts a global world has on these. Throughout, topics like this enable students to reflect and share their own experiences and the diverse nature of our classes really enhances discussion and debate in this area.

 

Geography is a subject that lends itself to investigations, debates and a consideration of different viewpoints and most geographical topics have a moral element to them. For example when considering physical topics such as rivers, flooding and coasts consideration is given to how much these issues that arise are man-made and is because of exploitation. Similarly in the tourism, fashion and development topics, debate centres on the role of humans and how ethical our actions are. For example the allocation of aid, exploitative tourism and other moral issues that occur in LEDC’s and MEDC’s are topic areas for debate. Geography allows students to see and explore consequences of mismanagement, and also to look at the situations from different points of view. Debates allocate students different roles in decision making processes which help develop empathy and appreciate the opinions of others. 

 

Social issues and the needs of different groups of people are also common themes that are explicitly recognised on a regular basis such as the need to create a sustainable society. In year 10, students research how our living spaces in urban areas need to be sustainable in the future to cope with population changes in these areas. The year 9 geography curriculum focusing on investigating a wide variety of natural disasters around the world. Students in year 10 have also been exploring how tourism can have a positive and negative impact on social environments across the world