Revealing the importance of geography
How can we work with the Key Concepts?
These underpin the study of geography; identifying what learners need to learn in order to make progress. For students to understand the key concepts they need time to explore them both as discrete concepts and also as they appear naturally in the curriculum approach as created by the geography department. This does not mean that students need to explicitly reflect in lessons on which key concepts are being addressed each time but it may be that through discussion with your students you jointly decide the value (or not) of such an approach.
1.1 Place
a Understanding the physical and human characteristics of real places.
b.Developing ‘geographical imaginations' of places.
1.2 Space
a.Understanding the interactions between places and the networks created by flows of information, people and goods.
b.Knowing where places and landscapes are located, why they are there, the patterns and distributions they create, how and why these are changing and the implications for people.
1.3 Scale
a. Appreciating different scales - from personal and local to national, international and global.
b.Making links between scales to develop understanding of geographical ideas.
1.4 Interdependence
a. Exploring the social, economic, environmental and political connections between places.
b.Understanding the significance of interdependence in change, at all scales.
1.5 Physical and human processes
a. Understanding how sequences of events and activities in the physical and human worlds lead to change in places, landscapes and societies.
1.6 Environmental interaction and sustainable development
a.Understanding that the physical and human dimensions of the environment are interrelated and together influence environmental change.
b. Exploring sustainable development and its impact on environmental interaction and climate change.
1.7 Cultural understanding and diversity
a. Appreciating the differences and similarities between people, places, environments and cultures to inform their understanding of societies and economies.
b. Appreciating how people's values and attitudes differ and may influence social, environmental, economic and political issues, and developing their own values and attitudes about such issues.
'Student friendly' version of key concepts
Student friendly versions of the key concepts can be arrived in two ways; either through teachers suggesting language that they feel will make the concepts more accessible to students or students themselves working through activities (see activities 1-3) to arrive at student created versions.
Suggested ‘Student friendly' versions of the key concepts
- Place: what are man made and natural places like?
- Space: how do man made and natural places fit together in the ‘world jigsaw'?
- Scale: understanding the big picture as well has what we experience day to day.
- Interdependence: we all have an impact on each other.
- Physical and human processes: events can change the physical and human world.
- Environmental interaction: people use the natural world and have the ability to change it.
- Cultural understanding and diversity: People from around the world lead different ways of life.