'We learn every aspect of life on Planet Earth. What we learn in geography affects lives throughout the world.'

Geography is a subject that provides a link between the sciences and the arts and is a key contributor to environmental education, education for citizenship and for sustainable development. We aim to develop a sound knowledge and understanding of the complex relationships between people and the environment with a varied programme of lessons and fieldwork, both locally and overseas (previous destinations have included Iceland and Morocco).

Geography is a very popular subject, with a high uptake at GCSE and a significant number choosing to continue at AS and A2 level. It is a well established subject for study at universities, including Oxbridge. The department’s results have been consistently high, with 2006 and 2007 being our best years ever for A level results: all girls achieved an A grade, with four gaining full marks on at least one paper. At GCSE level 100% gained A* or A in 2006 and 2007.

Fieldwork:

We strongly believe that fieldwork is an integral part of studying geography, as it helps the student to identify how the human and physical landscapes work, and their interrelationship. Therefore, all year groups have at least one field visit during the academic year, ranging from trips to the local area to further afield, including Iceland and Morocco.

• Year 7: Putney High School land use mapping (ICT based) and to Winchester on a cross-curricular trip.
• Year 8: Cuckmere Haven, Seven Sisters Country Park – River and coastal environments.
• Year 9: Putney traffic survey – environmental issues. Kew Gardens – ecosystems and plant adaptation.
• Year 10: Three-day residential trip to Juniper Hall field studies council, to support learning of fieldwork techniques in preparation for individual study.
• Year 11: Fieldwork for coursework - girls collect data and formulate an investigation based on an area of their choice.
• Years 12 & 13: Flatford Mill field studies centre in Suffolk for a three-day residential stay in Year 12. Optional visits to Morocco and Iceland on an alternating basis.

AS and A2 Level

We follow the AQA Specification A syllabus for AS level and A2 - http://web.aqa.org.uk/qual/newgcses/geo_landt/new/geography_a_materials.php?id=09&prev=09

Year 12:

• Physical Geography: (1) Hot Desert Environments and their Margins (2) Rivers, Floods and Management.
• Human Geography: (1) Population Change (2) Food Supply Issues.

Year 13:

• Physical Geography: (1) Weather and Climate and Associated Hazards, (2) Plate Tectonics and Associated Hazards,
• Human Geography: (1) World Cities, (2) Contemporary Conflicts and Challenges

To prepare the students for AS level we follow the GCSE AQA Specification A - http://web.aqa.org.uk/qual/gce/humanities/geography_noticeboard.php?id=10&prev=10
 in two double lessons per week:

• Year 10: Rivers, Rocks and Landscapes, Settlement, Tectonic Activity. Three-day residential field trip to learn the techniques required for individual coursework.
• Year 11: Coursework, Industry, Mock examinations, Managing Resources and Tourism.

GCSE 2009 onwards (for examination 2011)

• Year 10: Rivers, Rocks and Landscapes, Settlement, Tourism
• Year 11: Controlled assessment, The Development Gap, Tectonics, Revision.

• Year 7: Land use and places, Tourism, Agriculture, Settlements, Rivers and Geomorphological Processes.
• Year 8: Coastal Processes and Landforms, Primary Industry, Tectonic Activity, Development
• Year 9: Population, Environmental Concerns, Weather and Climate, Ecosystems and Crime.

KS3:

Years 7 - 9 receive a 75-minute lesson each week covering a varied range of topics:

GCSE:

GCSE (up to summer 2010)