Shell Guide to the Curriculum 2023

Geography Geography is the study of the world around us, and the ways in which people interact with it. This means that you can’t go anywhere or do anything without experiencing geography, whether it be scrolling on the internet, travelling on holiday, or even playing sport. Our mission as a Department is to equip you with the skills to understand your daily experiences of geography and to inspire you to study it further. Over the Shell year you will study several topics that will be divided up into termly or half-termly units. You will explore the mixing of cultures and identities in the world today, investigating issues including diversity, privilege, politics and economics. Starting by looking at Britain, an island shaped by migration, from the days of the Celts and the Normans, through to more recent migration since WW2, we will move on to look at international issues including the displacement of people and stateless nations. 55% (and growing!) of the world’s population live in cities, which can promote unsustainable living, drawing in resources from surrounding areas, using them and then sending them away as waste. We will look at the people producing solutions to urban problems, and you will have the chance to design your own sustainable city. The world is rapidly changing and we are constantly faced with new geopolitical, economic and environmental risks, brought about through conflict, cybercrime, new technologies or increasing natural disasters. You will get to investigate some of these risks posed to our society today and to evaluate the solutions. Oceans cover 73% of the surface of our planet. We still know more about the surface of Venus than we do about the floor of the ocean. Increasingly, we are appreciating the importance of the oceans to us, economically, politically and

environmentally. As part of one unit you will have the chance to complete your own research project on an issue of your choosing relating to the ocean.

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