Download Exam links: Using this issue for AQA geography

Volume 28, Number 1, September 2014
Exam links
Using this issue for AQA AS and
A2 geography
David Redfern
Article
Page
numbers
AS
Forced labour in the UK: why
are migrants so vulnerable?
2–5
Population change (Core
topic)
Question and answer Health
issues
6–9
Health issues (Human
option)
Measuring avalanches to
manage risk
10–13
Cold environments
(Physical option)
Geographical skills Using
graphs to visualise data
14–16
Unit 2
Development update
Development and traditional
societies: the case of the
Jarawa
17–19
Development and
globalisation (Human
option)
Centrepiece Why was last
winter so wet and windy?
20–21
Weather and climate and
associated hazards
(Physical option)
The Afghan conflict. Causes
and consequences
22–26
Contemporary conflicts and
challenges (Human option)
Building on the basics Using
hydrographs
27–29
Rivers, floods and
management (Core option)
Down under Saving the
Murray-Darling catchment
30-33
Food issues (Human
option)
Philip Allan Publishers © 2014
A2
Unit 4
1
Climate change:
communicating the risks
34–37
Storm damage and coastal
protection: a case study of
Chesil Cove
38–41
The big picture Urban
redevelopment in Havana
42
Weather and climate and
associated hazards
(Physical option)
Coastal environments
(Physical option)
World cities (Human option)
Forced labour in the UK: why are migrants so
vulnerable?
This article provides interesting and useful material for the core AS topic of Population change. Within
this option students are required to examine the impact of migration on national population structure
and the way in which migration has affected the character of rural and urban areas. One of the more
sinister aspects of migration into the UK is the plight of forced labourers — people who are pressganged or coerced into employment — with few chances to escape such conditions.
The author examines the complications regarding the definition of the term ‘forced labour’, before
briefly reviewing the factors that have caused it to occur in the UK. The article then concentrates on
the plight of failed asylum seekers — people who have tried unsuccessfully to obtain permission to
stay with the UK, but remain in the country illegally. These individuals ‘disappear’ from official records,
making them fair game for exploitative labour providers. Once in illegal employment, often in service
industries, these people are then subject to abuse such as the withholding of wages, and extremely
harsh working conditions.
Students who use this material in their exam answers will demonstrate their ability to be up-to-date in
their studies, as well as an understanding of the complexity of the issue of migration.
Question and answer Health issues
This Question and answer will be of direct interest to many students of the AS specification, as a very
large proportion study the human option Health issues. This column is based on the questions that
were set in January 2013 on the Geog 1 examination paper.
It illustrates well the variety of questions that could be set on any one of the human options. First there
is a (relatively) straightforward data-stimulus task — a compound line graph — followed by a question
requiring knowledge and understanding of the context of the data. This is followed by another datastimulus task — a distribution map — again followed by a knowledge-based question. Finally, there is
an extended prose question requiring both breadth and depth of subject knowledge, but one which
also requires correct interpretation of the task given, and in particular the command word — ‘discuss’.
Students would do well to heed the excellent advice offered here.
Philip Allan Publishers © 2014
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Measuring avalanches to manage risk
This article will only be of general interest to students of the AS Physical option Cold environments.
Avalanches as such are not featured on the AQA specification. The parts of the article that deal with
the processes by which the movement of snow and ice takes place may be of some relevance.
Geographical skills Using graphs to visualise data
Students and teachers of each of AS Unit 2 and A2 Unit 4A will find this Geographical skills very
useful, for classroom-based activities, fieldwork activities and examination answers. David Holmes
provides a straightforward account of why graphs matter in geography, and offers a clear explanation
of how to construct, and when to use, a range of simple graphical techniques: bar graphs, line graphs,
pie charts, histograms and scatter graphs. It is very likely that AS students will be asked to use and/or
construct such graphs in their examinations. At A2, on the other hand, students may be asked to
evaluate their use, purpose and suitability in their geographical studies. Indeed, a recent question at
A2 asked the following:
Assess the value of using different types of graphical technique to increase geographical
understanding.
This article would have been perfect preparation for such a question. There is a second Geographical
skills looking at more specialised graphs in the next issue.
Development update Development and traditional
societies: the case of the Jarawa
This fascinating article provides useful support material for the study of the A2 Human option
Development and globalisation, and in particular that section dealing with cultural aspects of the two
concepts. It can also be used in the final section of the option where students are required to examine
the development issue ‘Sustainable tourism: myth or reality?’
The Jarawa are one of four small indigenous tribal groups on the Andaman Islands in the Indian
Ocean — their population is only 400 in total. Gill Miller examines the impact that the construction of a
road through their tribal lands has had on them. It has led to the spread of ‘Western’ diseases, and to
an increased prevalence in ‘Western’ vices — alcohol, drug and sexual abuse. It illustrates well the
clash between the developed world and the few remaining indigenous societies that exist on the
planet. The article can be used to evaluate whether development and globalisation are indeed
beneficial for all.
Centrepiece Why was last winter so wet and windy?
This piece is clearly of use to students of the A2 Physical option Weather and climate and associated
hazards. The winter of 2013/2014 was one of the wettest and stormiest on record, with extensive
flooding in the southwest and south of England. This brief centrepiece examines the reasons for such
weather and provides some excellent resource material to use when examining this topic.
Philip Allan Publishers © 2014
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The Afghan conflict: causes and consequences
As stated in its introduction, this article is ideal for students of the A2 Human option Contemporary
conflicts and challenges. It can be used in two ways:

First, it is useful for that section of the specification requiring the study of the geographical
impact of international conflicts, where one or more case studies should be examined in detail.
Here the structure of the article also assists greatly by dealing with each of the social,
economic and environmental impacts of the conflict in turn — again a requirement of the
specification. Some brief detail is given of the origin of the Afghan conflict, and this could be
used to illustrate the introductory part of the specification dealing with ‘origin’ of conflict.

Second, it is helpful for the final section of the Contemporary conflicts and challenges
specification which requires an evaluation of of Kofi Annan’s statement, ‘No development
without security; no security without development’. The conflict in Afghanistan and its
aftermath provides an excellent context within which to do this.
This article has been written by someone with a thorough understanding of the area of study, who also
teaches the AQA specification, and hence is essential reading for students of this option.
Building on the basics Using hydrographs
All students of the AQA AS course study the compulsory core option Rivers, floods and management.
The study of storm hydrographs is a requirement of this unit — both their nature and the factors that
cause variations in them. This Building on the basics satisfies all elements that are needed: how to
describe them, how to compare them and how to explain their variations. The early part of the piece
reinforces material that can be found in most A-level texts, but more able students will find the later
elements, regarding the interrelationships of factors and the purpose of hydrographs, useful.
Note that Figure 3 — a river regime graph — has a logarithmic scale on the vertical axis. Students will
need to interpret this carefully.
Down under Saving the Murray-Darling catchment
Students of the AS human option Food issues may find this case study of an important food-producing
area of Australia interesting. The key determinant of food production here is water, but the variable
amounts from year to year, and the growing demands for its use are causing difficulties and conflicts
within the huge area that is the Murray-Darling catchment.
The authors provide a geographical background to the area, before examining the issue of water
scarcity in some detail. This includes aspects such as contamination by both pollution and salinisation,
conflicts over excessive use by some cotton-producing farms, and the various plans that have been
suggested to allow sustainable levels of water extraction for a variety of uses. As with any conflict over
the use of a valuable resource, agreement from all parties can take a long time to achieve, and
success in outcome even longer.
Climate change: communicating the risks
This article will be of interest to those students of the A2 physical option Weather and climate and
associated hazards, with particular relevance to the section dealing with global climate change.
Philip Allan Publishers © 2014
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Students of this option are required to examine the evidence for climate change, its possible causes,
possible effects and responses at a variety of scales, including local.
The article begins with a brief background to the causes of climate change and comments on the
difficulties faced by the scientific community in persuading people that it is a real threat to them. The
authors then ask what can be done to improve the understanding of a sceptical (or disinterested)
general population and conclude that the solution is to have better psychological and sociological
approaches to communicating the ‘message’. The solution, it is suggested, is to operate at a much
smaller scale — to have a form of bottom-up persuasion where people get involved in small local
workshops, led by academics and experts, regarding the potential impacts of climate change in their
area, and hence come to a common way forward for that locale. A case study of such a workshop in
Dulverton (Somerset) is then outlined.
The article is not about anthropogenic climate change per se, but it does assume that climate change
is definitely happening. Students and teachers should note that alternative viewpoints on the causes,
impacts and responses are not addressed here. In recent years, AQA has set two 40-mark essays
requiring ‘discussion’ of all of these aspects of the study of climate change. Bearing this in mind the
‘Further reading’ section of this article is a little one-sided. The activities offered, particularly the
second one which emphasises the need to examine an issue from all points of view — the words
'complexity of the issue' are used — would suggest that alternative perspectives on climate change
should be considered. For example, two alternative views are:

people who lean more towards the attitudes of the 'deniers', such as the Global Warming
Policy Foundation (http://www.thegwpf.org/)

those who say that there should be more emphasis on adaptation to climate change than its
mitigation, such as Bjorn Lomborg (http://lomborg.com/).
Storm damage and coastal protection: a case study
of Chesil Cove
This article provides excellent case-study and resource material for the part of the AS physical option
Coastal environments that examines a case study of coastal erosion — physical and human causes
and socio-economic consequences. It is also useful for the sections dealing with coastal protection
and management.
The storms that affected the south coast of England during January and February 2014 provide the
context for the article, which includes superb photographs and a video link. It is essential reading for
students of this option.
The big picture Urban redevelopment in Havana
This brief piece will be of interest to students of the A2 human option World cities, and particularly for
that area of the specification dealing with regeneration. Most students of the AQA specification
examine case studies based in the UK, and rarely venture to other parts of the world in their studies.
This study of piecemeal regeneration (a variety of gentrification?) in Havana, the capital of the socialist
country of Cuba, provides an interesting alternative perspective. Students should focus on the aspects
that make this case study different from the larger UK based ones they have studied.
Philip Allan Publishers © 2014
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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
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