Candidates study the following five topics:
• Changing river environments
• Changing coastal environments
• Changing ecosystems
• Tectonic hazards
• Climate change.
When studying impacts within geography, these are:
• positive and/or negative
• social, economic and environmental
• at a range of scales (local, regional, national, global).
When studying management strategies and techniques, strategies will include action plans and agreements, techniques will cover the methods used. Sustainability is to be considered when teaching the content for all topic areas, especially when studying management strategies and techniques.
Taken from the Syllabus.
4 Tectonic hazards
4.1 The structure of the Earth and distribution of earthquakes and volcanoes
4.1.1 The characteristics of the layers of the Earth: inner core, outer core, mantle, crust, lithosphere.
4.1.2 The names and location of the main tectonic plates and how tectonic plates move.
4.1.3 Types of plate boundary: divergent/constructive, convergent/destructive, convergent/collision, conservative/transform and the location of earthquakes and volcanoes.
4.2 The processes and features associated with earthquakes and volcanoes
4.2.1 The processes experienced at each type of plate boundary which cause earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
4.2.2 The main characteristics of earthquakes: focus, epicentre, seismic waves.
4.2.3 Types of volcano: strato-volcano (composite cone), shield, cinder cone.
4.2.4 The classification of volcanoes as active, dormant, or extinct.
4.2.5 The main features of volcanoes: crater, vent, magma, magma chamber, secondary cone.
4.2.6 Volcanic hazards: lava flows, ash falls, lahars, pyroclastic flows, tephra, volcanic rocks, toxic gases; the significance of speed, size, frequency, and spread.
4.3 The impacts of tectonic hazards
4.3.1 Reasons why people live in areas at risk from earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
4.3.2 The impacts of earthquakes.
4.3.3 The impacts of volcanic eruptions.
4.3.4 How the magnitude of a tectonic event is measured: moment magnitude scale, Richter scale, Mercalli scale, the volcanic explosivity index (VEI).
4.4 Managing the impacts of tectonic hazards
4.4.1 Primary and secondary responses.
4.4.2 An evaluation of the strategies and techniques used to manage the impacts of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions: monitoring, prediction, protection, planning and technology.
4.4.3 One detailed specific example to include: • the causes and impacts of an earthquake on a named country/area • the responses to the earthquake • the strategies and techniques used to manage the impacts of earthquakes.
4.4.4 One detailed specific example to include: • the causes and impacts of an eruption of a named volcano • the responses to the volcanic eruption • the strategies and techniques used to manage the impacts of volcanic eruptions.
6 Changing populations 6.1 Populations grow and decline 6.1.1 Patterns and trends in global population growth. 6.1.2 Reasons for the growth and decline of a country’s population: fertility rate, birth rate, death rate, natural increase, migration. 6.1.3 An evaluation of the impacts of pro-natalist and anti-natalist policies on birth rates. 6.1.4 The demographic transition model (DTM) and its strengths and limitations. 6.2 Population structures change over time 6.2.1 Factors influencing population structures: natural increase and net migration. 6.2.2 The causes and impacts of youthful and ageing population structures, and an evaluation of their impacts. 6.2.3 One detailed specific example of a named country to include: • reasons for population growth or decline • the impacts of a population policy (pro or anti-natalist). 6.3 The causes and impacts of international migration 6.3.1 Types of migrant: economic migrant, asylum seeker and refugee. 6.3.2 Causes of migration, to include push and pull factors. 6.3.3 The impacts of migration on the migrant, their country of origin and the destination country. 6.3.4 An evaluation of the strategies and techniques used to manage international migration. 6.3.5 One detailed specific example to include: • push and pull factors of a named international migration (named to include the country of origin and destination country) • the impacts of the migration (on the migrants, their country of origin and the destination country) • how the migration is managed; including sustainable.