The IGCSE Geography course builds on the foundations of the Shell year and seeks to investigate major themes in both human and physical geography. The course is taught over four lessons per cycle and students sit the IGCSE examination at the end of the Fifth Form.
The two year course develops an informed awareness of human and physical environments, together with exploring the close links between the two. The course also promotes a close understanding of important contemporary issues and associated case studies on local, national and international scales.
Five topics are studied over the course, with issues studied including coasts, rivers, urban environments, energy, economic activity, development and human welfare. The IGCSE course has a strong emphasis on the practical application of knowledge gained in these topic areas; several field trips (both human and physical in emphasis) are conducted during the two years and these provide an excellent basis to develop skills in project planning, data recording, mapping, analysis and evaluation.
The Geography department is well endowed with ICT facilities, with extensive digital media libraries, department-specific computing facilities, flat screen TV displays, high quality mapping software, and a number of interactive white-boards. Students are encouraged to make good use of these resources, both during lessons and for independent research.
Due to timetabling requirements, Geography is subject to a maximum of two sets in block 2, but there is no limit on numbers in block 3.