Geography
Head of Department: Mr J Harrowven
Why study Geography?
‘You can travel the seas, poles and deserts and see nothing. To really understand the world you need to get under the skin of the people and places. In other words, learn about geography. I can’t imagine a subject more relevant in schools. We’d all be lost without it’. (Michael Palin, in support of the Geography Action Plan published in 2006).
Geography is a wide-ranging and exciting subject, covering both the natural and man-made features of our world. It looks at the economic, environmental and social processes that shape and change these features. In a rapidly changing world what could be more important than learning about other cultures, the world around us, and how other people see the world?
What do we teach?
We aim to teach a broad and stimulating curriculum in key stage three, focusing on local, national and global concerns. There is a good balance between physical and human environments.
How do we teach it?
There are three enthusiastic and dedicated specialist Geography teachers within the department, teaching interesting and challenging lessons in a variety of ways. Staff make good use of ICT to bring Geography ‘alive’ in the classroom. Emphasis is placed upon developing more independent enquiry and students are encouraged to ask questions about their work, carry out structured investigations and participate in team working tasks.
In the lower school (Years 7-9) students are broadly streamed in geography lessons, which along with small class sizes ensures that all students are able to work at a suitable pace and make good progress. Geography is a popular choice at GCSE. Again small group sizes with individual attention, ensures that all students are able to reach their potential in this subject. This is reflected in our examination results, with a pass rate of more than 90% (A*-C) in each of the last three years.
Where do we teach it?
We have two well-equipped classrooms, but in Geography we really do need to go beyond the four walls of the classroom and at the Gregg School we are lucky to be able to leave our rooms and carry out local studies in the extensive grounds.
There are also extension opportunities with field trips every two years to an overseas location for upper school students. In 2008 the school visited Iceland, in 2006 Mexico and in 2004 Arizona.
