Year 11 - Geography

Have you heard of The Line? How about sponge cities? Geography is the study of te taiao (the environment) and the interconnections within. We consider the question "What Is Where, Why There, and Why Care?" so we can make sense of place (Charles F. Gritzner (2002), Journal of Geography, 101:1, 38-40).

Te taiao consists of all things that make up the surrounding environment. This includes features such as rivers, mountains, people, buildings, and infrastructure. Te taiao can exist at different scales and can be located wherever we place ourselves. Geography aims to develop an understanding of the environment as the home of people. 

The objectives include students:

• Developing a greater awareness of our world - diverse environments and people
• Understanding the relationship between people and the environment
• Examining and understanding local, national and global current geographical issues and events
• Understanding how people use and manage resources
• Developing a wide range of useful skills - from academic thinking and problem solving to practical hands on fieldwork

Field Trips 

• Day trip to a river system and another river in the local area to collect data - measuring stream depth, currents and the implications of flooding in New Zealand with assistance from Waikato Regional Council. 

Topics Studied

• Settlements, societies and communities: the line - Where do people live and why do they live there?
• How does population distribution affect services provided in an area - Health and Society
• Our awa: Why are rivers significant to flourishing societies?
• Sea level rise in Kiribati and flooding in New Zealand - Sponge cities as a solution?
• Global distribution of volcanoes