6GEO3 Unit 3 Contested Planet Overview and Skills

What is this presentation about?

This presentation gives you an overview of Unit 3, Contested Planet It outlines the content and structure of the Unit The three synoptic themes of the Unit are explored these are players, actions and futures. Some key advice is given for each of the two parts of the examination (Sections A and B)

Energy Security

Technological Fix?

Water Conflicts

Contested Planet Biodiversity Under Threat

Bridging the Development Gap

Superpower Geographies

CONTENTS

1. 2. 3. 4.

Content and structure Synoptic themes Section A of the exam Section B of the exam

Click on the information icon Click on the home button

to jump to that section. to return to this contents page

1. Content and structure

AS Level Unit 1 Global Challenges 60% CORE A2 Level Unit 3 Contested Planet 60% CORE UNIT 4 Geographical Research 40% OPTIONS Unit 2 Geographical Investigations 40% OPTIONS

Unit 3 forms the Core of A2 Geography As with AS level, the weighting of the units is skewed towards the Core unit. There are no Options in Unit 3, all of the content in the specification should be covered.

The 6 topics of Contested Planet

The 6 topics in Contested Planet combine into a linked sequence. This firstly explores resources, then the differences between rich and poor. Finally a range of solutions to global problems and inequalities are examined in Technological Fix. This last topic is summative and would benefit from being taught last.
Resources Wealth and Power 4.Superpower Geographies 5.Bridging the Development gap Solutions

1. Energy Security 2. Water Conflict 3. Biodiversity under Threat

6. The Technological Fix?

Examination Structure
The Unit 3 exam has two sections, A and B Section A has an element of choice for candidates ( 2 questions from 5) Section B is compulsory for all candidates Students must manage the balance of time spent on Sections A and B The 5 section A questions are based on 5 or the 6 topics in the specification The sixth topic forms the basis of the Synoptic Pre-Release resource booklet 2 hour exam 90 marks Section A: Complete 2 questions from a choice of 5; questions are worth 25 marks (10 mark part a and 15 mark part b) 80 minutes Section B: 3 Linked sub questions (6a, 6b, 6c) with a combined total of 40 marks, forming an Issues Analysis. 70 minutes

Section B Synoptic topic

The topic for Section B is selected at random The topic chosen cannot repeat within a single year e.g. Water Conflicts in January and June of one year However, a topic could re-appear in the following year The two diagrams illustrate the relationship between Sections A and B for two different exam sittings
Section A
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5 Water Conflicts Energy Security Biodiversity under Threat Bridging the Development Gap Technological Fix?

Q6a-c Superpower Geographies

Section B

Section A

Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5

Water Conflicts Energy Security Biodiversity under Threat Superpower Geographies Technological Fix?

Q6a-c Bridging the Development Gap

Section B

Teaching and Learning

Only teaching 3 or 4 of the six Contested Planet topics will restrict student choice in Section A of the exam Only teaching 3 or 4 topics will reduce synoptic opportunities in Section B Technological fix? examines a range of contrasting solutions to global and local issues related to energy, water, food supply and environmental issues many of these approaches are integrated into the Water Conflicts, Energy Security and Bridging the Development Gap topics making Technological Fix? a summative overview of the Unit. There are strong links between Unit 1 at AS Level and Unit 3 at A 2 level which should be drawn out to assist students with the Section B issues analysis (see diagram for example)

Biodiversity reduction due to climate stress

Geoengineering fixes as a solution to global warming

Climate Change at AS level

Water stress made worse by increasing aridity

Superpowers and emerging powers as the main greenhouse gas emitters

Fossil fuel use contributing to climate change

2. Synoptic themes
Three synoptic themes run through the Unit 3 specification These themes are referred to directly in the specification It is important to consider examples and case studies in the context of these themes The themes will appear as the focus for some questions in both Section A and Section B

Players

Unit 3 Synoptic Themes Futures Actions

Players
Players focuses on the organisations, groups and individuals who have a role to play within an issue Players might be thought of as decision makers or stakeholders Players may hold very different views on an issue, because they have different opinions and values It is important students understand these different positions and perspectives

CONSERVATIONISTS an area of biodiversity to be protected from human activity

INDIVIDUALS an area to be enjoyed and explored; expectation that facilities and amenities will be available

TOURISM INDUSTRY an area for making profits, but also requiring conservation to maintain visitor numbers

LOGGERS an area of timber resources that could be exploited

WATER INDUSTRY an important source of freshwater to supply homes and industry

Actions
Actions focuses on both the scale and standpoint of actions There is a hierarchy of actions at different scales There is often debate over which scale of management is best for a particular issue Often an issue is managed at several scales Chosen actions are influenced by players standpoints, especially political and economic beliefs
Global agreements and international action National policy and management

Local governance and individual actions

Neo-liberal Focus on commercial solutions and less government influence International, market-led

Socialist Focus on national planning and targets, often top-down National, government led

Grassroots Focus on bottom-up and sustainable, small scale initiatives Local, community led

Futures
Futures focuses on the direction the contested planet should take Three future scenarios are recognised: Business as usual Sustainable Radical The first implies humans continue to behave in similar ways to the past i.e. high consumption and pollution Sustainable futures suggests stabilising consumption and human environmental impacts Radical implies concerted action to reverse environmental degradation Each of the three futures have very different consequences and are supported by different players Each approach has very different costs and benefits

3. Section A of the exam

The five Section A questions are each worth 25 marks Each question is split into a 10 mark part a, based on a Figure (resource) and a 15 mark part b. Candidates should choose two questions Spend no more than 40 minutes on each Section A question Answers should be written in the dedicated space provided in the answer booklet

Candidates should be very strict with timings, and keep an eye on the exam room clock

Resources
Section A resources will be a mixture of graphs, maps, diagrams and other illustrative material such as cartoons Some text may be present and this should always be carefully read Figures are provided as data stimulus, and candidates will not be asked to describe Answers should focus on explanation and reasoning Interpretation of Figures is a skills candidates should practice.
Carefully read Figure titles, as well as scales, axes and keys if present Look for patterns, trends and relationships and seek to explain these Read any text, or notes, carefully

Command words
Command words at A2 level will be different to those at AS level; some examples are shown below In Section A in Unit 3 the a parts will often use explain or suggest reasons whereas the b parts will often focus on the higher level skills of assess and evaluate
Assess, Evaluate, Discuss A2 Level e.g. Section A part b questions and Section B Explain, suggest reasons AS Level and A2 level e.g. Unit 3 Section A part a questions and Section B

Describe, Contrast AS Level

Examples and case studies

Students must use examples to illustrate their argument and discussion when ever they can even when not directly asked to do so in the question. This is especially important when questions use phrases such as costs and benefits or advantages and disadvantages. Avoid relying on one major case study as this often produces descriptive and unbalanced responses a range of smaller examples illustrating several different aspects of the question is preferable

RANGE more than one example

BALANCE avoid being onesided

DETAIL example specific facts and figures

STRUCTURE logical and organised writing

EVALUATIVE moving towards an overview / brief conclusion

Mark schemes
All A2 work is Levels marked; there is no point marking Levels mark schemes have a step-like structure, which successive levels requiring higher skills and greater precision:

Assessment Some examples Some examples Descriptive comments Level 1 Some structure Level 2 Balanced Structured Level 3 Range of examples Balanced costs and benefits Carefully structured Level 4

4. Section B of the exam

Section B is a synoptic issues analysis It is based on pre-release resources in the form of a 5-6 page booklet Usually the resources will be based on a region such as Europe, the Middle East or North America They will focus on ONE of the topics from Unit 3 e.g. Water Conflicts of Superpower Geographies The resources are written to LINK to other topics; there will be both obvious and more subtle linkages. What is in the pre-release? Text Key words / terms Figures maps, tables, graphs etc Views of players Websites for further research Options / choices may be included

The pre-release phase

During the prerelease phase the aim is to become so familiar with the resource booklet that it does not have to be read in the exam Spending time in the exam reading and searching for information will waste time
Make a glossary of key terms and research any new ideas and themes

Think about comparisons to parallel examples

Analyse the Views and be prepared to quote them

Working with the prerelease

Look for synoptic links to other Unit 3 and Unit 1 topics, and global themes such as Climate Change or the Dev. Gap Do some selective research using the websites (and your own) Look for evidence of players, actions and futures

Questions
There will be 3 questions, forming a linked sequence (6a, 6b, 6c) Total marks are 40; the tariff for each question will be in the 10Refer to Figures and Views 18 range.
directly e.g. Fig 2 shows that

Use examples and ideas from your whole course, where relevant The first question will tend to set the scene or make you focus on a key issue Other questions will require you to assess or evaluate

Being synoptic
In order to reach the top levels of the Mark Scheme in Section B, synopticity is required Essentially this means going beyond only relying on the resources printed in the Resource Booklet This can be achieved in several different ways:

Wider research
Parallel examples Synoptic Links Context themes

Facts, figures and ideas from the suggested websites, or your own sources such as Geography Review or many other sources; remember to state your source Comparing the situation(s) in the Resource Booklet to others you know of, briefly, to draw out similarities and differences, or suggest how the situation might be managed.
Making links to other topics in Unit 3, or other AS / A2 Units; this might involve bringing in models, theories or examples from elsewhere in your course

Making links to the three synoptic themes of players, actions and futures, as well as global themes such as climate change, the development gap, sustainability etc.

Final points on Section B

Make sure at least 70 minutes are set aside to complete Section B Write to the mark allocation; a question worth 10 marks does not require an answer 3 sides long; a 16 mark question will need more than of one side. Diagrams and tables are acceptable as part of an answer; complicated tables and scoring systems are not anticipated and will tend to take too long to complete Highlight key and command words; for longer questions a very brief plan may help structure answers