Chair: Paul Baker, GA Independent Schools Special Interest Group Panel: Robert Morris, IGCSE Ning Leader and Geography Teacher, Shrewsbury School; Peter.

Chair: Paul Baker, GA Independent Schools Special Interest Group

Panel: Robert Morris, IGCSE Ning Leader and Geography Teacher,

Shrewsbury School; Peter Price, Head of Geography, Charterhouse School and

IGCSE ExaminerLianne Aherne, Geography Teacher, Wycombe Abbey School.

My personal views; I’m not speaking for my school or any exam board

Thanks to Edexcel for use of slides Pre-16 and post-16 almost entirely linear Ethos aiming to maximise learning time and

minimise examination disruption Geography Department traditionally offered

OCR GCE and OCR C GCSE Pre-16: majority of subjects offer IGCSE Post-16: majority offer Pre-U (only 3 offer A

Level) From 2011, Charterhouse will also offer IB

Key features First teaching in Sept 2009 for exam

in June 2011 IGCSEs are recognized as equivalent,

grade for grade, to UK GCSEs Edexcel Certificate plans?

Familiar content Uncomplicated, un-tiered

qualification Option to localise content

www.edexcel.com/igcse2009 Electronic copies of Specs, SAMs, TSMs Resources – tied text published (Pearson);

we use New Wider World 3 (Nelson Thornes) Training, including online Inset Ask the Expert & Ask Edexcel UK networking (new for Edexcel?) Ning (administered by Rob Morris,

Shrewsbury)

Offers more choice of topics for study and less content coverage (teaching time in international centres?)

Integrated assessment of practical skills, including actual and virtual fieldwork

NO CONTROLLED ASSESSMENT Streamlines assessment into a

single, common external examination paper with no fieldwork report option

Nine topics with three in each of three Sections – A, B and C

Basically physical geography (The Natural Environment and People):

1. River Environments 2. Coastal Environments 3. Hazardous Environments Expectation that teachers will choose

TWO not all three to study

Basically human geography (People and their Environments):

1. Economic Activity and Energy 2. Ecosystems and Rural

Environments 3. Urban Environments Again, expectation that teachers will

choose only TWO to study

Addresses contemporary global issues:

1. Fragile Environments, including soil erosion, desertification, TRF de-forestation and global warming

2. Globalisation and Migration 3. Development and Human Welfare Candidates expected to study only

ONE of the three topics

Amounts to a FIVE topic programme – approximately one topic every ten weeks

Each topic has a standard format built around THREE key ideas and specifies practical skills (Sections A and B) and examples (all three Sections) needing to be covered

Candidates required to study EIGHT fieldwork opportunities (TWO in each of their FOUR Section A and B topics) as part of practical skill development

Sustainable development and future worlds overarch all nine topics/units

Candidates required to study EIGHT fieldwork opportunities (TWO in each of their FOUR Section A and B topics), e.g.

Measuring river channel features/water quality Beach measurements Surveying peoples’ views on the management of

coastlines/a hazard event/renewable energy Collecting and recording weather data Small-scale ecosystem investigation Farm production study Urban Environmental Quality Survey and land use transects Delivery?

Charterhouse Year 10s cover these fieldwork requirements in a week-long trip to the south of France in June

Shrewsbury do a number of days to cover the requirements in Shropshire and Wales

Assessment through one common untiered written examination paper

June 2011 first paper (only one paper per year) 2 hour 45 minute exam in Q & A booklet format E-marked Candidates answer five of nine structured questions,

each carrying 30 marks Answer two from each of Sections A and B, and one from

C Variety of question types within each full question.

Incline of difficulty from opening short-response to nine mark extended prose finale (stretch and challenge)

Section A and B questions contain practical skills/fieldwork parts

Past papers from “old” Spec cover most topics

Specification designed for 2-year programme delivery over 5 terms

1 topic/unit per term Teaching time guide = 1.5 hours +

1hr homework per week Teachers free to choose own case

studies and contexts for learning

IGCSEs are recognized as equivalent, grade for grade, to UK GCSEs - part of Cambridge ICE

Only one tier for assessment Two or three papers (dependent on

whether fieldwork report is done) Papers available in June or November

Teacher Support website Electronic copies of Specs, SAMs,

TSMs Resources – Course specific

textbooks Training, including online and face to

face INSET Online Community

Offers choice of topics for study and less content coverage

Fieldwork Report (2000 words) or Fieldwork paper

NO CONTROLLED ASSESSMENT Skills paper

Divided into three themes which have been designed to develop an understanding of both the natural and the human environment:

Population and settlement The natural environment Economic development and the use

of resources

Basically Human geography: Population Dynamics• Density, distribution, growth, migration

and structure Settlement • Development, functions, spheres of

influence, land use and problems

Basically physical geography (The natural environment):

Plate Tectonics Landforms and Landscape Processes

(rivers and coasts) Weather, Climate and Natural

Vegetation Inter-relationships between the natural

environment and human activities

Economic development and the use of resources

Agricultural systems Industrial systems Leisure activities and tourism Energy and water resources Environmental risks and benefits: resource

conservation and management

Candidates have to study all topics though only 1 question has to be answered on each them

The skills paper may ask questions across a variety of themes

Centres may offer either the Coursework report (paper 3 ) or the Alternative to Coursework Paper (paper 4) for assessment.

The Coursework has to be 2000 words in length and the title approved by CIE

Titles are suggested

Paper 1 – 1 hour 45 minutes – 45% of marks Tests Themes 1-3 Candidates answer any three questions out of six. There are two structured and resource based

questions set on each of three themes. Paper 2 - 1 hour 30 minutes – 27.5 % of

marks Candidates answer all the questions. The paper is based on testing the interpretation and

analysis of geographical information and on the application of graphical and other techniques.

One question is based on a 1:25 000 or 1:50 000 topographical map of a tropical area such as Zimbabwe, the Caribbean or Mauritius.

and either Paper 3 Coursework (Centre-based assessment) Teachers set one school-based assignment of up to

2000 words. Or Paper 4 1 hour 30 minutes Alternative to Coursework Candidates answer all the questions, completing a series of

written tasks based on the three themes The questions involve an appreciation of a range of

techniques used in fieldwork studies

27.5% of marks

Terminal assessment in both courses Do endless modules make a good education? Broad content with some challenging contemporary

twists Broad fieldwork in Edexcel but ‘back to the future’ in

CIE Growing support community (“Ask an Expert” gives

excellent access to Chief Examiner in Edexcel) NO CONTROLLED ASSESSMENT IN EITHERBUT Linearity in a modular curriculum Lacks resourcing of a domestic Spec International board on a steep learning curve about

servicing increased centres in their home country