Geography
Staff
Ms M Gallagher - Acting Head of Department / KS3 Progress and Achievement
Miss S Woolley - KS4 Progress and Achievement
Mr P Flaxman - Senior Deputy Headteacher
Miss V Murphy
Miss I Jasper
Intent
The Geography curriculum at Barking Abbey gives pupils powerful knowledge where they are taken beyond what they already know in everyday life. Once this knowledge is known it transforms their ability to understand and engage with the world. The subject brings order to a seemingly chaotic world. This involves having the vocabulary in the form of geographical data and the grammar in the form of Geographical concepts to become objective and analytical. Often the starting point is something pupils are already familiar with such as the city; Many children have a working, everyday knowledge of living in a city, but geography lessons make the city an object of thought, asking:
- Why do cities exist?
- In what circumstances do cities grow (or decline)?
- How are cities organised?
- Can cities be regulated, planned and controlled?
- What is the ideal city?
At the end of their schooling our pupils are able to use the knowledge they have gained and apply it to new settings so they can analyse, make informed judgements and participate in global issues.
The Geography curriculum reflects the school’s local context by addressing typical gaps in pupils’ knowledge and skills, e.g. the use of the Riverside development to engage pupils in regeneration and housing issues.
Implementation
As a Centre of Excellence, Barking Abbey’s Geography department worked on a national guide to progression in Geography:
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