OCR A-Level Geography Course Options

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1 OCR A-Level Geography Course Options For teaching from September 2016 Juniper Hall is an amazing location for fieldwork, set in a quiet wooded valley in an unspoilt area of the chalk North Downs at the edge of Box Hill (less than 10 minutes from the M25). The centre is close to stunning deciduous woodlands, rivers, grasslands and is within reach of the amazing coastline around Birling Gap, offering fantastic opportunities to study primary succession and the rocky shore. Juniper Hall is leased from the National Trust, and is a superb country house dating from the 17th century. The combination of great ecological field sites, superb internet connectivity (including Wi-Fi), workrooms that all have interactive and standard whiteboards, visualisers and access to laptops and ipads, Juniper Hall is ideal for many field courses. Our new courses are designed to fit the criteria of the specifications for first teaching in As such they are designed to: Incorporate a number a qualitative and quantitative core geographical skills that students are required to understand. These include the use of GIS using ArcGIS software. Cover a wide range of topics from the specification and, in particular, cover the requirement of a minimum of four days fieldwork over the A-level course Help to deliver a rich practical experience for students that involve: water and carbon cycles; fragile ecosystems (salt marshes or woodlands); coasts; changing places; and contemporary Urban Environments. We can also assist with the individual investigations and help students to design and carry out fieldwork towards their own titles.

2 OCR AS & A level Juniper Hall fieldwork investigation options Physical Systems, Human Interactions, AS Fieldwork Skills and A Level Independent Investigation Throughout the field work course students will have opportunities to use a variety of qualitative and quantitative data collection techniques and analysis skills. Students will also collect and to use digital data through the use of geospatial technologies, such as smart phones and tablet devices. Students will have the chance to explore GIS for presenting and analysing data collected. As an outcome of our field courses students will gain understanding of the key specialised concepts set by the specification relevant to the environment and processes investigated. These may include causality, equilibrium, feedback, interdependence, mitigation, adaptation, risk, resilience, systems and thresholds. The fieldwork course will incorporate Assessment Objectives AO1, AO2 and AO3 to enable students for their AS Skills exam and A level Independent Investigation. The AS student fieldwork experiences will be related to examination style questions while A level students will have the opportunity to explore the mark scheme to aid in planning their investigation. AO1 Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of places, environments, concepts, processes, interactions and change, at a variety of scales. AO2 Apply knowledge and understanding in different contexts to interpret, analyse and evaluate geographical information and issues. AO3 Use a variety of relevant quantitative, qualitative and fieldwork skills to: investigate geographical questions and issues; interpret, analyse and evaluate data and evidence; construct arguments and draw conclusions. Content for Physical Systems Coastal Landscapes (the Sussex coast: Newhaven to Seaford) AS and A level Students will consider how coastal landscapes can be viewed as systems, the potential influences on the coastal landscape systems and a conceptual overview of this part of the Sussex Coast. Students will investigate distinctive landforms, predominantly influenced by erosion and deposition, on Newhaven Beach and Castlehead Cliffs. Students will measure and observe the link between the observed landforms and sediment & geomorphological processes. There will also be an opportunity to investigate and critically reflect on the management strategies being implemented at Seaford and the reasons for their implementation. Specification links Topic 1.1 Landscape Systems Option A Changing Landscapes Water and Carbon Cycle (the River Mole and Tillingbourne Catchments) A Level only Students will investigate elements of the water cycle in a local catchment while considering that it has distinctive processes and pathways that operate within it e.g. infiltration experiments under different vegetation types and on different geology around the field centre while critically thinking about how Human factors can disturb and enhance the Topic 1.2 Earth s Life Support Systems

3 natural processes and stores in the water cycle. Students will also study the management of the water cycle within these catchments e.g. the North Downs aquifer. Students will take water samples and measure the discharge of the river from two different catchments and using colorimetry, the concentration of carbon will be used to calculate carbon flux. This will demonstrate some of the flows within the carbon cycle. Students will examine and critically reflect on the difference in carbon flux between the River Mole and River Tillingbourne catchments and discussing and evaluating the limitations of the investigation. Students will be introduced to the concepts of a carbon budget of an agricultural field close to the field centre. This will include examples relating to storage of carbon in organic matter, fixation of carbon in grass, incorporation of leaf litter as soil organic matter, the removal of carbon through grazing and winter soil erosion. Students will measure the biomass of trees in the woodland to calculate the carbon stock and critically think about how Human activities can disturb and enhance the natural processes and stores in the carbon cycle. Content for Human Interactions Changing Places (Dorking) AS and A level Students will investigate what s in a place? investigating through qualitative and quantitative data collection the profiles of two contrasting places within Dorking and how this has shaped each places identity. There will be an opportunity for students to investigate how do we understand place? and the complexities that exist when trying to define place. Students will examine the geographical context of a place (locally, regionally and nationally) and how past connections help to shape its identity today. Students will investigate social inequality with opportunities to measure housing type, access to local services and amenities as well as educational provision. Specification links Topic 2.1 Changing Spaces; Making Places Students will investigate Denbies Vineyard a place that has undergone rebranding and identify that making a successful place requires planning and design. There will be an opportunity to investigate how this place is represented; using secondary information such as the vineyards marketing materials.

4 Fieldwork Skills AS With respect to fieldwork skills and preparation for the AS Level Geography skills exam, our courses provide students with opportunities to follow the enquiry process through physical and human fieldwork investigations: a) identify appropriate field research questions, based on their knowledge and understanding of relevant aspects of physical and human geography b) understand how to observe and record phenomena in the field and be able to devise and justify practical approaches taken in the field, (including frequency/timing of observation, sampling, and data collection approaches) c) demonstrate knowledge and understanding of how to undertake practical field methodologies appropriate to the investigation of core human and physical processes d) demonstrate knowledge and understanding of implementing chosen methodologies to collect data/information of good quality that is relevant to the topic under investigation e) apply existing knowledge and concepts to identify, order and understand field observations f) show the ability to write a coherent analysis of fieldwork findings and results in order to answer a specific geographical question and to justify conclusions g) evaluate and reflect on fieldwork investigations. Independent Investigation A level Investigative geography gives learners the opportunity to undertake an independent investigation which is of particular interest to them and related to an area of the A level specification. Our field courses will prepare and empower students to be independent learners and carry out the following skills as part of the independent investigation: the structure and enquiry process. extended writing. innovation in data collection and presenting data. self-directed study. research techniques. making synoptic links between the real world, geographical theory, the learners own research and the specification. *We will ensure that throughout the enquiry process students 1. decide upon enquiry questions and planning the investigation, guided by tutor and teacher input. 2. are involved in key decisions about fieldwork data collection methods and sampling techniques. 3. independently analyse evidence and make decisions / reach conclusions. 4. consider validity of evidence/ reliability of data and methods.

5 What is included in the fee? Up to 10 hours of tuition a day Expert tuition, from fully trained staff Full board accommodation. Catering includes cooked breakfast, packed lunch, homemade cakes and evening meal. Use of facilities including workrooms, recreational space, ICT and centre grounds Established health and safety procedures and 24 hour emergency cover Access to specialist equipment and resources Support before and following the course Transport all field sites, where required, during the course ( not included in course fee) Tuition is delivered by talented teachers, with not only an expert knowledge of their subject and field work locations, but a passion for the subject being taught. Our education team are fully DBS checked, and undergo a regular and rigorous training process. All tutors have received training in first aid, risk assessment and water safety. Course options listed in this booklet can be selected to put together a programme designed to meet the requirements of your specification. However, if you need something that is not catered for in the field work investigations, please contact us to discuss possible alternatives. External Recognition of Quality Juniper Hall has been awarded the Quality Badge by The Council for Learning Outside the Classroom. The badge is awarded to organisations that have demonstrated that they consistently deliver high quality teaching and learning experiences and manage risk effectively. This means that you will have to complete less paperwork when visiting our centre To make a booking or if you have an enquiry: Call us on us at: enquiries.jh@field-studies-council.org