SHANGHAI Guinness, P. (2014) ‘Urban issues in Shanghai’ GeoFile 511 BEIJING Guinness, P. (Sept 2010) ‘Beijing a global city’ GeoFile 627 There is also a huge amount of material about London which is classified as a world city. O’Donoghue, R. (2011) ‘Squattor redevelopment in Rio de Janiero: an update’ GeoActive 458 The Andrew Marr’s Megacities documentaries (2011) have some excellent material on the issues facing cities including London, Shanghai, Dhaka and Mexico City Episode 1: Living in the city Episode 2: Cities on the Edge Episode 3: Sustaining the City Watch BBC documentary Supersized Earth: A place to live Week 2 resurgence. Urban change: rise of service economy. Urban policy and regeneration Use of key subject specific and technical terminology. Map skills. Interpretation and evaluation of a of source material including textual and visual sources. Online research and presentation skills. Students will be able to discuss the causes and consequences of suburbanisation, and urban resurgence. Students will be able to describe and explain the processes of deindustrialisation, decentralisation and rise of service economy. Students will understand the term policy and be able to outline a range of Define and distinguish between suburbanisation, and urban resurgence. Use OS maps to identify urban areas which have experienced suburbanisation, or urban resurgence. There are good links with the Changing Places topic here – you could look at changing demographic, cultural, social and economic characteristics of settlements affected by these processes. Define deindustrialisation, decentralisation and the rise of the P. (2010-2011) Suburbs part 1 and 2 in Geography Review, 24:2 and 24:4. Garrington, S. 2008) ‘A case study of village suburbanisation’ GeoFile 570 Burton, S. 2005) ‘Melbourne managing urban growth and change’ GeoFile 498 Rae, A. (Jan 2001) ‘Impacts of cities on their surrounding area’ GeoFile 394 Burton, S. (Jan 2002) ‘Pressures on the greenbelt from UK counter-urbanisation’ GeoFile 414
back to the notion of insiders and outsiders from Changing Places topic. Issues of segregation can also be discussed here. What are the ethical issues surrounding certain groups being excluded from particular places? Why has this happened? Extension 2: what is postmodernism? What evidence of postmodernism exists in UK cities or is it just an “American” Week 4 Spatial patterns of economic inequality, social segregation and cultural diversity in contrasting areas and the factors that influence them. Issues associated with these processes and strategies to manage them. Collect, analyse and interpret a range of qualitative and quantitative data from a range of primary and secondary sources. Fieldwork and GIS potential here. An ability to collect and use digital and geo-located data, and understand a of approaches to use and analyse such data. Understanding of the ethical and implications of collecting, studying Students will be able to define the terms economic inequality, social segregation and cultural diversity. Students will be able to describe and explain patterns of economic inequality, social segregation and cultural diversity in contrasting urban areas and discuss the factors that influence them. Students will be able to discuss issues relating to economic inequality, social segregation and cultural diversity and outline the This is an excellent opportunity to use a range of GIS resources to investigate spatial patterns in economic inequality and cultural diversity. Primary data can be collected through urban fieldwork. Secondary data also available from a number of sources: provides a range of data for different wards within urban areas. These statistics can be used alongside primary data on housing, land-use, provision of services and environmental quality to compare different parts of an urban area. has numerous useful documents and resources on their website to help Bennett, P. (2011) ‘Multiculturalism in urban areas’ GeoActive 462 Cowling, D. (April 2014) ‘Multicultural UK: ethnic enclaves in the UK’ GeoFile 715 Brighty, P. (Sept 2014) ‘Understanding the nature of urban poverty’ GeoFile 720 Adams, Chamberlain and Lockheart, (Jan 2013) ‘The riots of 2011 and the role of multiculturalism’ GeoFile 680 Melbourne, B. (September 2001) ‘The socio-demographic structure of UK cities’ GeoFile 405
and representing geographical data about human communities. strategies adopted to manage these. you investigate the quality of urban areas and inequalities. It is also looking at the 2015 Index of Multiple Deprivation data which measures relative deprivation. This can be viewed at or Extension: Discuss the ethical and socio-political implications of collecting, studying and representing geographical data about human communities. To look at inequality in London, go to . Also, and . Go also to or get hold of the excellent book by Cheshire, J. and Uberti, O. (2014) London: the information capital with fabulous examples of G.I.S. for London. See also Turner, S. (2013) ‘Housing issues in London’ in Geography Review, 27:2. Dorling has written and spoken extensively about inequality, particularly in London. (The 32 stops: The Central Line) It is worth looking too at . For inequality in another country, you could look at Bangalore in India (Pumpkin Interactive dvd) or Johannesburg . Read the article by Paul Webber (2011) ‘Johannesburg: changing patterns in the city’ in Geography Review: 24, 4. Week 5 The impact of forms and processes on Opportunities to develop skills such as drawing, labelling and annotating diagrams. Students will be able to describe and explain how areas affect temperature, precipitation, are great opportunities for fieldwork here: Changes in temperature and/or pollution levels can Parsons, G. (Sept 2003) ‘Urban microclimates’ GeoFile 457 An excellent source of information and video clips about
local climate and weather. Urban temperatures: the urban heat island effect. Precipitation: frequency and intensity. Fogs and thunderstorms in urban environments. Wind: the effects of urban structures and layout on wind speed, direction and frequency. Collect, analyse and interpret a range of qualitative and quantitative data from a range of primary and secondary sources. Maps showing spatial patterns –isoline maps. Fieldwork and GIS potential here. fogs, thunderstorms and wind. Students will be familiar with terms such as the urban heat island, channeling and the venturi effect. be measured and mapped across an urban area. Traffic counts at strategic points may show a correlation with such data. Measure the impact of buildings on wind. Get students to produce isotherm maps using primary or secondary data. Extension: what are the implications of climate change on urban climatic events? Why is there particular concern regarding the urban heat island effect? urban climate can be found here at . For an excellent of urban heat island resources, go to and Week 6 Urban precipitation, surfaces and catchment characteristics; impacts on drainage basin storage areas; urban water cycle, water Collect, analyse and interpret a range of qualitative and quantitative data from a range of primary and secondary sources – this could include discussive/creative. Students will be able to describe and explain the effect of surfaces on the water cycle. Students will be able to analyse a hydrograph for an urban area. Students will be able to define the term sustainable Discuss the impacts of urbanisation on water movement through urban areas. This could be demonstrated simply by observing and comparing rain falling on hard surfaces and vegetated surfaces. Annotate and analyse an urban hydrograph The Thames Estuary 2100 (TE2100) project is one response to the risk of flooding in London but other strategies are being adopted. Go to for more information on these. See information on the .
movement through urban catchments as measured by hydrographs. Issues associated with catchment management in areas. The development of sustainable urban drainage systems (SUDS) River restoration and conservation in damaged urban catchments with reference to a specific project. Reasons for and aims of the project; attitudes and contributions Fieldwork and GIS potential here. drainage systems (SUDS) and describe different SUDS strategies. Students will be able to describe and evaluate a specific urban river restoration project, outlining the reasons for its restoration and the attitudes and contributions of the stakeholders involved. Online research for a case study of river restoration Extension 1: A lot has been written about the fact that increasing numbers of people are replacing lawns and gardens with impermeable surfaces – what impact is this having? How could people be persuaded to reverse this trend? The RHS are running a campaign to encourage people to green up urban areas. For more information, go to: Extension 2: Look at the proposals (by a former Geography teacher) to . What would be the costs and benefits for London and the rest of the UK? (Link here with issues such as the urban heat island, air and water pollution and sustainability) The RHS are running a campaign to encourage people to up urban areas. For more information and to look at the benefits, go to: . See for an excellent source of information and video clips about urban climate. Dove, J. (April 2009) ‘Urban ecosystems’ GeoFile 590 Details about the Cheonggyecheon river restoration project can be found at and See also section on Cheonggyecheon in ‘Environmental issues in a world city’ by Nick Middleton in Geography Review volume 27, number 1 (Sept 2013) See also case in Abbiss et al (2016) AQA A-level Geography Fourth edition (Hodder)
of parties involved; project activities and evaluation of project outcomes. Week 7 physical waste generation: sources of waste - industrial and commercial activity, personal consumption. Relation of waste components and waste streams to economic characteristics, lifestyles and attitudes. The environmental impacts of alternative approaches to Collect, analyse and interpret information, and demonstrate the ability to understand and apply suitable analytical approaches for the different information types Students will be able to describe the different sources of urban waste and recognize that both quantities of waste produced and waste disposal methods vary according to economic development. Students will be able to describe and evaluate a range of waste disposal methods. Students will be able to compare and contrast incineration and landfill approaches to waste in a specified urban area. What are the different sources of urban waste? Discuss how and why waste production varies across the world. Investigate and evaluate the different strategies for dealing with urban waste. Students could research waste from the point of view of different stakeholders. Feedback could then take the form of a debate/role play, or construction of SWOT analysis in groups etc. Online research of case study which allows the comparison of incineration and landfill approaches to waste disposal in relation to a specified urban area Many urban waste centres now offer educational visits – it is worth looking at this option. The Bank is a useful source for . J. (2012/3) ‘Managing urban waste’ in Topic Eye changing cities. See the excellent article on waste disposal in Taiwan by Chris Fitch entitled ‘A new lease of life’ (June 2015) in Geographical magazine. Wheeler, P. (April 2016) ‘Recycling costs and benefits’ GeoFile 752 Bennett, P. (2013) ‘Sustainable waste management in the West Midlands’ GeoActive 496 Eddis, T. (2007) ‘Managament of waste in cities: a DME’ GeoFile 548 There are lots of resources about the world’s first offshore landfill in Singapore called .
waste disposal: unregulated, recycling, recovery, reduction (incineration), burial, submergence, trade. Comparison of incineration and landfill approaches to waste disposal in relation to a specified urban area. The NGO Practical Action has some useful resources on . Week 8 Air quality: particulate and pollution. Pollution reduction policies. Other environmental problems in contrasting urban areas: An ability to collect and use digital and geo-located data, and understand a of approaches to use and analyse such data. Collect, analyse and interpret information, and demonstrate the ability to understand and apply suitable analytical approaches Students will be able to describe and distinguish between particulate and photo-chemical pollution. Students will be aware of the range of strategies being used to combat air pollution in urban areas. Students will be able to describe and explain the causes of air pollution, water pollution and Investigate the different causes and impacts of air pollution. London said to have 9,400 premature deaths annually due to air pollution. Could also look at concept of “Airpocalypse” (Beijing) What are the main causes? What is being done to tackle this problem? Get students to produce isoline maps (primary or) secondary air pollution data. Look for patterns and get students to describe and explain their findings. Warbuton, P. (April 2013) ‘Environmental issues in urban areas today’ GeoFile 692 Parson, G. (Jan 2012) ‘Air quality issues’ GeoFile 656 Nagle, G. (Sept 2000) ‘Air pollution in Beijing’ GeoFile 383 An excellent source of information and clips about urban climate can be found here at .
water pollution and dereliction. Strategies to manage these problems. Impact of urban areas on local and global environments. for the different information types. Maps showing spatial patterns –isoline maps. Fieldwork and GIS potential here. dereliction and outline strategies used to manage these problems. to look at the impacts of deindustrialisation and dereliction. Ford has just announced new investment in the city which also makes it a useful case study for regeneration. Extension: weigh up the pros and cons of different strategies to manage problems of dereliction and pollution. City pollution levels are monitored continuously and you can use this data to examine geographical patterns. Go to for a “nowcast”, is a service to show current pollution levels in detail across London in comparison with the Government's Air Pollution Index. Warbuton, P. (April 2002) ‘Issues relating to greenfield and brownfield sites’ GeoFile 421 Dove, J. (April 2009) ‘Urban ecosystems’ GeoFile 590 The website includes over 3000 photographs of London sights not normally seen by tourists. Week 9 Ecological footprint of major urban areas. Dimensions of sustainability: natural, physical, social and economic. Nature and features of sustainable An ability to collect and use digital and geo-located data, and understand a range of approaches to use and analyse such data. Collect, analyse and interpret information, and demonstrate the ability to understand and suitable analytical approaches Students will be able to define the terms ecological footprint, sustainability and liveability. Students will be able to describe the features of a sustainable city. Students will be able to recognize the opportunities and challenges for developing more sustainable cities. As a starter and for context, students could . – an organisation concerned with global issues has published a number of reports entitled The State of the World’s Cities which focus on sustainability issues. A new World Cities Report is due to be published by the UN in 2015/2016. See also the report of the . Discuss the concepts of liveability and sustainability. Emphasise the Look at the which considers the impacts of urbanisation. Frost, L. (2012) ‘Greening the city’ GeoActive 481 Rawlings Smith, E. (2012) ‘Abu Dhabi goes green?’ in Geography Review. L. (Jan 2006) ‘Sustainable cities’ GeoFile 515 Nagle, G. (Jan 2009) ‘Ecotowns’ GeoFile 581
cities. Concept of liveability. Contemporary opportunities and challenges in developing more sustainable cities. Strategies for developing more sustainable cities. for the different information types. Students will be able to describe and evaluate different methods used to create more sustainable cities. need to look beyond simply environmental issues. Students to research different strategies adopted by cities to become more sustainable. There is lots going on in London but other well-documented cities include Curitiba, Freiburg and Singapore. Extension: Why does liveability mean different things to different people? Students could research and evaluate the Global liveability rankings. The 2015 rankings can be found at Extension 2: Discuss the issue or urban resilience. What does it mean? Why are cities increasingly considering resilience? Go to . Examples include Rotterdam’s 2016 Resilience strategy is for its green credentials. View details of the proposal to make London the first . A good article on greening London by Fitch can be found in Geographical magazine, May 2016 entitled ‘A walk in the park.’ See also the by a consortium of environmental organisations. Research the construction of the London garden bridge. For more information and useful video clips, go to . The RHS are running a campaign to encourage people to up urban areas. For more information, go to: by Jaime Lerner, former Mayor of Curitiba. Watch (two parts). Week 10 Case development – this could be left to the end or built up over the course of the topic. Students are expected to study two contrasting urban Collect, analyse and interpret a range of qualitative and quantitative data from a range of primary and secondary sources Students will have time to build up their two contrasting place studies to illustrate and analyse the key themes set out in the specification. Students to collect (primary and) secondary data to produce two contrasting case studies. Particular attention should be given to: patterns of economic and social well-being and Data is readily available for most cities in some form or another. For census data and social and economic characteristics of places in the UK, go to: and provide interactive visualisation of census data.
areas to illustrate and analyse key themes set out in the specification, to include: patterns of economic and social and the nature and impact of physical environmental conditions with reference to the implications for environmental sustainability, the character of the study areas and the experience and attitudes of their populations An ability to collect and use digital and geo-located data, and understand a range of approaches to use and analyse such data Understanding of the ethical and implications of collecting, studying and representing geographical data about human communities Fieldwork and GIS potential here Links back to Changing Places topic the nature and impact of physical environmental conditions and can provide localised data on information such as house prices, school results, council tax and crime. For health-related data, go to . All of these can be used to show inequality. The Guardian newspaper does some good features on cities around the world.