Mr Benham holds a BA in Geography from the London School of Economics. He has taught Geography in schools in the West Midlands, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire and worked as a management consultant in a global accountancy firm. In his spare time he combines interests in Geography and sport by visiting stadiums in diverse locations.
Our Geography programme is designed to inspire in students a curiosity and fascination about the world and its people that will remain with them for the rest of their lives. The curriculum aims to equip students with knowledge about diverse places, people, resources and natural and human environments, together with a deep understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes. Through their learning, students develop a range of geographical skills which prepare them for future study.
Our programme seeks to promote learning outside of the classroom as well as inside the classroom. Previous trips have included Epping Forest, St. Albans, Yorkshire, the Netherlands, Denmark and Iceland.
Students study four topics per academic year at Key Stage Three, ensuring broad coverage of both physical and human geography. The curriculum is designed to prepare students for GCSE study.
Year 7:
· 7.1 – An introduction to geography
· 7.2 – The geography of Africa
· 7.3 – Weather and climate
· 7.4 – Global cities
Year 8:
· 8.1 – Extreme environments
· 8.2 – The geography of health
· 8.3 – Ecosystems
· 8.4 – Asia
Year 9:
· 9.1 – Natural hazards and wildfires
· 9.2 – Global inequality and development
· 9.3 – Coastal landscapes and river landscapes
· 9.4 – Natural resources
At GCSE we follow the AQA specification, which offers a balanced framework of physical and human themes and investigates the links between them. Students will travel the world from their classroom, exploring case studies in the United Kingdom (UK), higher income countries (HICs), newly emerging economies (NEEs) and lower income countries (LICs). Topics of study include climate change, poverty, deprivation, global shifts in economic power and the challenge of sustainable resource use. Students are also encouraged to understand their role in society by considering different viewpoints, values and attitudes.
Paper 1 (35%):
· Section A: The challenge of natural hazards
· Section B: The living world
· Section C: Physical landscapes in the UK
Paper 2 (35%):
· Section A: Urban issues and challenges
· Section B: The changing economic world
· Section C: The challenge of resource management
Paper 3 (30%):
· Section A: Issue evaluation
· Section B: Fieldwork
At A-level we follow the AQA specification, which is designed to challenge perceptions and stimulate investigative and analytical skills.
Paper 1 (40%):
· Section A: Water and carbon cycles
· Section B: Coastal systems and landscapes
· Section C: Hazards
Paper 2 (40%):
· Section A: Global systems and global governance
· Section B: Changing places
· Section C: Contemporary urban environments
Geography fieldwork investigation (20%):
· Students complete an individual investigation which must include data collected in the field. The individual investigation must be based on a question or issue defined and developed by the student relating to any part of the specification content. It is marked by teachers and moderated by AQA.