Years 7-8: Key understandings — Overview

Curriculum overview

The emphasis in Years 7–8 is on water as a resource, geomorphic landscapes, the liveability of places, urban places and population geography.

All seven of the key geographical concepts are now being developed at this level. Some examples of their development in the content are listed below.

• Place: The liveability of places and how the interconnections of places, people and environments can result in the changing character and distinctiveness of places.
• Space: Urban concentrations and population distribution.
• Environment: The environmental importance of water and the influence of environmental quality on the liveability of places.
• Interconnection: The ways in which the water cycle connects people and places and the influence of social connectedness on the liveability of places.
• Sustainability: The sustainable use of water and the sustainability of places.
• Scale: The study of landforms and geographic issues at differing scales.
• Change: Geomorphic and hydrological hazards, and the internal and international migration of people.

The two illustrations of practice provide insights into the concepts of scale, place, change and interconnections.

About the illustrations

Illustration 1: Internal migration in China. The focus in the first Illustration of practice is on the internal migration of people in China. Considering spatial change, the changing distribution of population in China is examined through a series of vignettes about people's lives as they migrate backwards and forwards from rural districts to large urban areas. Such an approach enables students to interpret maps and statistics, and make assessments about information contained in video films.

Illustration 2: Scale in physical geography. The focus in the second Illustration of practice is on scale in physical geography applied to a study of landforms. It provides information and examples of cartographic scale, geographical scale and operational scale. Landforms are best studied in the field, and materials to support understanding and investigation are supplied.