1. Would you abandon the car? Many people who live in local villages work in, shop and use Cambridge for leisure facilities. Each day the roads into Cambridge are gridlocked with traffic. Is there and alternative? Write a questionnaire to find out why people use their car, what people feel about current public transport provision and what would persuade them to abandon their car for public transport or cycle. Survey 20 people and analyse your results and make recommendations about how people could be persuaded to use public transport or cycle instead of using their car. 2. Stonehenge – Heritage or horror? Stonehenge is over 5000 years old. It is probably the most important prehistoric site in Britain and is a world heritage site, attracting 800,000 visitors annually from all over the world. However, the way the site is currently presented and managed is very poor and needs urgent improvement. The facilities for visitors are inadequate and the site is crossed by two heavily congested roads. Look at what plans have been proposed in the past and come up with a sustainable solution for the management of this site of world importance. 3. Is wind power the answer? In 2010, only 3% of Britain’s energy needs came from renewable sources. (This compares poorly to other European countries.) The target is to increase this to 15% by This is a huge challenge and the government thinks wind power is the answer. However, while wind power is clean and renewable, it also has many disadvantages. Research the pros and cons of different methods of achieving the big increase in renewable energy generation needed in Britain (eg solar, wave, tide…) and reach a conclusion about whether wind power is the answer or whether there is another way to provide sustainable power for Britain. 4. Where will young people live? Today, average earnings are £26,000 but the average house price is £163,000. Following the banking crisis, new mortgages are difficult to get. The dream of home ownership is harder for more and more young people. At the same time, renting is ever more expensive. Some people say it will be the norm for people in their 20s and 30s to still be living with their parents in future because they cannot afford to move out. Ministers have proposed simplifying planning laws as the answer to the problem. Is it? Research the background to this issue and suggest solutions to the problem. 5. Tescopoly – every little helps? The way we shop for our food has really changed over the last 50 years. The big supermarket chains now dominate the grocery market. Tesco’s, for example, is the largest UK retailer (it’s also the third biggest in the world), taking in £1 of every £7 spent by consumers in Britain. Is this a healthy situation? What are the pros and cons of allowing a few supermarket chains to dominate the market? Research this issue, focusing on an example where the arrival of one of these supermarket chains has divided a local community. 6. A river runs to… Humanities want to change the Millenium Garden so it can be used as a learning resource in geography lessons. Produce a design for the garden so that students can learn about a river’s valley and a river’s course from its source (beginning) to its estuary (where it flows into the sea or a lake). Before you can do this you will need to research the landscape features (or landforms) that rivers produce as they flow to the sea. (Make sure your design has detailed annotations.) 7. Is China’s ‘one child’ policy still justified? In 1978 China introduced a policy that said parents could have one child only. This was a drastic measure to do something about the unsustainable rate of population growth and the social, economic and environmental problems it was creating for China at the time. While some people say it is still necessary, others say it is no longer needed. (They also point to its unfairness and unexpected social results.) Research the pros and cons of this policy and consider whether it is still relevant in modern China which has become a world economic power. 8. How green is your holiday? Have you thought about what your annual summer holiday really costs? – the resources your holiday uses, the waste it produces, its impact on the environment, where the money goes, its impact on local people ( who gains and who loses?) Are there greener more sustainable tourism alternatives? Present your findings as a storyboard or a movie that could be used by Greenpeace to increase public awareness about this issue. 9. An enquiry of your own… You could decide to really challenge yourself. Research and issue that interests you (it must be geography). Come up with a research question and some aims showing what you want to do. Check this with your teacher. Your teacher will agree or help you change your ideas as needed. Away you go! Year 9 Homework: Can Geography make a difference to our world? Name: ……………………………………... Teacher: ………………………………….. Homework will continue to be set in a 4 week cycle. Over the next 20 weeks you should choose any 4 homework activities from the grid below. You now have complete freedom to choose how you present each task, eg writing, annotated map/plan/diagram, leaflet, Power point, storyboard for a news item or film, Moviemaker… Your choice!

Year 9 Geography Enquiry Homework 2 Geography homework in Year 9 is important because it helps you progress and develops the independent study skills you need in years 10/11. This is a new idea to make homework a more creative and enjoyable experience. You get to decide what you do, when you do it and how you present it. Over the next 20 school weeks you must complete 4 tasks from the options overleaf. It runs like this: Week 1: Make your choice, plan your approach, begin research. You have to show independence, deciding how to undertake the necessary research and complete each task. Week 3: Deadline 1 – Part of a geography lesson this week will be a seminar where you present to the class what you have done so far. Your teacher (and other students) will give you some feed back on how you are doing, if you need to rethink anything and make some suggestions about how to develop your work. Week 5: Deadline 2 -One of your geography lessons will be devoted to student presentations of their completed tasks. Your work is assessed. You should also fill in a reflection sheet for each task where you write comments to explain how you have gone about completing your work. If you need the Internet but don’t have it at home you can use the Humanities computers in H7 or the LRC at lunchtime or after school. (If you don’t live in Cottenham, at reception you can book a seat on the minibus that takes you to the villages at 4.30 on Mondays and Thursdays.) You can organise your homework in a way that suits you, just meet the completion date. You can do it in 20 minute bursts or two-hour sessions - a good guide would be to spend about 45 minutes each week or at least 3 and a half hours overall on each task, but you can spend more if you really get into it. Remember, if you get stuck, you can ask your teacher for guidance and help at any time. You can discuss tasks with friends (that’s discuss not copy from them). To be successful you should: (some of these things are more relevant to some tasks than to others – so pick a balance of tasks) Choose a variety of issues and types of task: e.g. to do with environmental, economic, social and/or political issues… e.g. to do with local, national and/or international issues… e.g. that use practical, ICT-based and written methods to present your work… Think of questions when you begin your task. These questions help structure and guide your research. Ask further questions as your research progresses. Be prepared to explain reasons for your choice of focus/question(s) e.g. explaining your choice of tasks and particular questions you decided to consider: e.g. “I decided to research this question because…” “I decided to look at this issue because…” “I wanted to study this because…” Be creative in the way you present your work. Present your work in an organised way. Select relevant sources and types of information. Analyse and explain what you have found out, to make sense and meaning out of it, rather than just describing something or listing facts. Explain reasons for taking a particular route and/or your ways of presenting your findings, etc. Be flexible and be prepared to change direction or approach the task from a different angle if it helps you in the research process and the completion of the task. Explain reasons for your chosen method of presenting your work Draw conclusions about the questions you asked. Comment on your success at dealing with potholes, e.g. “I was looking into…however, I felt that a better Q was…” “Originally, I wanted to…However, in the end I…because…” “When researching, I had problems with…so I…”