AQA A Level Geography (7037) (AQA A Level Geography): Revision Note

AQA A Level Geography (7037)

Your complete guide to the AQA A Level Geography specification, including what you will study, how you will be assessed and the optional content.

Assessment

All students take three components: Paper 1, Paper 2 and the non-exam assessment (NEA).

Paper 1

• In Paper 1 you will answer questions in three sections

• You can practise with our AQA A Level Geography Paper 1 past papers

Section A: Water and carbon cycles (36 marks)

• You answer all the questions in this section

• The topics are:

  • the water cycle

  • the carbon cycle

  • water, carbon and life on Earth

Section B: Physical landscapes (36 marks)

• You answer 1 question from three options

• Remember to only answer questions on the option you have studied

  • Option 1: Hot desert systems and landscapes

  • Option 2: Coastal systems and landscapes

  • Option 3: Glacial systems and landscapes

Section C: Hazards or ecosystems (48 marks)

• You answer 1 question from two options

• Remember to only answer questions on the option you have studied

  • Option 1: Hazards

  • Option 2: Ecosystems under stress

Paper 2

• In Paper 2 you will answer questions in three sections

• You can practise with our AQA A Level Geography Paper 2 past papers

Section A: Global systems and global governance (36 marks)

• You answer all the questions in this section

• The topics are:

  • globalisation

  • global systems

  • international trade and access to markets

  • global governance

  • the global commons

  • Antarctica as a global common

  • globalisation critique

Section B: Changing places (36 marks)

• You answer all the questions in this section

• The first and last questions usually ask about your own local place or your contrasting distant place, and the other questions use figures showing other places

• The topics are:

  • the nature and importance of places

  • relationships and connections

  • meaning and representation

Section C: Human geography options (48 marks)

• You answer 1 question from three options

• Remember to only answer questions on the option you have studied

  • Option 1: Contemporary urban environments

  • Option 2: Population and the environment

  • Option 3: Resource security

Geographical investigation

• The non-exam assessment (NEA) is an independent investigation of 3,000–4,000 words

• It is based on a geographical question or issue that you choose

• It must include data that you have collected in the field

• You will also complete four days of fieldwork during the course, covering both physical and human geography

Question types

• Papers 1 and 2 use the same types of question:

• Suggested times are based on about 1 minute 15 seconds per mark

  • This gives about 45 minutes for Sections A and B and about 60 minutes for Section C

  • Each exam series has one synoptic question, on either Paper 1 or Paper 2, which links the topic to another part of the course, such as the carbon cycle

Geographical skills

• You may need to show geographical skills on either paper, including:

  • reading maps and photographs

  • interpreting graphs and tables

  • calculating and using statistics, such as standard deviation

  • using both quantitative and qualitative data

• You may use a calculator in both papers

Assessment objectives

• The course covers three assessment objectives (AOs)

Command words

These are the main command words used in AQA A Level Geography exams. They tell you what you need to do in your answer.

Analyse: Break a topic or set of data into its parts to show how they connect.

Assess: Weigh up options or arguments and reach a conclusion about how effective or valid they are.

Calculate: Work out a value.

Critically: Examine the strengths and weaknesses of a viewpoint, usually before "assess" or "evaluate".

Describe: Say what something is like, such as a feature, pattern or process.

Discuss: Set out both sides of an argument and reach a conclusion.

Evaluate: Weigh up options or ideas and reach a conclusion about their importance, success or worth.

Explain: Give the causes of something or the factors that influence it.

Interpret: Say what something means.

Outline : Give a brief account of the relevant information.

To what extent: Examine the evidence and form a view on how far a statement is valid