Here at Bridgewater we follow the AQA A-level Geography course. We believe that this offers our students an excellent grounding for university life, apprenticeships or the world of work. We aim to foster within our students an acute awareness of their roles as global citizens and a lifelong love of learning about the world around us.

During the two year course there is equal emphasis given to Physical Geography, Human Geography and Geographical Skills. In the Physical Geography lessons, we study topics such as the impact of people on the water and carbon cycles, and human strategies to mitigate human hazards. In Human Geography, we look at how and why cities grow and change, and the ideas of global governance in places such as Antarctica. We encourage our students to subjectively interrogate data and present their findings in a scientific, yet accessible manner. The skills we aim to develop will support independent learning, self-confidence and a diverse range of employment opportunities in the future.

Each student is required to complete a unique research project which contributes up to 20% of their final A-level mark. Previously, students have reported on such issues as ‘Variations in Air Pollution on the East Lancashire Dual Carriageway’ and ‘The Changing Social and Economic Characteristics of Hulme in Manchester’.

It is our aim to keep our curriculum engaging, relevant and thought-provoking and we offer a number of field trips to destinations locally, regionally and internationally, investigating themes as diverse as ‘The Impacts of Regeneration at Salford Quays’ to ‘Living with Tectonic Hazards in Iceland’.

We are extremely proud of our department’s 100% pass rate at A-level, with the majority of our students in recent years achieving grades of B, A or A*. Geography is a popular A-level leading to careers in earth science, conservation, housing, tourism and culture.