How to write A level geography essay

It seems like a big jump from gcse, from writing no essays to lots.
Just wondering any tips?
Key things to include?
Structure??
How to get good marks?

Thanks!

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 1

Bigoilymen

As long as you know your case studies you'll be fine, that's the biggest difference from gcse. Just be prepared to talk about a few in a bit of depth, and drop any relevant facts/figures you've read (from news, etc.) in to back up your points. And if you can't quite remember a fact or statistic, don't be afraid to make a guess, as long as its not too implausible. They're not going to check every figure, and they won't penalise you if you're wrong. I just made a page for each main case study and some more general stuff, and learned as much of it as I could. Good luck, feel free to ask anything else about it

Reply 2

blacktreacle

From assessment objectives..

AO1 Knowledge and understanding - it means you have to understand theories, and remember facts accurately from case studies; show the examiner that you UNDERSTAND what you're being asked and show that you've got the KNOWLEDGE. to show your knowledge it would be best to define key terms in your introductory paragraph, and then expand in detail in later paragraphs.

AO2 Application and analysis - apply the case studies to SUPPORT your points. for example, in the first sentence of each paragraph you state your point and then you use 'for example, in ...' (evidence) to support your point. analyse the evidence as well, that is, to look at the evidence at a wider or deeper dimension...APPLICATION is key - you can't get marks from just writing out all the facts from case studies. you MUST apply them to your answer.

AO3 Communication and structure - a good introduction is important, you should put definitions, outline what you're gonna look at in your essay and what case studies are you gonna use. intro is used to give a clear picture to the examiner of what are you gonna say. after writing a few paragraphs, CONCLUSION is extremely important. using previous paragraphs to clearly state your conclusion. don't just use one or two sentence. make it about 4 to 5 lines at least (depends on your handwriting..).

P.S. i'm still an A2 level geography student but hopefully it helps!

Reply 3

mirandaandhector

As mentioned in the above post, a clear structure is important - this not only helps in terms of gaining marks but will make it easier for you to write it - you need an idea of where you are going!
A plan (only needs to be brief) will help with this

Case study detail and range is also important, this helps you in the development of points

KEY POINT - Always remain focused on the question; read it carefully, take into account the command words and don't just write an answer you've written before to another question.

Hope this helps (I got an A* - so it worked for me :smile:

)

Reply 4

coolcat88

Original post by Bigoilymen

Have you got any examples of an essay? Would be much appreciated! :smile:

Reply 5

Hollyhock

Which exam board are you doing? My teachers are being really unhelpful with essays and I really need an A to meet my uni offer for next year :smile:

Reply 6

taylad

My course teach PEEL (point, example, explain, link back to Q) for paragraph structure.
So for a 15 mark essay for e.g. intro x PEEL 1 x PEEL 2 x conc
a 40 marker e.g. intro x PEEL 1 x PEEL 2 x PEEL 3 x PEEL 4 x PEEL 5 x conc
Make sure you have plenty of detail, exemplifications, case study material and tell everything you know in said structure :smile:

Reply 7

Frank Peters

Original post by coolcat88

It seems like a big jump from gcse, from writing no essays to lots.
Just wondering any tips?
Key things to include?
Structure??
How to get good marks?

Thanks!

If you dont mind me asking, What did you get at your a level geography?

Reply 8

sz_rhl

Know your case studies. Structure you essay point by point. Be synoptic and link certain points together or to other world events you might not have studied but are related. Use different perspectives. In your conclusion "get off the fence" in the words of my geography teacher. You have to have a definite answer to show you have true understanding of the question. Do not be ambiguous about anything.
That's what i did anyway. Got me an A* in my mock.

Reply 9

selbsgirl

I'm in year 2 of a levels and I'm taking geography edexcel, my teacher spends loads of time on the physical side but I'm really struggling with the human so- Globalisation, Regeneration Superpowers and sovereignty, migration and identity. if any one has any helpers it would be appreciated