Secondary Phase Committee
Contacts
Chair: Tom Biebrach
Email: trbiebrach@aol.com
Visit the members' page to find out who's who on the SPC...
Our Aims
The purpose of the Secondary Phase Committee is to support GA members concerned with Geography in Key Stages 3 and 4 and to represent the views and interests of these members.
What we do
- Monitor the views, interests, concerns and issues facing secondary geography members of the GA. In addition, monitor the state of health of secondary geography as indicated by data on numbers and assessment evidence.
- Initiate ideas for engaging and challenging teaching and learning ideas in the secondary geography classroom.
- Disseminate these ideas through workshops at the annual GA Conference, the GA website, and occasional articles and contributions to GA publications such as Teaching Geography
- Represent the views, interests, concerns and issues facing secondary geography members of the GA at the GA Education Committee, and externally to bodies such as QCA.
- Promote geography to teachers, pupils, schools and the wider community as a relevant and exciting subject
We have led workshops at the GA Annual Conference on Leading the Geography Department and Teaching Exceptional Students; led teacher-to teacher sessions at the GA Annual Conference; published articles in Teaching Geography on topics such as team teaching, Valuing Places, the geography of crime, using ICT to enrich Geography, leading the geography department/self assessment and field work; represented the GA in the QCA review of the Key Stage 3 curriculum; and published numerous resources on the GA website.
Top Ten Ideas
Every half term, the GA's secondary phase committee produces a 'top ten' of ideas for helping you teach the secondary curriculum. You can view them in full on the Top Ten Ideas page, or download the basic PDFs here:
Top Ten (35!) Ideas: Exam Revision Time
Top Ten Ideas: Primary-Secondary Transition
Top Ten Ideas for an Exciting Start to Year 7 Geography
Top Ten Ideas for getting your students out of the classroom during the summer term
Top Ten Ideas for promoting GCSE geography
Top Ten Ideas for your new KS3
Annual Conference 2009
The SPC led three workshops at the 2009 GA Annual Conference held at the University of Manchester on 16 - 18 April 2009.
Doorstep Geography
Emma Johns and Rachel Lawrenson
A practical workshop equipping participants with a range of easy activities for fieldwork on their doorstep.
Transforming Tired Topics
Tom Biebrach, Fred Martin and Alan Parkinson
Offered a range of ideas and opportunities to make these topics more exciting and engaging, transforming that 'tired' topic whilst retaining quality geographical learning.
Creativity and Geographical Investigation
Simon Renshaw and members of the SPC
This session provided delegates with a range of creative thinking techniques and practical examples that highlighted how geographical investigation can serve to promote creative thinking.
Resources from all of these workshops and other conference sessions can be downloaded on the Manchester 2009 page.
Notes of Secondary Phase Committee Meeting - 27 February 2010
The committee was pleased to welcome new member Rebecca Kitchen to the SPC. To find out more about Rebecca and other members of the Committee, visit the SPC members' page. The Committee is always keen to hear from enthusiastic teachers of geography so if you would like to join the SPC please get in contact with the chair Tom Biebrach.
One essential part of the Committee's work is to provide GA members with support and guidance in an effort to further the learning and teaching of geography. In order to meet this aim the Committee regularly produces a series of timely top ten tips, our most recent focused on top ten ideas for primary/secondary transition. In preparation for the forthcoming summer exam period the committee have produced a set of top tips for examination revision. All our pervious top tens can be viewed on the Top Ten Ideas page.
The GA has been exceptionally active within this current period of curriculum change for all phases and has produced a wide range of resources to support its members. Notably within KS3, the publications on planning, assessment and the Toolkit range have been well received.
In addition, the recent manifesto A Different View has sought to further secure the position of geography within 21st Century education. During our most recent meeting, the SPC spent much time formulating exciting plans to support its membership as the period of curriculum change continues... watch this space!
As always the SPC is keen to make a significant contribution to the Annual Conference at the University of Derby and were busy this February putting finishing touches to our workshops. This year the SPC will be offering three workshops...
- Geography Resource Exchange
- Extending ICT use for beginners
- Putting geography on the map
The SPC will have a stand at Conference which, where possible, aims to be manned by a member of the SPC. We would welcome your feedback on the work we do and would be very open to any suggestions you might have for the direction of our future activities. We look forward to seeing you all in Derby.
Past meeting reports
Download: 10 October 2009 Meeting Notes
Download: 7 February 2009 Meeting Notes
Download: 4 October 2008 Meeting Notes
Download: 7 June 2008 Meeting Notes
Join the Secondary Phase Committee
If you are interested in becoming involved with the Secondary Phase Committee, please contact the Chair Tom Biebrach.
(Updated 10.03.10)
