Geography Adventures

Great weather, no lockdowns and a school/BoT that supports EOTC have made it a great year to be a Geographer. Geography is the study of places and the relationships between people and their environments. As a department we are endeavoring to give our students as many “real world” experiences and contexts as possible because the best place to study Geography is where it is happening.

Year 12 students have attended their main field trip this term – a three day trip that included completing the Tongariro Crossing. A challenging hike on its own, students collected vegetation and climate data to analyse back at school. They will identify patterns and natural processes within the environment. Earlier in the term, they also nipped into town to have a look at the Ports of Auckland operation to assess the problems and practicality of shifting this activity to another region. Their first 2 topics have given them a good cross section of natural geography and human geography. By now they have well learned that Geography is a subject much more interesting and a lot broader than the old school perception that it’s about where countries are and what they export! 

Year 11 Geographers recently traveled up to Puhoi to investigate aspects of the Puhoi River. This year provided some more things to think about, with the obvious effects of Cyclone Gabrielle and January floods. They are looking forward to their overnight Waihi trip next term to assess the sustainability of mining activity. 

Year 13 students called in on Mike at his Helensville dairy farm and learned a lot to apply to their study of the issues relating to the rapid growth of Dairy Farming in Canterbury. While the environments of farms in 2 different regions are quite different, it was great to see the key processes on a farm and get Mike’s perspective of the Canterbury situation. Opinions on the palatability of freshly squeezed, warm milk were varied. Students have also visited a couple of beaches to conduct their research around sediment movement in coastal environments. Term 3 brings the main field trip to look at the process of tourism development in Rotorua.