Geography 2022 HSC exam pack (archive)

Students should:

• read the question carefully to ensure that they do not miss important components of the question
• have a clear understanding of key words in the question and recognise the intent of the question and its requirements
• use the first page of the answer booklet for an extended response to develop a plan to assist in the logical sequencing of information
• engage with what the question is asking rather than presenting a pre-prepared response
• relate to the question throughout the response rather than just at the beginning
• sustain their judgements, where appropriate, throughout the response with a clear connection to the question
• communicate ideas and information using geographical terms and concepts appropriately
• refer to case studies, illustrative examples and the Stimulus Booklet where appropriate
• present a sustained, logical and cohesive response that addresses the question
• review their response to ensure that it addresses question requirements. 

Question 21

In better responses, students were able to:

• correctly complete the transect using the key from right to left open space, public building, open space, water body, open space and coniferous forest (a)
• identify the feature at point R as a cycle path (b)
• correctly calculate the percentage of the transect as 69% adding the three areas of open space 3.3cm + 1.6cm + 2cm = 6.9cm and converting to a percentage by dividing by 10cm times 100 (c). 

Areas for students to improve include:

• understanding the concept that a transect requires shading to show the different land uses as some students failed to use the key (a)
• reading the key on a map correctly, some students identified point R as a foot path; cycle path (b)
• following the instructions ‘what percentage’ as some students left the answer as centimetres or did not correctly add all three areas of open forest (c). 

Question 22 

In better responses, students were able to:

• correctly name an urban dynamic identified from Source A, such as urban consolidation, urban renewal, spatial exclusion, urban village or suburbanisation and clearly support their choice with evidence from the source (a)
• correctly name and describe an urban dynamic identified in Source B, such as urban village, urban consolidation, exurbanisation, counterurbanisation or suburbanisation and clearly compare it to a correctly named and described urban dynamic present in an identified suburb or country town (b)
• clearly explain the reasons why some country towns are in decline. The reasons could include rural-urban migration for employment, public services such as education (primary, secondary and tertiary), medical services and hospitals, aged care; rural decline due to population moving to more dominant regional centres; the impact of increased connectivity through telecommunications to purchase retail goods online leading to economic decline of the retail sector in small towns (c). 

Areas for students to improve include:

• developing a clear understanding of the key urban dynamics (a, b)
• making effective use of comparative language (b).

Question 23 

In better responses, students were able to:

• recognise and name a specific type of criteria which could be used to determine the effectiveness of the management strategies within the Royal National City Park. For example, this could include a species count, tourist survey, measuring water quality, measuring air quality or cost, the Principles of Ecological Sustainability; intragenerational equity, intergenerational equity, precautionary approach and biological diversity (a)
• provide clear justifications, showing a clear judgement connecting the criteria to the ecosystem referring to the sources on pages 2 and 3 of the Stimulus Booklet. An example includes a species count of flora in the Royal National City Park will provide rangers with information to evaluate ecosystem biodiversity. An increase in the number of different species of foxes present within the ecosystem would indicate the existing management strategies are effective in promoting biological diversity (a)
• make clear reference to a specific rate of change, for example, gradual, slow, rapid and the functioning/adjustment of an ecosystem. The better responses clearly show how/why this relationship exists (explain), often with supporting evidence (b)
• use technical language, terms and concepts in correct contexts, enhancing the sophistication of the response (b)
• include a specific period of time such as years and timeframes. They could name a specific change, for example, a weather event such as Cyclone Yasi in February 2011, sudden and catastrophic, connecting to 285km/ph extreme winds, 200-300mm of rain within a 24hr period causing significant erosion, runoff and deluge within the Great Barrier Reef catchments, also affecting salinity and ph levels. The erosion and removal of topsoil which contains nitrogen and other pesticides creates turbidity and sedimentation on fringe reefs. This changes the availability of sunlight, clogging spores and limiting photosynthesis; affecting the coral reef’s ability to adjust (b).

Areas for students to improve include:

• making the evaluation clear and explicit, for example, referring to a species count and using this as a justification for rangers to monitor change over time (a)
• making explicit the rate of change that affects the ecosystem's ability to adjust, for example, rapid, catastrophic gradual (b)
• providing reasoning for the relationship between the rate of change and the ecosystem’s ability to adjust (b).

Question 24  

In better responses, students were able to:

• clearly locate one economic enterprise, for example, a specific winery located in the Hunter Valley region, and clearly identify a career, for example, a Viticulturalist (a)
• explain how an understanding of Geography is relevant to one career associated with the economic enterprise, for example, the viticulturalist needs to know the aspect of the slope to determine the best location for grape growth (a)
• demonstrate an understanding of what consumer demand is, for example, changing market share, COVID impacting tourism travel options, changes to product range because of changing tastes (b)
• explain how the consumer demand identified can affect the economic activity. For example, preferences for more organic wines, has seen an increase in the production and sale of organically grown and produced wines (b). 

Areas for students to improve include:

• understanding the difference between an economic enterprise (one specific entity, for example, Taronga Zoo) and an economic activity (a whole industry, for example, tourism)
• understanding how Geography relates to internal linkages (careers) within the economic enterprise (a)
• understanding consumer demand and how this affects the economic activity (b).

Question 25 

In better responses, students were able to:

• demonstrate well-developed and relevant examples of the effect of international environmental efforts, such as COP26 has on the of a named economic activity such as changing temperatures, changes to rainfall patterns, impacts on soil composition and increased incidence of extreme weather events. Some examples included changes to legislation based on environmental constraints such as limiting access to certain areas and decreasing tourist numbers, changes to energy supply from coal to renewables (a)
• refer to examples that demonstrate the effect of international environmental efforts on the nature or spatial patterns or the future directions of a global economic activity. For example, reference to changes in customer base such as domestic over international tourists, market shares, growth in the organic market, changes to profit margins and locational shift of where activities are situated due to climatic variations (a)
• refer to how a named economic activity such tourism or viticulture uses an explicitly stated global network such as telecommunications, internet or commercial shipping for trade to demonstrate impact, such as ease of bookings or assist in imports and exports (b)
• clearly demonstrate that the use of global networks by the economic activity in specified ways allowed the activity to increase profits, customer base or market share due to the use of named global networks. For example, tourism uses telecommunication and internet as a global network which makes it easier for customers to book allowing the activity to experience a growth in customers and profits (b). 

Areas for students to improve include:

• understanding the difference between an economic activity and an economic enterprise
• referring to explicit examples that demonstrate the ways that international environmental efforts affected economic activities
• referring to explicit examples that demonstrate the ways that global networks are used by economic activities.

Question 26 

In better responses, students were able to:

• demonstrate comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the character of world cities such as cultural innovation, interconnections, tourist hubs, demonstrated sustainability and leaders of ideas, research and development
• refer explicitly to Source H  and that Stockholm was home to the world’s first urban National Park
• use evidence from the Source H  such as 'preservation of the urban natural environment' or cultural features include 'museums, theme parks, zoos, ancient and historic monuments' to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the character of world cities.  

Areas for students to improve include:

• distinguishing between the character of world cities and the role of world cities
• making clear reference refer to Source H
• referring to examples in Source H  to show some connection between the character of world cities in general and the character of Stockholm as a world city. 

Question 27

In better responses, students were able to:

• demonstrate a well-developed and comprehensive knowledge and understanding of a local economic enterprise such as Tamburlaine Winery, Taronga Zoo, Perisher Blue Ski Resort and Pacific Coast Eco Bananas
• demonstrate a well-developed and comprehensive knowledge and understanding of how the local economic enterprise affects the environment. For example, the application of synthetic pesticides, herbicides and fungicides and the establishment of a monoculture. Another example is how the environment affects the local economic enterprise such as climate and weather influences tourists’ access and availability to tourist destinations  
• provide a detailed and well supported judgement of how the local economic enterprise affects the environment. For example, how the application of synthetic chemicals negatively impacts the environment by contaminating the soil for extended periods of time after application which leads to a decrease the fertility of the soil which harms the environment. Another example is how the environment affects the local economic enterprise. For example, without ideal weather conditions the environment negatively impacts the local enterprises like snow ski resorts because they would not be able to provide access for tourists due to inadequate snow fall.

Areas for students to improve include:

• identifying the key word ‘assess’, which means to make a judgement of value, quality, outcomes, results or size, rather than to provide a description of how the environment is affected by the local economic enterprise
• providing valid evidence such as statistics, examples and geographical terminology to add depth to their essay and provide structure to their response (introduction, body paragraphs and conclusion)
• making sure they understand the difference between local economic enterprise and global economic activity
• ensuring they address how the enterprise affects the environment and how the environment affects the economic enterprise evenly to have balanced extended response that addresses all aspects of the question.

Question 28

In better responses, students were able to: 

• demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the importance of ecosystem management and protection through the discussion of utility value, maintenance of genetic diversity, intrinsic values, and the need to allow natural change to proceed
• provide a sophisticated argument for and/or against the statement that utility value is the most important reason for managing and protecting ecosystems
• integrate relevant case studies, illustrative examples and the stimulus booklet. For example, the utility value of the Great Barrier Reef is important as it brings in billions of dollars from tourism and provides thousands of jobs. Heritage value is an equally important reason to protect the Great Barrier Reef as it is central to the lives of many indigenous groups. The Daintree Rainforest should be managed and protected for its intrinsic value, simply because it has the right to exist as it has done for many thousands of years, irrespective of it’s worth to humans.

Areas for students to improve include: 

• directly answering the question in relation to the reasons why ecosystems should be protected and managed, rather than describing management strategies or threats to ecosystems
• understanding the reasons why ecosystems should be managed and protected  
• understanding the meaning of ‘utility value’ as a reason why ecosystems should be managed and protected, as opposed to ‘utilisation’ of the ecosystems.

Question 29

In better responses, students were able to: 

• clearly demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the challenges faced by mega cities in the developing world with detailed reference to housing supply and quality, traffic congestion, health issues, employment issues and infrastructure problems, such as with transport, energy and water supplies, health facilities and sanitation
• support their knowledge and understanding of challenges with factual detail and reference to mega cities in the developing world
• demonstrate a detailed understanding of the reasons for the challenges faced by mega cities of the developing world. These reasons could include, but are not limited to:
  • rapid population growth through rural-urban migration (housing and employment challenges)
  • lack of government revenue to provide necessary services and infrastructure
  • poor planning by governments (resulting in traffic congestion and social and health issues)
  • lack of employment opportunities leading to social issues and crime
  • geographical constraints such as surrounding mountains trapping air pollutants and monsoons
• integrate evidence of reasons for challenges in mega cities in the developing world through illustrative examples and case studies.  

Areas for students to improve include:

• understanding that evaluating responses to challenges is not a reason for the challenges. This problem stemmed from many students assuming the question was about challenges and responses in mega cities
• understanding the requirements of the question, that is, to explain the reasons for the challenges and not just describe the challenges
• providing supporting evidence with illustrative examples and case studies using formal and factual expression, rather than colloquial expression or general discussion.