Temasek Junior College 2019 Preliminary Exams

H2 Geography Paper 2 Marking Guide

SECTION A

Theme 4: Geographical Investigation

1 A group of twenty 17-year students in East Sussex, United Kingdom were

tasked with undertaking a fieldwork exercise on a river in their town
Uckfield to investigate how land use changes have affected the risk of
flooding along the river.

Before conducting their investigation, they did some secondary research

and found information on the land use changes that had taken place.
They also studied a map of the 2000 flood event to broadly identify a
medium to high probability flood zone for investigation.

Using the flood zone map shown in Resource 2, they proceeded to sub-
divide the study area into zones and carried out a bi-polar survey at these
zones to identify sources of flood risk, as well as to determine the
vulnerability of the area from any flood occurrence. They walked along the
river on a Wednesday over six hours in summer to conduct this bi-polar
survey.

Some of the equipment they brought along included:

 base map of the area

 recording sheets for the bi-polar survey
 writing instruments
 camera
 measuring tape

When they returned to the classroom in the following week, the students
analysed the data they had collected and produced a report.

Study Resources 1, 2 and 3. Resource 1 shows the land use changes in

the river basin. Resource 2 shows the flood zone map for investigation.
Resource 3 shows a recording sheet of the bi-polar survey used at one
site.

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(a) Suggest a suitable hypothesis for the students' investigation with

reference to Resources 1 and 2. [1]

Urbanisation has increased the flood risk on the northern bank more than
the southern bank of River Uck.

(b) Using Resources 2 and 3, describe an appropriate sampling method to

conduct the bi-polar survey. Justify your method. [7]

Two-step approach to area sampling.

- Firstly, the flood map could be sub-divided into zones
- Secondly, the students could adopt a various approaches of
sampling to conduct the bi-polar survey.

The reasons for choosing the sampling method should be stated clearly,
and there should be attempts to use the equipment outlined in the
preamble in the collection of data.

(c) Describe a suitable method to represent the information from the bi-polar
environmental survey shown in Resource 3 onto a base map similar to
Resource 2. Justify your choice of method. [5]

There are two possible methods.

- Use of a radar chart
- Construct a choropleth map

Justification for methods chosen:

- Allows for easy comparisons
- Effective representation of data collected due to the inherent
nature of these presentations

(d) Explain how the reliability of the flood risk investigation findings may be
affected by the data which was collected using the recording sheet shown
in Resource 3. [5]

- Present flood risk: Overall score of 6 but findings may be unreliable

- Subjectivity may be introduced in the recording processes
- Possible operator errors
- Data collected for only one day and in summer where discharge is
presumably lower
- Unable to assess the effectiveness of flood mitigation measures
during low discharge conditions

(e) The local council has asked the group to gather river channel information
that will help in mitigating flood risk in the town. Explain how the group

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would go about gathering the information. [7]

Stage 1, 2 and 3 of the geographical investigation process should be

detailed and explained. Channel variables could be collected. There could
be a systematic sampling of channel variables along the river in the study.
For instance, the upstream, mid-stream and downstream sampling could
be conducted. Students would need to collect information on the normal
flow as well as the bankfull discharge based on visual markers. Students
need to propose the equipment used and how they would go about
conducting the investigation to ensure data accuracy and reliability.

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SECTION B

Theme 1: Tropical Environments

Climate and Fluvial Systems in West Africa

2 Resource 4 shows the rainfall variations across West Africa. Resource 5

shows the location and discharge patterns of the Niger River, a major
river in West Africa, over three decades. Resource 6 shows the sediment
regime of the upper Niger River basin in terms of Total Dissolved Solids
(TDS) and Total Suspended Solids (TSS). Resource 7 shows a section of
the Niger River before the Niamey discharge station.

(a) Using Resource 4, account for the variations in rainfall across the three
locations in West Africa. [5]

Patterns:
Rainfall generally decreases further inland from the coast.
Strong seasonally in rainfall patterns through the year.

Possible explanations include:

- Influence of ITCZ and STHP
- Effect of the African Monsoon
- Continentality

(b) With the help of Resource 4 and your own knowledge, suggest reasons
for the main changes in discharge for the Niger River over time shown in
Resource 5. [5]

The discharge pattern is that of a simple river regime.

Possible reasons include:

- Rainfall patterns
- Inherent characteristics of channel

Possible reasons for the higher inter-year discharge and higher flood
peaks include:
- Climate change
- ITCZ variability
- Human activities

(c) Describe the downstream changes in sediment load carried by the Niger
River in its upper basin shown in Resource 6. [2]

- Increases in absolute amount of TDS and TSS downstream

- Increasing proportion of TSS downstream

(d) With the aid of a cross-sectional sketch at X-Y shown in Resource 7,

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describe the main fluvial characteristics of the Niger River. [4]

Sketch should include these features:

- flanking channels
- erosional features
- mid-channel bars

(e) Using all the resources, assess the factors influencing the channel
morphology of the Niger River shown in Resource 7. [9]

For a 9m qn, a clear argument and evaluation is required.

Students will need to use the resources to assess the relative influence of
various factors in influencing the channel morphology of the Niger River.
Some factors that they will need to analyse include:
- discharge and sediment regime
- climate
- relief

Answers are levels marked as per the level descriptors in the syllabus
document for Open Ended 9m DRQ.

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Theme 2: Development, Economy and Environment

Global Production Network of BMW

3 BMW is a transnational corporation headquartered in Germany and is the

one of the world’s leading producer of automobiles.

Resource 8 shows BMW’s production network in 2018. Resource 9 shows

BMW’s automobile sales volume across different countries and regions
from 2007 to 2016. Resource 10 shows projected changes in the share of
ASEAN households in different income brackets from 2010 to 2025.
Resource 11 shows the distribution of economic zones in ASEAN in 2015.

(a) Describe the spatial organisation of BMW’s intra-firm network shown in

Resource 8. [4]

Suggested points include:

- Dominance in Europe, with all functions seen
- Each continent has facililties
- Some of the functions are only specific to certain continents

(b) Compare the changes in automobile sales volume between 2007 and
2016 for the European Union and USA shown in Resource 9. [4]

Suggested points include:

- Similar sales volume trend
- Different total sales volume
- Rate of increase

(c) Using Resource 9 and your own knowledge, suggest reasons for the
location of BMW’s joint ventures shown in Resource 8. [5]

The locations are USA and China.

Possible reasons include:

- USA: market size, labour profile, existing facilities to tap on
- China: growing market, state restrictions to be overcome

(d) Outline the projected changes in percentage of ASEAN households in

different income brackets from 2010 to 2025 shown in Resource 10. [3]

Suggested points include:

- Increasing proportion of households in all brackets other than basic
consumers

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- Shift in what is the higher proportion

- Smallest proportion remains the same

(e) With reference to the resources and your own knowledge, recommend
whether BMW should expand its production network in ASEAN. [9]

For a 9m qn, a clear argument and evaluation is required.

Drawing on the resources and their own knowledge, students will mark an
argument for BMW to expand its production in ASEAN. They will then
raise some concerns about doing so as a counterargument, before coming
to an overall evaluation.

Answers are levels marked as per the level descriptors in the syllabus
document for Open Ended 9m DRQ.

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Theme 3: Sustainable Development

Liveability of Auckland, New Zealand

4 Auckland in New Zealand has risen over the years to become one of the
most liveable cities in the world. It ranked 3 rd in the 2019 Mercer Quality of
Living Survey, only behind Vienna, Austria and Zurich, Switzerland. There
has been constant efforts by the local government to improve Auckland’s
liveability.

Resource 12 shows the changes in Auckland’s liveability scores monitored

by the local government from 2011-2012. Resource 13 is an image of
Wynyard Quarter, an inner city area of Auckland, before and after
reimaging. Resource 14 shows the proportion of elderly females in
Auckland residing in government-provided residential care facilities
between 1993 and 2008.

(a) Describe the changes in Auckland’s liveability scores between 2011 and
2012 as shown in Resource 12. [5]

Suggested points include:

- Mostly positive score across categories
- Variations in how much improvement is made
- A few categories worsened between 2011 and 2012

(b) Outline how the measurements of Auckland’s liveability shown in

Resource 12 may be limited in its usefulness. [4]

Suggested points include:

- Data only gives percent changes but not actual values.
- Number of years of comparison is too few to show improvement
- Broader scope of liveability not considered by indicators
- Question of liveability for whom not tackled in data

(c) Contrast the liveability of Wynyard Quarter before and after reimaging as
shown in Resource 13. [6]

Students could be guided by these principles:

- Looking at liveability by its various dimensions (social, economic,
environmental)
- Looking at aspects in the photo to differentiate the before and after
reimaging scenario. These include land use, infrastructure,
architecture.

(d) With reference to Resource 14, describe and account for the percent of
elderly females in government-provided residential care facilities in 1993
across different age groups. [5]

Description: increasing proportion as age groups progresses

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Explanation could include:

- Physical factors associated with different age groups
- Economic situation of elderly
- Support networks

(e) Suggest reasons for the percent change in female Aucklanders aged 80-
84 years old between 1993 and 2008 in government-provided residential
care facilities as seen in Resource 14. [5]

Possible reasons include:

- Role of technology
- Role of the economy
- Role of government
- Perceptions of elderly

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