POPULATION

Lesson Objectives

By the end of this lesson we want to accomplish

1. Defining the key terms related to population;

2. Interpret maps used to show population distribution

and density.

3. Discuss the factors that influence population

distribution
 Population

• Population refers to the

total number of people
living in an area.
 What do you know about Population?
• What is the name of the branch of Geography that population falls

under?

• What term used to describe the study of population?

• How do we gather data about the population in our country?

• Which agency conducts census in Jamaica?

• How often is this activity conducted?

 What do you know about Population?
• What is the name of the branch of Geography that population falls

under? Human Geography

• What term used to describe the study of population? Demography

• How do we gather data about the population in our country? Census

• Which agency conducts census in Jamaica? Statistical Institute of

Jamaica STATIN

• How often is this activity conducted? Every 10 years

 Why do we need to study Population?
• Government planners needs to know how to prepare for the
population. E.g. schools, hospitals, nursing homes, roads etc.

• To identify how fast the human resources that is needed to

develop the country is growing and identify their talents and
abilities so that they can be trained.
 Population Distribution

Population distribution describes the way in which people are

spread out over a given region.

The population is unevenly distributed globally, regionally and

nationally.

Population distribution also changes over time.

Activity

Use the population distribution map of Jamaica on the previous slide to

answer the following questions.
1. In which parish is the population most densely distributed?
2. Name two parishes in which there is more even distribution of
population and give reasons for your answer.
3. Name the parish in which the population is more compact in its
distribution and give reasons for your answer.
4. Name the area that is the least populated and give at least one reason
for your answer.
Population density “lets watch
a video)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bbs-gwmAuGw
Population Density

Population density refers to the number of people in a square

unit of area in each place.

How to calculate Population Density

Population
Density
Example
 Relief
Lowlands are more attractive for building settlements because it is easier to construct
roads and houses on flat and gently sloping land. For example, Kingston City is built
on the Liguanea Plain. Several other capitals are built on low lying plains such as

1._________________________________

2.________________________________

3._______________________________

On the other hand, steep slopes and mountains are more difficult for building
settlements and roads for example

1. Blue Mountain

2. Cockpit Country
Would you live in
any of these
locations? Why
or Why Not?
Drainage
Poorly drained areas such as marshes and swamps are not suitable for
settlement or agriculture and therefore have sparse populations. For
example:
1. Black River Morass
2. Negril Morass
Explanation- Swamps are not ideal for building house because they don’t
provide a firm foundation. In addition, swamps are associated with reptiles
and mosquitoes which can spread diseases such as dengue fever.
Swamps maybe reclaimed for settlement and agricultural use and in such
cases may support high population densities.
Large areas of swampy lowlands have been reclaimed in
Portmore, St Catherine and this area supports a high population
density.
Can you name the activities taking place in
the images?

Do you think a lot of people would gravitate

to areas with these activities? Why or Why
Not?
 Industry
Industries attract high population densities because of employment
opportunities, higher paying jobs and higher standards of living.

For example:
The development of food processing, garment and other industries
has led to high population densities in Kingston and Spanish Town
or Tourism in Montego Bay and Ocho Rios.

The development of bauxite mining has created jobs which attract

well-paid workers. This has led to the development of the town of
 Poster Activity

Create a poster on the factors influencing population

distribution:
The poster should include:
A title
A one or two sentences how each factor influences
population distribution.
e.g.
Relief- relief is a factor that influences population distribution because person prefer to
live in low lying areas such as liguanea rather than mountainous areas such as cockpit
coutry.
 ACTIVITY

Examine the map of Jamaica in your atlas on pages 40-41 and

then answer these questions:

1. Name the type of map used to show population distribution_______

2. Identify two areas that have low population density
3. Identify one physical feature in each parish that may have impacted
low population density
4. Explain how relief has impacted population density in these two areas.
5. Identify one area that has high population density then name the
industry that has impacted population density in this areas.
 Additional Information

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bbs-gwmAuGw