Oil - A Natural Resource

The Curriculum

The review of the Geography Orders at KS3 requires that elements of skills, places and themes should feature in all geographic studies whether the focus is a place or a theme. It is unlikely that the new criteria for GCSE examining groups will continue this philosophy.

This thematic study of the oil industry contains examples on local, national and global scales. The suggested tasks for students call for a variety of skills - graphical, cartographic, oral and written.

The study aims to extend the students' knowledge of the industry, and enable them to develop their values and opinions about economic and environmental aspects of the industry.

It should be of use to new GCSE courses and other KS4 programmes of study which require the study of human use of natural resources.

Contents

• Introduction
• Origins
• Location of World Proven Oil Reserves
• Who Uses the World's Oil?
• UK Oil and Gas
• Case Study: The Burnbridge Project
• Oil Spills
• Looking to the Future

The Author:

John Lewis is Head of Geography at Padgate School, Warrington. Padgate is an 11-18 school which has previously been involved in the Geographical Association's "Geography, Schools and Industry Project" (GSIP). The school has also worked closely with local industry, developing resources to teach Environmental Education.

© Institute of Petroleum