Population Change Revision - Edexcel Geography Gcse

Population Change Revision By Diane Stetcu

Key words Population – the people living in an area Population distribution – how people are spread out in a place

Population density – the number of people per square km (how crowed an area is)

Densely populated – more than 50 people per km² (crowed) Sparsely populated – less than 10 people per km²

Orange = human factors

Yellow = physical factors

Good education system

Flat land (easy to build on)

Tourist attractions Why are areas DENSLEY populated?

Mild climate (easy to live in)

Good health care

Fertile soil Easy access to river or sea

Job opportunities (more money)

So, why are areas sparsely populated?

Orange = human factors

Yellow = physical factors Infertile soil Extreme climate; too hot or cold (difficult to live in)

High relief (hard to access)

Poor/no education system

No tourist attractions Why are areas SPARSELY populated? Poor health care

Lack of water Inaccessible

No job opportunities

Factors that determine population change Infant mortality – the number of babies per 1000 born that die before their first birthday. Immigrants – a person who moves into an area or country. Birth rate – the number of births per 1000 people in a year.

Carrying capacity – the maximum number of people that can be supported by the resources and technology of a given area.

Death rate – the number of deaths per 1000 people per year. Natural change – the birth rate minus the death rate.

Migration – the long-term movement of people. Emigrants – a person who moves out of an area or country.

Example of natural change Country

Birth rate

Death rate

Swaziland Cambodia

27.0 25.5

30.4 8.2

Rate of natural change -3.4 17.3

Chile UK

15.0 10.7

5.9 10.1

9.1 0.6

Why do birth and death rates vary as a country develops? Social

Economic

• Women are educated about contraception in HICs and would want to focus on their career.

• In HICs, it’s expensive to bring up a child.

• Also, couples will want smaller families. • In LICs, they have less knowledge about maternity and women aren’t as likely to continue their education.

• £186,032 to raise a child until they’re 21. • In LICs, children are considered a financial asset. • In HICs, children are considered a financial burden.

Medical

Political

• HICs continuously have now treatments for diseases.

• China have introduced the One Child Policy to reduce the birth rate.

• LICs struggle, with people dying from simple diseases.

• Other countries have introduced incentives to increase birth rates, such as Singapore.

Case study: Poland and the falling birth rates Women want to work and be independent

More young people, especially women, want to continue their education Housing shortage

Women don’t want to risk losing their jobs after maternity leave

Improving public kindergarten

Reasons for a declining birth rate

Unemployment didn’t exist during the communist government era Now couples are worried to start a family because they don’t have financial security.

More flats are being built

The cost of raising children is increasing Extend maternity leave

Government incentives to increase birth rates

Pays couples for each child they have

Demographic Transition Model

The Demographic Transition Model explanation Stage 1 – High fluctuating

Stage 2 – Early expanding

Stage 3 – Late expanding

What?

High birth rate and death rate

High birth rate, falling death rate

High birth rate, falling Low birth rate and death rate low death rate

Why?

• • • •

• •

•

Where?

No contraception Religion Infant mortality No medical care or hygiene

Rainforest tribes

•

Better hygiene Better health care Improved education

Banglaesh

•

Contraception is available Women are continuing their education

Brazil

Stage 4 – Low fluctuating

• • •

Stage 5 - Decline Death rate is higher than birth rate

Health care is • good Contraception widely used Education is being continued

Japan/UK

Women are very focused on their careers

Germany

Population and precipitation distribution of China

Towards the west of China, it’s sparsely populated. This is because there is less than 50mm of precipitation per year. Kashgar is an example. In East and South East China, it’s densely populated. Areas such as Shanghai have over 520 people per square mile. This is because there is low relief and high precipitation. Additionally, there’s easy access to sea.

Case study: China’s One Child Policy Why? • An economic reform was taking place • To improve living standards • In 1979, China had ¼ of the world’s population! • ⅔ of the population were under the age of 30 • People born in the 1950s and 60s were entering their reproducing years

Case study: China’s One Child Policy (continued) Receive heavy fines Longer maternity leave

Better child care

Free medical care Cash bonuses

Incentives

Women who have children already are urged to use contraception or undergo sterilisation

Could be sacked from their job

Disincentives

Free education Couples are given a ‘onechild certificate’ package

Preferential housing arrangements

“Granny police” monitor child births, how many children couples have, catch out liars

Women with unauthorised pregnancies are pressured to have abortions

Couples are required to pledge not to have more children

Case study: China’s One Child Policy (continued)

Urban residents and government employees have to follow the policy and is strictly enforced

Recent changes to the One Child Policy

Exceptions include if the first child has a disability or if both parents work in highrisk occupations such as mining

In rural areas (approx. 70% live there), a second child is generally allowed after 5 years if the first child is a girl

A third child is allowed in some ethnic minorities and in remote, unpopulated areas

Case study: Singapore, three or more Why? • They feared the economy would collapse • The population was decreasing after a ‘two is enough’ policy • They also feared they wouldn’t have enough workers

Case study: Singapore, three or more (continued) 2nd

4th

– child has a savings account

More children means a bigger flat/property 3 months maternity leave for mothers

$3,000 for the 1st and $6,000 for the 3rd nd 2 child and 4th child

Sterilisation isn’t allowed unless you’ve had 3 or more children

$95 for a maid

Incentives

Disincentives 5 days of paid childcare leave a year

3 days of paternity leave on the birth of the first 4 children

Couples with one child or none can only buy a 3 bedroom flat

Case study: Ageing population in Japan Disadvantages • Workforce: businesses are struggling to recruit. Many pensioners are having to continue to work. A solution is to encourage migrant labour.

• Pensions: the Prime Minister has introduced reforms which includes the retirement age being increased from 60 to 65 by 2030 and higher pension contributions from employers, employees and the government. • Health care: Many pensioners are living in nursing homes or care homes now. This is putting pressure on the health budget, more than half goes towards caring for the elderly.

• In 2006, incentives were introduced to promote independent living at home. A health insurance scheme for over 75s were introduced in 2007. It has been nicknamed the ‘hurry up and die’ scheme.

• To shorten hospital admissions, a fee a hospital receives after 100 days goes up. • One care home has hundreds on the waiting list, not enough staff work there for everyone to be admitted.

Case study: Ageing population in Japan (continued) Advantages • The greying yen: the elderly saved money. Now, Japanese pensioners are spending; buying luxury goods, travelling and indulging their taste for expensive food. This benefits their economy. • In the past, their saved money would go to their children to help look after them at an old age. • Now, children are doing less of the caring. • Technology: Japan has a range of gadgets to support the ageing population. It allows young relatives to keep in touch with their elderly relatives.

• This includes an online kettle that automatically sends emails to up to three people when it’s switched on. • Also, internet-linked sensors that can be attached to fridge doors and bathroom mats.

Population pyramids Short life expectancy

High birth rate

Long life expectancy

LIC

HIC Low birth rate

Key words Life expectancy – the average number of years a person is expected to live

Economically Active Population – people aged 15-65 who are of working age

Dependent population – the people aged under 15 and over 65 that are relying on the rest of the population to work and pay taxes to ensure a good quality of life (health care, education, etc.)

Economic Dependency Ratio – the % of people working compared to those people who are not. A high % of people working is good for the economy.