Geography O Level Tips and Tricks

Geography may seem like a daunting subject, especially given the content load and the complexity of the subject itself. However, Geography is in fact very relevant to our world today and allows us to critically explore various issues. In this article, we hope to share with you tips on how to navigate studying for Geography and ensure you’re exam ready !

Focus on solidifying your content knowledge

• CK is important for the WHOLE paper, not just for essays. Be it for structured questions (eg. explain…, account for…) or LDQ (pointing out impacts, mitigation measures…) you need to ensure your content knowledge is clear and applicable.
• Divide and conquer: Use the different gateways as ‘headers’ for the different points in the chapter you are studying eg. under weather and climate there’s elements of weather, climate change and tropical cyclones. Organise the different information based on the relevant headers.
• Study less information but more frequently. The content for Geography can seem intimidating, hence it is wise to study a bit of information over a longer period of time so that it will be easier for you to understand and remember the content. Spaced Repetition and Active Recall are 2 study methods which work great for content heavy subjects.
• Physical geography in comparison to human geography has a lot more processes, such as the formation of volcanoes and monsoon seasons. For processes, make use of diagrams and maps to facilitate your understanding. Once you can see the connection from one step to another, answering becomes very intuitive.

• Another way to ensure you learn content with relevance to answering questions in the exam is by creating flashcards with the question on the front and the answer at the back. Especially for learning processes, such a method can be very helpful in memorising.
• Make use of case studies. These examples are typically the most useful as they have the relevant data you will need for answering any long
• response question. Don’t underestimate them.

Choose case studies that involve multiple chapters

• Revise geographical terms, processes and don’t just memorise answers. Oftentimes, questions may ask you to explain a certain process — while it is easy to think you may just be able to dump content, do note that questions may be tweaked in a way such that your memorised answer would not be relevant. Hence, it is crucial that you actually understand the process and are able to answer various questions about it regardless of the way the question is phrased. This also boils down to practising questions and making sure you’re comfortable with answering as many questions as possible.
• Clarify doubts about concepts and processes with teachers. Whenever you’re in doubt, do not let your questions snowball. Immediately consult your teacher about your queries so you quickly get a better grasp on the concept and your foundation is clear.

Answering Technique

• Understand question requirements (key words, command words) This step is easy to ignore as your instinct would be to immediately jump into answering the question. However, take the time to carefully look at the question and understand what is required of your answer so that it does not go off point.
• Read the question carefully at least 3 times, make sense of any and all information given, look at mark allocation and answer point by point. Also ensure you define the keywords stated in the question.
• Use past papers to revise your answering technique. Look at why your teacher marked your answers wrong, note the correct answer and learn from these mistakes.
• Look through the syllabus document. It has the outline of content tested within the syllabus, definitions of key geographical terms you should include in your answers as well as command words used in the questions.
• elective geography: https://www.seab.gov.sg/docs/default-source/national-examinations/syllabus/olevel/2021syllabus/2272_y21_sy.pdf
• pure geography: https://www.seab.gov.sg/docs/default-source/national-examinations/syllabus/olevel/2021syllabus/2236_y21_sy.pdf

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