Population Geography Grade 7 CAPS PDF

What Is Population Geography? Population geography is the study of the people in various areas. It focuses on different factors such as where population groups are found, their size, composition and density in relation to the size of the land they occupy. It includes a study of these populations’ b...

What Is Population Geography? Population geography is the study of the people in various areas. It focuses on different factors such as where population groups are found, their size, composition and density in relation to the size of the land they occupy. It includes a study of these populations’ birth rates, death rates, migration and the effect these factors have on the environment. Why Should We Study Population Geography? By studying population geography, we are able to predict various things about the population and also see how best to fulfil their needs. This is especially helpful to governments who need to budget and plan for things like education. If they know how many children have been born, they can predict how many schools they will need in six years time. Birth, Death And Growth Rates Birth rate: calculated according to the number of babies born in a year compared to every 1 000 people in a country. Death rate: calculated according to the number of deaths in one year in a country for every 1 000 people. Population growth rate: calculated by working out the difference between the birth rate and death rate in a country. By working it out, you will be able to see if a country’s population is increasing, decreasing or staying the same. If the birth rate is higher than the death rate, the population is increasing. If the death rate is higher than the birth rate, the population is decreasing. Factors Affecting Birth And Death Rates There are various factors affecting birth and death rates in a country. Disease, the economic situation, attitudes and beliefs, climate, conflict and wars, and government policy are some of the factors that affect the birth rate and death rate. Did You Know…? In 1979, China introduced its 'one child per family policy’ to address the population growth of the country being too high. Families who only had one child were given cash bonuses, given better maternity leave and better child care, as well as a better chance of being given a government house. However, families who chose to have two children had up to half their income taxed, they could lose their jobs, have to pay a fine, their baby was aborted and they even sterilized the parents. Some parents were even sentenced to time in jail for breaking policy. The policy ended in 2016. Disease There are various contagious diseases such as tuberculosis, malaria, Ebola and cholera, can sweep though a country killing a large segment of a countries population. HIV and AIDS has also had a dramatic effect on the death rate in many countries, especially across Africa. Illnesses such as cholera and diarrhoea are especially dangerous for infants and can have a serious effect on the infant mortality rate of a country. When a disease spreads across a country, it is called an epidemic. If the same disease spreads to other countries, often rapidly, it is called a pandemic. Infant Mortality Rates Infants are children who are less than 1 year old. Infant mortality rates are calculated by studying the number of deaths of infants per 1000 live births. Infant Mortality Rate per 1000 (2010) Zimbabwe South Africa Egypt Botswana Kenya Mozambique Life Expectancy By studying various factors in a country, the life expectancy - the average number of years a person is expected to live - can be calculated. Usually, life expectancy is calculated for a whole country but with enough data, it can be calculated for a city or an area. Various things can affect life expectancy. Nutrition, education, health care, housing, pollution levels, the types of work people do and common diseases all affect life expectancy. Can you give some practical examples of how these things would affect life expectancy?  Pandemics And Their Affect On Global Populations The word pandemic comes from Greek ‘pandemos’ which means ‘pertaining to all people.’ Pandemics are usually caused by disease that spreads rapidly and can be deadly. They are often caused by a new disease or one that has no cure. It’s called a pandemic because it spreads widely across multiple countries and often has a death toll higher than an epidemic. The Spanish flu was the worst pandemic in history. 100 million people died from the Spanish flu from 1918 to 1920. The Black Death, a disease transmitted by fleas, killed 75 million people in between 1347 and 1351. Unfortunately due to our modern lifestyle, which includes global travel, a modern pandemic was likely and, in 2020, the world was hit by the COVID pandemic. Did You Know…? Surprisingly, The Black Death can be cured simply by taking antibiotics within 24 hours after contracting the disease. It’s a pity antibiotics weren’t around in the 14th century!  Pandemics And Their Affect On Global Populations People travelling and spreading disease has been a problem in the past, just as it will continue to be a problem in the future. Smallpox in South Africa is a good example of this problem. In 1713, a ship arrived in Cape Town from India. Smallpox-infected laundry was brought ashore. Nobody knew the sheets were contaminated with the smallpox virus. Local workers took the sheets to their village to wash them and about twelve days later, the workers and their families developed fevers, headaches and became weak. They developed blisters from the smallpox virus all over their bodies. Smallpox can be spread by coughing, sneezing and spitting so it spreads quickly. The spread of the disease happened rapidly across the Cape, killing a quarter of the Dutch farmers as well as 90% of the Khoi people, as they had almost no resistance to the virus. This was the first smallpox epidemic in southern Africa. Serious Diseases Affecting Our Population HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is believed to have spread from Cameroon in the 1950s, on to southern Africa and then across most countries in the world. At least 25 million people have died from the HIV and AIDS pandemic. About 36 million people across the world were infected with HIV and AIDS in 2010. Approximately two thirds of the people infected with HIV live in Africa, which often links to countries with a high death rate. Although there is no cure for HIV/AIDS, Antiretroviral drugs can help prolong the patient’s life and prevent transmission of the disease. Tuberculosis (TB) Tuberculosis is a disease that affects a person's lungs and their ability to breathe. It is easily spread through coughing or sneezing. When an infected person coughs or sneezes, the air is filled with tiny droplets that contain TB bacteria. If another person breathes in those droplets, he or she may become infected with TB. In areas of poverty or where people live in over crowded conditions, the disease spreads more easily. While TB is preventable through a vaccine and curable, after HIV/AIDS it is the disease that kills the most people globally each year. In 2010, 1.4 million people died from TB. Unfortunately, due to the nature of HIV/AIDS, many people who die of TB are also infected with HIV. About 900 people out of every 100 000 people in South Africa are currently infected with TB. TB can be cured so it is important that people who suspect that they may have been infected seek medical attention and then continue to take their medicine as long as it is prescribed.  Malaria Malaria is caused by a parasite that lives in blood. It is spread by certain kinds of mosquitoes. When an infected mosquito bites, it can spread the malaria parasite into that person’s blood. The parasite then grows inside the person’s liver, causing the disease known as malaria. Around a million deaths per year are caused by Malaria. Approximately 90% of malaria-related deaths are in Africa, and 70% of the victims are children, although the number of deaths is decreasing due to various projects currently being run across Africa. One of the projects provides mosquito nets for people to sleep under. People who suspect they may have been infected must seek medical attention. Diarrhoea Diarrhoea kills about 2000 children in Africa every day. Diarrhoea is a symptom of gastroenteritis, which can be caused by a viral or bacterial infection. Diarrhoea is dangerous as it causes the body to lose important liquids and minerals. If these liquids and minerals are not replaced, you can fall very ill and even die. Gastroenteritis is very contagious and epidemics occur more regularly in poor areas where the water is not treated to be safe to drink and there are no proper toilets. Diarrhoea can be prevented by ensuring that all drinking water is free of bacteria. This can be done by boiling or by treating with special chlorine based chemicals. Everyone should also wash their hands thoroughly with soap after using the toilet to prevent becoming infected. If someone has gastroenteritis, they can help replace the liquid and minerals by drinking the following solution: 1 litre of boiled water with 6 level teaspoons of sugar and ½ level teaspoon of salt dissolved into it. It is important that everyone seeks medical attention as well. Economic Status And Its Effect On Global Populations A person’s economic status refers to that person's income. Studying a population’s economic status helps you to calculate help how well that population lives. This allows you to identify links to birth and death rates. At one end of the economic status range are poor, underfed people in a developing (3rd world) country, and on the other end, are rich, well-fed people in a developed (1st world) country.  How Family Needs, Attitudes And Beliefs Affect Global Populations People in different cultures have different attitudes and beliefs about how many children they should have. Things that can influence attitudes and beliefs include the kind of work they do, their religion, traditions and customs. For example: in some African communities, it is the custom for leaders and very wealthy men to have many wives and children and some religions do not allow people to use modern family planning methods. To address the issue of overpopulation, some governments in Africa and Asia introduced campaigns that included incentives to help control population growth.  How Conflict And War Can Affect Global Populations Approximately 160 million people died Between 1900 and 2000 as a result of wars and conflicts across the world. Conflict is fighting between groups of people, often in the same country, while war refers to strategic fighting between countries. Wars and conflicts can affect birth and death rates. While soldiers are away fighting, birth rates reduce significantly. Wars and conflicts also prevent people from having access to normal nutrition and medical services. Many people die from hunger and disease during wars. Conflicts have resulted in large communities being murdered because of their race, religion or tribe. This kind of large-scale murder based on race, religion or tribe is called genocide. An example of genocide is the murder of Jews by the Nazis during the Second World War. Over 1.1 million children died during the Holocaust. Dramatic Global Population Growth The world is currently faced with unprecedented population growth. Increased food production, scientific developments and improved health care have all played a role in this population growth over the last 200 years. Increased food production The introduction of new methods, irrigation and the use of machinery dramatically increased food production on farms. This, coupled with the fact that people were taking this new technology with them on their travels to new lands, meant that food production across the world increased. Scientists started developing higher yielding plants and effective pesticides that resulted in the Green Revolution taking place from the 1950s to the 1970s where food production hit an all- time high.  Dramatic Global Population Growth Scientific developments Scientific developments have lowered the death rate substantially around the world with improvements in the areas of refrigeration, infection control, canned and frozen food, sanitation and disease control. Did You Know…? That irradiation of fresh meat, fruit and vegetables involves using ultraviolet rays, X-rays and gamma rays to kill bacteria and viruses on the outside of the food.  Dramatic Global Population Growth Improved health care Breakthroughs and developments in blood transfusion, surgery, medicines, immunization and through promotion of cleanliness, people have benefited from a longer life expectancy. Did You Know…? In 2010, only 55% of South Africa infants under the age of one were immunised against TB, polio, measles and hepatitis B. Did You Know…? Although a British doctor, Edward Jenner, invented a vaccine against smallpox in 1796 that saved many lives, smallpox was only finally eradicated in 1980.