Population Module
    Lesson 1 - Where in the world is the human population changing?
    Lesson 2 - How is population change linked to economic development?

    Lesson 3 - How does the social status and education of women affect a country's population?

    Lesson 4 - How can countries work together to solve problems related to population and resources?
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Lesson 1 - Page 1 - Where in the world is the human population changing?

Objectives: By successfully completing this lesson, your team will be able to:

  1. Use statistics and geographical methods to analyze population change.
  2. Describe and explain international trends in food production and population growth.
  3. Evaluate contrasting views about the effects of population growth on the local and global environment and food supply.

General Tips: Here are a few suggestions that can help your team complete this lesson together:

  • Click the icon to open a new window with instructions for completing the lesson's collaborative learning activities (listed as Step 1, Step 2, and so forth).
  • Your team should use the Group Discussion Board (located in the Communication area) to discuss questions that appear in blue boxes.
  • Important vocabulary terms are defined in the Glossary (located in the Documents area).
  • Complete this lesson according to the schedule provided by your instructor. Doing so will ensure that your team learns together.
  • Elect leaders for each local group who can help coordinate the efforts of the entire team.

What is population change?

Population change refers to the growth, decline, and movement of human populations over time. The science of population - demography - studies the characteristics of the human population, including fertility, mortality, and health. Geographers study demographic issues by focusing on the spatial characteristics of populations. For example, geographers ask questions such as: Why do population growth rates vary from place to place? How does population growth affect the availability of resources at local, national, and global scales? How can countries achieve sustainable use of environmental resources? Is population control necessary to raise the quality of life in poorer countries? Are wealthy countries consuming a disproportionate share of the world's resources, thereby depriving people living in the more populous developing regions? These are just some of the questions your team will consider in this module.

In this lesson, your team will learn geographical techniques for measuring and comparing population change in different places. Your team will use this information throughout this module to explore environmental, political, and social issues related to population change.