Defining development
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can define quality of life and development and understand how their definitions have changed over time.
Key learning points
- Quality of life has multiple aspects, some of which are subjective such as life satisfaction.
- Development is a contested term often linked to a limited (Eurocentric), outdated view of economic progress.
- Its definition has broadened over time to include human welfare, social and environmental justice.
- The process of development is neither inevitable nor apolitical.
Keywords
Quality of life - for individuals or the community, a measure of social and economic well-being
Built environment - the parts of places in which we live that have been built by people, rather than exist in nature
Life satisfaction - a subjective measure of happiness used to compare countries
Development - the progress of a country in terms of wealth, use of technology and human welfare
Common misconception
That a single image can help us to understand how quality of life is different in distant places.
While images can be of use they can not depict all aspects of life, moreover each image can only ever show a single place or group of people. Within any country there is a diversity of lived experience.
Teacher tip
You might try to highlight the way in which our understanding of the way quality of life varies around the world is coloured by our own experiences and the Eurocentric nature of our culture. Some aspects of quality of life are subjective and difficult to interrogate at a distance.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.When we consider intergovernmental organisations, what does U.N. stand for?
Q2.According to the UN, how many countries are there?
Q3.Which of the following is not an aim of the UN's development programme?
Q4.Where are the headquarters of the UN? in the USA.
Q5.The UN's current goals are known as the Sustainable Development Goals. Sustainable development balances current needs with those of ...
Q6.What was the last set of UN development goals known as? (They had to be delivered in 15 years by 2015.)
Assessment exit quiz
4 Questions
Q1.Which of these is a multi-aspect measure of social and economic well-being?
Q2.Which of these mean the parts of places in which we live that have been built by people, rather than exist in nature.
Q3.Reorder the following five stages of economic development or 'modernisation' into the order suggested by Rostow.
Q4.Which of the following is not one of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals that relate to the protection of the environment?
To help you plan your 11 geography lesson on: Defining development, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 11 geography lesson on: Defining development, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
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Explore more key stage 4 geography lessons from the Global variations in economic development unit, dive into the full secondary geography curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.