Essay Questions for Semester Exam

For the Human Geography Semester Exam, you will write essays from the following prompts. Sections 101 and 102 will write one essay; the Honors section will write two essays. The essays should be written in five-paragraph format:

• Paragraph 1: an introduction with a clear thesis (topic sentence). This paragraph should include three essential points, and set the structure for the rest of the essay
• Paragraph 2: start with your strongest point, and give evidence to support it  
• Paragraph 3: make another essential point, again giving evidence to support it  
• Paragraph 4: next, present your second strongest point, and give important facts to support it  
• Paragraph 5: sum things up with a strong conclusion, where you summarize (don’t just repeat) the essence of your essay, tying it all together

Students will print their essays and turn them in at the beginning of class on Friday, December 14. Late papers will be docked one letter grade for each day they are late.

Here are your prompts:

Option A: Choose three nations from three different parts of the world. Discuss the challenges they face regarding population and migration, using information we learned during our studies (perhaps including CIA World Factbook data, population pyramids, Net Migration Rates, possible overpopulation or underpopulation). Also, analyze what each nation's leaders need to do to deal with these challenges.

Option B:  Consider our studies of immigration, push and pull forces, quotas, asylum, legal and illegal immigrants, civil rights and human rights, and the current state of our nation. Then, thoughtfully answer these questions: What are the different ways in which United States immigration policy has evolved over the last 100 years? What are the positive and negative effects of these policies? What immigration policies would you recommend the US implement right now, and what would be the effects (both positive and negative) of your policies?

Option C: Consider our studies of fertility (which include data on CBR and TFR) and mortality (CDR, Infant Mortality Rate, Life Expectancy, and Rate of Natural Increase). Describe the four (or five) stages of the Demographic Transition, beginning with the Industrial Revolution, proceeding to the present day, and projecting into the future. Be sure to discuss individual countries as you describe the different stages.


Students will have a chance to fine-tune their essays in class through a peer-review process. The Honors class will do this on Wed, Dec 12; sections 101 and 102 will do this on Thu, Dec 13. All three classes will review for the objective part of the semester exam on Fri, Dec 14.

The essay(s) will count for 25% of your exam grade; the objective portion will be 75%.

Also, as you requested, here is the link to the podcast we listened to in class on immigrants seeking asylum.

In addition, here is a link to a video on sanctuary cities.

Also, I promised Section 102 I would post the last three slides of the "Why Do Migrants Face Challenges?" PowerPoint. So here they are!

•Immigration Concerns in Europe

–Population growth in Europe is fueled by immigration from other regions of the world, a trend disliked by many Europeans.

•Biggest fear is that the host country’s culture will be lost, because immigrants:

–adhere to different religions

–speak different languages

–practice different food and other cultural habits

•Hostility to immigrants has become a central plank of some political parties in many European countries.

–Immigrants blamed for crime, unemployment rates, and high welfare costs.

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•Europeans as Emigrants

–Inhospitable climate for immigrants in Europe is especially ironic.

•Europe was the source of most of the world’s emigrants, during the nineteenth century.

•Most Europeans fear losing their cultural heritage to that of new immigrants, while:

–Indo-European languages are now spoken by half of the world, as a result of European emigrants.

–Christianity has the world’s largest number of adherents.

–European art, music, literature, philosophy, and ethics have diffused throughout the world.

•Characteristics of Migrants

–Ravenstein noted:

•Most long-distance migrants are male.

•Most long-distance migrants are adult individuals rather than families with children.

•Most long-distance migrants are young adults seeking work rather than children or elderly people.