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Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus (2025)– information for school leaders

Learn about the Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus (2025) – what has changed and where to get further support.

The Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus (2025) replaces content in the Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus (2019). Planning and preparation will commence from 2025 with implementation in 2028.

The syllabus recognises the critical importance of physical and human geography, providing students with an understanding of the dynamic interactions between people, places and environments.

What you need to know

  • The Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus (2025) will be taught in all NSW high schools from 2028.
  • The Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus (2025) is a live document available via NESA’s digital platform. NESA will continue to add teaching advice and support materials throughout the implementation process.
  • The department recommends a staggered implementation for the 200-hour course to ensure continuity of learning for Years 7 to 10.
  • In a staggered implementation approach, the 200-hour Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus (2025) will be implemented first to Years 7 and 9 (2028) and in the following year to Years 8 and 10 (2029). (See ‘Secondary option B’ in Models of curriculum implementation – secondary)
  • Implement the 100-hour Geography Elective 7–10 (2025) course in full for 2028.
  • The NSW Department of Education will be providing support materials to assist schools and guide the implementation process on the Planning, programming and assessing HSIE 7–10 webpage.
  • NSW syllabuses accommodate teaching approaches that support student diversity.

The Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus (2025) includes:

  • refined outcomes that increase clarity regarding the knowledge, understanding and skills students should be able to demonstrate
  • teaching advice that clarifies content and supports teachers to make informed pedagogical decisions
  • a new focus area ‘Extreme Environments’
  • 9 outcomes reduced to 8 outcomes
  • clear distinction between physical and human geography focus areas
  • the content group, ‘Thinking and working geographically’ is a new addition to the Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus (2025) in every focus area
  • 14 outcomes in the Life Skills course
  • all 9 focus areas from the Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus (2025) appear in the Life Skills course
  • Life Skills outcomes have been aligned to the Stage 5 outcomes to facilitate integrated delivery.
Geographical concepts, Geographical inquiry skills and Geographical tools appear from left to the right at the top of the diagram. The Geographical concepts include place, space, environment, interconnection, scale, sustainability and change. The Geographical inquiry skills include acquiring, processing and communicating geographical information. The Geographical tools include maps, fieldwork, data and statistics, spatial technologies, and additional geographical representations. These 3 groups are connected by a line to Thinking and working geographically and to Knowledge, understanding and skills, to demonstrate the interconnected nature of the learning. Encompassed within this line are 9 focus areas. Under the heading of Focus on physical geography are the focus areas Planet Earth, Extreme environments, Oceanography and Interactions and patterns across a continent. Under the heading Focus on human geography are the focus areas Global citizenship, Geopolitics, Australias neighbours and Primary production. The ninth focus area School-developed option overlaps both Focus on physical geography and Focus on human geography. Geographical concepts, Geographical inquiry skills and Geographical tools appear from left to the right at the top of the diagram. The Geographical concepts include place, space, environment, interconnection, scale, sustainability and change. The Geographical inquiry skills include acquiring, processing and communicating geographical information. The Geographical tools include maps, fieldwork, data and statistics, spatial technologies, and additional geographical representations. These 3 groups are connected by a line to Thinking and working geographically and to Knowledge, understanding and skills, to demonstrate the interconnected nature of the learning. Encompassed within this line are 9 focus areas. Under the heading of Focus on physical geography are the focus areas Planet Earth, Extreme environments, Oceanography and Interactions and patterns across a continent. Under the heading Focus on human geography are the focus areas Global citizenship, Geopolitics, Australias neighbours and Primary production. The ninth focus area School-developed option overlaps both Focus on physical geography and Focus on human geography.
Image: Figure 1: The organisation of Geography Elective 7–10

The organisation of Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus image is from Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus (2025) @ NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA), for and on behalf of the Crown in right of the State of New South Wales, 2025.

Prior to implementing the Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus (2025), leaders will need to consider the following:

  • complexities for staff working from 2 syllabuses to teach the 200-hour Geography 7–10 course during the staggered implementation (syllabus differences include structure, language and pedagogy)
  • complexities for staff implementing multiple HSIE syllabuses from 2027, including the History 7–10 Syllabus (2024) and the Geography 7–10 Syllabus (2024)
  • building teacher knowledge and understanding of appropriate protocols for collaborating with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities and engaging with Cultural works
  • supporting teachers’ understanding of the principles of inclusive education, adjustments and access to the HSIE curriculum for all learners
  • resource and budget implications, such as
    • providing time for staff to engage with the syllabus and develop their skills and understanding in order to plan and effectively implement the syllabus from 2028
    • determining what resources are currently available to address the new framework
  • exploring ways to adopt and adapt the sample materials provided by the department and curriculum materials developed in school to deliver the course in an engaging way that is appropriate for your school context
  • all decisions about curriculum options for a student with intellectual disability should be made through the collaborative curriculum planning process
  • suitability of a Life Skills pattern of study for students.

The syllabus for Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus (2025) is based on evidence highlighting that:

  • students learn geography most effectively through a coherent, knowledge-rich curriculum
  • the discipline of geography is defined by core concepts such as place, space, environment, interconnection, scale and sustainability
  • student learning improves when curriculum content is deliberately selected, sequenced and revisited
  • culturally responsive curriculum enhances engagement and understanding
  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives must be embedded authentically in curriculum.

Geography Elective 7–10 Syllabus (2025) © NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) for and on behalf of the Crown in right of the State of New South Wales, (2025).

  • What school practices and systems are in place to support teacher professional learning? How are these evaluated to maximise support for teachers?
  • How will the current skills and understanding of staff enable collaborative curriculum implementation? What explicit systems are in place to foster collaboration?
  • What resources are required to commence syllabus implementation and meet planning, programming, assessing, and reporting requirements?
  • How will the school’s plan for curriculum implementation be evaluated? How might this evaluation inform the implementation of future syllabuses?
  • How has the school engaged with department resources and support for curriculum implementation, for example, Curriculum networks, curriculum resources, professional learning, and DEL network initiatives?

Further support

Syllabus information for school leaders

An overview of the pedagogical changes and whole school considerations to support school leaders’ understanding of what has changed for each new syllabus.

Leading curriculum K–12

Advice and resources supporting leaders to facilitate effective curriculum implementation in schools.

Category:

  • Teaching and learning

Business Unit:

  • Curriculum
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