Migration

An understanding of the ways in which the human population is organized geographically provides AP students with the tools they need to make sense of cultural, political, economic, and urban systems . Thus many of the concepts and theories encountered in this part of the course connect with other course units In addition the course themes of scale, pattern, place, and interdependence can all be illustrated with population topics . For example, students may analyze the distribution of the human population at different scales: global, regional, national, state or provincial, and local . Explanations of why population is growing or declining in some places center on understanding the patterns and trends of fertility, mortality, and migration . In stressing the relevance of place context, for example, students may assess why fertility rates have dropped in some parts of the developing world, examine how age–sex structures (shown in population pyramids) vary from one country to another, and comprehend the social, political, and economic implications of an aging population . Analysis of refugee flows, immigration, internal migration, and residential mobility helps students appreciate the interconnections between population phenomena and other topics . For example, environmental degradation and natural hazards may prompt population redistribution at various scales, which in turn creates new pressures on the environment . This part of the course also enhances students’ critical understanding of population trends across space and over time by considering models of population 

growth and decline, including Malthusian theory, the demographic transition, and the epidemiological (mortality) transition model . For example, as a country develops, the economic, social, and political roles of women in society change and influence levels of fertility, mortality rates, and migration trends . Given these kinds of understandings, students are in a position to evaluate the role, strengths, and weaknesses of major population policies, which attempt to either promote or restrict population growth .