Lesson video

Hello, my name is Mrs. Grey, and I'm so excited that you've decided to join me to learn geography today.

Today's lesson is in the unit of Population: Where do people live? And today we're gonna be looking at population challenges, specifically overpopulation and underpopulation.

By the end of the lesson, you will be able to describe overpopulation and underpopulation and responses different countries take to these challenges.

There are some keywords that we'll come across throughout today's lesson.

They are: population distribution, resource, and migration.

Population distribution describes how the people in a population are spread out across the area.

A resource is anything that can be used for a human need, and migration is moving from one place to another with the intention of staying there.

Today's lesson is split into two learning cycles.

The first: What is overpopulation? And the second: What is underpopulation? So let's have a look at: What is overpopulation? Now, overpopulation occurs when there are not enough resources such as food, water, or housing, to meet the needs of the population.

So for example, if there are not enough homes, many families might have to live in crowded spaces, like the image.

Many countries around the world suffer with an overpopulation, such as China, India, and Bangladesh.

So have a look at this map then.

This map shows global population distribution in 2023.

And it shows that China has a very high population.

Can you see China there on the map? China has a very high population of over a billion people.

China's population is actually 1.

42 billion people.

And China has an overpopulation because China doesn't have enough resources to meet the needs of that very high population, that 1.

42 billion people.

There aren't enough resources, food, housing, and things that people need in China to meet that high population.

So, let's check what we've done so far then.

So what is overpopulation? Is it A: When there are not enough resources, such as food, water, or housing, to meet the needs of the population? Is it B: When a country has a large area of land, but very few people living there? Is it C: When the population grows but technology improves to meet everyone's needs? Or is it D: When resources are abundant, but people choose to live in overcrowded cities? So pause the video, write down your answer and then come back and let's see how you got on.

Okay, how did you do? So what is overpopulation? And the answer is A: When there are not enough resources, such as food, water, or housing, to meet the needs of the population.

Well done.

So let's watch this graph.

This is a graph of population in China from 10,000 BC and it keeps going all the way to 2023.

So let's look at how it changes over time.

Can you see how the scale changes when the population increases so much? Look at that line going up and showing how much the population in China is increasing.

So in the 20th century, China's population grew rapidly and we can see that from the graph, can't we? And resources, such as food and housing, became strained.

So because the population increased so much, the existing resources that China had, food and housing became strained.

And that means that there wasn't enough of them.

There was a lot of strain on them because so many people were living there.

The population was growing so much that then there's just not gonna be enough food and housing to support that growing population.

So in 1979, the Chinese government introduced something called a One Child Policy to try and control population growth.

So Laura asks, "What is the One Child Policy?" That's a really good question.

What do you think the One Child Policy is? So the One Child Policy meant that most families were only allowed to have one child.

That was the rule.

They were only allowed to have one child.

It was designed to reduce the pressure on resources like food and housing, and it did lead to fewer births.

So another check then.

True or false? The One Child Policy in China was designed to reduce births.

Is that true or is that false? What do you think? So pause the video, write down your answer and then come back and let's see how you got on.

Okay, how did you get on? True or false? The One Child Policy in China was designed to reduce births.

That's true.

Why is it true? So it was designed to reduce the pressure on resources like food and housing, and it led to fewer births.

So China's One Child Policy caused challenges, such as an ageing population and fewer young workers in the future.

Now, if you think, if we're gonna have less children, that is gonna cause an ageing population.

I mean that there aren't enough people, aren't enough younger people to grow into those young workers in the future.

So Sam asks, "Does China still have a One Child Policy?" Does anybody know the answer to that question? Does China still have a One Child Policy? And the answer is no.

The One Child Policy officially ended in 2015 and it was replaced with a two child policy.

In 2021, the limit was raised further, allowing families to now have three children.

Now China increased the child limit to address its ageing population and declining birth rate, aiming to balance the population and support future economic growth that they've had to change the rules and change the policies that they had in place to prevent them having such an ageing population and a declining birth rate so that they can support economic growth or growth of that country and the money in that country in the future.

'Cause if we've got a lot of older people, then they're gonna need that financial support and aren't able to work, And we haven't got very many young people working to be able to pay taxes and support the older population, that's gonna cause economic difficulties in the country.

So that's why they needed to change that policy.

Okay, so our first task of the lesson then.

So number 1: Label China on the map.

So find where China is and label it on the map and make sure that your arrow points and touches China when you label it.

2a: When did China's One Child Policy begin? 2b: when did China's One Child Policy end? 2c: What replaced China's One Child Policy.

And finally 2d: What did China introduce in 2021 with regards to having children? Okay, so you have a look at those questions, write down your answers and then we'll come back and we'll go through them and see how you got on.

Okay, let's have a look how you got on.

So label China on the map, and you can see there where China is, there's a circle around it.

Did you manage to do that? And your arrow should be touching China to show that you know where China is.

2a: When did China's One Child Policy begin? 1979.

When did China's One Child Policy end? 2015.

What replaced China's One Child Policy? That was a two child policy.

And what did China introduce in 2021 with regards to having children? The limit on having children was raised further, allowing families to have three children.

How did you get on? Well done.

Okay, so let's move on to our second learning cycle, which is: What is underpopulation? So we've looked at what overpopulation is, and now we're gonna look at what is underpopulation.

So underpopulation occurs when there are not enough people to utilise the resources available in an area and take advantage of the economic potential of an area.

For example, not all jobs are filled.

So Laura asks, "How can population be increased?" Now, countries with underpopulation might encourage migration or offer benefits, such as financial incentives, to families to have more children.

So if a country's got an underpopulation and they've just not got enough people for all of the resources that they've got and to take advantage of that and enough people to fill the jobs, then they might need more people to come.

And that might happen through them encouraging migration or by encouraging people to have more children.

So if there are not enough people in an area, this can cause economic issues.

Now remember, economic is to do with money, that can cause money issues in a country.

There might not be enough workers for important jobs, like doctors or teachers.

Now they are obviously really important jobs that a population needs, and if there isn't enough people in that area, there might not be enough people to fill those jobs.

There might not be enough workers to support older people who need healthcare.

And shops and services may close because there's not enough customers.

And all of those things are to do with money.

So they're all economic issues, economic problems that can be caused in an area because of not having enough people.

So this map shows global population distribution in 2023.

And we've seen this map already.

Australia has a very low population relative to its size, and you see Australia there.

However, Australia's population has risen significantly over time.

So in 1945, at the end of the Second World War, there were 7.

4 million people living in Australia.

And by 1970 that had increased to 12.

5 million people.

And then by 2023, that's increased massively to 26.

45 million people.

So you can see some really big increases in Australia's population over time.

Okay, so another check then.

What was the population of Australia in 2023? Is it A: 2.

645 million, B: 26.

45 million, C: 2.

645 billion, or D: 26.

45 billion? So pause the video, write down your answer and then come back and let's see how you got on.

Okay, how did you get on? What was the population of Australia in 2023? The answer is B: 26.

45 million.

Well done.

Okay, so after the Second World War, the Australian government felt that the country was underpopulated because there were not enough people living there to utilise all of the resources available.

You can see where Australia is there, on that map.

So that the government thought that there wasn't enough people there because they had all these resources available and they weren't being utilised.

So the Australian government were concerned that the low population would lead to economic problems, as workers were needed for farming, mining, and building cities.

So remember we talked about economic problems, those problems caused with money by not having enough people, the Australian government were concerned about those potential issues.

So if a country has got a low population, this can then lead to a shortage of labour.

And labour means workers, a workforce of people.

So if there aren't enough people in a population that can lead to not enough people to work.

That can mean that businesses then produce less because there's not enough people working for those businesses, which can then lead to a decline in the overall economy of Australia.

So you can see how the Australian government, you can see why the Australian government were concerned because a low population could mean that the whole economy of the country is a problem.

So not enough people, that leads to not enough workers, which means businesses produce less, which means the economy of the country declines.

So another check now then.

Fill in the missing words.

We've just looked at this, fill in the missing words.

So a low population leads to a shortage of what? That then leads to businesses producing less.

which means the Australian economy.

what? So you've got two words there to fill in.

Have a little look, pause the video, write down your answer and then come back and let's see how you got on.

Okay, how did you get on then? So a low population leads to a shortage of labour, which means that businesses produce less, which leads to the Australian economy declines.

Did you get that right? Well done.

So in 1945, just after the Second World War, the Australian government introduced an assisted migration scheme which encouraged people from the UK to move to Australia.

So they introduced this scheme where they were encouraging people from the UK to move over to Australia and they would help them in some way.

And here you can see a little poster that they used.

So "Live in Australia, 10 pound passage, whatever your occupation." So they were really trying to get people to move there so, so, so cheaply, and they could come no matter what their job was.

Do you think a lot of people moved? Yeah, 1.

5 million British people moved to Australia.

1.

5 million between 1945 and 1982.

And out of that 1.

5 million, 1.

1 million stayed there permanently, a huge proportion.

So lots and lots of people chose to move to Australia with this scheme.

And then lots and lots of people have stayed there permanently.

Now over time, more people moved to Australia from other countries to help with labour shortages.

So you can have a look at this map again, which shows the total number of international immigrants in 2020.

Australia still now remains a country that attracts many workers.

However, as its underpopulation issues reduced, the Australian government didn't feel it needed to continue to encourage people to move there in the same numbers.

So they'd done what they wanted to do.

Lots and lots of people had moved and therefore, they didn't have as much of an underpopulation issue.

And so they didn't need to encourage people to move there as much as they had done before.

Now the Indigenous Australians have lived in Australia for tens of thousands of years, and they use the land and resources carefully and sustainably.

Now Sam asks, "What does sustainable mean?" Sustainable means that the Indigenous Australians didn't take more land and resources than they needed and they kept nature healthy.

So these people who've lived there for tens of thousands of years really, really looked after the land.

They didn't use more than they needed and they looked after nature and kept it really, really healthy.

So another check there then.

How did the Indigenous Australians use the land and resources in Australia? Is it carefully, recklessly, sustainably or unsustainably? What do you think? So pause the video, write down your answer and then let's see how you got on.

Okay, how did you get on? How did the Indigenous Australians use the land and resources in Australia? The answer is carefully and sustainably.

Did you get that right? Well done.

So some people in Australia, some people argue that Australia was never underpopulated.

That a lower population actually allowed the resources to be used more sustainably.

So this is what Laura thinks.

"The government of Australia encouraged migration to reduce underpopulation and help the economy." But Izzy says, "If the land was used in the way the Indigenous Australians used to use it, then there would be no need to increase the population.

Interesting.

So we've got some different viewpoints there about whether or not population needed to be increased.

What do you think? Do you agree with Laura or do you agree with Izzy? Okay, so we're onto our final task of the lesson now.

Question one: explain why the government of Australia felt that the country was underpopulated after the Second World War.

So why did the government feel that there was not enough people, that the country was underpopulated? And then question two: Who do you agree with, Laura or Izzy? And justify your answer.

So let's recap what Laura and Izzy think.

Laura: "The Australian government was right to encourage migration as underpopulation was hurting the economy." But Izzy thinks "Encouraging migration just meant that resources were used less sustainably.

There's no such thing as underpopulation." Interesting ideas.

So what do you think? Who do you agree with? So say who you agree with and then justify why you think that.

Okay, so pause the video, write down your answer, and then let's come back and see how you've got on.

Okay, how have you got on then? So explain why the government of Australia felt that the country was underpopulated after the Second World War.

So after the Second World War, the Australian government felt the country was underpopulated because there was not enough people living there to utilise the resources available.

The Australian government were concerned that the low population would lead to economic problems as workers were needed for farming, mining, and building cities.

How did you get on with that one? Did you get those? Okay, so question two was, who do you agree with, Laura or Izzy? And you were to justify your answer.

So Laura thought the Australian government was right to encourage migration as underpopulation was hurting the economy.

But Izzy thought encouraging migration just meant that resources were used less sustainably.

There's no such thing as underpopulation.

So you could have agreed with either of them.

You might have agreed with Laura as encouraging migration helped the economy and created jobs.

But you might have agreed with Izzy as an increasing population is likely to have a negative impact on the environment.

Which one did you go with? What did you think? Okay, so we're at the end of our lesson now on Population challenges: Overpopulation and underpopulation.

And what have we learned today? We've learned that overpopulation is where there are not enough resources to meet the needs of the population.

China's population grew rapidly in the 20th century, resulting in the One Child Policy.

Underpopulation is where there are not enough people for the resources available.

And the Australian government felt the country was underpopulated after the Second World War and encouraged people to live there.

Thank you for joining me for today's lesson.

I've really enjoyed it and I hope you have too.

See you next time.