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Summaries · Grade 7 Geography › Population growth and change
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Population growth and change

How populations grow and change: migration, push and pull factors, and population pyramids. Read one part at a time and tap “I know this”. Then test yourself in the quiz.

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Why people move

Migration is the movement of people to another place. People move because of push factors (driving them away) and pull factors (drawing them in).

Push factorsPull factors
UnemploymentWork
Few servicesBetter schools and hospitals
War and danger (refugees)Safety
  • Urbanisation is movement from rural areas to cities; it puts pressure on housing, water and sewerage.
  • Immigration is moving into a country; emigration is moving out.
  • Some people move to a small town when they retire: quieter and cheaper.
Push and pull factors.
Push and pull factors.
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Population pyramids

A population pyramid shows how the population is split by age and sex. A wide base means many young children; a narrow base and wider top means an ageing population.

0–910–1920–2930–3940–4950–5960–6970–7980–8990+MalesFemales
Young population: many children, few elderly people.
0–910–1920–2930–3940–4950–5960–6970–7980–8990+MalesFemales
Ageing population: fewer workers must support more people.
Meerkat tip

If many young adults emigrate, the young-adult bars on the pyramid get shorter.

Tap when you could tell someone without looking.

Births, deaths and life expectancy

  • The birth rate is the number of births per 1 000 people per year.
  • Life expectancy is the average number of years a person can expect to live. Clean water, better food and more clinics have lengthened it.
  • A high death rate together with a high birth rate gives slow growth.
  • The government uses population data to plan schools and clinics. The Northern Cape is sparsely populated because of water scarcity.
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Remember this and test yourself

Remember this: your summary
  • Population growth is the change in the number of people; a census counts everyone in a country.
  • Push factors (unemployment, few services) make people leave; pull factors (work, better services) draw them.
  • Immigration = moving in; emigration = moving out; refugees flee because of war or danger.
  • A population pyramid shows the population by age; a wide base = many young children.
  • An ageing population: fewer workers must support more people. Dependants are children and elderly people.

Write these points in your book. Read them again the night before the test.

Memory trick

Push factors push you out; pull factors pull you in.

Flash cards · Tap to turn over

Important words

First say what the word means, then turn the card over.

Test yourself · Part 2

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