The global fashion industry

The global fashion industry Geography Year 9 About the unitIn this unit pupils develop their understanding of the global nature of economic activity and development through a study of the fashion industry. They investigate the interdependence between people, places and environments in this industry and through this study begin to understand the concept of globalisation, ie how what happens in one part of the world affects people everywhere. The activities are developed around the focus of the fashion industry, but if this topic is not suitable for pupils in a particular school an alternative could be used, eg toys, electrical equipment, processed foods. Many of the activities rely on using material from development education centres and particular internet websites. These are listed in the ‘Resources’ section. This unit is expected to take 8–11 hours. Key aspectsGeographical enquiry and skillsPupils will:• ask geographical questions• suggest investigation sequences• analyse evidence and draw conclusions• appreciate values and attitudes• communicate appropriately• use extended geographical vocabulary• use atlases/globes/maps• use secondary evidence• draw maps, plans and graphs• communicate, including using ICTKnowledge and understanding of placesPupils will:• describe scale contexts• explore interdependence and global citizenshipKnowledge and understanding of patterns and processes Explored through:• economic activity • developmentKnowledge and understanding of environmental change and sustainable developmentPupils will study:• sustainable development ExpectationsAt the end of this unitmost pupils will: describe and explain a range of human processes and recognise that these interact to produce distinctive characteristics of economic activity, such as the global fashion industry; appreciate the many links and relationships that make countries in different states of development, involved in the fashion industry, dependent on each other; appreciate that different values and attitudes, including their own, may have different effects on people’s lives, especially in less economically developed countries (LEDCs); suggest relevant geographical questions and an appropriate sequence of investigations into globalisation issues; select and use effectively a range of skills and sources of evidence; present well argued summaries and begin to reach substantiated conclusionssome pupils will not have made so much progress and will: describe and begin to explain human processes and recognise that these interact to produce some distinctive characteristics of economic activity, such as the global fashion industry; recognise some of the links and relationships that make countries in different states of development, involved in the global fashion industry, dependent on each other and how people in LEDCs may be affected by actions of people in more economically developed countries (MEDCs); begin to suggest relevant geographical questions and begin to select and use appropriate skills and sources of evidence to help them investigate globalisation issues; begin to suggest plausible conclusions and present their findings both graphically and in writingsome pupils will have progressed further and will: describe and begin to explain interactions within and between human processes and identify how these interact to produce distinctive characteristics of the global fashion industry; understand that many factors, including people’s values and attitudes, influence the decisions made about fashion clothing manufacture in LEDCs; appreciate that the lives of the people who live there are affected by actions and changes in other places, especially MEDCs; appreciate that considerations of sustainable development affect planning and management of resources; identify geographical questions and establish their own sequence of investigations into globalisation issues; select and use accurately a wide range of skills and evaluate critically sources of evidence; present full and coherently argued summaries of their investigations and reach substantiated conclusions Prior learningIt is helpful if pupils have:• studied two countries in different states of development• explored reasons why differences in development exist• used socio-economic indicators to compare places• undertaken a geographical enquiry using different source material• practised asking and answering geographical questions• developed skills of data presentation, cartography and interpretation of statistical data• played a trading game/completed a role-play simulation of real-life eventsLanguage for learningThrough the activities in this unit pupils will be able to understand, use and spell correctly words relating to:• international trade and development, eg globalisation, development, trade, production, consumption, corporation, transnational corporation (TNC), gross domestic product (GDP), human development index (HDI), socio-economic indicators, export, import, interdependence, MEDC, LEDC, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, World Trade Organisation (WTO), United Nations, balance of trade• manufacturing, eg technology, resources, supply and demand, negotiation, competition, perceptionSpeaking and listening – through the activities pupils could:• ask different sorts of questions, to extend their thinking and refine ideasReading – through the activities pupils could:• recognise the author’s viewpoint and how it affects meaningWriting – through the activities pupils could:• write closely argued text where precise links and connections are made within sentences ResourcesResources include:• fashion advertisements (magazine or video)• writing frames for a variety of genres• world maps• atlases• dictionaries• development statistics sourced from textbooks or CD-ROMs• TNC information from textbooks, magazine/newspaper articles or the internet• global economic data and information• ‘heads and tails’ cards for the word wall/glossary activities• textbooks, CD-ROMs and word-processing packages• card sorting activity role cards for people in the production chain – consumer, retailer, brand owner, manufacturer and factory worker• leaflets for the fair trading activity and codes of conduct for workers• the development compass rose (DCR), available from Development Education Centre (DEC), Birmingham • Development Education Association (DEA) publications• websites, eg – www.tidec.org – (DEC, Birmingham) – globalisation project and links to associated websites; also includes lesson plans for teaching about globalisation– www.cafod.org.uk/ – article about Asian garment industry and globalisation– www.globalexchange.org/ – articles about fair trade and current news stories about global trade issues– www.cleanclothes.org/ – includes lengthy reports on many ‘labels’– www.corpwatch.org – a US website with information about several companies– www.oneworld.org – up-to-date news from around the world• organisations:– Labour behind the label, c/o Norfolk Education and Action for Development (NEAD), 38 Exchange Street, Norwich• journal/magazine articles:– ‘Just do it’. Down to Earth, Vol 5, No 5 (November 1996)– ‘Globalisation – an alternative view’. New Internationalist (November 1997)– New Internationalist (July 1997)– New Internationalist (October 1997)• photopacks, eg– The clothes line, Oxfam– Can you be different? (DEC, Birmingham)• trading games, eg– The trading game, Christian Aid– Trading trainers game, Christian AidFuture learningThe issues studied in this unit provide a basis for later study at GCSE level and may be developed further as part of a PSHE or citizenship programme.LinksThe activities in this unit link with:• other geography units – unit 12 ‘Images of a country’, unit 16 ‘What is development?’, unit 24 ‘Passport to the world’• mathematics – calculating accurately, interpreting data, drawing conclusions, using correlation• ICT – using desktop-publishing, word-processing, graphing and audio-video presentation packages; • key skills – working with others, problem solving• citizenship/PSHE – global community, justice issues• personal development – economic and industrial understanding (EIU)• English – work on speech writing and delivery
Key question: What is meant by the global fashion industry?To be able to ask geographical questions and issues.To be able to identify the main features of the global industry. • Students brainstorm The ideas about the global fashion industry- identify links and ideas about the fashion trade.• Students use card sort activity in pairs. Students put statements into those they agree with and those they don’t.• Students explore the images of advertisements- what images they portray, who are they aimed at? Etc. Begin to introduce ideas about production, consumption, trade links etc. Produce wall display on A3 in groups 1 lesson



1 lesson Geography IntrapersonalInterpersonalKinaestheticvisual Card sortmagazines Formative- informal marking of class work Identify the main features of the global industry.Key questions: How does the fashion industry connect people around the globe?To be able to select and use appropriate graphical techniques to present evidence on maps and diagrams. To be able to use socio-economic indicators. • Students ask 5 people the name brand of their favourite outfit e.g. Nike. Then ask them to look at where the label says it is made. Students then place the country of manufacture and where the brand is based onto a world map with an arrow connecting the two.• Students then look at the average earning etc for each country they mention on the map-use student atlas to help with this. Student then evaluate findings.• Class discussion on who is a “fashion victim”- relating to the research carried out previously.• Students then write a newspaper article based on ‘Who is the real fashion victim’ 1 lesson






20 mins
30 mins Geography Interpersonal World mapAtlas Formative- informal marking of class work Illustrate and describe how the fashion industry connects people around the global.
Describe and explain the patterns of global connections.Key Question: How does world trade work? How does this affect the countries involved? How have trade patterns changed? To be able to describe how are countries interdependent with each other.To be able to identify different levels of development.To consider other people’s view points and values. • Students are introduced to the idea of world trade. Students examine how LEDC’s and MEDc’s are interdependent with each other. • Student take part in the trade game-team teach if possible.• Students then discuss the game come to conclusions about what the game taught them. The groups then write up their experiences. 1 lesson

1lesson
30 mins Geography Intrapersonalkinaesthetic Trading game package.Places text book Formative- Informal marking of class work Describe and explain the pattern of interdependence between LEDC’s and MEDC’s.
Describe and explain how global markets work and how the process may have different groups of people. Key questions: what do we mean by ‘globalisation’? To be able to describe globalisationTo be able to ask geographical question. • Discuss the meaning of globalisation i.e. how what happens in one part of the world affects another.• Look at what happens because of globalisation e.g. migration. 1 lesson Geography interpersonal Worksheet on globalisation Formative- Informal marking of class work Describe globalisation.
Describe and explain the effects of globalisation.Key questions: How does globalisation affect the fashion industry?
To ask geographical questions. • As a class chose an item of fashionable clothing e.g. trainers. Students then brainstorm who was involved in making this product e.g. factory worker. Student then give results to the class. Then discuss the amount of people actually involved.• Students then take part in a role play. Each student takes on the role of a person in the line of production, they answer questions such as who do they work for? What is their life like? Etc. Students then present to the class.• Ask pupils to suggest how the price of the chosen product should be split among the chain. Identify the real winners and loser of the chain. 20 mins



1 lesson



20 mins Geography InterpersonalAudiovisual Role play material Grade presentation Identify the links in a chain
Identify the experiences in people in the fashion industry.Key questions: How does globalisation affect people at a local level? What happens if the chain is broken?• To be able to compare their own experiences with those of others• To be able to explore the effect of differences in development on the quality of life of different groups of people • To be able to produce a written or verbal report • Students identify the effects of globalisation on the factory workers at the start of the chain. Students watch exploitation video. Students then prepare a newspaper article on the exploitation of child workers.• Help pupils to explore the impact of a break in the chain, eg resulting from a reduction in demand for the product, a strike at the factory producing the item in an LEDC or the closure of a chain of stores which sells the product in an MEDC. 1-2 lessons Geography Visualintrapersonal Exploitation videoBreak in chain worksheet Formative- Informal marking of class work Describe and explain the exploitation of child workers.
Describe the effects of a break in the production chain.
Key question: Who are the winners and losers in the globalisation process? Is this fair?• To be able to use secondary sources of evidence in their research• To be able to consider the effects of differences in development on the quality of life of different people • Discuss with pupils who are the ‘winners’ and ‘losers’ in the globalisation process. Refer to previous lesson and the video and the case study example studied, and ask pupils, in groups, to brainstorm ideas about the future of trading and how inequalities can be tackled. Ask them to share their responses with the whole class.• Use the information about the factory worker to get pupils to complete a ‘justice trail’ activity. Pupils may use a table to compare the similarities and differences between their lives and those of the factory workers. • Ask pupils to brainstorm ideas about fair trading, monitoring production in LEDCs.• Ask pupils to design a ‘flyer’ using a word-processing or desktop-publishing package, to publicise the issue they have just brainstormed. 1-2 lessons Geography Kinestheticinterpersonal ICT Room Formative- Informal marking of class work Describe and explain who are the winner and losers.
Writw an impersonal overview of the state of globalisation and how it should be monitored.Key questions: What might the future be like?• To be able to justify orally or in writing a personal opinion about issues• To be able to appreciate the world as a global community and the political, economic, environmental and social implications of this• To be able to explore the idea of sustainable development and its implications • In preparation for a synthesising piece of formal objective writing, pupils could be asked first to decide and present their own views on globalisation as the text of a speech to be read to the class. This would be a first person account requiring them to refer to facts and evidence, but allowing for opinion and emotive response as well.• Following presentation of a selection of speeches, help pupils to pull together the various viewpoints and evidence to plan a piece of extended writing which: explains what globalisation is and what its effects are; considers the extent to which effects are good or bad; makes predictions for the future; and considers the issue of sustainable development. This should be formal writing, and pupils’ attention should be drawn to the differences between their first person speech and their third person overview account. 1-2 lessons Geography InterpersonalIntrapersonal Best books Formative marking and levelling of best books. • use extended vocabulary correctly • express their own opinion about the globalisation process and the future of world trade, supported by appropriate facts and evidence• write an impersonal overview of the state of globalisation, and possible future developments including sustainable development