DSE Geography | Urbanisation and Land Use Lesson-Prep Guide (Tutor Edition) | Density Arithmetic, Bid Rent and Urban Problems

2026-11-02

Tutor lesson-prep guides · Secondary Geography

Students say the city is crowded but cannot say how crowded, nor why commerce always holds the centre. This lesson turns the feeling into density and rent.

Objectives — Students can: (1) compute density from population and area and separate population growth from density growth; (2) use bid rent to explain the concentric zoning of commerce, housing and industry, including why high-income housing sits at the edge; (3) name three urban problems with one measure each and state the limit of that measure.

01 Prerequisites (3-minute check)

If any of these fails, fix it before the lesson starts.

Skill	Quick check	Pass mark
Density	How is density calculated	Population divided by area
Percentages	Write 32% as a decimal	0.32
Opportunity cost	How is land allocated between uses	To the highest-value use

02 Lesson flow (60 minutes)

Time	Stage	Tutor does	Student does
0-10 min	People and density	Percentage change, then density	Write 30,357 per km2
10-22 min	Bid rent	Rent falls outward; steeper lines sit nearer the centre	Draw three lines
22-36 min	Zoning	Commerce, industry, housing, transport, open space	Justify each location
36-48 min	Urban problems	Crowding, commuting, pollution, little green space	2.64 m2 per person
48-56 min	Measures and limits	Redevelopment, relocation, densification, greening	One limit each
56-60 min	Exit check	Three questions marked on the spot	All three right

03 Teaching script (read it out)

Scene 1: Population growth is not density growth: compute both

The city grows from 700,000 to 850,000 people, up 21.4%; the area stays at 28 square kilometres, so density rises from 25,000 to 30,357 people per square kilometre.
If reclamation or a new town had expanded the area at the same time, density could rise slowly or even fall, so population growth and crowding are separate questions.
Land use here is housing 32%, transport 16%, open space 8%, industry 7%, commerce 4% and other 33%: the six must total exactly 100%, which is the fastest self-check.

Ask students: what happens to density if both population and land area rise by 21.4% (it stays the same).

Scene 2: Bid rent decides who stands in the centre

Rent falls outward; commerce generates the highest value per square metre, paying 1,200 against 180 at the fringe, 6.7 times more, so commerce holds the centre. Industry needs large sites and transport access, so it sits in between; housing bids least and is pushed out.
High-income housing sits at the edge because households trade commuting time for space, not because they cannot pay, so keep that separate from poorer households being displaced.
The city has 180,000 jobs against a workforce of 450,000, a ratio of 40%, so the gap must be closed by commuting: that is where the transport problem comes from.

Ask students: why commerce does not simply move to cheap suburban land (the centre maximises accessibility and footfall).

Scene 3: Every urban problem needs a measure and a limit

Four common problems: very high density, long commuting (45 to 65 minutes, +44.4%), air and noise pollution, and too little open space. Open space is 8% of the city, 2.24 million square metres, so each person has 2.64 square metres against the World Health Organization guideline of 9, a gap of 6.36 square metres.
Each measure has a price: redevelopment adds floor space but displaces residents; relocating industry cuts pollution but removes lower-income jobs; densification saves land but loads transport and drainage; greening improves liveability but the opportunity cost of urban land is highest.
A strong answer therefore names a combination and states who gains and who loses.

Ask students: what is the main obstacle to a new park in the city centre (land value and opportunity cost).

04 Question types and worked steps

Type	Example	Steps	Answer
Calculation	Density change	New population divided by area, compared with the old figure	30,357 people
Calculation	Open space per person	Area x share divided by population	2.64 m2
Explanation	Why commerce clusters centrally	Accessibility, footfall, highest bid rent	Use the bid-rent lines
Essay	Problems and measures	Problem, measure, beneficiary, limit	Write a combination

Sanity check (teach this): Density is population divided by area in people per square kilometre, so the units must match first.
Land-use percentages must total 100%; a total of 96% means one class was missed.
Compare per-capita areas with decimals: 2.64 against 9 is a gap of 6.36, not “three times less”.
Bid rent compares slopes rather than heights: commerce is steepest, housing flattest.

05 Independent practice (3 questions)

Question	Answer	What to watch
Density for 850,000 people over 28 km2	30,357 per km2	Population divided by area
Open space per person at 8% and 850,000 people	2.64 m2	Total area first, then divide
Jobs against workforce	40%	180,000 divided by 450,000

06 Common mistakes and what to say

Mistake	Student writes	Say this
Reading population growth as density growth	Answering that density rose 21.4%	Density must be recomputed as population divided by area.
Missing a land-use class	The six shares sum to 96%	Shares must total 100%, otherwise a zone was overlooked.
Swapping high and low income zones	Answering that the rich live centrally	Higher incomes trade commuting for space, so they sit outward.
Listing benefits only	Answering that redevelopment solves it	Add displacement and cost to finish the point.

07 Homework (paper, section and question numbers)

Secondary geography chapter index — All chapters and practice
All lesson-prep guides — Compare other subjects

08 Exit check (last 5 minutes)

Question	Answer	Decision
Density at 850,000 people	30,357 per km2	All three right: move to industrial location
Open space per person	2.64 m2	One wrong: reteach the units
Jobs-to-workforce ratio	40%	Two wrong: return to act two

09 Tutor FAQ

Must students memorise every new town?

No. Papers supply data; the skill is inferring zoning from density and rent.

Why is industry often at the old city edge?

It needs cheap large sites and transport access, bidding less than commerce but more than housing.

Is densification always good?

It saves land but loads transport, drainage and open space, so discuss carrying capacity.

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A TutorZone lesson-prep guide. Written by the TutorZone team; questions and lesson flow are original and are not taken from any school or publisher material.