Geography · Grade 7 · Human Population and Migration · Term 2

Push and Pull Factors of Migration

Exploring the economic, political, social, and environmental reasons behind human migration, both voluntary and forced.

• Ontario Curriculum Expectations
• ON: Natural Resources around the World: Use and Sustainability - Grade 7

About This Topic

Push and pull factors form the core framework for studying human migration in Grade 7 Geography. Push factors drive people from their homes: economic struggles like unemployment, political instability such as persecution, social issues including discrimination, and environmental threats from droughts to floods. Pull factors attract migrants: job prospects, safer communities, quality schools, and family networks. Students distinguish voluntary moves, such as career relocations, from forced displacements like refugee crises.

This topic fits Ontario's curriculum on natural resources and sustainability, highlighting how resource depletion creates environmental push factors and climate refugees. Key questions guide inquiry: motivations for risky journeys, cultural shifts in places like urban Canada, and degradation's role in population flows. Real examples, from historical Ukrainian settlers to modern Syrian arrivals, show migration's global reach.

Active learning excels with this topic. Role-playing family decisions with scenario cards builds empathy, while collaborative mapping of migration routes turns statistics into narratives. These methods make complex causes relatable, encourage evidence-based debates, and deepen understanding of interconnected human and environmental systems.

Key Questions

1. Explain what motivates people to leave their homes for uncertain futures elsewhere.
2. Analyze how migration changes the cultural landscape of the destination country.
3. Evaluate the role environmental degradation plays in creating climate refugees.

Learning Objectives

• Classify specific push and pull factors into economic, political, social, or environmental categories.
• Analyze the relationship between environmental degradation and the creation of climate refugees.
• Compare and contrast voluntary migration with forced migration using specific historical or contemporary examples.
• Evaluate the impact of migration on the cultural landscape of a destination country, such as Canada.
• Explain the primary motivations that drive individuals and families to leave their homes.

Before You Start

Canada's Diverse Population

Why: Students need a foundational understanding of Canada's multicultural nature to analyze how migration shapes its cultural landscape.

Economic Systems: Needs and Wants

Why: Understanding basic economic concepts helps students grasp the appeal of economic pull factors like jobs and better living standards.

Forms of Government and Citizenship

Why: Knowledge of political structures and rights is necessary to comprehend political push factors such as persecution or lack of freedoms.

Key Vocabulary

Push Factors	Reasons that compel people to leave their home country or region, often associated with negative conditions.
Pull Factors	Reasons that attract people to a new country or region, typically associated with positive opportunities or conditions.
Voluntary Migration	The movement of people from one place to another by choice, often in search of better opportunities.
Forced Migration	The movement of people from their homes due to external pressures, such as conflict, persecution, or environmental disaster.
Climate Refugee	A person who is forced to leave their home or country due to sudden or progressive changes in the environment that adversely affect their life or living conditions.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

All migration happens by choice.

What to Teach Instead

Forced migration from wars or disasters leaves no options. Role-play simulations help students experience urgency, distinguishing voluntary from involuntary through group debates that reveal personal stories behind statistics.

Common Misconception

Pull factors always lead to success in new places.

What to Teach Instead

Challenges like language barriers persist despite attractions. Case study jigsaws expose realities, as students share evidence and correct over-optimism via peer teaching.

Common Misconception

Environmental issues rarely cause migration.

What to Teach Instead

Climate change drives rising refugees through resource loss. Mapping activities link local data to global flows, helping students visualize connections active exploration uncovers.

Active Learning Ideas

Card Sort: Identifying Push and Pull

Prepare cards listing factors like 'war' or 'job opportunities'. In small groups, students sort them into push or pull categories, then justify choices with examples from news articles. End with a class chart comparing voluntary and forced migration.

35 min·Small Groups

Jigsaw: Migration Stories

Assign groups one real case, such as Canadian oil boom migrants or Pacific Island climate refugees. Each expert shares findings on factors involved, then regroups to synthesize patterns across cases. Use maps to plot origins and destinations.

45 min·Small Groups

Role-Play Simulation: Migration Decisions

Provide family profiles facing push factors. In pairs, students draw pull factor cards and debate relocation choices, recording pros, cons, and outcomes. Debrief as a class on uncertainties in real migrations.

40 min·Pairs

Flow Map: Tracking Migrations

Students individually research a migration wave to Canada, then in whole class create a large map showing push/pull arrows. Add data labels and discuss cultural impacts on destinations.

50 min·Whole Class

Real-World Connections

• Urban planners in Toronto use demographic data, including migration patterns, to design new housing, public transit, and community services that meet the needs of a growing and diverse population.
• International aid organizations, like the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), work with governments to resettle refugees fleeing conflict zones in countries such as Syria or Afghanistan, providing essential resources and support.
• Agricultural scientists study the impact of drought and desertification in regions like sub-Saharan Africa, understanding how these environmental changes can force communities to migrate in search of arable land and water.

Assessment Ideas

Exit Ticket

Provide students with a list of 5-7 migration scenarios (e.g., seeking employment, fleeing war, escaping drought, joining family). Ask them to write 'P' for push factor or 'L' for pull factor next to each scenario and briefly explain their choice for two of them.

Quick Check

Present students with images or short video clips depicting different migration situations. Ask them to identify the primary push or pull factors evident in each visual and share their reasoning with a partner.

Discussion Prompt

Pose the question: 'If you were a farmer whose land was becoming unfarmable due to climate change, what factors would you consider before deciding to migrate, and what would make you choose one destination over another?' Facilitate a class discussion on the complexities of these decisions.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are push and pull factors of migration for grade 7?

Push factors repel people: poverty, violence, disasters. Pull factors attract: jobs, safety, education. In Ontario curriculum, students analyze these in human geography, using examples like economic migrants to Toronto or environmental refugees from drought-hit regions. This builds skills in evaluating motivations and sustainability impacts.

How does migration change the cultural landscape of destination countries?

Newcomers bring languages, foods, festivals, enriching diversity as in multicultural Vancouver. Yet tensions arise over resources. Students evaluate through debates and maps, connecting to key questions on population dynamics and how Canada adapts via policies like multiculturalism.

What role does environmental degradation play in creating climate refugees?

Deforestation, sea rise, crop failures push millions from homes, straining borders. Grade 7 links this to natural resources sustainability. Case studies of Pacific islands or Sahel droughts show patterns, prompting students to assess global responses like aid or relocation.

What active learning strategies work for teaching push and pull factors?

Card sorts and role-plays make factors tangible: students sort real scenarios, then simulate decisions, fostering empathy. Jigsaw case studies build collaboration, as groups expert-share on migrations like Syrian refugees. Mapping flows reveals patterns. These hands-on methods, 30-50 minutes, turn abstract ideas into memorable discussions, aligning with inquiry-based Ontario Geography.