This research looks at the Key Stage 3 (hereafter abbreviated to KS3) geography curriculum, the reforms to the curriculum that are planned from September 2008 onwards and the implications for the teaching of geography that these reforms may have. In essence the reforms promote an interdisciplinary approach to subject teaching whilst also preserving subject integrity. A discrete subject approach to the curriculum is adopted in many schools while others prefer a more integrated curriculum, especially in the early years of the secondary school. The new curriculum could create a tension in schools in its attempt to support both separate subject and integrated teaching. Schools selected for this research have contrasting curricular structures, which enables comparisons to be made.