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Geographical Investigations – Fieldwork

The enquiry process: asking questions and choosing methods

  • 3 things to know
  • Paper 3

Overview

Good fieldwork questions and hypotheses, the six stages of an enquiry, choosing the question before the methods, hazards and controls for river and urban fieldwork, pilot surveys, random, systematic and stratified sampling, and observation as a technique.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Your recallNot started
Process

How is a geographical enquiry set up, from forming a hypothesis and ordering the stages to trialling the methods beforehand?

Key term

Name three hazards you would record before fieldwork on a riverbank, and one control for each.

Key term

Why must a fieldwork question be one you can gather evidence for?

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

  1. 1

    What makes a good fieldwork question?

    Model answer

    It is geographical, tied to a particular place, and narrow enough to be answered with data you can realistically collect.

  2. 2

    Why must a fieldwork question be one you can gather evidence for?

    Model answer

    Without evidence there is nothing to present or analyse, so no conclusion can be justified.

  3. 3

    What is a hypothesis?

    Model answer

    A statement written so that collected data can support or disprove it, such as velocity rising with distance downstream.

  4. 4

    What are the six stages of a geographical enquiry, in order?

    Model answer

    Ask a question, plan and collect the data, present it, analyse it, reach a conclusion, then evaluate the work.

  5. 5

    Why is the question decided before the methods are chosen?

    Model answer

    The question decides what has to be measured, so choosing methods first risks collecting data that answers nothing.

  6. 6

    Name three hazards you would record before fieldwork on a riverbank, and one control for each.

    Model answer

    Deep or fast water — work in pairs and only enter shallow water below knee depth; slippery banks — sturdy footwear; cold or wet weather — waterproofs and a set meeting time.

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