Edexcel GCSE Geography B (1GB0) · Geographical Investigations: Fieldwork
Mini-Lesson
Geographical Investigations: Fieldwork
This mini-lesson covers the fieldwork enquiry process: writing a hypothesis, choosing a sampling method, collecting primary and secondary data, presenting it, and then analysing and evaluating your results.
Work through each screen, answer the questions as you go (multiple-choice, numeric, short-answer and games) and collect ⭐ stars. Press Start.
Enquiry & hypotheses
Starting an enquiry: the hypothesis
Fieldwork is a structured enquiry. You start with a geographical question, then turn it into a hypothesis — a testable statement you can prove or disprove with data.
A good hypothesis is specific and measurable, e.g. "River velocity increases downstream" — not just "rivers change".
It links two things you can measure (here, distance downstream and velocity).
Key idea: a hypothesis must be testable — you can collect data to support it or reject it. "The coast is nice" is an opinion, not a hypothesis.
Quick check
Which is a good hypothesis?
?Which of these is a good, testable hypothesis for a river investigation?
Sampling
Sampling: choosing where to collect
You can't measure everywhere, so you take a sample. There are three main methods:
Random — every point has an equal chance (e.g. use random numbers). Avoids bias but might miss areas.
Systematic — at regular intervals (e.g. every 50 m along a transect). Gives even coverage.
Stratified — split into groups and sample each in proportion (e.g. by land use), so all groups are represented.
Why sample carefully? A biased sample (only picking "nice" spots) gives misleading results. Good sampling makes your data representative and reliable.
Match it
Match the sampling method
Tap a method on the left, then tap its correct description on the right.
Data collection
Primary and secondary data
Primary data — data you collect yourself in the field (measuring river width, a pedestrian count, a questionnaire, field sketches).
Secondary data — data collected by someone else (census figures, Ordnance Survey maps, weather records, GIS layers).
Data is also either quantitative (numbers — e.g. velocity in m/s) or qualitative (opinions/descriptions — e.g. how safe an area feels).
Sort it
Primary or secondary data?
Tap a source, then tap the box it belongs in.
🧭 Primary
📚 Secondary
Presenting data
Presenting your data
Choose a presentation method that suits the data:
Bar chart — comparing categories (e.g. traffic by street).
Line graph — change over distance or time (e.g. velocity downstream).
Located/proportional symbols on a map — where things are and how much.
Scatter graph — the relationship between two variables (e.g. river width vs velocity).
Tip: match the graph to the data. Use a line graph for continuous change, a scatter graph to show correlation, and a bar chart for separate categories.
Number check
Finding the mean
🔢You measured river velocity at four points: 0.2, 0.4, 0.5 and 0.5 m/s. What is the mean (average) velocity? (Give the answer in m/s.)
m/s
Mean = add all the values, then divide by how many there are (4).
Analyse & evaluate
Analysis, conclusion and evaluation
Analysis — describe patterns and trends in your data (use figures), and explain them with your geography knowledge. Note anomalies.
Conclusion — say whether the data supports or rejects your hypothesis, and why.
Evaluation — judge how reliable and valid your results were: any problems with the method, small sample, weather, or measurement errors, and how you'd improve it.
Watch out: the conclusion answers the hypothesis; the evaluation is where you criticise your own method and suggest improvements. Don't confuse the two.
Explain it
Your turn — evaluation
✎Suggest one problem with a fieldwork method and one way to improve its reliability.
Model answer (example)
Problem: only a small number of sites were measured on one day, so the data may not be representative (e.g. weather affected the river flow).
Improvement: collect data at more sites and repeat the readings on several days, then take a mean.
This makes the results more reliable and reduces the effect of one-off anomalies.
Quick check
Which stage?
?A student writes: "My results may be unreliable because I only measured on one rainy day, so next time I would sample over a week." Which stage of the enquiry is this?