Fieldwork and Local Learning

Dr Eleanor Coulber

RGS-IBG

Plan for the session:

1. Practical session...2. The enquiry approach to fieldwork3. Applying local fieldwork to the new    GCSE, AS and A2 specs

4. A few ideas

Practical session ‐ feedback

Describe your activity to the rest of the group

How could you use this activity with  KS3?

Starters (qualitative activities to develop students’ sense of place and/or to identify relevant local issues for study)

Mains (quantitative fieldwork investigation using primary and secondary data sources in innovative ways)

Follow-ups (follow-up activities to embed fieldwork in the curriculum and to encourage student voice to be heard)

Structuring your fieldwork episode- a three part approach -

_______________________________________

An Enquiry Process in Fieldwork :      

GCSE – using local fieldwork and the enquiry process

Practising the Controlled Assessment.Allowing students to develop their own enquiries and hypotheses.Getting them used to writing up their investigations according to the criteria specified by the board.Introducing qualitative and quantitative data collection techniques.Using a variety of presentation formats, including DVDs, PowerPoint, personal diaries, GIS, web pages, etc. (Edexcel)

For example:

AQA ‘A’ ‐ challenge of weather and climate.AQA ‘B’ ‐ local investigation.Edexcel ‘A’ ‐ ‘contemporary’ fieldwork.Edexcel ‘B’ ‐ rural/countryside and town/city environments.OCR ‘A’ ‐ you as a global citizen.WJEC ‘A’ – weather and climate, living things.WJEC ‘B’ – local fieldwork investigation.

AS/A2 – using local fieldwork and the enquiry process

Preparing students for the written skills, enquiry and synoptic papers.Introducing theory and case studies for new fieldwork themes.Furnishing students with practical fieldwork experience in a range of settings.

For example:

AQA Unit 4A – investigation of geographical themes.Edexcel Unit 2 – unequal spaces, rebranding, extreme weather.Edexcel Unit 4 – local fieldwork options.OCR Units F763&4 – individual research options.WJEC Unit G3 – geography of crime, deprivation,  leisure and recreation, microclimates.

Possible areas for enquiry in the school grounds:

Disability access / accessibilityMicroclimate investigation with a twistPersonal safety (safe and threatening areas)Mapping current and future usesPollution study

www.geographyteachingtoday.org.uk/fieldwork

Some ideas....

Four out of ten of the nation’s towns are “Clone Towns”…

CloneClone

Your mission is to find out whether your local high street is more…

Clone townor

Home town!

GOOD LUCK!

1.

Key questions:

How does your local town centre compare to other towns in the country in terms of:

1. The shops that it provides on the High Street.

2. Its 2001 Census data, including housing type / price and levels of crime.

REBRANDINGUNEQUAL SPACESENVIRONMENTAL 

IMPACTSLOCAL TO GLOBAL

QUESTIONNING THE CRUNCH•Who will be the winners / losers?•What will be the knock‐on effects?•What will happen to employment?•How will people change?•What activities will change?•What will be the effects on agriculture?•What will be the effects on car manufacture?

What are the effects of the credit crunch on the SOCIAL, ECONOMIC and ENVIRONMENTAL character of your local  area?

2.

Widnes 2004 – vacant outlets

Widnes 2009 – vacant outlets

Mapping mobile phone reception

Why don’t we get any mobile reception here??

3.

Suburban geography – fieldwork down your street4.

How could your local area be rebranded?What is there in your area for different age groups? Does inequality exist?What’s missing in your local area?What are local residents’ perceptions of the      area?(emotional / mental mapping)How does reality fit with the perceived character of the area? Who constructs myths about 

places?Do people feel safe in your local area? Why?Which areas are more polluted than others?

Fieldwork down your street...

How could you use your school grounds and local area for GCSE, AS and A2 fieldwork?

Dr Eleanor Coulber

Fieldwork and KS3 ResourcesProfessional Support OfficerAction Plan for Geography

e.coulber@rgs.org020 7591 3076