Chapter 2

Field
Studies
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Benefits of field work

• Increases your awareness of problems in Geography,
e.g. problem of interpreting evidence in geomorphology
or measuring processes in the physical environment
• Gives you the experience of collecting and interpreting
data
• Allows you to see for yourself what is written in the
textbook
• Gives you an opportunity to apply theory to the real
world
• Practical experience makes learning and recollection of
theory easier
• Helps develop your research, writing and organisation
skills
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

How to do a field study

• Four main sections of a field study:
– Aim of the study
– Methods of investigation and recording of data in the field
– Processing and analysing the information collected
– Conclusion about the aim

• Attire:
– Comfortable and suitable for the weather conditions and general
environment that you will be working in

• Equipment:
– Writing equipment, e.g. pencil, pen, eraser, clipboard, paper
– Equipment necessary for collection of data, e.g. thermometer
– Map of the area
– Camera
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Possible topics
• Natural systems
– Rivers
– Coasts
– Soils
– Mass wasting and slopes
– Vegetation The coast is an example of a natural
system

• Human systems
– Population
– Urbanisation
– Economic activities, e.g. fishing,
forestry, mining, garment
manufacturing, food
processing,
tourism The city is an example of a human
system
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Title of the study

• Title is constructed as a question
– E.g. Why do the cross-sections of the river vary between location
X and 1km downstream ?
– E.g. How does the discharge of the river vary after a rainfall
event ?

Aim of the study

• Clearly state at least one aim
– E.g. To describe and explain five channel and valley cross-
sections of the river at location X
– E.g. To describe and measure the discharge of the river after a
rainfall event
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Collection of data
• Be clear on how you intend to collect the data
• Make the necessary arrangements for transportation
• Get ready all the necessary equipment
• Ensure that the equipment is working properly and that
you can operate it

Some of the equipment you will need on

your field trip
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Sources of data
1. Primary sources

Natural systems Human systems

• Field sketching • Questionnaires
• Observing and recording • Interviews
• Measurement of landforms • Pedestrian and traffic
• Mapping of stream counts
discharge • Identification and plotting of
• Measurement of sediments spheres of influence
• Soil study • Identification, classification
• Vegetation sampling and plotting of urban, rural
and industrial land uses
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

2. Secondary sources
• Textbooks, other books
and magazines
• Newspapers
• Maps
• Internet
• Directories
• Official publications such
as census reports
The newspaper is an example
of a secondary source
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Preparation
• Obtain permission from your school, your parents or
guardian and the Ministry of Education
• If you plan to visit a company, obtain permission from
the company and ask for a list of activities you can
expect to do during the visit
• Carefully select a suitable site for your field work
• Choose an area that is safe for you – in field studies
involving water, safety is of particular importance
• A site near your school is preferred as this will reduce
transportation cost and facilitate repeat visits
• Ensure adults are available to supervise your activities
• Have a contingency plan and be prepared to improvise
in the field
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Map work
• Study the map of the selected area
• After completing your field study, you are expected to
produce at least two sketch maps
• Draw one sketch map to show the site in relation to
other features in the area
• The other should be a sketch map of the actual site
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Presentation of data
• Consider the purpose of presentation and the depth of
coverage
• Data presented must be accurate
• Use at least three different types of illustrations in your
presentation
• Illustrations should be relevant
• Illustrations should have clear titles and appropriate
captions and be arranged in the right sequence
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Types of
Features and characteristics
presentation
Basic  Written report
 Tables
 Line graphs
 Bar charts
– Simple bar charts
– Compound bar charts
– Component bar charts
– Percentage component bar charts
 Pie charts
 Histograms
Pictorial
 Diagrams
(illustrations)  Field sketches
 Photographs
 Pictographs
 Distribution maps
– Choropleth maps
– Dot maps
– Isoline maps
– Flow line maps
 Miscellaneous maps that students construct as required
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Line graphs
• Data is represented by a continuous line

Principles of line graph construction

• Provide a clear title
• Label all axes clearly
• Place independent variable on the horizontal axis
• Start the vertical axis with a zero value
• If the axis cannot fit the entire scale, it can be broken
• Keep the graph clean and simple
• Graph plotting must be distinct to show a pattern
• If there are more than two graph plottings, use different
colours to differentiate between them
• Use two vertical axes if appropriate
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

A graph with a break in the axis

 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Important features of line graphs

• Slope of the graph plotting indicates the rate at which
the figures are increasing or decreasing
• Straight line indicates a constant rate of change
• When a graph plotting becomes steeper, it shows that
the rate of change has increased
• When comparing two graph plottings, the one with a
steeper slope has a greater rate of change
• When they are parallel, their rates of change are
identical
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Two graph plottings with different slopes

 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Bar charts
• Data is displayed in the form of bars
• Bars can be horizontal or vertical
• In simple bar charts, different bars of the same
thickness are placed alongside each other with a space
between the bars
• In compound bar charts, two or more bars are drawn
together
• Component bar charts show the division of a total into
its constituent parts
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Principles of bar chart construction

• Provide a clear title
• Label the axes clearly
• Bar widths must be equal
• Bars should be equally spaced

A simple bar chart

A compound bar chart

 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Pie charts
• Also known as divided circles
• Circle is divided into component parts or segments
• Each segment can be coloured differently
• Values can be written in the chart
• Descriptions of the segments
can be written in the chart or
provided in a key
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Conclusion
• Must be related to your aim
• Summarises the main points of analysis and discussion
• Usually not more than 200 words
• A summary diagram may be included
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Bibliography
• Lists the sources of information used in your study
• Books are most commonly used
• You can obtain full marks by correctly using at least
three relevant and up-to-date books
• An up-to-date bibliography will have at least one book
published within the last five years
• If you have used non-book sources, the books should
be listed first followed by the other sources
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

How to write a book reference

• In the following order:
– Surname of author or authors (use “et. al.” when there are two or
more authors)
– Title of book (underlined)
– Name of publisher
– Place of publication
– Date of publication

• Examples:
– Bleasdell, S.G. et al CSEC New Integrated Geography.
Caribbean Educational Publishers, Trinidad, 2008.
– Bleasdell, S. G.: A Photographic Geography of the Caribbean
with Field Studies and Multiple Choices. Caribbean Educational
Publishers, Trinidad, 2011.
– Bleasdell, S.G.: CAPE Unit 2 New Integrated Geography.
Caribbean Educational Publishers, Trinidad, 2014.
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

How to write non-book references

• Atlas
– Caribbean Certificate Atlas 3rd edition, Macmillan Education Ltd.
London, 2001.

• Map
– Trinidad, Arouca, 1-25,000 Sheet 24 Ed. 1-D.O.S. 1974.

• Newspaper
– ‘Ash diverts BWIA flights’ The Daily Express, May 22, 2006, p.3.

• Encyclopedia
– Internet-Linked Encyclopedia of Planet Earth: Usborne
Publishing Ltd. London, 2003.

• Internet
– http://www.uwiseismic.com
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Appendix
• Includes your questionnaire and other relevant
materials that are not placed in the main report
• Also includes the permission letter from your school
and your letter to the company requesting permission
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Communication of information
• Penalty for grammatical errors and flaws in the study
• Standard English is required
• Appropriate geographical jargon is expected
• Word limit is usually 1,500 words
• Penalty if you exceed by more than 150 words
• Words not counted:
– Words used to label diagrams, maps and illustrations
– Words in the title of a map, diagram or illustration
– Words in a key
– Words in the bibliography
– Words in the appendix
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Questionnaire
construction
•Questionnaire must be
designed specifically to
suit the purpose of your
investigation and the
nature of the respondents
•Do not ask questions that
may offend respondents
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Considerations in crafting questions

1. Questions must be easy to understand, easy to
answer accurately and clearly, and relevant to the
topic
2. Questions must be specific and related to a single
topic, and not open-ended if a specific answer is
required
3. Questionnaire’s flow, structure and length should keep
the respondent’s interest; it must be simple and free of
technical jargon
4. Questions must be constructed so that the recorded
answers can be easily analysed
5. Questionnaire must be easy for the interviewer to
administer
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Types of questions
1. Knowledge
• E.g. How did you know about this housing development ?

2. Factual
• E.g. How many years have you been living in this
neighbourhood ?

3. Motivational
• E.g. Why did you choose to come to this neighbourhood ?

3. Attitudinal
• E.g. How do you rate this neighbourhood ?
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Unstructured questions
• Also called open-ended questions
• Respondents are encouraged to answer in their own
words
• Used when the researcher …
… is interested in knowing what information the
respondent volunteers before asking more specific
questions
… expects a wide range of answers
… has limited knowledge of the possible responses
• May take a long time to record the answers
• Difficult to interpret and analyse the data
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Structured questions
• Also called ‘closed’ questions
• Answers are anticipated and respondents are given
fixed alternatives
• Easier to administer in the field
• Results are easier to analyse
• When asking about the respondent’s feelings or attitude
towards something, a five-point rating scale is
preferable
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

• Examples of five-point scales:

Strongly Agree Don’t know Disagree Strongly

agree disagree
1 2 3 4 5

Very good Very bad

1 2 3 4 5

Very reliable Very unreliable

1 2 3 4 5
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Sampling
• Collection of data from a subset of the subject
population
• Sample should be representative of the population
• A larger sample is likely to be more representative than
a smaller one

Random sampling
• Each item in the population is assigned a number
• Numbers are chosen from a random numbers table or
pulled out from a box
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Stratified sampling
• Population is divided into groups
• A random sample is chosen from each group

Systematic sampling
• Items are chosen at a regular interval, e.g. every tenth
item on a list
• Need to ensure that the sample interval does not
coincide with a regular fluctuation of the population data
at the same interval
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Teacher guidance
• Advise on areas of research
• Assist in question construction
• Advise on nature of the task and depth of research
required
• Advise on availability of resources
• Monitor your progress
• Verify the authenticity of your work
• Provide feedback on time spent and guidance received
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

Questions for discussion

1. You are required to investigate the migration of persons into
a small community in your neighbourhood. Your SBA
involves the construction of a questionnaire, interviews with
persons in the community and the presentation of your
results.
• Construct a questionnaire with ten questions that you would
ask the persons about themselves, where they came from,
where they are living and why they migrated.
• How many persons would you interview, when would you
interview them and how would you select the persons to be
interviewed ?
• How would you present your results to show clearly what you
have discovered about migration into the community that you
are studying ?
• What are some obstacles that you may encounter and how
would you solve these problems ?
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

2. You are required to use the questionnaire method to assess

the sphere of influence of a large supermarket. You must
therefore conduct interviews with customers.
• How would you select customers for interview in order to
obtain a representative sample of the people who use the
supermarket ? How many people would you interview ?
• What sources of information other than the customer
questionnaire may provide information about the area served
by the supermarket ?
• What are the advantages and disadvantages of using the
customer questionnaire method to collect data ?
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

3. You are required to conduct a study of the Central Business

District (CBD) of the capital of your country.
• How would you go about doing a pedestrian survey within
the CBD ? Your survey must test whether there is a decline
in the number of pedestrians with increasing distance from
the centre of the CBD.
• How would you plot the information on a diagram in order to
show the relationship between the distance from the CBD
centre and the number of pedestrians ?
 Chapter 2: Field Studies

4. You are required to conduct a survey of the agricultural

geography of a small farming community in your country.
You will need to draw a land use map of the crops grown
and the kinds of animals reared at the time of your survey.
You will also need to interview a farmer.
• Explain what scale of map you would draw for your survey
and how you would plot the land use on your map.
• Construct a questionnaire with 15 questions that you will ask
the farmer about himself, his farm, his method of production,
problems faced and solutions to his problems.