AS Level Geography Edexcel Landscape Systems and Shaping Places 3 days Covers the essential areas of study for the complete AS fieldwork requirements. Fieldwork in these locations provides a contrast to the place studied where students live or study, developing wider knowledge and understanding. Choices in both areas of study: choose either Coasts or Glaciation and Diverse Places or Regeneration. Prepare AS level students for either Section B or C in both examination papers, worth 10% of their total marks. For those going on to A level, this course will contribute two of the four days of fieldwork requirements and provide contextualised learning in inspiring real world environments to develop their geographical understanding for the A level examinations.
Example Course Timetable DAY MORNING AFTERNOON EVENING 1 Arrive Midday Students will be greeted by FSC staff, with a welcome talk followed by a brief tour of the Centre and the local area. Choose one from: Outline of the Course Allocation of wellies/waterproofs. Regenerating Places: Need and Strategy Fieldwork relating to the following themes: Historical change in an area. Public opinion on local regeneration strategies. OR Diverse Places: Perceptions of Living Space Fieldwork relating to the following themes: Evaluation of areas that have the potential for improvement. The extent of the deprivation in an area. Analysis of Field Observations Focusing on either Regenerating Places or Diverse Places, students will analyse their field and secondary data, using GIS in order to form justified conclusions. 2 Choose one from: Glaciated Landscapes and Change Fieldwork relating to the following themes: Changing glacial and/or fluvio-glacial sediments. Glacial and/or fluvio-glacial morphology and orientation. The impact of human activity on fragile glaciated landscapes. OR Coastal Landscapes and Change Fieldwork relating to the following themes: Changing coastal sediments. Changing coastal profiles. Success of coastal management approaches. Analysis of Field Observations Focusing on either Glaciated Landscapes or Coastal Landscapes, students will analyse their field and secondary data, using GIS in order to form justified conclusions. 3 Choose one from: Regenerating Places: Evaluating Success Fieldwork relating to the following theme: Evidence of regeneration strategies. OR Diverse Places: Demographic and Cultural Fieldwork relating to the theme: Attitude towards geo-demographic change. Depart at Midday A final farewell from FSC staff as the students depart at midday. Please note: to ensure safe and quality learning experiences for students, the timetable may alter depending on weather conditions and local factors at Centres.
Regenerating Places: Need and Strategy Cities have the capability of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody. Jane Jacobs, American Journalist and Author Learners will visit a dynamic urban or rural area in order to gather qualitative and quantitative data and build a picture of the spatial variation in the area s economic structure, environment and social and demographic character. Secondary research will also provide an impression of how it has changed over time and highlight any spiral of decline. Having identified the context within which regeneration is needed, the complex process of rebranding will be explored through a series of examples in the locale. With the aim of gauging changes in public perception of the urban place following re-imaging and regeneration, learners will consider the extent to which a specific place identity has been created and evaluate the degree to which local, national and international users of the space are attracted to its new environmental, social and economic character. Fieldwork, measurements, calculation and analysis may include: Detailed photographic (still and video) representations to describe the built and natural environment. Discourse analysis, participant observation and questionnaires to explore how the physical environment relates to the local neighbourhood character or identity. Analysis of personal biographies, oral histories and stories of people who have lived in different places: migrants, refugees and mapping their experience of place. Using GIS to compare and analyse the spatial distributions of different social groups and evidence of engagement- or disengagement- in the community. Exploration and surveys of public and personal opinion via a range of methods including interviews and open questioning. Use geo-located photographs with notes and interviews to accompany a content analysis of their images to enable comparisons and analysis about how the place is perceived by residents and visitors. Assessment of the variations in the health of an urban space, incorporating an evaluation of social deprivation, environmental quality and economic inequalities. Using a primary walkability tool to examine and record urban design quality. Using a range of media (e.g. old postcards) and GIS to examine historical change in the area. Using the IMD data (Index of Multiple Deprivation) to complete secondary research into the spatial variation in deprivation in the local area at output area scale. Learners will also explore the lived experience of a range of individuals (people of different ethnicities, ages, genders etc) within a defined place and assess the degree of engagement and attachment they feel towards the local community. Fieldwork, measurements, calculation and analysis may include: An exploration of place across a range of scales and perspectives. Use of simple materials to build places and evaluate these for inclusivity and quality of lived experience compared with implications for engagement. Collection of qualitative data via observations, questionnaires, image and textual analysis to assess the concept of place. Collating and analysing mental maps based on qualitative data from local people on their perceptions of an area and the way they use the space and different services.
Diverse Places: Perceptions of Living Space All that a city will ever allow you is an angle on it - an oblique, indirect sample of what it contains, or what passes through it; a point of view. Peter Conrad, Australian Academic and Author Visiting an area local to the centre, either rural or urban, learners will immerse themselves in their surroundings, gaining a sense of place through a series of data collection tasks. Initially incorporating qualitative and quantitative methods in the field, learners will explore the idea of place developed through both their own, direct experience and the perceptions of other users of the area. The relative significance of these findings will then be compared to other representations of this place in a range of media sources to examine how the sense of place is built and communicated to bring about a holistic understanding. With this foundation of understanding, learners will discuss how this representation of place can be and has been manipulated and managed to meet a range of stakeholder aims. Fieldwork, measurements, calculation and analysis may include: Collection of qualitative data via observations, questionnaires, image and textual analysis to assess the concept of place in and around the field centre. Critical evaluation of lived experience and engagement within the centre grounds. Non-participant observations, place imagability, questionnaires and textual analysis of a range of media to assess the role of the lived experience in developing a sense of place compared with other representations of place. Using GIS to analyse and compare the spatial distributions of different representations of place and how the perception of place has been managed. Collating and analysing mental maps based on qualitative data from local people on their perceptions of an area and the way they use and experience the space and the qualities they ascribe to them. Evaluation of different sources, such as music, film etc. and the appreciation of why they create different representations and image of a local place. Gathering local representations of place, e.g. on postcards or tourism literature and brochures - how are local places represented? To what extent do the learners relate to these representations? How could the learner represent the area differently? Taking photographs to represent the identity of area with digital camera. How and why is a place seen differently by different people? Producing geographical narratives to help understand the informal and formal representations of place? Using Placechecks as a tool to examine the qualities of a place and opportunities for improvement. Detailed photographic (still and video) representations to describe the built and natural environment. Discourse analysis, participant observation and questionnaires to explore how the physical environment relates to the local neighbourhood character or identity. Evaluating the spatial lived-experience of space, including exclusion (for whom). Mapping evidence of place-making elements, such as planning approaches or management plans to contextualise understanding. Analysis of personal biographies, oral histories and stories of people who have lived in different places: migrants, refugees and mapping their experience of place.
Analysis of Field Observations Learners will focus on either Regenerating Places or Diverse Places and complete their investigation by following the latter parts of the scientific approach to the presentation, interpretation and analysis of their data. Discussion and demonstrations of appropriate techniques will ensure that learners draw well-reasoned, accurate and valid conclusions and are able to evaluate the outcomes of their investigation into urban or rural places. There will also be an opportunity for students to supplement their understanding and reinforce conclusions by incorporating secondary information with appropriate analysis and evaluation. Learners will engage in qualitative data analysis which involves activities and tools such as: Coding (open, axial, selective), categorising and interpreting data by engaging directly with original, primary data or secondary data in a variety of media in order to discover significant underlying patterns and trends. Image and textual analysis with consideration for the source of the image/text and the meanings that can be drawn from this data source in context. Concept mapping to define and explore the web of relationships between different themes within the data. Collating and analysing mental maps based on qualitative data from local people on their perceptions of an area and the way they use the space and different services.
Glaciated Landscapes and Change Out of all the cold darkness and glacial crushing and grinding comes this warm, abounding beauty and life to teach us that what we in our faithless ignorance and fear call destruction is creation finer and finer. John Muir Through immersion in an inspiring post-glacial environment, learners will use a systems approach to piece together the processes and systems which formed this landscape. Learners will begin to make links between the present and the past by collecting primary data to examine the characteristics of glacial features. To enable students to investigate questions relating to changing valley cross-profiles and glacial landform morphology and orientation, first hand observations of erosional landforms will be contextualised through the use of maps, aerial imagery and GIS. Fieldwork surveying distribution and characteristic features of a glaciated upland environment may involve: Identification of glacial erosional features through field sketching. Interpretation of glacial erosional features through geomorphological mapping. Valley surveys: long and cross-profiles, slope angle, distribution of features. Corrie surveys: size, shape, orientation, altitude. Striation surveys: orientation, cross-cutting. In addition to qualitative techniques, primary data from glacial and/or fluvio-glacial sediments will be used to examine the characteristics of depositional features. Fieldwork surveying depositional features of a glaciated environment may involve: Identification of glacial depositional features through field sketching. Interpretation of glacial depositional features through geomorphological mapping. Survey of distribution and formation of sediments within depositional features (size, shape, stratification, orientation). Chronological interpretation. Learners will also have the opportunity to examine the cultural, economic and environmental value of a relict glacial landscape. This may involve examining the economic significance of the glacial landscape, investigating the impact humans have on the fragile ecology of glacial landscapes and evaluating ways in which different stakeholders work together to manage glacial landscapes particularly given the contextual risk climate warming has for these unique and fragile landscapes. Fieldwork may include: Land use mapping and bi-polar EQI assessments. Soil erosion / trampling surveying. Interviewing landscape management stakeholders.
Coastal Landscapes and Change By recreating a naturally functioning shoreline we free ourselves from the sea defence cycle of construct, fail and reconstruct. This must surely be more cost effective in the long run and more desirable in terms of maintaining the coast s natural beauty. It does mean making some tough choices, but we can t just store up the problems for future generations to deal with. The National Trust Coastal landscape systems are some of the most dynamic and fascinating in the UK, showcasing the complex and finely balanced interactions between land, atmosphere and ocean. Coasts can be beautiful, diverse, hospitable and hostile places, they offer a rich habitat for a wealth of terrestrial and marine life, and are a part of the global landscape under increasing pressure from human development and climate change. They provide a scintillating backdrop to explore contemporary geographies, our place in a changing world, and the future of human and physical systems on the edge. Students will visit a local coastal landscape and will be given the opportunity to investigate the distinctive features of this landscape. Recording an overview of the landscape including the landforms creating it, and the sources of energy and sediment within it, including the different wave types and beach sediment profiles. Students may: Carry out sediment analysis, to include pebble size and shape, which will then be linked to the coastal processes active in the area. Use sketches and/or photographs to record the landscape and distinctive landforms that create it. Use secondary data to interpret long term wind patterns. Collect primary data on wind and waves, which may include measuring wind direction and strength and determining wave type Measure beach profiles, to illustrate the action of longshore drift and/or erosion and consider what this means for the origin and development of landforms. Undertake a geology study, to include investigating the origin of material found on beaches and use of British Geological Society (BGS) maps to determine local and regional bedrock. Conduct cliff surveys including cliff height and cliff sketches to record erosional features and processes creating and modifying them. Coasts are dynamic, with the systems inputs, processes and outputs constantly shifting to balance. Management of coasts will often interrupt this balance and during this session students will also focus on a local coastal management case study. They will see examples of different approaches to management of coastal recession and flooding and have the opportunity to consider the reasons for management, and evaluate the appropriateness of management approaches. Students may: Research the Shoreline Management Plan for the local area to develop case study knowledge. Evaluate hard and soft engineering approaches using techniques such as cost-benefit analysis and bipolar evaluations. Use GIS to interrogate management cells to consider flood risk and land values. Consider the sustainability of coastal management with reference to future threats such as storm events and rising sea levels. Use secondary data to inform reasoning on the sustainability of coastal management.
Analysis of Field Observations Glacial Landscapes: Learners will explore the link between the impact of receding glaciers on the UK landscape and the consequences of ongoing deglaciation in other parts of the world. The analysis of local data through graphical interpretation and global data through GIS, will give meaning to the fieldwork on both a local and global scale. For instance, this session may involve: Cirque orientation analysis at a regional scale using OS maps and Chi-squared. A comparison of past and present distribution of glaciated landscapes using regional maps. A comparison of gathered primary landform evidence for past glacial/interglacial periods, versus graphical analysis of reconstructed climate history. Till fabric analysis using rose diagrams. Use of British Geological Society (BGS) glacial drift maps, Ordnance Survey (OS) maps and GIS to reconstruct past ice extent and ice flow direction. Numerical analysis of mean rates of glacial recession in different global regions, using secondary sources such as the Swiss Glacier Monitoring Network. Coastal Landscapes: Students will undertake the final stages of the geographical enquiry process focusing on: Data processing and presentation. Analysis and conclusions. Critically reflecting on the results. Using ICT they will collate and process the information from the day s fieldwork and present the information in an appropriate set of graphs, maps and tables. Students will work collaboratively to describe their findings, explain reasons for their results and suggest linkages between primary and secondary data. Appropriate statistics and mathematical techniques will be used to enable conclusions to be drawn. Finally students will critically reflect on the enquiry and the application the conclusions may have to other areas of study, including the accuracy, validity and reliability of the conclusions.
Regenerating Places: Evaluating Success Regeneration is about much more than bricks and mortar. It is about creating sustainable, vibrant communities where people are proud to live and work. Builder & Engineer Journal Regeneration can only be considered successful if it is sustainable and thus it must balance the interrelated aspects of the economy, the environment and society, combating the causes of the spiral of decline found in the place and addressing problems that have grown over time and space across the area. Rebranding stakeholders ignore this trinity at their peril, as without any one, there is opportunity for a negative lived experience and disengagement. Investigating an urban or rural community and area for evidence of successful and sustainable regeneration will be the aim for learners in this session. Learners will immerse themselves in an area local to the field centre and evaluate the success of an regeneration scheme. Economic regeneration will be examined via a range of measures of income, poverty and employment. Aspects of social progress, both perceived and received, will be judged through assessment of the demographic characteristics and spatial inequalities that arise, persist or decline as a result of regeneration. Learners will finally investigate evidence of an enduring improvement in the living environment of the place. Through comparing the complex balance of these aspects within the area and against more successful regeneration attempts, learners will come to a reasoned judgement of the success of the regeneration scheme. Fieldwork, measurements, calculation and analysis may include: Relative and absolute measures of changes in economic, social and environmental characteristics of an area, allowing collation of evidence of regeneration; both successful and unsuccessful rebranding and reimaging outcomes will be considered in order that learners can explore the spatial complexities of a regeneration scheme. Resident and stakeholder perceptions, interviews and open-questionnaires. Using a primary walkability tool to examine and record urban design quality. Use a range of customised semi-qualitative quality surveys including visual and environmental assessment. Graphical and statistical analysis techniques can be employed to identify and quantify relationships between a variety of social, economic or environmental data across space or time, demonstrating directional changes in the character of an area. Learners can interpret these in the context of their expectations and the success of rebranding. Use of GIS data, photographic and map evidence to examine before and after cross-sections of regenerated urban places. Analysis of data and information from rebranding and re-imaging and evaluating the degree to which this has made them more attractive for inward investment and shows social progress.
Diverse Places: Demographic and Cultural Urban and rural communities may be distinguished from other urban areas and their rural hinterland by exploring the variety of its demographic and cultural characteristics such as ethnic variation, land use, income, health, levels of crime, and density of population, education and health. Students will continue to focus on an urban or rural area and investigate the demographic and cultural aspects of the area, including potential tensions and issues. Data sets such as Indices of Multiple Deprivation and police crime statistics provide an insight into spatial differences such as crime, poverty and deprivation across the UK. The indices are mapped to lower layer super output areas which are small homogeneous geographical areas. These can be ranked and scored across a whole range of poverty indicators to enable local and national government and other agencies to fund services and assess need. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) provides a powerful tool to view and interrogate this data spatially and graphically in order to identify distinctive areas and issues related to demographic and cultural change. Fieldwork, measurements and analysis includes: Students will use industry standard software (ArcGIS Online) to display and interpret data from a range of sources. Students will critically analyse a variety of different secondary data sets in combination with Digital and Geo located data collected during the course to enable them to identify spatial patterns. This will draw together their findings across the course to enable them to better understand a range of issues related to demographic and cultural change.
FSC Centres Centres that offer this course Coastal Landscapes Glaciated Landscapes Regenerating Places Diverse Places BL Blencathra P P P CH Castle Head P P P P DF Dale Fort P P P FM Flatford Mill P P P JH Juniper Hall P P P MA Margam P P P P MT Malham Tarn P P P P NC Nettlecombe P P P OR Orielton P P P PM Preston Montford P P P RC Rhyd-y-creuau P P P P SL Slapton P P P To book this course, simply: Choose the time of the year you would like to attend 1. Pick the Centre(s) of interest 2. Check availability online, contact head office to check availability across multiple Centres or contact the Centre(s) of your choice directly To book this course the minimum size of your group must be 12 students and one member of staff. Head Office contact details: Tel: 01743 852100 Email: enquiries@field-studies-council.org