AS Level Geography OCR Investigating Glacial Landscape Systems 3 days Deliver two full days of fieldwork within an inspiring physical environment. Prepare AS level students for the Paper 1: Landscape and Place exam. Cover a choice of specification content for AS fieldwork in Topic 1.1.2 Glaciated Landscapes. For those students 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. Glacial Landscape Systems Outline of the Course Allocation of wellies/waterproofs. Developing a sense of place in an inspiring local environment, students will gain an understanding of glacial systems and their role in shaping the present landscape. They will also explore the chronology of events that have shaped the landscape, and the influence of physical factors on these events. Landscape Interpretation Students will use mapping and remote sensing to extend understanding of the present landscape through exploring the local and global physical factors influencing the glacial systems of the past. 2 The UK s Glaciated Uplands A full fieldwork day where students explore an awe-inspiring post-glacial environment, piecing together the processes and chronology that has created the landscape they see today. Students will explore the impact of ice on the landscape, observing landforms such as corries, aretes and terminal moraines, which have resulted from interactions between geology and erosional and depositional processes. Through direct observation and use of maps or aerial photos, students will gain knowledge of a number of glaciated environment landforms, including the processes that led to their creation. Local Data in the Global Picture - Upland Glaciation Students will explore the link between impact of former glaciers and ice sheets on the UK landscape and the consequences of ongoing deglaciation in other global settings. The analysis of their local primary data and global secondary data through GIS will give meaning to the fieldwork on a local and global scale. 3 The UK s Glaciated Lowlands Students will follow the path of a former ice flow into the lowlands to explore the features formed by glacial and fluvioglacial deposition. They will investigate the characteristics of sediments in depositional landforms, and the role of climate change and resource extraction, in their modification. 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.
Glacial Landscape Systems The present is the key to the past is the key to the future - paraphrasing of James Hutton 1788 In engaging with a glaciated landscape, we look back in time. Unpicking the palimpsest layers of the past involves looking at what is not there as well as what is; interpreting subsequent modification as well as initial formation. Exploration of this environment brings us face to face with the interconnected nature of the landscape system within which we share both space and time. This session will encourage learners to develop a framework for questioning and interpreting how and why the landscape has changed and evolved throughout the Quaternary period. Getting outside into an inspiring local post-glacial environment will provide a backdrop to interpret the landscape chronologically, and as a system with inputs, processes and outputs. Learners will use first hand observation and measurements alongside maps and GIS imagery to explore physical factors such as climate, geology, latitude and altitude, relief and aspect, which influence the formation of landforms within the landscape system. Fieldwork, measurements and analysis may include: Field sketching. Valley surveys: long and cross sections, slope angle, distribution. Geomorphological mapping.
Landscape Interpretation 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.
The UK s Glaciated Uplands A house burnt down by fire did not tell its story more plainly than did this valley. If it had still been filled by a glacier, the phenomena would have been less distinct than they now are. - Charles Darwin 1842 For developing an understanding of landscape there is no substitute for direct observation. The post-glacial landscapes of the UK are aweinspiring places that connect us with their geological and climatological past, present and future. It is through engaging with this environment that we can begin to question the how and the why of what we see, and it is through this awareness that we can begin to answer these questions. Learners will assemble evidence of glaciation on a landscape scale through first-hand observation and measurements. Through immersion in an inspiring post-glacial environment learners explore the impact of ice on the land, observing features and landforms from millimetre to kilometre scale and interpreting the chronology of interactions between ice and geology over hundreds of thousands of years. The use of secondary data, GIS and statistical tools to analyse the data will give meaning to the fieldwork on both a local and global scale. Fieldwork, measurements, calculation and analysis may include: Identification and interpretation of landscape features. Corrie surveys: size, shape, orientation, altitude. Chronological interpretation. Geomorphological mapping. Striation surveys: orientation, cross-cutting.
Local Data in the Global Picture - Upland Glaciation 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: 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.
The UK s Glaciated Lowlands Glaciers, grinding West, gouged out these valleys, rasping the brown sandstone, and left, on the hard rock below the ruffled foreland Norman MacCaig To really start to understand the UK s post-glacial landscapes requires following the path of the ice into the lowlands, tracking the journey of the material eroded from the gaping hollows of the uplands. Exploring the ruffled foreland with its varied features of glacial deposition and fluvioglacial action offers the opportunity to develop further landscape knowledge, think geographically and interpret the interplay of processes and activities of the past with the present and the future. Learners will gain first-hand experience of a number of lowland glacial features such as kames, eskers and outwash plains, understanding their place in the chronology of the Quarternary glaciation of the British Isles. The impacts on these features of past, present and future climate change and resource exploitation will be explored. In addition to qualitative techniques, primary data from glacial and/or fluvio-glacial sediments will be used to examine the characteristics of depositional features. Through unearthing sediments which were last moved by glacial ice over 10,000 years ago, learners will extend their thinking around sharing the present with the past and into the future. Fieldwork, measurements, calculation and analysis may include: Podcast creation and annotated photography. Futures sketching. Survey of distribution and formation of sediments within depositional features (size, shape, stratification). Rose diagrams to present orientation data.
FSC Centres Centres that offer this course BL CH MA MT PM RC Blencathra Castle Head Margam Malham Tarn Preston Montford Rhyd-y-creuau 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