GCSE Geography Coursework

Heathrow Airport Expansion
“The benefits of expanding Heathrow airport outweigh the costs”
GCSE Coursework

This is a guide to completing your GCSE Geography Coursework. You must read through this guide carefully and do everything it asks. If you leave things out, you will not achieve the grade that you are capable of.

Your Coursework in Numbers…
20 the percentage of your final grade that this coursework is worth
40 the number of marks that your coursework is marked out of
07.01.08 the deadline for your coursework
20.12.07 deadline for a stress free holiday
2,500 the maximum number of words you can write (not including labels, tables and titles)
1 the number of people who are responsible for your coursework

Help is at hand…
http://langtreegeography.blogspot.com/ the blog
https://langtreegeography.wikispaces.com/ the wiki
mygeographyteacher@googlemail.com by email
Room 24, 13.05 – 13.30 Tuesdays & Wednesdays in person

You must…
· carry out a ‘risk assessment’ before you start and discuss the results with your teacher
· carry out all fieldwork in at least a pair. Never do any field visits on your own.

8 Steps in completing your coursework…
There are 8 steps to completing the written part of your coursework. Each of these 8 steps reflects one of the sections outlined below. You must complete each of these steps.

There are just 8 steps you need to take in order to complete your coursework. Each of these steps fit into the eight different parts of your coursework.

Step 1: Set the scene for your coursework
Step 2: Plan your methodology
Step 3: Collect your primary and secondary data
Step 4: Present and interpret what you have found out
Step 5: Think through how different groups of people think about the issue
Step 6: Write your work, including your conclusions
Step 7: Evaluate your work
Step 8: Get your work ready to hand in

Each of these steps fits one of the eight parts of your coursework which fit into three sections:

Section A: Introduction and Methodology (about 1000 words)
Section B: Data presentation and analysis (about 1000 words)
Section C: Conclusions and Evaluation (about 500 words)


For more details on each section turn to the next page in this guide.


Hypothesis
“The benefits of expanding Heathrow airport outweigh the costs”

This hypothesis is the backbone of your work. Everything you do must contribute in some way to answering if this hypothesis. You must refer to it throughout your work and decide if it is true or false and why.

There are a number of questions that you have to ask in order to complete your coursework. Your coursework is based on the Sustainable Development theme within the course specification and we are exploring how issues can be resolved. To do this you need to be thinking about the following questions while planning your work:

· What causes pressure on land and resources?
· What are the consequences of people's use of resources?
· What effects might the growth of demand for goods and services have on environments?
· What priorities about the future use of land and resources do different people have?
· How can planning help to resolve issues about the use of land and resources?
· How can the use of resources and environments best be developed and managed?
· Can sustainable development be achieved?

Route of Enquiry

You must write your own ‘route of enquiry’. This is a sequence of questions that you will answer in order to decide if the hypothesis is true of false. You should also use it to structure your report.

An example of a route of enquiry is below for the hypothesis – The cliffs at Hengistbury Head have been influenced more by human then physical processes.

What is Hengistbury Head like today?
How have the landforms been influenced by Geology?
How have the landforms been influenced by past processes?
How have the landforms been influenced by present processes?
How is the landscape being managed?
How should this section of the coast be managed sustainably?


Your Route of Enquiry
1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.


SECTION A
Your word limit for Section A is 1000 words. This does not include maps, graphs, diagrams or tables of data. It does not include annotations on photos, sketches, graphs or maps.
1: Introduction
□ Title
□ The aim of your work
□ Your hypothesise
□ Setting the scene
o Where is Heathrow? (you need maps and descriptions)
o What is the issue behind your question or hypothesis?
o Where is it happening? Who and where is involved?
o Why have changes been suggested?
o What alternatives have been put forward?

2: Methods and Equipment
□ How did you collect your data? (time, date, location, reasons for choice, sample type)
□ What secondary data you have used?
□ Create a table to show the different methods you have used including why you chose that method, any limitations and any solutions either for now or the future in using each method.

SECTION B
Your word limit for Section B is 1000 words. This does not include maps, graphs, diagrams or tables of data. It does not include annotations on photos, sketches, graphs or maps.
3. Field Data
□ Show all the sheets that you used to collect data on.

4. Data Presentation and Interpretation
□ Represent your data using a wide range of techniques:
o Maps
o Cross sections
o Field sketches
o Photographs
o Pictograms
o Spheres of influence
o Located charts
o Graphs (line, bar, pie, star)
o Cost Benefit Analysis
□ What do your results show?
□ How do different people or groups feel about the proposals?
□ For each factor, do the costs outweigh the benefits?
When you interpret your data you should refer to the six questions in the route of enquiry.

5. Values and Attitudes Analysis
□ How should Heathrow be managed in the future?

SECTION B
Your word limit for Section B is 500 words
6. Conclusions
□ Do the costs outweigh the benefits?
□ How should the issue be resolved?

7. Evaluation
□ What went well and what went badly?
□ What would you change if you did it again?
□ How valid and unbiased were the sources that you used?
□ What alternative conclusions can be drawn?
□ How could your investigation be extended?
□ Who might be interested in reading your report?

8. Finally…
□ Make sure you have a title page
□ Contents page
□ Pages should be numbered
□ Your name on each page
□ Bibliography

How your work is assessed
You must be able to tick everything in this list in order to get the grade you want:

You must show understanding of…
□ geographical ideas
□ geographical processes
□ how different processes interact to produce complex patterns
□ the causes and effects of relationships
□ how values and attitudes effect geographical issues
□ how your evidence is linked to the issues you explore
□ how your data is linked to your conclusions
□ alternative conclusions to the ones that you have made
(10 marks / 25%)

You must use your knowledge and understanding by…
□ identifying relevant questions
□ all your work being relevant
□ being independent, imaginative and using initiative in your work
□ using detailed and accurate knowledge
□ use your own knowledge
□ using geographical ideas in a wide range of contexts
□ drawing conclusions to show how a problem can be managed in a sustainable way
□ suggesting an extension to your work with questions raised by your findings
□ showing how realistic the application of your findings is
(10 marks / 25%)

You must show your skills by…
□ collecting a wide range of primary data from a wide variety of sources
□ collecting field data that is relevant to the investigation
□ using a wide range of secondary sources
□ recognising the origin and validity of your sources
□ using a wide variety of skills and techniques to show your findings including maps, graphs, field sketches, photographs, diagrams and others.
□ your presentation being excellent
□ showing initiative, imagination and independence when collecting and presenting data
□ using appropriate analytical techniques
□ drawing conclusions by using your evidence
□ questioning the validity and limitations of your evidence
□ using ICT wherever relevant
□ using precise, clear and in depth writing
(20 marks / 50%)


GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS

This investigation counts for 20% of your final GCSE mark. You will do it in two stages, each stage taking about two weeks to complete. You will work on it in lessons and in your own time. Much of the information for the final section may have to be collected during Half Term, weekends or the Christmas Holidays

· You can collect information in pairs but the writing up of the tasks must be done on your own.

· Your work should have a title sheet on which you must put:
□ A title;
□ your name;
□ the name of your Centre, Langtree School.

· You must number the pages of the work and put your name on each page. Make sure you number or label each task clearly.

· Present all your work neatly and with care.

· Remember the importance of your written communication, this includes good spelling, punctuation and grammar. Remember to use geographical terms correctly.

· Read all the instructions and the briefing sheets very carefully. Listen closely to the advice that you are given.

· Use only A4 sized paper, i.e. the same size as this booklet. (Folded A3 paper is acceptable). Do not use plastic sleeves or plastic pockets. Use a manila folder, not a ringbinder. One treasury tag to fasten your work together is better than staples or paper clips.

· You must use ICT to produce part or all of this investigation. In Section A you will have to use ICT to obtain the necessary data for some tasks. However, its use elsewhere is not compulsory, and you may prefer to use other methods of presentation or analysis.

· You should acknowledge the secondary sources that you have used. These could be books, maps, newspaper extracts, and such like. You should do this in an ‘Acknowledgements’ section at the end of your work. Work simply copied from secondary sources should be placed in inverted commas and you must make it clear that it has been copied.

· Make sure you know when the deadline dates are (BestTrack 7th of January. Final Deadline 21st April 2007.). Plan your work accordingly and make full use of the class time made available to you. Do not leave everything to the last minute!

· Remember that cheating in any way, especially copying from another candidate, is strictly forbidden. The penalties are severe. Make sure you complete and sign the Coursework Cover Sheet. The word limit is 2500 words for the entire investigation.





ADVICE ON THE PRESENTATION OF YOUR WORK

When writing up your investigation it is a good idea to remember the following points.

Text
• Word processing often improves the quality and clarity of your presentation.
• Select a sensible typeface (font) and stick to it. Font size can be varied to make titles, etc.stand out, but for most of your writing you should use font size 12. Bold, underlining and the use of italics can help to highlight important words and phrases.
• Use the spell checker and if you are uncertain about geographical vocabulary, look it up in a textbook or dictionary.
• Always print out a hard copy, on paper, at the end of each session of work. Save your work on the hard drive but always save a copy onto a floppy disc as well. This means you will have three copies of your work. It is difficult to lose all three!
• Always proof-read your work.

Layout and Organisation of your Work
• Do not try to use both sides of the paper.
• Don’t try to cram too much onto one side. A crowded page is not always a good page.
• Diagrams, maps, photos and graphs all need titles. The most useful ones are given a fig. no. and referred to in your written text.
• The whole point of producing graphs, maps, and diagrams is to communicate information.
It is often the labels, titles, and annotations which help to do this most effectively.
• Pages and pages of raw data and/or raw questionnaires are unhelpful in the main project itself. Put in an example to show what you have done but the bulk of them can be left out completely or added at the end in an Appendix. A paragraph, outlining your methods, is a good idea, however.
• Data can usefully be summarised in a ‘table of results’. This is the first stage of analysis. A spreadsheet or database is a good way of doing this.

Graphs and Diagrams
• ICT can be used to handle data and draw graphs.
• Do not create pages of pie charts or pages of bar charts. A few well chosen and varied graphs is the best approach.
• Never use 3D for your graphs. It adds an unnecessary level of confusion. 3D line graphs just look like a lot of flying ribbons.
• The chart wizard does not always create the best graphs for communicating geographical information.
• Very often, the whole reason for including graphs is to illustrate a comparison. If this is the case, put them on the same page so that the reader can see them together and compare them easily. It is meaningless to create graphs for comparison if their scales differ.
• Scattergraphs are useful to show relationships between variables but be careful when discussing cause and effect.

Using Photographs
• Plan your page layout carefully. Do not bunch all the photos together in one section. Spread them out and link them to the work that they apply to best.
• Never use page after page of photos, even if they have each got a title. Annotations are usually essential on photos.
• Always ask yourself the question ‘What will this photo add to the overall project?’ If the answer is ‘Nothing’, then don’t use it.
• Photos, when used sparingly, can be very good. The very best ones have clear annotations that explain something rather than just describe it.
• If you are going to annotate photos properly, you will find you can’t really get more than one to a page. Why not try ‘landscape’ pages for landscape photos.
• Scanned or digital images can be very good but sometimes the quality is poor. Use your judgement.

Some Methods Data Collection…

Primary Methods (complete in various locations for spatial analysis)
□ Questionnaire (ask groups of people questions)
□ Tax Discs (see where cars have come from)
□ Pedestrian Count (see how many people there are in a place)
□ Bi-Polar Analysis (rate the attractiveness or another factor between 0 and 10)
□ Survey (pollution, attractiveness or other factors)
□ Interviews (record a conversation with a relevant stakeholder)
□ Field Sketch (draw and annotate something of interest)
□ Photograph (photograph and annotate something of interest)
□ Unprocessed Data (raw data that you have found from a report or other source)
□ Transect (travel in a straight, recording relevant information on a map)


Secondary Methods
□ Websites
□ Books
□ Maps
□ Atlases
□ Reports
□ Charts
□ Timetables


Some Methods of Data Presentation…

□ Maps (to show locations and spatial patterns)
□ Orientation graph (to show the frequency/quantity of visitors to a place and their origin)
□ Field Sketch (to present what a place is like)
□ Field Map (to represent a location)
□ Photographs (to present what a place is like)
□ Located information (to show the relationship between ‘place’ and opinions, data etc.)
□ Line Graph (to correlate data)
□ Bar Chart (to compare data)
□ Pie Chart (to present percentages)
□ Bi-Polar
□ Isolines (to link places of equal value)
□ Pictogram (to compare data)
□ Sphere of Influence Map (to present the area influenced to influenced by a factor)
□ Table (to present raw data)
□ Cost Benefit Analysis chart (to analyse and compare a range of variables)
□ Proportional symbols (to show two or more variables in proportion to one another)
□ Overlays (to compare two or more sets of information)
□ Scatter graphs (to correlate two sets of data)
□ Histograms
□ Statistics