The document provides guidance for students on conducting a geographical investigation into crowded coasts. It outlines four key areas of focus for fieldwork and research: (1) competition for coastal land, (2) coping with coastal pressures, (3) increasing coastal risks, and (4) coastal management. Students are encouraged to utilize a variety of techniques to investigate these topics in the field such as land use surveys, questionnaires, and beach quality assessments. Suggestions are also provided for how students can follow up their fieldwork through activities like writing up their methodology, presenting and analyzing their results, and conducting peer reviews.

1. 6GEO2 Unit 2 Geographical Investigations –
Student Guide: Crowded Coasts - Part 2

2. CONTENTS
In Part 1
1. Overview
2. Requirements of the specification
3. What are crowded coasts?
4. Investigating crowded coasts
5. Ideas for fieldwork
6. Research on crowded coasts
7. Making it work for the exam
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3. What could you do for fieldwork?
• Partly will depend on choice of examples and fieldwork locations….

4. Investigating crowded
coasts….more detail
Thinking about fieldwork and research Key fieldwork + research
focuses – the ‘Strands’
‘In the field’ can
mean a variety
of things. ‘Top- Competition for coasts
up’ from other • Land use surveys,
sources if questionnaires, oral histories,
necessary to give services mapping, beach quality.
coverage
Coping with pressure
• Range of quality surveys, e.g.
landscape quality , pollution,
ecosystems condition.
Increasing risks
• Cliff + beach surveys,
perception, questionnaires, old
maps.
When preparing notes for revision don’t just list Coastal management
what you did. Add depth with places and examples • Assessing coastal defence
of EQUIPMENT, NUMBER of surveys, details of LAND schemes, e.g. photos, bi-polar
surveys.
USE MAPS, even talk about SAMPLING.
The best answers often to refer to real fieldwork
and real places

5. Some general and generic fieldwork + research activities
These will always
Try to create a ‘sense of be useful for the
place’ – use various exam, no matter
ways to create ‘picture what fieldwork
and research
portrait’. option is chosen

6. Example – Competition for coasts: fieldwork
(Strand 1 within the specification)
Classifying + mapping Shows importance of
tourist facilities tourism in resort
Spatial pattern of resorts
Age of buildings
growth
Car parking patterns + See where visitors
visitor sphere of originate from; build up a
influence picture of tourism
This is 1 of the 4 possible fieldwork strands. The exam might ask about this or any
of the other three strands. The exam will only ever be able to assess about 25% of
the fieldwork you might have done. Above are suggestions for possible fieldwork –
there is no need to do them all. Remember that you can ‘top-up’ by virtual
fieldwork, although its best to do this at the same location.

7. One day at the coast. What realistically could be done?
ONE LOCATION ONLY
You would have
to ‘work smart’
2 – Ecosystem
1 – Land use map + to cover all this evaluation (2x
tourist facilities (~ in one day contrasting locations –
6 groups + zoned) groups)
‘At
‘In town – beach–
am’ pm’
4 – Evaluating
3 – Coastal retreat – coastal defences (~
photo evidence, 2 groups /
In the exam you need to
cliff surveys + comparison of
think about what type
questionnaires locations)
fieldwork and research is
(perceived risk) relevant to the focus of the
of the question.

8. Two days at the coast. A more relaxed experience!
Two days allows a greater
1 – Land use range of techniques and
map + tourist probably a visit to two 2 – Ecosystem evaluation,
facilities, contrasting locations along e.g. transect + ACFOR
questionnaire the same stretch of coast scale, modified Blue Flag
(sphere of criteria for beach quality
influence etc),
age of 4 – Evaluating coastal
buildings. Maps defences – bi-polar,
of change. photos, questionnaires
of effectiveness
(COULD REPEAT +
COMPARE AT DAY 2)
Day 1 – 3 – Coastal retreat –
photo evidence, field
crowded sketch, cliff surveys, Day 2 – more
resort beach profiles rural coast
location

9. Opportunities for research
Old photos and other documentary evidence (e.g. coastal flood
reports, photos, specialist books etc) can help reveal the scale
and impact of floods. You may also find evidence of ways in
which coastal erosion is trying to be managed (e.g. SMPs etc).

10. Witness accounts and blogs
• The impacts of coastal erosion, flooding and conflict are
often best documented through online reports and blogs
(see example below). YouTube and similar sites may
also be a rich source of documented evidence.
• Websites such as Wordle can be used to analyse the text
in documents and reports – the most frequently used
words are displayed using the largest font.
• Within your school or college it may be useful to look
back at data that was collected by students a few years
ago. This is most likely available in an electronic form.

11. Following-up the coastal fieldwork?
ACTIVITY 1 – METHODOLOGY WRITE-UP. Give a focus on the techniques and
approaches used, how the sites were selected, justification etc. Remember to
A range of include both fieldwork and research ideas.
fieldwork
ACTIVITY 2 – PRESENTATION and ANALYSIS. Give a focus on the range of
follow-up
techniques used to present the data and say why you used them. Also include a
options may
description of how and why data was analysed (including qualitative, e.g.
be
Annotation of photographs etc).
appropriate
in order to ACTIVITY 3 – RESULTS, CONCLUSIONS and EVALUATION. Give a focus on what
better you found, including some locational detail. You should also give details of
prepare for selected results, and provide an evaluative framework, e.g. limitations,
the exam. reliability of results etc.
The most Peer review of other modeled exam responses. Use highlighting, annotation etc
important to learn from other peoples work. This could be linked to a mark scheme,
activities are
in the light A fieldwork glossary...very useful to help with technical language in the exam.
green This could be linked to a techniques matrix (see next slide).
boxes. A GIS / Google Earth map showing the locations visited as place marks.
These link to
possible Mock exam questions completed under timed conditions , linked to each of the
questions three activities above.
exploring
A PowerPoint presentation , to focus on giving a ‘virtual tour’ of the locations /
the ‘route to
and or findings.
enquiry’.

12. A revision glossary could be important for coasts
Revision glossaries could
include lists of words and
linked definitions, diagrams
and mind maps or event
throughout auditing of your
fieldwork. Combine this with
practise of writing under
timed conditions, i.e. 10 or 15
minutes

13. Summary
• Revise your personal fieldwork and research
on coasts thoroughly.
• When relevant, know details on sampling,
surveys, presentation, analysis and
conclusions.
• Know the location(s) and why it was chosen
for a coastal study.
• What were the site details and what about the
use of any use any specialist equipment?
• Be clear about the different ways to manage
coasts and if they worked (locational details).
• The exam will only ever be able to test 25% of
the fieldwork you may have done....so its not
a case of write all you know or all you did on
the fieldwork day. BE SELECTIVE.

14. Now see part 1 for the Introduction to Crowded
Coasts