How do I plan, carry out and evaluate a physical fieldwork investigation on a coast or river?
The physical fieldwork investigation (coastal change and conflict, or river processes and pressures): forming enquiry questions, selecting quantitative and qualitative methods and secondary data, presenting and analysing data, reaching conclusions and evaluating.
A focused answer to Edexcel GCSE Geography B Topic 6 (Geographical investigations) physical fieldwork, covering how to form enquiry questions, select quantitative and qualitative methods and secondary data, present and analyse data, reach conclusions and evaluate a coastal or river investigation.
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What this dot point is asking
This is Edexcel GCSE Geography B (1GB0) Paper 2, Section C (Topic 6, Geographical investigations), the physical fieldwork investigation. Edexcel expects you to carry out one physical investigation, either coastal change and conflict or river processes and pressures, and to understand the whole enquiry process: forming suitable enquiry questions, selecting at least one quantitative and one qualitative method plus secondary data (including a geology or flood-risk map), presenting and analysing data, reaching conclusions and evaluating the investigation. Paper 2 asks about both your own fieldwork and unfamiliar fieldwork.
Forming the enquiry question
Good fieldwork starts with a focused, testable question or hypothesis that links to the geography you have studied. For a river investigation, a typical hypothesis is "river velocity increases with distance downstream" or "channel width increases downstream". For a coastal investigation, a typical question is "how does beach sediment size change along the beach?" or "how effective is coastal management at this site?". The question must be answerable with data you can realistically collect.
Selecting methods and secondary data
Edexcel requires a mix of data types so the investigation is robust.
To reduce error, repeat each measurement (for example three times at each site) and take an average, and record on a prepared table.
Presenting, analysing and concluding
Evaluating the investigation
The evaluation is where the highest marks lie. You must judge the reliability and accuracy of your results, identify limitations (small sample size, the weather and conditions on the day, measurement error, subjective judgements such as roundness, only one site or one day) and suggest realistic improvements (a larger sample, more sites, repeating on different days, more precise equipment such as calipers). You then reach a judgement on how confident you can be in the conclusion.
Try this
Q1. State one quantitative and one qualitative method you could use in a coastal fieldwork investigation. [2 marks]
- Cue. Quantitative: measuring beach sediment size or beach profile gradient. Qualitative: a field sketch or an environmental quality or coastal management survey.
Q2. Explain why repeating a measurement three times at each site improves a fieldwork investigation. [3 marks]
- Cue. Taking several readings and an average reduces the effect of random measurement error and one-off anomalies, so the data is more reliable and the conclusion more trustworthy.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of Pearson Edexcel exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
Edexcel B 20194 marksFor your physical fieldwork investigation, explain why one of your data collection methods was suitable. (Paper 2, Section C)Show worked answer →
A 4-mark question on Paper 2 (Geographical investigations), assessing AO3 and AO4. It is about your own enquiry, so markers reward a specific method linked to your aim.
Award credit for: stating the enquiry (for example "How does river velocity change downstream?") and a method (measuring velocity with a flow meter, or a float and stopwatch over a measured distance, repeated three times at each site). Then explain why it suited the enquiry: it produced precise, quantitative primary data that could be compared between sites to test the hypothesis, and repeating reduced error. The lift to full marks is the clear link between the method and the aim ("suitable because it gave the comparable numerical data needed"). A generic method with no link to the enquiry caps the marks.
Edexcel B 20228 marksFor your physical fieldwork investigation, evaluate the reliability of your conclusions. (Paper 2, Section C)Show worked answer →
An 8-mark extended-writing question assessing AO3 (analysis and evaluation), with a levelled mark scheme. "Evaluate the reliability" needs a judgement grounded in your own enquiry.
Strong answers state the conclusion reached (for example "sediment did become smaller and rounder downstream, supporting the hypothesis") and whether it matched the expected geographical theory (attrition and abrasion). Then evaluate reliability: the sample size and number of sites, measurement error (reading a ruler, subjective roundness judgements), the weather and river conditions on the day, and whether one day at a few sites is representative. Suggest improvements (more sites, larger samples, repeat on different days, use of calipers). Reach a judgement on how confident you can be in the conclusion. Markers reward honest, specific evaluation of your own enquiry and a reasoned overall verdict, not a generic checklist.
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Sources & how we know this
- Pearson Edexcel GCSE (9-1) Geography B (1GB0) specification — Pearson Edexcel (2016)