Conclusion & Evaluation (AQA GCSE Geography)

Conclusion

• The fieldwork conclusion should:

  • Return to the hypothesis and aim

  • Identify any evidence that supports the hypothesis 

  • Outline any evidence that contradicts the hypothesis

  • Describe and explain any links to geographical theories

  • Acknowledge any unusual results

  • State whether the hypothesis is supported or not

Evaluation

• A key focus in the fieldwork questions in the exam is the evaluation of data collection

• Enquiry evaluation should:

  • Identify any problems with, and limitations of, data collection methods

  • Suggest other data which would have been useful in the study or improvements which could be made

  • Evaluate how reliable the conclusions were

  • Suggesting how the scope of the study could be extended

Data collection - problems and limitations

• There are always issues and limitations associated with data collection they may include:

  • Accessibility of sample sites: could all sample sites be accessed?

  • Size of sample: was the sample size large enough?

  • Duration of the data collection: was the enquiry time long enough to collect the data needed?

  • Methods: were the questions on questionnaires appropriate to meet the aim and test the hypothesis?

  • Equipment: were there any issues with the equipment?

  • Human error: were there any mistakes in recording data or reading the equipment?

  • Time of the data collection: did the weather or time impact the results collected?

  • Unforeseen issues: were there any problems on the day such as road works, and river flow which affected the results?

Other data and improvements

• There are always improvements which could be made to data collection these may include:

  • Increasing the sample size

  • Taking more measurements 

  • Looking at a wider range of secondary sources

  • Could other equipment have been used: a flow meter would be more accurate for measuring river velocity than a float

Evaluating the conclusions

• To evaluate the conclusion students should examine whether:

  • The conclusions reflect the aims and hypothesis set out at the start of the enquiry

  • The aim and hypothesis were appropriate: could the hypothesis be easily assessed

  • The location was appropriate 

  • The accuracy of results could be improved if the data collection were to be repeated