Applied Fieldwork Enquiry Tourism Table A fieldwork methodologies

Applied Fieldwork Enquiry Tourism

Table A: fieldwork methodologies Fieldwork locality Tourism Use of transects (across a feature) Change over time (comparing primary data with secondary sources) Investigate footpath erosion (transects across footpaths) Assess changes in the environmental impacts of tourism with distance from attraction/car park Consider changes in tourism at a resort or honeypot site using photos/maps for historic comparisons Investigate the impact of recent tourism on a town, comparing past and present characteristics Investigate seasonal variations in patterns of tourism and the impact on the local community Qualitative surveys (analysing perception) Compare visitor/local perceptions of a honeypot site and the success of its management Geographical flows (analysing flows and patterns of movement) Analyse visitor flows in a seaside resort or at a honeypot site Investigate traffic management problems/solutions in a seaside resort or at a honeypot site

Table B: conceptual frameworks Geographical Place theme Applying understanding of uniqueness / identity Tourism Sphere of influence Applying understanding of sphere of influence / catchment and how it impacts on places Cycles and flows Applying understanding of change and movement in relation to place Mitigating risk Applying understanding of hazard perception / risk and analysing management strategies / future actions Sustainability Applying understanding of sustainable communities Inequality Applying understanding of inequality and associated concepts such as deprivation or equality of access to services Comparing tourism Identifying the sphere Investigating flows Investigating Consider sustainable Consider sociocharacteristics of influence of a (people, vehicles) to environmental risk environmental economic (attractions, visitor honeypot site and its or within a honeypot and its management of a variations in profiles) in two impact(s), for site and assessing for a new tourist woodland or other local activity places; what example, analysing the impacts on development ecosystem that is participation at a makes the two visitor pressure along environmental popular with visitors tourist resort localities a footpath quality (e. g. footpath distinctive erosion) Investigating to what A comparison of extent tourist spheres of influence developments in a for different tourist town/locality are activities (town, sustainable reservoir, country park, etc)

WJEC nominated criteria Table A: Methodologies Table B: Conceptual framework 2018: Geographical flows 2018: Cycles and flows 2019: Qualitative surveys 2019: Place 2020: Use of transects 2020: Sphere of Influence

The six stages of the enquiry process Ask questions Evaluate the process Collect data Process & present data Draw conclusions Analysis and application of wider understanding

Enquiry 1: Ask questions Why are people attracted to this place? Where have people come from? How is tourism managed to prevent environmental damage? What are the advantages and disadvantages of tourism? Is tourism sustainable?

Enquiry 2: Collecting data Remember that for one of your two investigations, one of your data collection methods must be that nominated by WJEC from Table A The second investigation must be underpinned by the nominated conceptual framework (Table B) You can use additional methods of data collection as you wish Remember that fieldwork is an excellent way to practice geographical skills

Enquiry 2: Tourism methodologies Fieldwork locality Tourism Use of transects (across a Change over time feature) (comparing primary data with secondary sources) (2020 exam) Investigate footpath erosion (transects across footpaths) (measure footpath erosion using tape and ruler) Assess changes in the environmental impacts of tourism with distance from attraction/car park (measure footpath erosion, litter, EIAs) Consider changes in tourism at a resort or honeypot site using photos/maps for historic comparisons (compare old and new photos/maps) Investigate the impact of recent tourism on a town, comparing past and present characteristics Investigate seasonal variations in patterns of tourism and the impact on the local community (use questionnaires, old maps, archive reports) Qualitative surveys (analysing perception) (2019 exam) Compare visitor/local perceptions of a honeypot site and the success of its management (use questionnaires) Geographical flows (analysing flows and patterns of movement) (2018 exam) Analyse visitor flows in a seaside resort or at a honeypot site (use pedestrian counts, annotated photos) Investigate traffic management problems/ solutions in a seaside resort or at a honeypot site (conduct traffic counts, questionnaires and photos)

Enquiry 2: Mumbles, Swansea Consider what methodologies could be used here to collect data

Enquiry 2: Langland Bay, Swansea Consider what methodologies could be used here to collect data

Enquiry 2: Collecting data Design appropriate fieldwork data collecting sheets Select appropriate locations (safety – risk assessment ease of access, geographically sound) Select appropriate sampling techniques (random, systematic, stratified) Ensure accuracy and reliability Remember that students will need to justify methodologies

Enquiry 3: Processing and presenting Processing data This involves making calculations from the data sheet and could involve: Calculating flow rates of traffic or pedestrians Calculating EIA scores Converting data into percentages (e. g. questionnaires) Comparative statistical measures (e. g. percentage change) for tourism or census data

Enquiry 3: Processing and presenting Presenting data This involves selecting appropriate methods to present data and could include: Bar charts – can be drawn by hand or from a spreadsheet (Excel): Number of Cars recorded Number of vehicles/pedestrians counted during a 10 -minute period 90 80 9: 00 9: 15 am 70 60 Time of day Number of vehicles/pedestrians counted 100 50 40 30 20 10 8: 00 8: 15 am 7: 00 7: 15 am n n pe de st ria va y lo rr s bu ke bi ca r 0 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 Number of cars When using Excel, make sure the axes are clearly labelled and that scales are the same if constructing comparable graphs

Enquiry 3: Processing and presenting Presenting data This involves selecting appropriate methods to present data and could include: Radar graphs and pie charts – can be drawn by hand or from a spreadsheet (Excel): Radar graph showing environmental assessments Safety 3 Litter 2 1 0 -1 -2 -3 Scenery Do you think that tourism has a positive or negative effect on this town? 5 7 9 Noise 67 Vandalism Don’t know Both Negative positive Overcrowding When using Excel, make sure the axes are clearly labelled and that scales are the same if constructing comparable graphs

Enquiry 3: Processing and presenting Presenting data This involves selecting appropriate methods to present data and could include: Use GIS to plot traffic counts onto a base map

Annotated photo showing aspects of tourism at Langland Bay, Swansea Facilities include beach huts, benches Local economy benefits from tourism Access to pedestrians only No litter or environmental damage on the beach BBQ waste containers to reduce pollution on the beach Safety information is evidence of management

Enquiry 4: Analysing and wider understanding Identify, analyse and interpret trends and patterns Apply knowledge and understanding of geographical concepts and processes to specific evidence collected Trends – changes over time, distance, etc. Patterns – regular repeating distributions, e. g. linear, radial, circular

Enquiry 4: Describing data When describing trends and patterns consider using the acronym ‘GCSE’: GC – general comment, describing the ‘big picture’, the overall trends and patterns S – refer to specific information/data on the graphs, maps and diagrams to support your comments E – identify and comment on any exceptions (anomalies) to the overall trend/pattern

Enquiry 4: Analysing data The annotated photo clearly indicates that tourist management is in place at Langland Bay. The area is well cared for and there are plenty of litter bins and specially designed waste bins for BBQs (there are three of these bins in the bay). There are rails alongside the path and also by the steps to help people to access the beach safely. This suggests that the beach may be popular with elderly people or families with young children. There are several noticeboards providing information about swimming safety. The café indicates the economic importance of tourism to the local area.

Enquiry 5: Drawing conclusions This involves synthesising (pulling together) findings to reach evidenced conclusions that relate to the initial aim of the enquiry. Here’s an example: ‘In conclusion, my results show that tourism is being well managed at Mumbles. There is a wide promenade that is clearly marked to separate cyclists from pedestrians. Cars are discouraged from parking on the road (double yellow lines, etc) and there are several car parks, all of which had plenty of spaces (over 15%). The area is well tended, with attractive flower borders and hanging baskets at the pier. My EIA results indicated a high environmental quality (over 90%), although there were a few pockets of litter accumulation and some dog poo!

Enquiry 5: Drawing conclusions Expected trends and models are not always reflected in the real world, for example: The weather can have a huge impact on tourism – numbers of people and tourist responses to questionnaires The time of day can affect results (coach parties, lunch time, etc. ) The time of year can affect tourist numbers and types of tourist – most student fieldwork is done outside family holiday periods It is not always possible to distinguish tourists from local residents

Enquiry 5: Drawing conclusions Extreme weather conditions will affect people’s behaviour and may give unexpected or biased results Access may be limited to some areas which will affect tourist patterns and numbers Infrequent events, such as festivals or the arrival of a coach party may give unexpected and unrepresentative results Time of day and time of year will have a huge effect on tourism and might introduce bias

Enquiry 6: Evaluating the process Identify the limitations of geographical evidence accuracy, reliability and bias Reflect critically on the strengths and limitations of both primary and secondary data, methods used, conclusions drawn and knowledge gained Appreciate that stakeholders may have vested interests, introducing bias.

Enquiry 6: Evaluating the process How might your results be different on another day or at a different time of year (local people or tourists)? How might an increase in the sample size or the number of sites have improved reliability? With practice, might data collection techniques have been more accurate? Was the sampling strategy appropriate? Could inaccurate diagram construction have affected your conclusions?