The River Fieldwork Task
How does flood risk change along a river? Take a channel question into the field: measure width, depth and velocity downstream, survey the land use, read the flood risk map, and follow the six-stage enquiry from question to conclusion.
Use it, the way the marks are given
Free interactive practice at using the material, which is what the marks are for.
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Investigating rivers
Geographers do not just read about rivers, they go out and investigate them. You might ask how a river channel changes downstream, or why one stretch of a valley has a higher flood risk than another. This module follows the six-stage enquiry process and the methods used to answer a real river question about channel characteristics and flood risk.
The language of fieldwork
Four ideas shape every enquiry:
The six stages of an enquiry
Put the six stages of a geographical enquiry into the right order.
- Formulate the enquiry question and plan the fieldwork
- Collect data using a range of methods
- Process and present the data as maps, graphs and diagrams
- Analyse and explain the data using theory and case studies
- Draw evidenced conclusions that answer the question
- Reflect critically on the methods and conclusions
Two kinds of data
A strong river enquiry uses BOTH kinds of data. The exam expects at least one of each.
Match each method to what it does
- Channel width
- Velocity measurement
- Land use survey
- Environmental quality survey
- Measures the distance across the channel with a tape from bank to bank
- Times a float over a set distance, or uses a flow meter
- Records whether land is urban or rural to judge flood risk
- Scores the quality of the channel and banks against set criteria
Spot the quantitative method
Which of these is a QUANTITATIVE fieldwork method?
- Measuring the channel depth with a metre rule
- Asking residents whether they worry about flooding
- Sketching the river channel and its banks
- Writing down judgements from a land use survey
Which are secondary sources?
Select the TWO SECONDARY sources a river enquiry could use.
- A flood risk map from the Environment Agency
- A published river discharge record for the river
- Channel width readings you measured yourself
- A land use survey you carried out on the day
Primary, secondary and the flood risk map
Fieldwork combines primary data that you collect with secondary sources collected by others. Edexcel requires a flood risk map, such as the Environment Agency Flood Risk map, plus one other source like an OS map, a geology map, or rainfall and discharge data. Grade-9 tip: the exam asks about your own investigation, so learn your specific enquiry question, your named methods, and your named secondary sources precisely. Vague answers lose marks.
The river enquiry, in order
A river enquiry begins with an enquiry _____. Numerical readings like channel width are _____ data, while judgements about flood risk are _____ data. Information collected by others, such as a flood _____ map, is a secondary source. Finally the geographer draws evidenced _____ that answer the question.
Plot the channel downstream
As a river flows downstream, its channel usually gets WIDER. The channel width was measured at three sites: 3 m at 2 km, 5 m at 4 km, and 7 m at 6 km. Following the trend, plot the likely channel width at 8 km downstream.
Plan the investigation
You are planning a river enquiry into how channel characteristics and flood risk change downstream. Make three good choices.
- You want to measure how the channel changes along the river. Which method fits best?
- You also want to judge the factors that influence flood risk. Which method fits?
- Which secondary source does Edexcel require you to include?
Spot good enquiry practice
Tap the TWO statements that show good enquiry practice.
- A good enquiry question is specific and can be answered with the data you collect.
- Reflecting on the limitations of your methods weakens your enquiry.
- Using both primary data and secondary sources makes conclusions more reliable.
- The best enquiry question is as vague as possible.
- You should ignore any data that does not fit your prediction.
Justify your methods
For a river fieldwork enquiry into how channel characteristics and flood risk change downstream, explain the methods you would use and how you would judge whether your conclusions are reliable.
- State a specific enquiry question for the investigation
- Describe one quantitative and one qualitative method you would use
- Name a secondary source, including the required flood risk map
- Explain how you would reflect on the reliability and limitations of your data