PAPER 4 ALTERNATIVE TO COURSEWORK (27.

5% OF TOTAL GRADE)

 The paper tests your understanding of how coursework is carried out.

 The paper Is 1hr 30min and divided into 30mark questions.

Formulation of the hypothesis

It is a prediction or statement that you make before your data collection. It is normally based on
theory. During your investigation you attempt to prove or disprove your hypothesis. A hypothesis
should always be SMART. If your hypothesis is not smart, then it can be difficult to prove or
disapprove it.

S-Specific

M-Measurable

A-Achievable

R-Realistic

T-Time related

Example

1.The hottest part of the day will be between 12:00 AND 14:00HRS.

2.The amount of traffic will increase as you move from the rural urban fringe to the C.B.D.

3.The width of the river will increase from the source to the mouth.

Data collection

Whenever you do data collection, the aim is to be as objective as possible.

Objective-means no bias, or personal opinion affects the outcome of your results. The opposite of
objective is to be subjective. It means your own personal views or bias have influenced the results.

Objective Subjective
No bias There is bias
No personal views Results influenced by personal opinions

Objective

This is when data is not influenced by bias or personal views. It is possible to be as objective as
possible by following a sampling technique, collecting data in groups and following the methodology
correctly.

Subjective

This is when your personal opinion has an influence on the outcome of data collection.

Primary data

Any data personally collected by you (this does not mean collecting from the internet). It may
include traffic counts, pedestrian counts, questionnaires and land use surveys.
Secondary data

Any data collected by someone else. It may be found in books, on the internet, academic journals,
newspapers e.tc

Advantages of primary data

 It is up to date (current) and you know how the data has been collected. That is what
technique has been used. It only includes data relevant to your coursework.
 It only covers your study area. Collected in the format that you want.

Disadvantages of primary data

 The data may include personal bias.

 Data collection can be time consuming
 It can be expensive to travel to places and to get equipment.
 Some data may be unavailable or too dangerous.
 It is difficult to study temporary changes.

Advantages of secondary data

 You can study temporary changes e.g how population has changed over a number of years.
 It can be quicker especially if the data is on the internet.
 You can study a larger area.
 It may include data you cannot obtain personally e.g salaries.

Disadvantages of secondary data

 It is out of date data especially if it is printed in a book.

 There might be more information than what you need
 May include a larger area than your study area.
 You may not know how the data was collected.
 The data may be in the wrong format e.g in a graph and not raw figures.

Before starting your coursework, you should also think about how to carry out coursework safely
and definitely carry out a risk assessment. You can make it safer by doing the following:

1.Protection from the weather (waterproof kit, sunscreen).

2.Sensible dressing, correct attire, safety equipment.

3.Always carry out coursework in groups.

4.Always inform another person in authority first.

5.Always carry a mobile phone with you.

6.Never carry out coursework near a river or sea without verifying safety and in the presence of
authority.

7.Always work in daylight and wear reflective clothes.

8.Check if your study area is safe, for example it wouldn’t be safe walking around downtown.
9.Don’t display valuables, making you vulnerable to crime.

Stream measurements

Measuring stream depth

Explain how the students measured the depth of the stream regularly at 0.5m intervals from one
bank to the other using a rope and a measuring stick. A labelled diagram may be drawn to help the
explanation.

 One student at each bank of the river

 Rope extended, held across the stream, taut.
 Rope knotted, marked at 0.5m interval
 Measuring stick placed into stream vertically/to bed/depth measured every 0.5m interval
across stream.
 Measurements to be repeated and an average to be recorded.

The students measured the width of the river channel and the depth of the river at points across
the channel. They used the following equipment:

 Tape measure or rope

 Metre rule or 30cm ruler

Describe how students would make their measurements.

 Stretch measuring tape or rope across the channel from one bank to the other
 Measure across the rope using tape measure
 Use ruler to measure the depth of the river – rest ruler on the river bed
 Measure at regular intervals across the river (every 20cm)
 Record measurement in metres

Hypotheses 1-Velocity is greater where the river is deeper.

Students needed to measure the velocity of the river at six survey sites. Two possible methods to
make these measurements were to use either a flow meter or floats and a stopwatch. Choose one
of these methods and describe how the students would do the investigation.

FLOWMETER

 Put flow meter below surface in river

 Propeller must be facing upstream
 Record/ read/ take readings
 Calculate average

FLOATS AND STOPWATCH

 Measure set distance between two points along river

 Float orange and time over distance- start the stopwatch immediately after releasing the
orange and stop it when the float crosses the finishing line and record
 Repeat several times across the river channel and calculate the average
 Calculate velocity by dividing distance by average time.
Flowmeter advantages

 Accuracy of reading
 Digital reading/ quicker

Disadvantage

 Expensive
 Less accurate in low flow conditions
 Battery may go flat
 Less easy to buy

Floats and stopwatch

Advantage

 Cheap
 No specialised equipment needed

Disadvantage

 Less accurate
 Takes longer as there is need to do calculation of velocity
 Floats affected by wind or vegetation
 Only measures surface velocity

Suggest improvements the students could have made to the data collection methods to make the
measurements more reliable.

 Do more velocity tests

 Use flow meter which measures beneath the surface
 Flow meter readings are not affected by wind blowing the floats or surface obstructions in
water
 Do experiments in different days or in different seasons to compare results
 Increase number of investigation sites

State two safety precautions that students should take when carrying out fieldwork on a beach.