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Field studies - Biological or geological investigation

Mise à jour le 25/03/2008
Par Caroline Prevot

•  Objectives :

Develop scientific investigative skills and attitudes

Step 1: Making observations: study sites and organisms

  • Site location and features...
  • Why that site was chosen?
  • Species, landscapes involved...

Step 2: Asking questions

  • The observations lead to the formation of questions about the system being studied
  • What are your main interests (e.g. physical, organisms, human)?
  • What angle could your study take (an issue, comparison with theory, etc.)?
  • How accessible is the study location (dependant on location & number of visits)?
  • The enquiry must be feasible for study.

Step 3: Developing a strategy

  • Choosing your topic and a series of sub-divided questions to give the enquiry a clear focus.
  • You'll need background research, reference to text books, journals etc...
  • Generating a hypothesis (or a few hypotheses ) to test through your fieldwork and making predictions ...
  • A list of the data sources (How easy will it be to collect reliable data in the time scale available?)
  • Details of the study location with a suitable map should be given.
  • A plan showing the links between the different stages of the enquiry should be drawn up.

Step 4: Data collection

  • Types, method used, when, how record them
  • Measuring device(s) you will use...
  • Planning an investigation
  • Designing your equipment

Step 5: Data analysis

  • Recording results
  • Tables, graphs, statistical tests, pictures, drawings, mapping...

Step 6: Write a report of your work and an evaluation

 

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