On Thursday 22nd May the L6 Geographers ventured out for a jammed packed day of data collection for their non-examined assessment (NEA). Here at Talbot Heath students are able to pick their own unique title based on aspects of the course they have particularly enjoyed. This year’s titles range from ‘To what extent is the hard engineering at Sandbanks sustainable?’ to ‘How does the coastal environment at Studland affect attitudes towards the rural idyll?’ Such varied titles created a non-stop itinerary as the group helped each other collect their data.
Each student was in charge of their own data collection, instructing the rest of the group on what methods to use, what sampling system to follow and providing data recording sheets. From environmental quality surveys to questionnaires and beach profiles the students were in their element, working hard for each other to get the job done. The day finished with an ice cream looking out over The Needles whilst semi-structured interviews results were discussed.
Thursday 5th June involved a quick stop at Sandbanks to collect more data then travelling onto Leeson House at Swanage to investigate secondary data sources to complement the primary data collected on day one including UK property heat maps and Shoreline Management Plans. After a fish and chip lunch stop at Swanage, the students began the statistical analysis stage of their coursework including using chi squared and Mann Whitney U to test the significance of the data they had collected. From land use surveys, to dodging the managed retreat of the coastline at Middle Beach on Studland the L6 were phenomenal over the two fieldwork days. They grew in confidence; delegated tasks effectively, worked collaboratively and using ARCGIS technology to help them record their data. The bonus was seeing a deer and heron at Shell Bay- definitely a rural idyll on a beautiful sunny day in early summer this year!
