Virtual Fieldwork – River and Beach Enquiries
GeographyWater & OceansAges 15–16
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Sign in to playA complete fieldwork enquiry on screen: choose a hypothesis, a sampling strategy (systematic, random or stratified) and the number of sites, then take every measurement yourself. On the river: width with a tape, depth with a metre rule at 6 points, velocity with a float over 10 m or a flow meter, and the size and roundness of 10 pebbles. On the beach: ranging poles and a clinometer to survey the beach profile, and sediment samples along the direction of longshore drift. Readings carry realistic errors; the data table, graphs, Spearman's rank correlation, conclusion and an evaluation of reliability are built automatically.
Lesson: Geographical skills: river and coastal fieldwork, data analysis and the Bradshaw model
What it shows
Fieldwork tests a geographical idea against real measurements. This virtual enquiry follows the full route: a hypothesis, a sampling strategy, data collection with standard equipment, presentation, statistical analysis and evaluation. The river reach shows the Bradshaw model downstream; the beach shows the effect of longshore drift on sediment and beach shape. Every reading includes natural variation, such as riffles and pools, and instrument error, so results differ between groups, and the evaluation explains why a conclusion may or may not be reliable.
How to use
Choose River enquiry or Beach enquiry, a Hypothesis, Sampling, Number of sites and Repeat readings. Click a site on the map, then press each measuring button, such as Measure width, Measure depth, Release float and Collect 10 pebbles, and use ▶ to move on. Measure all sites fills the rest. Read the table, the graph and the Spearman's rank result, then the evaluation.
Parameters you can change
- Enquiry River enquiry, Beach enquiry
- Number of sites (transects) 5–12 sites
- Sampling strategy Systematic (evenly spaced), Random, Stratified (sites in each section)
- River velocity instrument Float and stopwatch, Flow meter
- Repeat readings (velocity, slope angle) 1–5 times
- Hypothesis to test River: width increases downstream, River: mean depth increases downstream, River: velocity increases downstream, River: discharge increases downstream, River: pebble size decreases downstream, River: pebbles become rounder downstream, Beach: sediment gets smaller in the direction of longshore drift, Beach: beach gets wider in the direction of longshore drift, Beach: the coarser the sediment, the steeper the beach, Beach: sediment gets rounder in the direction of longshore drift
Questions to explore
- Why is velocity measured with a float usually higher than velocity measured with a flow meter?
- How do systematic, random and stratified sampling differ in how well they represent the river?
- How many sites are needed for Spearman's rank to be significant at the 0.05 level?
