data presentation nea geography

Percentage or Divided Bar Charts

Stacked Bar Charts

Min-Max Range Floating Bar Charts

Beach profiles (using slope angle data).

Beach Profiles (using height change data)

Beach Profiles (using absolute height data)

BiHistograms

Bi-Polar Charts

Box Plots or box and whisker charts (Horizontal)

Box plots (vertical).

Box Plots (Outliers)

Box Plots (Mean and Standard Deviation)

Cumulative Frequency Chart

Donut (Doughnut) Charts

Kite diagrams (any data entities).

Kite Diagrams (Species Abundance)

Line charts.

Map Cross Sections

Polar Area Charts

Polar Charts

Polar Chart Overlays

Polar Scatter Charts

Proportional circles chart.

Rose Diagrams

Sand Dune Profiles (using slope angle data)

Slope Profiles (using slope angle data)

Word Clouds

A Level Geography NEA: Everything you need to know

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What is the A Level Geography NEA?

How do you structure the geography nea, concluding remarks.

For Year 12 students, the last half term of the academic year is typically a time for reflection and taking stock of what they have learned so far. However, for geography students, this time is one of the busiest and most intense. The reason? The Geography NEA , which often kicks off after the external examination period in schools, demanding significant time and effort to complete.

NEA stands for non-examined assessment . It’s an important aspect of A Level Geography, allowing students to apply the theories they have learned and create a substantial enquiry project using both primary and secondary research. The Geography NEA is divided into manageable sections which will be assessed by your teachers at school or college.

The NEA provides an opportunity to do a deep dive into an aspect of geography that interests you the most. Your NEA must be linked to a taught aspect of the A Level Geography specification you are studying at your centre.

Each exam board provides a range of example titles and enquiries in their assessment specifications. Additionally, your centre will give you examples of projects completed by previous students. While these examples can serve as a guide, it’s important that you come up with your own enquiry question before starting your NEA.

Before starting your NEA enquiry, you will write a proposal that will be submitted to your supervisor (teacher). The proposal will include the following sections:

• Investigation title
• How the title links to the specification content
• Planned investigation hypothesis or question/sub-questions
• Investigation focus
• Planned methodology

Once you have completed your proposal form, your supervisor will review it. If the proposal is approved, you can begin your project. If it is not approved, your supervisor will provide feedback on what needs to be changed, and you will need to redraft the proposal form.

When it comes to the teacher assessment phase, each exam board has split the NEA into different sections. However, the general structure of the NEA written report is similar across the exam boards. Each completed Geography NEA should include:

• Introduction
• Literature review
• Methodology (including risk assessment and ethical considerations)
• Data presentation
• Data analysis

How do you write the NEA introduction?

The NEA introduction allows you to outline your enquiry to the reader and help them understand where and why you will be carrying out your investigation. This section should clearly state your hypotheses and key questions and provide a rationale for why you are asking these questions .

In your introduction, you should include the location details of your investigation. This gives you an early opportunity to use GIS (Geography Information Systems) by using a range of maps to demonstrate the study location.

What is the NEA literature review?

A literature review means reading geography books, websites, and journals for your NEA and referring to these sources in your report to demonstrate your understanding of geography concepts. Your fieldwork will help you determine if these ideas hold true in your chosen area. When conducting the literature review, you will need to use a range of materials that are academically sound and from reputable sources .

The research you conduct during the literature review should be referenced throughout your enquiry , including in your data analysis and conclusions. This will help you to either prove or disprove your hypotheses and key questions.

How do you write the NEA methodology?

The methodology is the part of the Geography NEA that outlines:

• what data you collected or are going to collect
• how you collected or are going to collect the data
• why you collected or are going to collect the data

The methodology can be written in either the past or future tense, depending on when you are writing it. If you have already completed your data collection, write it in the past tense. If you are going to complete it, write it in the future tense. I would suggest writing the methodology after completing your data collection . This approach will provide you with a greater understanding of the methods and the reasons for collecting that specific data.

The methodology should be written in a way that allows others to replicate your NEA in the future. It should include details such as:

• Name of method
• Description of method
• Type of data collected
• Sampling techniques used
• Justification of method – this is key to achieving the highest marks available
• Risk assessment

I recommend organising the methodology in a table with the above list as column titles. This will ensure that all key aspects are covered, giving you the best chance of achieving the highest marks.

How do you present and analyse data in the NEA?

Once you have collected your data, it’s time to present it. You can use a range of data presentation methods. Try to choose the most suitable ones to make your results easy to understand. To achieve the top marks in your Geography NEA, you need to use a wide variety of data presentation methods . I recommend looking at PMT’s guide to data presentation before you begin:

• AQA data presentation guide
• OCR data presentation guide
• Edexcel data presentation guide
• WJEC data presentation guide

This is another opportunity for you to utilise GIS . Using GIS allows you to incorporate a location element into your data presentation, which can help you achieve the highest marks in this section.

Once you have presented and transformed your raw data into a usable format, you can proceed with the analysis. Data analysis is a crucial part of your Geography NEA enquiry, as it will enable you to draw conclusions and ultimately answer your key questions and hypotheses .

If you have quantitative data, it’s important to carry out statistical tests to demonstrate the reliability of your data and conclusions. You can find examples and full walkthroughs in the PMT NEA guides to help you.

At this point, you should be ready to write about your results from your data presentation and critically analyse the data. When analysing your data, ensure that you connect it to your hypotheses or questions . Start by discussing what your data reveals about your subject, such as patterns or common opinions. In addition to overall trends, use specific numbers and quotes. You can also use this opportunity to manipulate some of the data. Thoroughly examine your data and don’t ignore any unusual points that might disprove your hypotheses.

During your analysis, you can comment on the accuracy of your data to strengthen your conclusions. For example, you could comment on the precision of your graphs to show that your data captures all trends. Additionally, you should discuss how well your data represents the study area , especially if multiple investigation sites were used. Explain the appearance of data patterns using geographical theories, and link this to your literature review . This will show that your understanding of geography has deepened through your investigation.

How do you write the NEA conclusion?

The conclusion of your Geography NEA is where you essentially answer your key questions using the data you have collected and the critical analysis you have conducted.

Start by answering each of your key questions individually, summarising the relevant analysis to directly match each question. Once you have answered the key questions, use these to address your overall hypotheses and ultimately summarise your entire enquiry, tying together the main findings and insights.

How do you write the NEA evaluation?

The final part of the NEA enquiry is the evaluation. This is generally poorly completed because it’s the final stage and candidates often run out of time and rush this section.

The evaluation is an opportunity for you to reflect on the process and comment on the reliability of your processes and results . You can discuss your methods and consider how you could improve them for more reliable results.

How long should the NEA be?

The guidance states that the A Level Geography NEA should be between 3000 and 4000 words . However, you will not be penalised if you go over this. I suggest that you do not go over the recommended word count significantly, as this will mean that you have not been writing concisely and may impact your ability to achieve the highest marks.

How many marks is the NEA worth?

The number of marks the NEA is worth varies depending on the specific exam board. For the precise mark allocation, check with your school or college.

Which section of the NEA is worth the most marks?

The data analysis section of the NEA is typically worth the most marks.

What are the grade boundaries for the NEA?

The NEA is worth 20% of your total grade for A Level Geography. Each year, the grade boundaries for the NEA vary because they are determined after all exam papers and NEAs have been assessed and analysed by the exam board.

When is the A Level Geography NEA deadline?

The deadline for the Geography NEA can vary depending on your school and exam board. Generally, the NEA is expected to be completed and submitted during the final term of Year 12 or early in Year 13, well before the final A Level exams in the summer. Starting early and managing your time effectively can help ensure you meet the deadline without any last-minute stress.

How do I get an A* in the A Level Geography NEA?

To succeed in your NEA, I would always recommend choosing a topic that genuinely interests you . This will help you stay engaged in the project, allowing you to write detailed and thorough responses and engage fully in the enquiry.

To achieve an A*, you need to consistently aim for the highest band in each element of the enquiry. I would suggest that all candidates familiarise themselves with the NEA mark scheme and use it as a guide for their writing. You also need to ensure you write succinctly and accurately throughout your project, as this will help you access the highest marks.

The NEA is a significant component of your overall A Level Geography grade, providing you with an opportunity to apply your theoretical knowledge in a practical context. The NEA demands careful planning, thorough research, and detailed analysis. By understanding the structure and requirements of each section, you can approach your Geography NEA methodically and confidently, and produce a thorough and insightful project. Good luck!

Looking for more help with A Level Geography? Check out our guide to mastering A Level Geography 20-mark essay questions !

Dave is a qualified teacher with 10 years of experience teaching GCSE and A Level Geography. He has worked as an assistant faculty leader for Humanities and a professional mentor for new and trainee teachers. He has also been involved with the supervision and guidance of NEAs. Dave currently works in higher education and trains geography teachers across the North West of England. He is also a tutor at PMT Education , with experience running highly successful geography courses .

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How to Get an A* in an A-Level Geography NEA

In A-Level by Think Student Editor May 22, 2023 Leave a Comment

An NEA is worth 20% of your overall grade in A-Level Geography. It may not seem like much at first, but that’s 1/5 of your qualification – so you definitely want to make sure it boosts your overall grade! As well as this, there will be hundreds of other students writing A-Level Geography coursework, so yours needs to stand out amongst the others. But, if you were like me, this might be the first time you’ve ever had to complete coursework for an A-Level. So how do you do well?

In this article, I’ll be taking you through (as a former A-Level Geography student) all the dos and don’ts for your geography NEA, and the advice you need to get an A*!

Table of Contents

What is an A-Level Geography NEA?

The geography NEA is the mandatory coursework, that is a part of A-Level Geography. All UK exam boards require A-Level Geography students to produce an NEA. It is also referred to as an “Independent Investigation”.

For an NEA, you will choose a question related to physical or human geography, and then you will collect data to help you answer this question . Most NEAs are around 3,000- 4,000 words. They are essentially research papers!

For inspiration make sure you check out this Think Student article with 75+ NEA ideas!

How is an A-Level Geography NEA structured?

At the front of your geography NEA, you will have to attach a cover sheet provided by your exam board. This will usually have your name, candidate number, centre number, and your title question on it. It must be signed by you and your teachers.

An A-Level Geography NEA typically has around 7 sections :

• Introduction to the investigation
• Methodology/data collection
• Data presentation, analysis, interpretation and evaluation
• Evaluation of the investigation
• Bibliography

Exam boards are not too strict on formatting, however, so as long as you have all the major areas covered, you can format these how you like.

Your bibliography should contain all the references for any secondary material you used as part of your NEA. When you submit an NEA, you will be asked to declare that the work you have produced is 100% your own, and your NEA will be checked for plagiarism . Make sure to reference properly!

As for the rest of the NEA sections, I’ll be explaining them in more detail later in the article, so don’t worry!

How do you get an A* in an A-Level Geography NEA?

Getting an A* in your A-Level Geography NEA is not easy, but it’s definitely not impossible.

The UK exam boards will have their NEA criteria up on their website. NEA marking criteria is usually broken down into 4 “levels” (with level 1 being the least marks and level 4 being the most marks), for each section of the NEA.

To achieve an A* in an A-Level Geography NEA, you’ll need to meet the level 4 criteria in most if not all sections of your NEA.

As a former A-Level Geography student, below I’ll share with you my advice on how to achieve the top marks in your NEA.

The A-Level Geography NEA introduction

The introduction to your A-Level Geography NEA is one of the most important parts – it sets up the rest of your investigation and shows examiners why they should keep reading!

Your introduction will outline your argument and will vaguely demonstrate what you are going to say and why this is important. Remember, you don’t want to say too much, because you’ve got the rest of the NEA to write!

Your introduction should also link to your title question; how is your argument going to relate to and answer your question?

The key to a good geography NEA introduction is to be concise and keep it simple. You should ask yourself: ‘if someone who doesn’t do A-Level Geography read my introduction, would they know what I’m going to talk about?’

How to write an A* A-Level Geography NEA introduction

Your introduction should break down your purpose for the investigation. It isn’t like your typical essay introductions which are 100-200 words – your NEA introduction should be up to 500 words.

It could be helpful to break down your title question into three or four “key inquiry questions”, which you can answer throughout your NEA.

You should also explain your title question, why you chose it and how your research is useful in thinking about the future of the research your question tackles.

Your introduction is the opportunity to provide the examiner with details about your location; you could use maps (as these count as a form of data presentation), point out key geographical features, etc. You should give some local (relevant to your area) context and global context for the issue your question is answering.

To round off the introduction, include some basic geographical theory. For example, if your NEA investigation focuses on erosion, explain the different theories of erosion and how these apply to your investigation. This is an important demonstration of knowledge!

Remember, you can format your NEA however you like (within reason), so you can put this information in whichever order you like. Just make sure you cover all the key areas of your investigation!

The A-Level Geography NEA methodology

Your NEA methodology is a breakdown of how you collected the data you use and present in your coursework.

Your methodology will be one of the most detailed parts of your NEA. This may be surprising, but it’s because your methodology is used to show that your data is legitimate and collected properly.

A methodology is included in the majority of research papers, and your A-Level Geography NEA is no exception! Make sure you put time and care into writing your methodology properly, or it could undermine your investigation.

How do you write an A* methodology for an A-Level Geography NEA?

The way you physically present your methodology is up to you, but it should cover all the qualitative data (non-measurable data), and quantitative data (measurable/numerical data).

For example, I presented my methodology as a big table across 2 pages of my NEA. Definitely don’t underestimate the size of your methodology – it’s what verifies that your data is legitimate!

In your methodology, you should include:

• The types of data you collected
• Where you collected this data (collection points)
• The equipment you used to collect your data
• A description of the method
• How often you collected data (intervals)
• The sampling technique (stratified, systematic, etc.)
• A justification for your method

As part of your methodology, you should also include what are called “ethical considerations” and a “risk assessment”.

Ethical considerations essentially means showing awareness of any ethical problems with your data collection methods. As an example, if you used a survey as a data collection, a problem with that may be that the participants’ privacy is not protected. Therefore, an ethical consideration would be to anonymise the survey.

A risk assessment is an awareness of the risks that are involved with data collection (such as getting lost, injured, weather events, etc.), and what you will do to prevent these risks. For example, having an emergency contact.

Data presentation, analysis, interpretation and evaluation in an A-Level Geography NEA

The data section of your NEA is the longest chunk and is worth the most marks. Now that you’ve set up your investigation, this is the section where you present all of your findings and interpret them, by explaining what they show and why.

Don’t panic if not all of the data you collected can be used – I certainly had a bunch of random data I didn’t need by the end! Try to use as much data as possible, and different types of data.

This section helps establish your argument; it’s essentially the evidence for your conclusion as well as just being the body of your NEA.

Since this is a long section, it’s helpful for you and your examiner to split it up into chunks using subheadings. It’s not a good idea to signpost, for example putting the subheading “Analysis”. Instead, you might divide up your data by the location, or the method you used to collect it.

How do you present data to get an A* in an A-Level Geography NEA?

Data presentation in a geography NEA is probably the most unique part of the process – you get to present your data however you want (in accordance with the exam board guidelines, of course)!

In the data presentation section, you need to display all the data you collected for your investigation. This can be in charts, graphs, tables, photos, and more.

The data needs to be readable, so your graphs should be labelled correctly, and your photos should have captions. If you’re using any data that isn’t yours, remember to reference it correctly.

It’s also a good chance to add a bit of colour, to make your A-Level Geography NEA look great!

How do you analyse and evaluate data to get an A* in an A-Level Geography NEA?

Your data analysis, interpretation, and evaluation section of your geography NEA is the most important section.

You should pick out key elements of the data and explain what they mean with regard to your NEA investigation question. How does the data you collected argue for/against your question?

Where applicable, it’s a good idea to calculate and explain medians, means, modes, and averages, to show that you aren’t just repeating what’s already in your presentation. You need to do something with the raw numbers, you definitely shouldn’t just relay your exact findings.

When you’re analysing, ask yourself the question: what does my data mean?

When you’re evaluating, ask yourself the question: how does my data answer my investigation?

By keeping these questions in mind when you’re interpreting your data, you can show the examiner that you can prove why your data is important and that you have a good understanding of analysis and evaluation.

Should you include statistical tests to get an A* in an A-Level Geography NEA?

The short answer to this question is: absolutely!

By now, you will have practiced a few statistical tests as part of the rest of A-Level Geography, such as Spearman’s Rank, the T-Test, Mann-Whitney U test, and standard deviation.

You should aim to use one or two stats tests when presenting the data, you collected for your geography NEA. There is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ stats test, so choose whichever is applicable for your data.

Statistical tests are a good demonstration of your analytical, interpretative and evaluative skills . By including a couple, you are showing the examiner that you have a clear knowledge of what the tests mean and why they’re useful!

If you struggle with the calculations, don’t be afraid to ask for help. Obviously other people can’t do it for you (remember that as part of submitting your geography NEA, you will have to testify that your work is entirely your own), but you can always ask to be shown how to do them!

Evaluating your A-Level Geography NEA investigation

Your A-Level Geography NEA investigation evaluation is slightly different to the evaluation of your data. In this section of your NEA, you should evaluate the success of the overall investigation.

You should discuss your locations and the methods you used to collect your data (both primary AND secondary data!). What was good about them? What wasn’t so good? If you had been somewhere else and used different methods, how might the outcome of your investigation have changed?

It’s also important to acknowledge the validity of your conclusions.

For example, you may not have had time or access to the correct resources to collect some really important data, that would’ve affected your outcome and potentially changed it. Showing an awareness of this helps build a more sophisticated and mature argument.

It’s important to note than an evaluation is not the same as a conclusion! You shouldn’t be summarising your research. Instead, explain the positives and negatives of your research choices.

The A-Level Geography NEA conclusion

Your conclusion is crucial because it ties together your methods, research, and analysis. Remember those “key inquiry questions” I mentioned earlier? Well now is the time to answer them!

Your NEA conclusion will answer your title question and provide the examiner with a neat, rounded summary of your investigation. By reading the conclusion, someone should be able to know the key parts of your argument and why they are important.

A conclusion is also a place to propose solutions – what can we do in future that we aren’t doing now? How might future events like climate change impact your research?

If there are relevant questions that could impact the outcome of your investigation, but you don’t have time to consider them in detail, put them in your conclusion. This shows the examiner that you have an awareness of micro- and macro-scale issues!

How do you write an A* A-Level Geography NEA conclusion?

Like most essay conclusions, your geography NEA conclusion will summarise your main arguments, what you found, and what your data means. It can also be a good place to ask any of the questions you still don’t have answers to.

You could start by going through your inquiry questions and writing “sub-conclusions” in response to them. Then, you should move on to the big conclusion: answering your title question.

In your conclusion, you should highlight the key things you found as a result of your research, broadly and specifically. Showing consideration to the “big” and “small” issues is good for showing your critical thinking skills!

Your conclusion should be about the same length as your introduction, give or take. If you start running out of things to say, don’t add things unnecessarily to fill the word count – your conclusion should be the most clear and concise part of your NEA.

Examples of A-Level Geography NEAs

Most, if not all, exam boards will have an “exemplar” coursework on their website. For example, I’ve linked the OCR exemplar coursework for you here , so check your exam board website for their exemplar!

The exemplar coursework is written and submitted by a real student, but it’s important to follow the mark scheme, not just copying someone else’s coursework. Your NEA will be checked for plagiarism!

Similarly, most schools keep exemplar coursework from each year, so if you need some inspiration, ask your teachers for the coursework they have.

If you’re struggling for ideas of what to write on for your Geography NEA, check out this Think Student article with 75+ ideas!

*To learn more about the A-Level Geography NEA, check out the specifications from the main exam boards, AQA , Pearson Edexcel and OCR by clicking on their respective links.

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A Level Geography NEA Videos - A curated selection of 33 of the best videos to support Geography NEA

Subject: Geography

Age range: 16+

Resource type: Lesson (complete)

Last updated

16 August 2024

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A Level Geography NEA fieldwork videos. -A curated selection of 33 of the best videos to help support students complete their A Level Geography NEA - Suitable for all a level Geography specifications AQA, ORC & Edexcel

These videos cover:

• NEA Introduction and choosing your Geogrpahy NEA title
• NEA Methodology and data capture
• NEA Data presentation
• NEA Data analysis
• NEA Evaluation & Conclusion

It also includes

• Detailed insights into the markeing scheme and how to score full marks
• How to conduct a literature review and how to reference your sources
• Key advances statistics and maths skills to analyse your data * Spearmans rank * Mann - Whitney U Test * Chi Square test * Box and Whisker plots * Standard deviation
• Tips and tricks from A* students and teachers

This is an amazing resource to give to students so they can complete this project while maintaining the correct levels of teacher input.

Tes paid licence How can I reuse this?

Get this resource as part of a bundle and save up to 8%

A bundle is a package of resources grouped together to teach a particular topic, or a series of lessons, in one place.

A Level Geogrpahy NEA Fieldwork Book & Video Bundle - Everything a student needs to know to get full marks in Geography NEA

**The Book** A Level Geography NEA fieldwork book. -Guide to A Level Geography NEA - Everything you need to know to get full marks - Suitable for all a level Geography specifications AQA, ORC & Edexcel Over 10,000 word book. * Helps you get full marks in Geography NEA. * Step-by-step guide for each NEA section. * Provides templates, tools, and tips. * Includes practical examples and resources. * Focuses on clear data presentation and analysis. * Emphasizes academic integrity and proper referencing. * Encourages staying organized and motivated. * Suitable for students and teachers. * Clear instructions for achieving high grades. * Perfect for A-Level Geography students. This guide is an invaluable tool for both students and teachers, offering the structure, resources, and encouragement needed to excel in the Geography NEA. **The Videos** These videos cover: * NEA Introduction and choosing your Geogrpahy NEA title * NEA Methodology and data capture * NEA Data presentation * NEA Data analysis * NEA Evaluation & Conclusion It also includes * Detailed insights into the markeing scheme and how to score full marks * How to conduct a literature review and how to reference your sources * Key advances statistics and maths skills to analyse your data * Spearmans rank * Mann - Whitney U Test * Chi Square test * Box and Whisker plots * Standard deviation * Tips and tricks from A* students and teachers This is an amazing resource to give to students so they can complete this project while maintaining the correct levels of teacher input.

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GIS for the NEA: A Quick Start Guide for the Confused!

12th July 2023

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For many teachers and students the NEA feels like a natural place to start using GIS. The ability to efficiently collect, present and analyse spatial data is of huge importance to a successful enquiry – and GIS should make this easy! But where to start? If you haven't used GIS before, it’s a high-stakes arena to start grappling with different tools and data-sets. Time pressure can make an explorative, playful, 'see-what-works' approach, recommended elsewhere, feel inappropriate.

Step one: Start with the secondary data

It may seem counterintuitive, but we wholeheartedly recommend starting your GIS journey with secondary data. There is a wealth of extremely simple, free, GIS tools that you can use to explore different topic areas. Their simplicity allows a new user get to grips with using GIS without feeling overwhelmed. The rich data they make accessible enables students to refine and contextualise their enquiry questions – turning what could be a dull re-tread of a known case-study into a genuine contribution to the geographical canon. Access to this data will also help to facilitate better planning and sampling strategies - helping students towards higher marks in their NEA.

Engaging with secondary data is as simple as using MapMaker to characterise a case study area. In this example, a student can quickly and easily locate and characterise their area of interest using different basemaps.

They can then examine the different coastal management strategies in place and how these manifest in terms of actual coastal defences. By adding in Environment Agency data that is straightforward to find, and using a simple swipe tool they can switch between the Shoreline Management Plan (SMP) policy and defence type in this location.

They can then apply a simple, button-click tool to explore this digital twin of their site before they test for real in the field: in this case using the elevation profile to look at the difference in sediment height either side of a groyne.

Mapmaker can explore the subjective as well as the quantitative. Are students interested in how perceptions of place are affected by the weather? Clicking the weather button allows them to simulate conditions across the year. A great resource to use with a focus group!

Or perhaps they are investigating at an urban context, examining how gentrification impacts on different groups of people. Using the 3D topographic basemap and clicking the daylight button makes light-theft by rising skyscrapers, or the impact of tree cover on shade, very easy to measure.

You can find MapMaker and a collection of other data tools on the Teach With GIS fieldwork page here .

Step two: Off the shelf data collection

Using a mobile device to collect data is an enormous time-saver when it comes to transcribing, presenting and analysing it. There are quick and easy ways to set up data-capture forms for any question students devise. But if you’re using some of the most common techniques, like environmental quality surveys, traffic and pedestrian counts, or microclimate observations, there are now free off-the-shelf tools to make it even more straightforward. Scan a QR code to open a survey and start entering data immediately. You can then view collected data on a ready-made dashboard, download a copy into a spreadsheet for your own statistical analysis, and even take it back into ArcGIS Online to re-map in your own way.

Step three: community resources

Once students have collected their data, whether it was using a mobile app or pencil and paper, there are step-by-step tutorials available to help them map and analyse it. The Esri UK schools team also broadcast student-focused webinars to introduce basic cartographic and analytic techniques, helping them avoid common pitfalls and the 'GIS defaults' (like orange proportional symbols!) that have started to attract criticism in examiners’ reports.

The community of GIS-enabled geography teachers is friendly and growing fast. We welcome you to connect with us and make use of what is already available - before you and your students re-invent the wheel!

• Fieldwork skills

50% of the Esri UK Schools Team, Katie is a former geography teacher and archaeologist. They work to make GIS accessible to all, and showcase the amazing career opportunities in the geospatial sector.

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NEA update – Sampling and Data presentation.

No doubt you have by now spent considerable time considering the different methods you will use to collect data. This is valuable and important as methods are the salient factor in determining the accuracy of the data and subsequent conclusion therefore weaknesses in the methods reduce the certainty of the conclusions.

However, in a similar vein, it is important to spend an equal amount of time and effort considering the sampling strategy of the project. Sampling is another aspect of data collection that refer to the where, when, and how much data you will collect. 

The sampling heavily influences the reliability of your data collection. If you only ask one or to people what they think and report this- it is accurate but not reliable or applicable to the whole population.

 You may have a different sampling strategy for each different method and this also includes secondary data. In a perfect world you would sample everyone and everything all the time to mean that your data is 100% representative of all opinions / ideas/ data / groups etc.. however this isn’t possible in any study and the NEA does not expect this! What is  expected is that you have considered sampling methods and have made attempts to improve reliability whilst also reflected on the impact of your sampling in the evaluation of your conclusions.

Three main approaches to sampling….

Random sampling: This is where each member of the population is equally likely to be included. For taking random samples of an area, use a random number table to select numbers. Use pairs of numbers as x and y co-ordinates. You could use a metre rule interval markings (e.g. to take pebble samples on a beach) or grid references (e.g. to find random samples in a city).

Stratified sampling: This is where a proportionate number of observations is taken from each part of the population. For example, an urban ward may contain 8 deprived super output areas and 2 undeprived super output areas. A random sample may by chance miss all the undeprived areas. By contrast, with a stratified sample, you can make sure that 80% of your samples are taken in the deprived areas and 20% in the undeprived areas.

Systematic sampling: This is where observations are taken at regular intervals. For example, every 10 metres along a line running from seashore inland across a beach, or recording the age of every fifth person in a shopping centre.

Once you have decided on your sampling strategy you might also want to consider how you will sample the space / place you are going to visit. This also gives you three options.

• Point sampling. Take observations at individual points, like separate houses on a street
• Line sampling. Take observations along a line, like a beach from sea shore to base of the cliffs or along a highstreet.
• Area sampling. Make a square on the ground or on a map. Take observations within that square. For example, place a quadrat on the beach and measure pebble shape and size within that area. If you have a small area or village you could apply the area to this.

The image below shows how these two different approaches can be combined to produce an overall sampling strategy. Whilst there are obvious costs and benefits of each different approach for the NEA it is more important to show you have considered sampling and have a strategy then fixating for ages on which approach is best. 

Data Representation (presentation and analysis)

This part section of the report is worth 24/70. This can seem a daunting but… by now you have your data collected so the hard bit is behind you! 

Types of data presentation

So.. what counts as data presentation- basically anything which you have collected and made and will help you answer you aim / subquestion. The type of data you have collected will heavily influence the data presentation. This could / should include the following;

• Annotated maps / photographs
• Graphs (line graphs/ bar charts / scatter graphs/ radar graphs)
• Word clouds
• Interview quotes (might be worth putting the whole interview transcript in the appendix)
• Data tables
• Heat maps (use arcgis)
• Statistical analysis – averages (mean/ mode / median/IQ range / Spearman’s rank / Mann Whitney U / Chi  Squared etc..)

As with the rest of the report it is much easier and more manageable to use heading and subheading throughout the report. There are many different ways to structure this however my top choice is to use your subheadings / hypothesis to break it up. I also am now of the opinion that it is best to combine the data presentation (graphs / photos / annotated maps ect… and text as one rather than having all the graphs and then pages and pages of text where you have to keep referring back to the evidence- for example if you are investigating deprivation in South  East London you might have decided to focus on crime, health and environmental deprivation. Therefore the layout might be

Crime- How does the amount of crime differ across South East London?

• Choropleth Crime Map – Annotated map
• Average of Crime by borough – Data Table
• Analysis   – Explain how and why the crime levels might be different (explanation)

Environment – How does the environment quality differ within  South East London?

• Map of Air pollution in London
• Table of air pollution in London
• Analysis – how and why does the air pollution vary (explanation)
• Scatter graph comparing crime and environment
• Analysis – how and why does the crime and environment quality data match

It is easy to fall into the trap of repeating yourself in the analysis so tricks like “as previously explained” or “see above’ can avoid this. Remember this is not an essay or exam – you should be reworking what you have written so if you think of something or it clicks as you work through the presentation and analysis section you should go back and edit the report. Don’t be precious about what you have already written… remember the finished product is what will be judged and if you waffle this will affect your overall mark. If in doubt think.. Does this answer my aim / subquestion and if the answer is no- it shouldn’t be there!

How to analyse your data / graphs.

Once you have produced the graphs they can be copied into your report. All graphs in your report should be given a figure and caption – see below.

Figure 1 – Picture showing my face when the teacher asks how I am getting on with my NEA

After this I find using the T.E.A.M acronym useful to ensure you cover everything. The order is not that important and write this in a more formal paragraph. 

T.E.A.M stands for:

TREND: Talk about the general pattern in the graph / picture / map. i.e. generally crime increases as you get closer to the city centre.

EVIDENCE: This is where you should quote evidence (numbers / facts / words) that support the pattern. I.e. the highest crime rate is found in Borough with 128crimes recorded in August whilst Dulwich Village had the lowest number of crimes recorded in August with 23. 

ANOMALIES: Data that doesn’t fit the general pattern or goes against the trend i.e. however Lower Sydenham had much higher crime rates than other more suburban areas of S.E. London with 115 crimes recorded in August.

MEANING: This is the most involved part of the analysis and is where you explain the trend / pattern. It requires you to suggest the meaning of the pattern and answer the subquestion. This is the area the examiners will pay the most attention to. Don’t forget to state the obvious and fully explain your points simply.

Some complex graphs / charts / statistical analysis.

Google sheets is your friend in this case. As soon as you have your data one of the first jobs should be to type this into google sheets or microsoft excel / numbers. This will mean you can then begin to produce the graphs.

Spatial Density / Distribution 

ARCGIS – Heat Maps (you need to latitude and longitude of the variable – which can be taken from your phone of google maps).

These can be simply produced using just ArcGIS web browser (free)

https://www.esri.com/arcgis-blog/products/arcgis-online/mapping/heat-mapping-in-two-simple-steps/

GEGraphs -These google earth graphs require you to download google earth and GE graph application.

Spearman’s Ranks

Guide: https://geographyfieldwork.com/SpearmansRank.htm  

Template to populate with your data: http://udel.edu/~mcdonald/statspearman.xls  

Mann Whitney U

Guide: https://www.geography-fieldwork.org/a-level/before-starting/analysis/

Template to populate with your data:  http://www.holah.karoo.net/Mann-Whitney%20U-test.xls  

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Published by MrGeogWagg

Geography Teacher, London View more posts

2 thoughts on “ NEA update – Sampling and Data presentation. ”

How can you present data from a likert sclae

You have a couple of options. Once you have the number of people that have each opinion (qualitative data) a pie chart or radar graph work well. I have also seen it done with proportional symbols but a bit more complicated and less specific to analyse.

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