What this lesson teaches
I can organise fieldwork data and analyse its patterns with counts, averages and comparisons.
Syllabus K229, Topic 1.3, Key Question 3. How to process and analyse data?
I can present fieldwork findings with clear maps, graphs, sketches and text.
Syllabus K229, Topic 1.3, Key Question 4. How to present findings?
I can read maps, graphs, photographs and texts, and separate what they show from what they suggest.
Syllabus K229, Topic 1.3, Key Question 4 (part). How to present findings?
Make a guess
One resident says, "I stopped using the path after the lights failed." What does this quote show?
- One person's experience, which suggests lighting matters.
- That the failed lights caused the path's problems, so fixing them is enough.
- That every resident stopped using the path.
- Nothing useful, because it is just an opinion.
Show the answer
One person's experience, which suggests lighting matters.
A single account reveals a viewpoint. It does not prove that all residents stopped, so you would compare other accounts and records.
Find the message, show how the text or image gets it across, and check what evidence backs it up.
A text or cartoon can reveal a viewpoint without proving every claim it makes. Check who made it, when, why and what evidence it gives.
A made-up resident says, "I stopped using the path after the lights failed." This reports one person's experience and suggests lighting mattered. It does not prove that all residents stopped using the path. Compare other accounts, observations and repair records to see the wider pattern.
A cartoon may use exaggeration, labels or contrast to make a point. Imagine "Ten new bins: problem solved!" above overflowing bins. The contrast questions whether new equipment is enough. It gives no real litter count and does not show how every waste system works.
To analyse interviews, code passages by theme, such as access, comfort or safety. Apply the same rules every time, and keep quotes that show different experiences. Colour-coding quotes makes the link between each theme and its evidence clear.
A word cloud sizes words by how often they appear. But "safe" appears in both "safe" and "not safe", so frequency alone can hide the meaning. Read the words around it, and include unusual or opposing views instead of choosing only evidence that supports your conclusion.
- Viewpoint
- Whose view is shown, and why?
- Cartoon
- Uses exaggeration and contrast; not a measurement.
- Word cloud
- Size shows frequency, not approval.
Step by step
Find the message
State the view and how it is shown.
Check the evidence
Is it an account, a measurement or an unsupported claim?
Compare sources
Check other accounts; keep the original meaning.
Worked example: Do not count away a disagreement
Six interviews praise a shady path. Two say wheelchair users cannot use it. The two still matter. Counting shows how common a view is, not whose needs count.
Watch out for this
A big word in a word cloud shows people approve of it.
Size shows how often a word appears, not whether people like it.
Check your understanding
A cartoon shows overflowing bins under a banner saying "problem solved". What is the best reading?
- It shows that residents dislike the new bins and refuse to use them.
- It questions whether new bins solve the waste problem.
- It shows that the national recycling rate has fallen since the bins came.
Show the answer
It questions whether new bins solve the waste problem.
Yes. The contrast makes the point.