For the first time, the Geography A Level students had the opportunity to undertake the four compulsory days of fieldwork in the Costa Brava and Girona with the expert tutoring of Barry Cullimore from Geofieldwork Ltd. The non-examined element of their course involves formulating their own unique question to investigate and then planning and collecting their data.
After a 4am start on Thursday, the students headed down to the beach immediately after lunch to see the stunning tombolo at Platja Aro. Under the Spanish winter weather of bright blue skies and sunshine, they carried out quantitative fieldwork to measure wave energy, did two beach profiles and collected sediment for analysis back at the hotel.
The following day the students headed along an historic coastal pathway of Platja d’Es Monestri, with the focus of the day being on coastal management along the bay as well as comparing tourism in two towns by recording the tourist services.
Saturday was spent in the beautiful city of Girona, approximately 80km from the hotel and in which parts were used in the filming of the Game of Thrones. Here the girls collected environmental data to compare the Old Quarter and the newer parts of the city and practised their Spanish by conducting questionnaires with the local population. Each evening was spent collating data collected, carrying out statistical testing and planning for the next day and our LVI students undertook this with huge enthusiasm and engagement
On Sunday, with the data collected, the girls were taken on a tour of the volcanic landscapes of the region with a resident geology expert. Here they discussed the extinct volcanoes and the potential of volcanic hazards. It was a very intense four days and the girls will now spend several weeks writing up their investigation for submission next year.
