3.2.2.4 Place studies Quiz: AQA Geography, Unit 2

The 20 questions

1. A local place study should be designed to explore:

   • A single distant ocean ridge with no human links, which is studied through its geology and seabed mapping
   • A volcanic landform with no population, which is examined for its formation and the rocks it contains
   • A national statistical average only, which summarises the characteristics of an entire country
   • The developing character of a place local to the home or study centre

2. A contrasting place study should be chosen to:

   • Repeat the same place with no differences, which allows the researcher to confirm the original findings
   • Study a place with identical characteristics to the local place, so that results can be generalised easily
   • Study only the physical geography of a place with no people, which avoids the complexity of human factors
   • Explore a distant place with significant contrast in economic development, population density, culture or political organisation

3. Which feature must both place studies focus on equally?

   • The number of tourists visiting each place, which is the best indicator of its economic importance
   • People's lived experience of the place in the past and at present
   • The weather of each place only, which is the main control on how people live and work there
   • The geology of each place only, which determines the physical character of the landscape in each case

4. Which of these sources is required in place studies?

   • Only satellite images with no text, since the images are sufficient to show the character of the place
   • Qualitative and quantitative data to represent places in the past and present
   • Only data from a single year, which provides a consistent snapshot of the place at one point
   • Only personal opinions with no data, since the place study is based on the researcher's own view

5. Which approach best explains how a place study connects to students' own lives?

   • Assuming places have no effect on people, since the character of a place is determined by its landforms alone
   • Ignoring people's lives and focusing only on landforms, which are the main subject of the place study
   • Studying only the place's distant history with no link to present-day people or their experiences
   • Exploring how continuity and change in the place affect people's lives, including the students' own

6. Which combination of features would be appropriate for a contrasting place study?

   • Population data, interviews with residents and historical sources on change
   • Only the temperature record of the sea, which measures the climate of the coastline over time
   • Only a map of plate boundaries, which shows the tectonic structure beneath the place
   • Only a list of volcanic eruptions, which describes the natural hazards affecting the region in detail

7. Which concept best describes the 'developing character' of a place as examined in place studies?

   • The fixed physical shape of the place, which has remained the same since the land was first formed
   • The number of tourists per year, which is the most reliable measure of a place's character
   • The chemical composition of local rocks, which determines the appearance of the buildings in the area
   • How the place has changed and continues to change in its features, people and meanings

8. Which statement about the comparison of a local and contrasting place is most accurate?

   • Comparison helps show how different economic, political and cultural conditions shape places
   • Comparison shows that all places are identical, so the local and contrasting places can be described with the same account
   • Comparison is irrelevant to place studies, since each place should be studied on its own terms only
   • Comparison can only be made between two physical features, such as the height of mountains or the depth of lakes

9. Which evaluation best describes the value of a place study for understanding change?

   • It removes the need to consider people, since change in a place is driven by its physical features alone
   • It only provides information about the weather, which is the main form of change affecting any place
   • It shows that change never occurs, since places are stable over the long term despite minor fluctuations
   • It allows change in a place to be traced over time, linking evidence to broader processes

10. Which of these would be most useful as evidence of a place's past in a place study?

    • Only a map drawn last week, which shows the layout of the streets as they are at present
    • Only current traffic counts, which record the number of vehicles using the local roads each weekday
    • Historic census records and oral histories from long-standing residents
    • Only recent weather forecasts, which describe the conditions expected in the place over the coming days

11. Which of these shows continuity in a place study?

    • A sudden change in the local language after one day, which replaces the spoken language of the community
    • A shift of the entire population to another continent, which leaves the place empty within a few months
    • A traditional market that continues to operate alongside new retail developments
    • A complete replacement of all buildings within a year, which removes every earlier feature of the place

12. Which statement about evidence in a place study is most accurate?

    • Evidence is never necessary in place studies, which depend on the researcher's general impressions of the area
    • Evidence should only come from a single source, which avoids the complication of conflicting accounts
    • Evidence should be selected for its relevance and checked for reliability and possible bias
    • Any evidence can be used without checking it, since all sources are equally reliable for a place study

13. A place study finds that a local area's population has become more diverse over 30 years. Which factor is most likely to explain this?

    • A rise in sea level affecting the coast, which would displace people but would not change their backgrounds
    • A change in the local rock type, which would affect the soils but not the population of the area
    • Migration bringing people from different cultural backgrounds into the area
    • A decline in the number of residents to zero, which would remove all diversity from the population

14. Which factor is most likely to show how a contrasting place has changed economically?

    • The number of plants in a single garden, which reflects the gardening habits of one household
    • The colour of the sea at the local beach, which changes with the season and the weather
    • The amount of rain on a single day, which is a short-term weather observation
    • Trends in employment by sector over several decades

15. Which evaluation best reflects how a place study should be judged?

    • By how many photographs it contains, since visual evidence is the most important form of place study
    • By how well it uses evidence to explain change and its effects on people
    • By how many colours are used in its maps, which determines how easily the findings can be understood
    • By how long it is in pages, which reflects the amount of detail the researcher has collected

16. Which of these best describes a media place in a contrasting place study?

    • A distant place known to students through films, news and social media
    • A familiar local park visited every day, which is known through routine and personal memory
    • A neighbourhood the student walks through daily, which is known through direct and repeated experience
    • A school attended for many years, which is known through lessons, friends and everyday experience

17. Which statement about the role of people in place studies is most accurate?

    • People's experiences and perspectives are central to understanding how places develop
    • People only matter for the economy, which is the single factor that shapes the development of places
    • People are irrelevant to how places develop, since development is determined only by physical factors
    • Only physical features shape place development, and people respond to them without influencing them

18. Which statement best explains how a contrasting place can illuminate the local place?

    • Contrasts can reveal which factors shape the local place and which are shared across places
    • Contrasts remove the need to study the local place, since the distant place provides all the required answers
    • Contrasts show that only physical factors matter, so the human character of the local place is irrelevant
    • Contrasts show that the local place is identical to every other place, which means that no further study is needed

19. A place study finds that a local village's population has aged and its services have declined. Which conclusion is best supported?

    • Changing demographic characteristics are affecting the village's services and sense of place
    • The village's services have not been affected by its population, which has no bearing on local provision
    • The village's population change is irrelevant to its character, since character depends only on the landscape
    • The village is not a real place, since its population has changed and so it no longer has an identity

20. Which statement best reflects the purpose of the place studies in the specification?

    • To study only physical geography without people, which keeps the study focused on natural processes
    • To memorise place names only, which is the main purpose of the place studies in the specification
    • To apply knowledge from the content to understand how continuity and change in places affect people's lives
    • To avoid any use of data, since place studies should rely entirely on personal observation and opinion

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