Lesson Y9-U05-L07

Y9-U05-L07 GIS and Digital Mapping Quiz: KS3 Geography, Unit 17

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson Y9-U05-L07, GIS and Digital Mapping: 20 multiple choice questions for the KS3 Geography (National Curriculum), Unit 17: Year 9: Thinking Like a Geographer: Fieldwork and Geographical Enquiry, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. What does GIS stand for?

    • Geographical Information System
    • Geographic Interval Scale
    • General Index of Surveys
    • Global Imaging Service

  2. What is a map 'layer' in a GIS?

    • One set of data on a map that you can switch on or off
    • A colour used to shade the sea on a paper map
    • A single printed sheet that is folded neatly to fit inside a school pocket or bag
    • A line that shows the height of land above sea level

  3. What does it mean to overlay two layers?

    • To delete one layer so that only the other remains
    • To place one layer on top of another to compare them
    • To print two layers onto separate sheets of paper
    • To calculate the average value of both layers together

  4. What is the 'distribution' of a feature?

    • The number of people who work in the feature each day
    • Where the feature is found across an area and how spread out it is
    • The colour used to show the feature on a printed map
    • The cost of building the feature across the whole area

  5. Which of these jobs commonly uses GIS?

    • Planning new roads and houses for a town council
    • Teaching a music lesson for young pupils
    • Painting the walls of a school classroom
    • Baking bread in a local bakery each morning and selling it to the shops

  6. An enquiry asks where flooding threatens homes. Which two layers should be switched on?

    • A parks layer and a bus stops layer
    • A rainfall layer and a bicycle routes layer
    • A schools layer and a shops layer
    • A flood risk layer and a houses layer

  7. A layer shows shops only along one main road, with almost none on side streets. How would you describe this distribution?

    • Clustered along the main road, not spread out evenly
    • Randomly scattered across the whole town centre
    • Spread evenly across all of the streets in the town, with a similar number on each one
    • Concentrated on the north side of the town only

  8. Overlaying parks on temperature shows cooler air near the parks. What pattern does this reveal?

    • Parks are placed only in the areas with the highest temperature
    • Temperature has no link with the locations of parks
    • Cooler temperatures are linked to places near parks
    • Parks are always the hottest places in any town

  9. Why can overlaying two layers reveal more than looking at one layer alone?

    • It removes the need for a map key on the final output
    • It shows the relationship between two datasets in the same place
    • It turns qualitative data into exact numbers automatically
    • It doubles the number of readings taken in the field

  10. What sits underneath all the layers so that locations line up exactly?

    • The base map
    • The title written at the top of the printed map
    • The key showing the colours used on the layers
    • The list of data sources used to make the map

  11. Why is it useful to switch off layers you do not need?

    • So that the map loses its base map and key entirely
    • So that the map can be printed in only one colour
    • So that the data on the remaining layers is deleted
    • So that only the data you need is visible and easier to read

  12. Which word describes a repeated arrangement of features in space, such as features clustered together?

    • Anomaly
    • Spatial pattern
    • Qualitative data
    • Mean value

  13. An overlay shows fast-food outlets clustered within 400 metres of secondary schools. What is the best conclusion?

    • Outlets cluster near secondary schools, which may target pupils
    • Outlets are found only in the countryside far from schools
    • Outlets are spread out evenly across the town, so schools have no link to them at all
    • Schools move to wherever the fast-food outlets have opened

  14. Which is the best way to describe a distribution using map evidence?

    • Count every single feature without naming any location
    • Name where the feature is and whether it is spread out or clustered
    • Describe the colour of the map and the font of its title
    • Give a personal view of how attractive the area looks

  15. Why should a GIS conclusion use map evidence rather than opinion?

    • So that the layers can be turned on in a different order
    • So that every layer contains the same amount of data
    • So that the map can be printed in more colours
    • So that others can check the conclusion and trust it

  16. A single layer shows where all the schools are. Why is it a single layer and not an overlay?

    • It shows the links between schools and houses in the town
    • It shows two datasets that have been placed together on the map
    • It shows one dataset on its own, with nothing compared against it
    • It shows a pattern that only appears after two layers are compared

  17. Which two layers would you overlay to check whether bus stops are fairly spread across a town?

    • A bus stops layer and a population or housing layer
    • A roads layer and a land-height layer only
    • A flood risk layer and a schools layer
    • A rivers layer and a parks layer

  18. Why must a GIS layer sit over a base map?

    • So that the layer can be deleted without affecting the rest
    • So that the layer can be coloured by the user at will
    • So that the layer can be printed as a separate page
    • So that the locations on each layer line up exactly

  19. Evaluate in one sentence: is a pattern on two overlaid layers always proof that one layer causes the other?

    • No, because overlaid layers can never show any pattern at all
    • Yes, because GIS software only ever shows causes, never links
    • No, two layers can be linked without one causing the other
    • Yes, any pattern on two overlaid layers always proves cause and effect

  20. Which layers would you overlay to study air pollution near main roads?

    • A bus stops layer, overlaid on a rivers layer
    • A flood risk layer, overlaid on a land-height layer for the whole town
    • An air pollution layer, overlaid on a main roads layer
    • A parks layer, overlaid on a schools layer

All KS3 Geography quizzes