002 - Methodology and Data Collection

The 5 data collection transects

Data collection requirements per transect group

• • • Two minute pedestrian count, to be carried out at 8 pre-chosen sites along the transect.

    • Two minute traffic counts, to happen at the same 8 pre-chosed sites as the pedestrian counts. The traffic count needs to breakdown the traffic by type.

    • Building type and name/brand along the complete transect.

    • Two minute footfall (the number of people entering a doorway versus the number of people walking past) survey to be done outside 8 building/premises decided upon before data collection is started. 

    • An environment quality survey which uses an observer’s judgements to assess environmental quality against a range of indicators. You need to complete 8 environment quality surveys.

Activity One - Collecting quality data

• • 1. What is 'quality data'?

    2. The conclusions that you make will be based upon the data you collect - therefore rubbish data leads to...

    3. What steps can we take to ensure that the data collected by the different groups is comparable?

Activity Two - 'Walking' the transects and selecting sites

Use Google Street View within Google Maps to 'walk' at least one of the transects. Be thinking about where it would be best to be when you want to collect the pedestrian and traffic counts.

Activity Three - Sampling

Sampling is the process of collecting data from some sites or people in order to obtain a perspective upon a large population or place. How we choose locations (or people to ask questions of) can introduce data skews.

Which sampling approach will you take to ensure the high quality of your data collection?

Activity Four- Pedestrian, traffic and footfall surveys

• • 1. How might you categorise the traffic when doing the traffic count?

    2. You will be given a certain transect to look at. Where upon that transect would you location the 8 count locations? Which sampling method have you used to select the locations? How can you record the locations so that you can find them during the data collection day?

Activity Five - Building type

• • 1. How could you systematically record the building types along the length of your transect?

    2. How could you use the RICEPOTS system?

    3. How could you incorporate into your system the recording of the name of building/shops etc?  

Activity Six- Environment quality survey

• • 1. Which environmental quality survey do you think we should use? A or B? Why?

Activity Seven - The Write Up - Methodology

While you have collected the data as a group you will write up how you did this process individually. What methods you include will very much depend on what your hypotheses are. Produce a methodology  (in a lab report style rather than a story) for the methods you will use by including the following:

• • 1. Sampling techniques. What sampling techniques did you use to pick the sites and then collect the data at each site? Describe them and say why they were chosen. 

    2. In one sentence say which month and the amount of time that was used to collect the data.

    3. Describe each method to collect the data. Use subheadings to divide the techniques and image/diagrams to help with your descriptions. (You will save on words if you include well-annotated diagrams of the data collection techniques.)

    4. Justify why you are collecting this data by referring back to your hypotheses.

How will I be assessed?

The methodology will be assessed primarily through Criterion B - Investigating.