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• Once data from fieldwork has been collected, it should be presented. Choosing the correct method of presenting the data is important.
• Data should be interpreted in order to draw conclusions.
• It is important to be critical of any investigation you do to see how it could be improved in the future.

An independent investigation or piece of fieldwork produces a lot of raw data. There are numerous ways to present this data and each one has its advantages and disadvantages.

There are simple methods of presenting data, such as creating tables or graphs such as bar charts or pie charts, and there are more sophisticated methods such as creating maps using Geographic Information Systems .

It is important to make sure the correct presentation technique is chosen and that you can justify the choice.

For example, graphs are effective for showing data in a visual way whereas maps are useful for showing spatial data.

Another technique is to use field sketches or annotated photographs. For example:

• a photograph of a seaside location comparing tourism now and in the past
• a field sketch to show the different coastal defences in place at a seaside resort

Here are some suggestions of data presentation techniques and reasons for choosing them:

Pie charts are basic graphics useful for comparing a similar category and for presenting a quantity that can be divided into parts. Pie charts usually show the amounts or percentages, making the results easy to read. This pie chart shows the reasons people gave for visiting a seaside resort.

Line graphs are useful for showing continuous data such as changes over time. This graph shows the average monthly temperatures in the UK from September 2020 to August 2021.

Field sketches can help you to remember the places you have studied and visited. They are useful for highlighting the key features and characteristics of an area. Anyone can draw them and you don't need to be really artistic to create one. It is important to annotate them with lots of detail about the landscape. This field sketch shows the location of sea defences on a beach.

Graphs presented on a map allow you to compare data to location. For example, bar charts on a map such as this one can be useful to show how many people live in a particular location.

Word clouds are a great way to show the most common words or perceptions from questionnaires with the public. The words said most frequently are presented in a larger font, showing which are most important. This word cloud shows the survey results asking people the reason they were visiting a seaside resort.

Once you have collected and presented the data, you can analyse it. Analysis is where patterns and trends are identified and described, links are made between different sets of data, and anomalies are highlighted. When handling data, statistical techniques should be used to describe the data, such as calculating the averages using mean, mode and median.

At the analysis stage, explanations for the reasons for any patterns should be pointed out. If there are no patterns, suggestions should be made as to why this is the case.

Once all the data has been analysed, a conclusion can be reached. All independent investigations start with a hypothesis or an enquiry question. These set out the aim of the investigation. The conclusion should refer back to these and state whether the hypothesis has been proved to be true or false or whether the answer to the enquiry question has been found.

At this stage, it is important to focus on the key aspects. Although the conclusion should not repeat all the data from the analysis section, the most important data can be used and any anomalies should be pointed out in a more focused way than in the analysis section.

The final step is to evaluate the success of the investigation and to look at what worked well and what could be improved should the investigation be repeated.

The two main areas to focus on are:

• the methods of collecting the data
• the overall quality of the conclusions

It is OK to be critical of the investigation and to look for the limitations which may have affected the overall results. Some things to think about are:

• Was the best location chosen?
• Was the correct equipment used?
• Should more sites have been visited or returned to at different times and would the results have been different?

When evaluating the overall conclusions, you might consider:

• How the methods of collecting data impacted the conclusions.
• Whether enough data was collected or if a larger sample size would have been better.
• If the secondary data used was up to date. For example, if using statistics found online from a few years ago, these may have changed and could impact upon your conclusions.