The first week of December our grade 9 students had their Humanities field trip. The purpose of the trip was to give our grade 9 students a taste of what it would be like to conduct fieldwork for an IB Geography IA. The fieldwork our students engaged in occurred within the Gubei area. The Geography IA is a crucial aspect of the IB Geography course. It is an independent research paper that allows students to investigate a geographical research question. For their IA, grade 9 students investigated “to what extent has the neighborhood centered on SUIS Gubei achieved a complete community within a 15-minute radius?” Other than collecting data for their Individual Assessment (IA), this experience was meant to help reinforce important research skills that students need to be successful in the IB, college, and their future careers.
12月的第一周，协和古北九年级学生展开了人文科学实地考察活动。此次考察的主要目的是让学生亲身体验IB地理个人评估（IA）中实地考察的流程。学生们在古北地区进行了深入的实地研究。地理IA是IB地理课程的核心组成部分，它要求学生撰写一篇独立的研究论文，以探讨一个特定的地理研究问题。
九年级学生在他们的IA中探讨了“古北社区在多大程度上实现了15分钟半径内的完整社区？”除了为他们的个人评估（IA）收集必要的数据外，这次实地考察经历还旨在加强学生在未来IB课程、大学学习以及职业生涯中所需的关键研究技能。
During the field trip, each humanities class was split into two research groups, with a total of 28 research groups across grade 9. Groups members had various roles such as leader, photographer, or navigator. Each research group was tasked with exploring one of four zones around SUIS Gubei and identifying the quantity and quality of an assigned urban necessity. This semester grade 9 students learned about six urban necessities: transportation, recreation, food, education, employment, and healthcare. Each group investigated one of these necessities.
在实际考察过程中，每个人文班被分成两个研究小组，整个九年级共有28个研究小组。团队成员各司其职，如担任领队、摄影师或导航员等角色。各研究小组的目标是调查协和古北四周四个区域中的一个，并测定所选定城市的六种基础需求品的数目与品质。本学期，九年级的学生已经掌握了六种城市生存的必备要素：交通、娱乐、饮食、教育、就业和医疗。各小组分别对这些基础需求品之一进行了详细的调研。
To conduct their research students took pictures, recorded their observations in notebooks, and interviewed store owners. Some groups even went as far as to count over 1,200 share bikes in their zone. And they were extremely proud to describe the process of how they delegated tasks amongst group members to carry out this study.
为开展研究工作，学生们进行了摄影记录，将观察所得详细记载于笔记本，并对店主进行了访谈。部分研究小组甚至在其研究区域内精确统计出超过1,200辆共享单车。他们自豪地叙述了在小组成员间如何分配任务以完成研究的整个过程。
The field trip lasted 5 periods, with periods 1-4 being the field work. During period 5, all grade 9 students returned to the basketball court. There, research groups recorded their observations and shared their findings in the grade 9 Geography IA research database. This field trip gave an excellent opportunity for students to enhance their critical thinking abilities, while fostering a keen sense of collaboration. Whether it was exploring the vibrant streets of Gubei or interpreting the details of their environment, each experience enriched their journey of discovery. We trust that students have walked away with valuable insights into teamwork, resilience, and the real-world application of their investigative skills.
实地考察活动持续了五节课时，其中前四节为实地考察。至第五节课时，所有九年级学生返回至学校篮球场集合。在该地点，研究小组整理并记录了他们的观察发现，并将这些资料上传至九年级地理IA研究数据库。
此次实地考察为学生提供了难得的机会，以增强他们的批判性思维能力，并促进团队协作精神的发展。无论是深入探索古北的繁华街道，还是细致解读周边环境的细节，每一次的体验都为他们的探索之旅增添了丰富的内涵。我们坚信，学生们在团队协作、应对突发状况的能力以及调查研究技能方面，已经在现实世界的应用中获得了宝贵的洞见。
written by
Cameron Huckabee, geography teacher